The Words List has come a long way in the last 5 years.
The Words List began around 2020. A small group in Daviess County, Indiana were learning Deitsh. The list was literally a PDF document with a list of words. They used it to help them keep track of newly added and common Pennsylvania Dutch words used by native speakers—but that did not appear in the dictionary.
But as more words were added each week, there needed to be a better way to make sure everyone had the most up-to-date list. So, the list was made into a single webpage in Notion.
Over the years, The Words List became a webpage hosted on a personal domain, then an “official” site with a proper domain (learn-dutch.org). Now it includes Pennsylvania Dutch language lesson guides (blog posts) and interactive worksheets in addition to the original Words List.
Version 5 New Features
The last year or so, it became clear there were more changes needed to make adding words to The Words List easier. There was a big backlog of words to add, but it took too long to add and maintain.
Therefore, version 5 was made. This involved importing the existing +800 Deitsh (Pennsylvania Dutch) words to a new database system. Instead of adding words by hand (and hand-coding HTML), a new form and template was created to help speed up the process and minimize mistakes and typos.
Goals for Version 5
Some goals that helped keep my focus:
- Make it easier and faster to add new words and example sentences
- Minimize the potential for mistakes and typos
- Label and mark words so it’s easier for search engines and AI to figure out which words are English and which are Pennsylvania Dutch
- Make text and word entries easier to read
- Help people find the words they’re looking for faster
- More consistent look
- Automatic ‘Newly Added Words’ list
Newest Features
Newly added Learn-Dutch.org features you may have missed.
Word Labels & Tags
More word types now have labels (nouns, pronouns, verbs, etc). You can now see how commonly each is used.
Easier to Read Word Entries
Clearer fonts and styles make each word clearer on all devices. Improved ‘card’ look makes it easier to see word groupings.
🍻 NEW: In-Page Word Search
Less scrolling. Start typing a word you’re looking for, and it will show only those word entries that match.
Help Search Engines & AI
Now Pennsylvania Dutch words are clearly marked as a different language than the English words. This is invisible to humans, but helps search engines and AI make sense of what’s on the page.
Instant Site Search
Find stuff faster! The new main search bar now shows search suggestions as you type so you can find what you’re looking for quicker.
New Look & Design Refresh
There’s a new logo and refreshed colors and design.
We’ve made many adjustments to make sure The Words List is easy to use on smaller screens.
What’s Next?
We have other ideas, features, and tools coming soon. Stay tuned…