Editing Standard German (section)

== Phonology ==
{{main|Standard German phonology}}
{{see also|Bühnendeutsch}}

While the three principal national varieties are recognized as three distinct standards, the differences are few, perhaps comparable to the difference between British and American English. The pronouncing dictionary of the Duden dictionary group<ref>{{Cite web |title=Duden-Aussprachewörterbuch |url=https://www.duden.de/hilfe/aussprache |access-date=9 September 2024}}</ref> codifies the standard pronunciation for German Standard German and allows for a small number of divergences; for example, the string "äh" has two authorized pronunciations, /ɛː/ and /eː/. Some regions see only the first as correct, and others use only the second; Duden now recognizes both as correct. Standardized High German pronunciation is generally used in radio and television as well as in German learning materials for non-natives and at least aspirationally by language teachers. The accent is documented in reference works such as ''Deutsches Aussprachewörterbuch'' (German Pronunciation Dictionary) by Eva-Maria Krech et al.,{{efn|On pages 1-2, ''Deutsches Aussprachewörterbuch'' discusses ''die Standardaussprache, die Gegenstand dieses Wörterbuches ist'' (the standard pronunciation which is the topic of this dictionary).  It also mentions ''Da sich das Deutsche zu einer plurizentrischen Sprache entwickelt hat, bildeten sich jeweils eigene Standardvarietäten (und damit Standardaussprachen)'' (German has developed into a pluricentric language separate standard varieties (and hence standard pronunciations)) but refers to the standards as ''regionale und soziolektale Varianten'' (regional and sociolectal variants).}} ''[[Duden]] 6 Das Aussprachewörterbuch'' (Duden volume 6, The Pronunciation Dictionary) by [[Max Mangold]] and the training materials at the ''[[Westdeutscher Rundfunk]]'' (West German Broadcasting) and ''[[Deutschlandfunk]]'' (Radio Germany). It is an invented accent, rather than one radiating from any particular German-speaking city. It is often said that the people of [[Hannover]] speak German with an accent that comes closest to the standard of the Duden dictionaries, but the claim is debatable, particularly since it may apply equally well to the rest of Northern Germany. {{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}