German language in the United States

Before the World War I, more than 6 percent of American schoolchildren were receiving their primary education only in the German language. Also, more than 45 million Americans declare to have German ancestors. Although, only 1.5 million speak that language in the present time. The Amish speak a dialect of German known as Pennsylvania Dutch. A myth holds that German was to be the official language of the US, replacing English to sever ties with Great Britain, but this is inaccurate. It is based on a failed early attempt to have government documents translated into German. [1]