Häuslein in SHG, a Haisle in Swabian. In some regions, "-la" for plural is used. (For example, Haisle may become Haisla, Spätzle becomes Spätzla.) Many surnames in Swabia are also made to end in "-le". Articles (SHG: der, die, das) are often pronounced as "dr", "d" and "s" ("s Haus" instead of "das Haus"). The "ch" is sometimes omitted or replaced. "ich", "dich" and "mich" may become "i", "di" and "mi". Vowels: In many regions, the Swabian dialect is spoken with a unique intonation that is also present when native speakers speak in SHG. Similarly, there is only one alveolar fricative phoneme , which is shared with most other southern dialects. Most Swabian-speakers are unaware of the difference between and and do not attempt to make it when they speak Standard German. The voiced plosives, the post-alveolar fricative, and the frequent use of diminutives based on "l" suffixes gives the dialect a very "soft" or "mild" feel, often felt to be in sharp contrast to the harder varieties of German spoken in the North. Phonology Consonants Voiceless plosives are frequently aspirated as . Voiced consonants can be devoiced as after a voiceless consonant. Allophones of // are often a pharyngeal or velar sound, or lowered to an approximant [] [] []. [] occurs as an intervocalic allophone of /, /. Vowels // preceding a nasal consonant may be pronounced as []. When // is lengthened, before a nasal consonant, realized as []. // preceding an // can be pronounced as []. Classification and variation Swabian is categorized as an Alemannic dialect, which in turn is one of the two types of Upper German dialects (the other being Bavarian). The Swabian dialect is composed of numerous sub-dialects, each of which has its own variations. These sub-dialects can be categorized by the difference in the formation of the past participle of 'sein' (to be) into gwäa and gsei. The Gsei group is nearer to other Alemannic dialects, such as Swiss German. It can be divided into South-East Swabian, West Swabian and Central Swabian. Danube Swabian dialects The Danube Swabians from Hungary, Romania, and former Yugoslavia have been speaking several different Swabian dialects, called locally Schwowisch, some being similar to the original Swabian dialect, but also the Bavarian dialect, mostly with Palatine and Hesse mixed dialects. In this regard, the Banat Swabians speak the Banat Swabian dialect. Recognition in mass media The Baden-Württemberg