Were Franks more Germanic or Celtic?

[kgnju]

Were Franks more Germanic(or should I say original Germanic) or more Celtic people when they invaded Gaul under King Clovis?Another question:did modern standard German language come from the ancient language of Franks,or Allemannii,or Bavarian,or Hessians?Thank you for your answer!

[Thusnelda]

I think the Franks were mostly Germanics, but they had some celtic influence for sure (since Celts have lived in Southern Germany until the Germanics came).

Modern standard German language descends from High German dialects (regions of Saxony, Allemanni, Bavaria...) . The Lower German dialects are not so similar to modern standard German, because they didnt made the consonant shift. The consonant shift (For example "Wasser" for "water"; "Schiff" for "Schip") is something of the High German dialects. And in modern standard German, the consonant shift is included.

But it´s not like that the standard German is 1:1 a High German dialect. It´s more a (theoretical) compromise between several dialects so that all can understand it. The standard German is a constructed language, while the several dialects are living languages.

I think there´re people here who can tell you even more about that!

[Kaiser]

Much of the old English language came from Plattdeutsch, an almost extinct language in the North of Germany where I lived also. Some examples of words:

Hot, Door, Sh*t, Cheese, Cold, Two.

These are some of the ones I remember that were the same as English.

I am sure someone here will fill you in better than I.

[Gundahar]

Were Franks more Germanic(or should I say original Germanic) or more Celtic people when they invaded Gaul under King Clovis?

The Franks were confederation of germanic tribes. They conquered the gallic provinces, which were inhabited by a celto-romanic population. The Franks were too few, to have an impact and so the native population changed them over the centuries to what they have become today: The French. A romanic people with celtic roots. Even their language is considered as romanic. The only thing germanic today within them is the name of their country and maybe some minor traces in their language.

Another question:did modern standard German language come from the ancient language of Franks,or Allemannii,or Bavarian,or Hessians?Thank you for your answer!

Yes, because the desecendants of these tribes, later became the duchies and counties of the Holy Roman Empire (later plus "of the german nation"), which was the predecessor of the german national state, to say it roughly.

[kgnju]

Thank you all for your answers!You really give me some light on those questions.

[Germaniathane]

Frankish people were a Germanic people by excellence. Their distant origins were most likely from Denmark. They are physically described as a very tall, fair-skinned, blond or light-haired with (grayish-) blue eyes, as are quite a few people in the Netherlands, Flanders, western Germany and usually northern France. The Dutch are also a very tall people.

[Catterick]

The Franks were Germanic and Franconian survives in the Low Countries. Its the Belgae who were ambiguous.

[Indo-European]

The Franks (or the ancestors of the Franks, as with all Germanic tribes) formed in the North (Scandinavia) before expanding South. So naturally they would be more Germanic. But I am sure they absorbed Celtic peoples as they expanded and came into contact with them, though I would still think of them as predominately Germanic.