Grand Dictation of the Dutch Language
Encyclopedia
The Grand Dictation of the Dutch Language
(Dutch: Groot Dictee der Nederlandse Taal) is a spelling test
organized by the Belgian newspaper De Morgen
, the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant
and the Dutch broadcaster NTR.
The Grand Dictation is held annually since 1991 in December and televised on Dutch and Dutch-language Belgian television
.
It takes place in the plenary hall of the First Chamber in The Hague
. Each year there are about sixty participants: forty from the Netherlands
and twenty from Belgium
. Half of each group consists of invited prominent figures and half of member of the public, selected from a qualifying round in De Morgen and de Volkskrant.
Since 2004, the text of the Dictation is written by prominent writers, including Jan Mulder
and Remco Campert
(2004), Herman Koch (2005), Martin Bril (2006), Jan Wolkers
(2007), Kristien Hemmerechts
(2008), Gerrit Komrij
(2009) and Tommy Wieringa
(2010).
The Dictation is presented and read by Dutch former anchorman Philip Freriks. Since 2005 Freriks presents jointly with Belgian anchorwoman Martine Tanghe.
The spelling rules
adhered to are those of the so-called Green Booklet
. For words not mentioned in the Green Booklet, the Van Dale dictionary applies.
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
(Dutch: Groot Dictee der Nederlandse Taal) is a spelling test
Dictation (exercise)
Dictation is the transcription of spoken text: one person who is "dictating" speaks and another who is "taking dictation" writes down the words as they are spoken.-La dictée:...
organized by the Belgian newspaper De Morgen
De Morgen
De Morgen is a Flemish newspaper with a circulation of 53,860. It originates from a merger in 1978 of two socialist newspapers Vooruit and Volksgazet ....
, the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant
De Volkskrant
de Volkskrant is a national daily Dutch morning newspaper, the leading centre-left broadsheet, although now in tabloid size.-History:...
and the Dutch broadcaster NTR.
The Grand Dictation is held annually since 1991 in December and televised on Dutch and Dutch-language Belgian television
Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep
The Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie , or VRT, is a publicly-funded broadcaster of radio and television in Flanders ....
.
It takes place in the plenary hall of the First Chamber in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
. Each year there are about sixty participants: forty from the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and twenty from Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. Half of each group consists of invited prominent figures and half of member of the public, selected from a qualifying round in De Morgen and de Volkskrant.
Since 2004, the text of the Dictation is written by prominent writers, including Jan Mulder
Jan Mulder
Jan Mulder is a Dutch politician and Member of the European Parliament for the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy , a member party of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe...
and Remco Campert
Remco Campert
Remco Campert is a Dutch author, poet and columnist.-Early years:Remco Wouter Campert was born in The Hague, son of writer and poet Jan Campert, author of the poem De achttien dooden, and actress Joekie Broedelet...
(2004), Herman Koch (2005), Martin Bril (2006), Jan Wolkers
Jan Wolkers
Jan Hendrik Wolkers was a Dutch author, sculptor and painter.Wolkers is considered one of the "Great Four" writers of post-World War II Dutch literature, along with Willem Frederik Hermans, Harry Mulisch and Gerard Reve...
(2007), Kristien Hemmerechts
Kristien Hemmerechts
Kristien Hemmerechts is a Belgian writer.-Life:Kristien Hemmerechts studied Germanic philology at the Katholieke Universiteit Brussel and the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven . Afterwards, she studied literary science in Amsterdam for a year. In Amsterdam she met her first husband—who was...
(2008), Gerrit Komrij
Gerrit Komrij
Gerrit Jan Komrij is a Dutch poet, novelist, translator, critic, polemic journalist and playwright. From 2000 to 2004 he was the Dutch Dichter des Vaderlands .-Biography:...
(2009) and Tommy Wieringa
Tommy Wieringa
Tommy Wieringa is a Dutch writer. He received the Ferdinand Bordewijk Prijs in 2006 for his novel Joe Speedboot.-Reference:* at the Digital library for Dutch literature...
(2010).
The Dictation is presented and read by Dutch former anchorman Philip Freriks. Since 2005 Freriks presents jointly with Belgian anchorwoman Martine Tanghe.
The spelling rules
Dutch orthography
Dutch orthography uses the Latin alphabet according to a system which has evolved to suit the needs of the Dutch language. The regular relationship of graphemes to phonemes is listed in the article on Dutch language...
adhered to are those of the so-called Green Booklet
Wordlist of the Dutch language
The Word list of the Dutch language is a list of words in the correct official spelling of the Dutch language . It is officially established by the Dutch Language Union , and is published in dictionary style. Because of the colour of its published form, it is better known as the Green Booklet...
. For words not mentioned in the Green Booklet, the Van Dale dictionary applies.