Alemannen

Alemannen, a Germanic race, deriving from the Semnones. The Alemannen are first heard of in the 3rd c. ad, when they were resident on the upper Main. In the time of the migration of peoples (see Völkerwanderung) they moved south and east, into France, Switzerland, and Italy, finally settling in northern Switzerland and present-day Baden-Württemberg. In time the term Alemannen was limited to those inhabiting Switzerland. The inhabitants of Baden and Württemberg (Swabia), though of identical race, came to be known as Swabians (see Schwaben). The adjective ‘alemannisch’ occurs in literature in relation to dialect and also in a title, J. P. Hebel's Alemannische Gedichte.