Swiss German dialects are part of the Alemannic group, named after a federation of Germanic tribes around 1800 years ago. Alemania or Allemagne is the name for Germany in several languages.
We have been working with Voice Crafters since 2014. We value the quick turn around times and flexibility as well as the customer-centric attitude that matches our own. The wide selection of voice artists in different languages is a great resource for us.
Voice Crafters works with professional Swiss German voice actors, trained in producing broadcast-quality voice recordings for any project.
Whether you are working on:
or any other job, you’ll find the right narrator right here!
Post a project to hire and work directly with the voice talent you select, or have us manage your project from start to finish.
With years of experience in audio production and post-production, we can help with audio sync, adding SFX, mixing, mastering, and more!
If you need production music for your creative project, be sure to visit our royalty-free music site where you’ll find a huge selection of fresh and affordable music tracks!
Do you have any questions? Just drop us a line and we’ll help you bring your project to life!
Switzerland has four official languages: German, French, Italian, and Romansch. Its population makes up 8.5 million citizens, with 62.2% native German speakers.
In 17 of the country’s 26 ‘cantons’, German is the only official language. They’re located in the North, East, and Central regions. Many Swiss people are multilingual.
Swiss German may refer to several things:
Standard German is largely standard, including in written form. It’s taught in Swiss schools and is the default language of business and government. There are minor spelling variations and regional terminology differences. But German speakers from all countries can understand it.
Swiss German dialects are part of the Alemannic group, named after a federation of Germanic tribes around 1800 years ago. Alemania or Allemagne is the name for Germany in several languages.
The Swiss German dialect can only be understood by locals. When broadcast in Germany, it would need to be subtitled. It’s rarely seen in written form, other than informal communications like text messages. However, using a smattering of the local dialect reflects local pride and helps with emotional engagement. Depending on your content goals.
German is closely related to English, Dutch, and the Scandinavian languages. Swiss German is different from the dialects spoken in neighboring Austria and southern Germany. Instead, it belongs to the same family as southwestern Germany, like in Baden-Wurttemberg.
Swiss German has a high level of loanwords from French. For example, if you’d like an ice cream, you’d need to ask for a ‘Glace’ like the French, rather than ‘Eis’ like the Germans.
Röschtigraben is a humorous name for differences between the French and German-speaking regions. It literally means a moat or ditch of Röschti – a popular local potato dish.
Word choice trumps accent in Switzerland. Although there may be minor differences in pronunciation between canons, accents from mother-tongue speakers are reasonably similar across the country.
There are 21 local dialects, which all come under the Swiss German umbrella. They’re all mutually intelligible.
Translations from English into German can expand by up to 35%. German words tend to be longer than English ones, which means that the reading pace is around 20% slower.
German has a similar syllabic rate to English (which means that speakers of both languages can pronounce a similar number within a given time). However, due to the text length differences, we would recommend aiming for 120 words per minute. This is just an average though – always consider the information density and target audience for your content.