anybody working on the Low Countries?

[serenade]

Any gradcafe posters out there working on the Low Countries who wouldn't mind answering some questions I have about necessary language reading skills? 

[elinen]

I am (partly at least), send me a message! 

[dr. t]

I am, or thereabouts.

[serenade]

Ah, nice to hear. Not sure if either of you are working in the early modern era, but even if not, any general advice would be appreciated. Regarding language skills, obviously learning Dutch is a given, as would be learning French, I assume. My questions are fairly broad and highly relative to specific periods and regions within the LC, but (1) How would you compare learning Dutch (from scratch) in terms of difficulty as compared to say, German or French?; (2) I know this depends on era and topic, but are most of the primary sources you read for the Low Countries in Dutch? Or French? (the latter, I assume, the language of the courts and administration and the former the language at the popular level?); (3) For any working in the pre-modern Low Countries, how difficult is reading handwritten late medieval/early modern Dutch paleography in comparison to modern Dutch?; (4) Finally, again, I know this is relative, but what language is most secondary scholarship on the LC published in? English? Dutch? French? 

[dr. t]

(1) I don't need spoken Dutch (honestly most people who speak Dutch also speak something else), but I can muddle through any given Dutch text with my German and Google Translate.

(2) No, most of what I have is in Latin or Old French, but I do know that if I were to move into the 14th century, most of my primary sources would be in Dutch, ie. the writings of female mystics.

(3) It's certainly a skill you will have to acquire and practice.

(4) I'd say French and German, but there is a strong American interest in the region, so there's a good deal of English stuff.

 

 

[elinen]

15 hours ago, serenade said:

Ah, nice to hear. Not sure if either of you are working in the early modern era, but even if not, any general advice would be appreciated. Regarding language skills, obviously learning Dutch is a given, as would be learning French, I assume. My questions are fairly broad and highly relative to specific periods and regions within the LC, but (1) How would you compare learning Dutch (from scratch) in terms of difficulty as compared to say, German or French?; (2) I know this depends on era and topic, but are most of the primary sources you read for the Low Countries in Dutch? Or French? (the latter, I assume, the language of the courts and administration and the former the language at the popular level?); (3) For any working in the pre-modern Low Countries, how difficult is reading handwritten late medieval/early modern Dutch paleography in comparison to modern Dutch?; (4) Finally, again, I know this is relative, but what language is most secondary scholarship on the LC published in? English? Dutch? French? 

(1) Dutch is my native language so I don't know how difficult it is to learn, it's quite similar to German so If you speak German it wouldn't be too hard

(2) the sources (20th century) I use are all in Dutch (some stuff in French/English). I think from the 15th century on most material is in Dutch (as telkanaru said)

(3) I'm not sure how difficult this is since I'm mostly doing 20th century history 

(4) the Low Countries Historical Journal is in Dutch and English, the languages most Dutch academics use and speak. Generally speaking, I think most secondary scholarship on the Low Countries is published in Dutch/English, but German/French material can be useful as well