Originally published in 1872 by the Reformed Church Publication Board in Philadelphia, PA, this historically significant reprint gives a brief but thorough explication of Pennsylvania Dutch--a German dialect spoken in the Pennsylvania towns of Easton, Reading, Allentown, Harrisburg, Lebanon, Lancaster, and York. Out of print for many years, the work represents one of the earliest scientific treatments of the Pennsylvania German dialect and offers a snapshot of the language as it existed in the 19th century.

Included in the volume is a history of how a dialect of German came to be spoken in Pennsylvania, the phonology of the dialect, a vocabulary of peculiar words, syntax, and comparisons to other German dialects. Also included are several pages of PA Dutch phrases and sentences, examples of PA Dutch words adopted into English, and samples of "broken" English spoken by the PA Dutch.