Bavarian (German: Bairisch [ˈbaɪ̯ʁɪʃ]; Austro-Bavarian: Boarisch [ˈbɔɑrɪʃ]), is a major group of Upper German varieties spoken in the southeast of the German language area, largely covered by Bavaria and Austria. It forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants.