Tyrolean made easy: lesson 1

It may not sound like it, but we speak German in Tyrol. Well, Tyrolean, to be precise.

Have you ever stayed at one of the hotels in te Austrian Alps? Then you’ll certainly know that our German sounds a little bit different. Tyrolean dialect isn’t exactly easy to understand, but with a little help, you’ll soon be a real pro. Promise!

Greeting
We greet acquaintances with a cordial “Grias-di”. All others with a more distant, but equally cordial “Grias-eich” or the universally known “Grüß Gott”. For close friends, we like to use “Servus”.

Farewell
“Piat-di” if we are on first-name terms; “Piat-eich” if we are on more formal terms.

People
“Poppele” is a baby.
“Madl” means “girl”. But we also like to use it as a general term for women. Just like the word “Diandl”.
The male equivalent is “Bua” (or in English: “Boy/Man”).

So that you can use these expressions in a conversation here in Tyrol, here is a small example:
Alexander: Grias-eich! (Hello!)
Marion: Jo, grias-eich, Alexander! Und wer is denn des liabe^* Madl? (Oh, hello, Alexander! And who is that sweet little girl?)
Alexander: Di Nina, mei Tochta. (Nina, my daughter.)

* liab = sweet, cute