The subtitle ‘From here’ is like coming home to your own dialect

‘Flat and old-fashioned’, these adjectives are used very often when talking about regional languages. “It’s far from the old style,” Hein Augustijn denies. “When I sing, people hear something of themselves in it. They have a connection to the place and the language. It’s really nice when you hear in words and voice where someone is from? In our case: where was someone’s guitar.”

By ‘us’ Augustijn means the singers who contributed to the ‘Van hier’ mini-image. Everyone sings a verse in their local language. Hein Augustijn and Gerard van Maasakkers are responsible for Brabant. Hans Keuper sings in Achterhoek, Leon Moorman in Drents and Jelske Wilmer in Limburgish. They also explain in the article why they still sing in their local language and why that is important to them.

Different regional languages ​​give each house a different sound. “Hans Keuper is a dignified singer in the Achterhoek. We almost had to quote him. Even a real Achterhoeker must struggle to understand it. But it seems like coming home.”

“The regional language is soft and sings well. All regional languages ​​are different. Low Saxon cannot be compared to Brabant,” Augustijn says. “They’re all dialects of Dutch, so it’s not too difficult.”

Regional languages ​​are on the rise, says Augustijn. “Especially in this day and age. Everything is moving fast and everyone is connected. It’s become a small world. People need more homes. There are only a few from here.”

Back to the main theme of the mini-documentary, which was made by filmmaker Martijn Kuijten. Augustijn: “It all started with the writing of ‘From here’. It’s about where I grew up in De Kempen. The song doesn’t have to be rude or written with pride. It’s more like: ‘Here I feel at home’. That applies to everyone. If I want to to say something good, it is better to say it in your own language.