My east and West Prussia family spoke Plattdeutsch in addition to those from Hannover. Does this mean that their pre-Prussian roots were in nothern Germany or was Plattdeutsch or was this common all along the northern areas where German's settled. (I'm aware that I'm making little reference to history here as I refer to Germans and also refer to what is today's northern Germany as the northern Germans but I don't know how else to write this question.) Carol