Fieldwork

Due to travel restrictions we couldn't conduct any fieldwork during the first one and a half year of the project. Thanks to a National Interest Exception granted by the US embassy we finally could travel to the US in summer 2021. Travelling with Guido Seiler and Anja Hasse were also Elvira Glaser and Coralie Aschwanden. We had nearly two weeks to collect data of Amish and ex-Amish speakers in Adams County, IN, and of Mennonite speakers in Wayne County, OH. The ten interviews with Amish Shwitzer and the nine interviews with Mennonite speakers allow for direct comparisons between a rather archaic variety of Shwitzer and the very innovative variety spoken by the Amish.