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Native speakers About half the population of Drenthe (total 480,000) and a number of people in Overijssel (date missing) Language family Indo-EuropeanGermanicWest GermanicLow SaxonDutch Low SaxonDrents Regulated by Provincial States of Drenthe (spelling) | ||
Drèents (also Dreins, Dreints, Drents, Drints; Dutch: Drents) is a collective term for the dialects spoken in Drenthe, a province of the Netherlands. The dialects, which are still spoken by half the population of Drenthe, are Dutch Low Saxon variants.
Dialects of Drèents
All the dialects of the province of Drenthe are classified as Dutch Low Saxon. The dialects from the north and the east (see below: 'Noordenvelds' and 'Veenkoloniaals') are somehow more related to Gronings, the dialects from the south-west are 'Stellingwerfs', and the dialects in a few villages along the southern border with the Grafschaft Bentheim (Germany) are considered to be Sallaans (because they have an umlaut in the diminutives).
The foundation Stichting Drentse Taol distinguishes seven main variants of Drèents within the province, based upon the research made by G.H. Kocks, the main editor of the Woordenboek der Drentse Dialecten (Dictionary of the Drèents Dialects):
It also can be divided into Midden-Drents and Zuid-Drents.