Dialect contest

Dialect contest , dialect poetry contest , dialect competition are or similar literary competitions called that take place in those regions of Germany where - especially in the colloquial and everyday language - even dialect is spoken, and which are held in each dialect.

overview

The tender takes place regularly, e.g. B. annually, partly through local authorities, partly through schools or adult education centers, partly through literary or cultural associations, insofar as they are committed to maintaining and maintaining the dialect.

In the beginning, such competitions had an image that was often characterized as “Weck-Wurst-Wein” , because a more or less strong folk tinkering with a penchant for Knittel verse and hand-made speeches was unmistakable. In the meantime, however, topics and forms can stand up to any comparison with high-level literature competitions.

As a rule, the competitions deal with the genre of poetry , some also with prose . In recent times, drama or scenic representations have been added in isolated cases .

As poetry and prose usually attract considerable interest from applicants, the jury often makes a pre-selection from the written applications in these categories . The remaining candidates then compete against each other in a final round in which they have to present their works orally to the jury and the audience. The winners receive cash or material prizes.

Regions

Palatinate

In the Rhineland-Palatinate region Pfalz four competitions are held regularly. The Palatinate dialect poet contest , which has been held every year since 1953 in Bockenheim an der Weinstrasse , looks back on the longest tradition . The three other major events in the Palatinate are the Dannstadter Höhe dialect competition (since 1988), which now has the highest level of participation, the Gonbach dialect poet competition (since 1984) and the Sickinger dialect poet competition (since 1991).