Limburgish language

This page covers the Limburgish language, spoken in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Limburgian (Limburgs)
Spoken in:	Netherlands Belgium a small part of Germany
Region:	Limburg
Total speakers:	1,600,000 (est.)
Ranking:	Not in top 100
Genetic classification:	Indo-European  Germanic   West Germanic    Rhinelandic     Limburgish
Official status
Recognised language in:	Not official in Belgium and theNetherlands
Regulated by:	--
Language codes
ISO 639-1	LI
ISO 639-2	LIM
SIL	LMP

Limburgian (Dutch: Limburgs, German: Limburgisch) is a group of Franconian varieties, spoken in the Limburg and Selfkant regions, near the common Dutch/Flemish(Belgium)/German border. Limburgian is recognised as a regional language (streektaal) in the Netherlands and as such it receives moderate protection under chapter 2 of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

Limburgian is spoken by approximately 1,600,000 people. The varieties spoken on Flanders(Belgium) territory are more influenced by French than those spoken on Dutch and German soil.

Limburgian is, unlike most other Germanic languages, a tone language (it has two tones).