Walk into a hardware store in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, or a small grocery in Holmes County, Ohio, and you’ll hear it. It sounds familiar, yet totally foreign. It has the guttural "ch" of German, the rhythmic lilt of a rural dialect, and—every few sentences—a perfectly clear English word like "refrigerator" or "carburetor" thrown in. Most people call it Pennsylvania Dutch. But if you’re asking about the language Amish speak, the answer is actually a lot more complex than a simple label.
It isn't Dutch. Not even close.
The "Dutch" in Pennsylvania Dutch is a corruption of Deitsch, the word for German. It’s a linguistic fossil that has survived for over 300 years in the United States, isolated from the shifts of modern Europe. While most of us think of the Amish as people who simply "don't use electricity," their most defining cultural boundary isn't a lack of power lines. It’s the language.
Pennsylvania Deitsch: The Heart of the Community
When you look at the language Amish speak in their homes, you’re looking at Pennsylvania German. This is a High German dialect. It’s rooted specifically in the Palatinate region of what is now Southwest Germany. In the 1700s, these immigrants fled religious persecution, bringing their Rhine River valley accents to the American colonies.
They stayed put.
Because the Amish live in tight-knit, endogamous communities, the language didn't fade away like it did for the millions of other German immigrants who arrived in the 19th century. Instead, it evolved in a vacuum. It’s a living thing. It’s vibrant.
Pennsylvania Deitsch is primarily an oral language. You won’t see many books written in it, and you certainly won't see it on a standardized test. For an Amish child, this is their first language. They don’t learn English until they hit the schoolhouse at age six. Think about that for a second. In the middle of America, there are tens of thousands of kids who can't speak a word of English until they start first grade.
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The Three-Language Trap
The Amish don't just speak one language. They actually navigate a sophisticated "trilingual" existence. It’s not just about the language Amish speak at the dinner table; it’s about what they use in the pews and what they use at the market.
First, there’s the dialect. Pennsylvania German. This is for family, friends, and the farm. It’s warm. It’s informal.
Then, there’s Hochdeutsch—High German. This is the "Luther Bible" German. It’s what you’ll hear during a three-hour Sunday church service. Most Amish can read it and understand it, but they can’t really "speak" it in a conversational way. It’s a liturgical language, reserved for the sacred. It’s formal and stiff.
Finally, there’s English. The Amish call us "English" because we speak it, but they speak it too. They have to. You can’t run a successful construction business or a quilt shop without being fluent in the language of the "outside world." Their English often carries a distinct "Dutchy" accent—vowels are a bit flatter, and the syntax sometimes gets scrambled. You might hear someone say, "Throw the cow over the fence some hay," which is a literal translation of German word order.
Why Pennsylvania German Isn't Dying Out
Linguists like Mark Louden, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and perhaps the leading expert on the dialect, have noted something fascinating. Most minority languages in the U.S. disappear by the third generation. The grandkids of Italian immigrants usually don't speak Italian. But the Amish are different.
The population is exploding.
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Because the Amish have large families and a high retention rate—somewhere around 85% of youth choose to be baptized into the church—the language Amish speak is actually one of the few minority languages in the world that is growing. It isn't just surviving; it’s thriving.
In places like Shipshewana, Indiana, or the newer settlements in New York and even South America, the dialect is the primary marker of "who is us and who is them." It’s a protective barrier. If you can’t speak the Deitsch, you can’t fully participate in the community.
The Weird Influence of English
Language doesn't live in a bubble. Even the most conservative Old Order Amish groups can't escape the influence of American culture entirely. This has created a "loanword" phenomenon that is honestly pretty funny to hear.
If there wasn't a word for "chainsaw" or "computer" in 18th-century German, the Amish simply "Deitsch-ify" the English word. They’ll take an English verb and conjugate it using German grammar rules. It’s a hybrid. It’s messy. It’s practical.
Take the word for "shopping." An Amish person might say shoppe. They’ve taken the English root and tucked it into their own linguistic structure. It’s why a native speaker from Berlin would have a very hard time understanding an Amish farmer in Kentucky. The farmer is using 300-year-old grammar mixed with 2026 American nouns.
Common Misconceptions About the Language
People often think the Amish are trying to be "mysterious" by speaking another language. Honestly? They’re just being efficient. It’s the language of their soul.
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- Is it Dutch? No. Again, it’s German (Deutsch).
- Is it written down? Rarely. While there are Pennsylvania German newspapers like Hiwwe wie Driwwe, most Amish people have never seen their native tongue in print.
- Do all Amish speak it? Most do. However, some Beachy Amish or more progressive Mennonite groups have shifted almost entirely to English.
- Can Germans understand it? Sort of. It’s like a speaker of broad Jamaican Patois trying to talk to someone from downtown London. They’ll get the gist, but the nuances will be a total disaster.
The Swiss Amish—who live mostly in Adams County, Indiana—actually speak a completely different dialect. They speak Shwitzer. It’s an Alemannic dialect closer to Bernese German. If a Pennsylvania Dutch speaker met a Swiss Amish speaker, they would struggle to understand each other. It’s a linguistic divide within an already small community.
How the Language Shapes Their Worldview
Language isn't just words; it’s a way of thinking. Pennsylvania German is a "low" language in the linguistic sense—not because it’s inferior, but because it lacks a complex vocabulary for abstract philosophy or high-tech science. It is a language of the earth. It’s built for describing the health of a horse, the quality of a harvest, or the needs of a neighbor.
When the Amish speak English, they are often switching gears mentally. English is the language of business, law, and "the world." Deitsch is the language of Gelassenheit—the concept of yieldedness and humility.
You can't really understand the Amish without acknowledging that they live in a different verbal reality. Their refusal to adopt modern technology is mirrored by their refusal to adopt a modern tongue. Both are intentional choices designed to keep the community together and the world at arm's length.
What You Can Do Next
If you’re interested in hearing the language Amish speak or learning more about the culture, you have to be respectful. This isn't a museum exhibit.
- Visit a "Mud Sale." These are massive outdoor auctions in Pennsylvania held to benefit local fire departments. You’ll hear the dialect spoken fluently among the bidders. It’s the best way to hear the language in its natural, chaotic element.
- Read Mark Louden’s Work. If you want the "expert" deep dive, his book Pennsylvania Dutch: The Story of an American Language is the definitive source. It’s rigorous but readable.
- Support Local Amish Businesses. When you buy produce or furniture, notice the way the sellers interact with each other versus how they interact with you. You are witnessing a "code-switch" that has been happening for three centuries.
- Listen for the "Sing-Song." Even when an Amish person speaks English, pay attention to the cadence. The "melody" of Pennsylvania German often remains, giving you a hint of the linguistic structure beneath the surface.
The language of the Amish is a reminder that culture is a choice. Every time an Amish parent speaks to their child in Deitsch, they are making a quiet, radical statement about who they are and where they belong. It’s a 300-year-old conversation that shows no signs of stopping.