Archive by Author
Untranslatable German Words: Rabeneltern Posted by Constanze on Sep 3, 2015
Guten Tag! Welcome to another edition of German untranslatable words, dedicated to teaching you quirky German words, their meanings, and how to use them! Today the word is die Rabeneltern. What does Rabeneltern literally translate to? The German compound noun Rabeneltern is made up of the words der Rabe (raven) + die Eltern (parents)…
Untranslatable German Words: Arschgeweih Posted by Constanze on Aug 29, 2015
Guten Tag! Welcome to another edition of German untranslatable words, dedicated to teaching you quirky German words, their meanings, and how to use them! Today the word is das Arschgeweih. What does Arschgeweih literally translate to? This German compound noun is made up of the words der Arsch (butt/ass/arse) + das Geweih (antlers). Its literal…
Reading Pennsylvania German Posted by Constanze on Aug 19, 2015
With any language, being aware of its different dialects and variations is just as important (and interesting!) as learning the standard language. Recently I did a post on Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch (Pennsylvania German) and how it has developed from standard German. In that post, I focused on key words, and gave you two videos of people…
The Power of German Traffic Lights Posted by Constanze on Aug 17, 2015
Who knew a pedestrian crossing could have such an impact? Yet that’s exactly what the Ampelmann (also sometimes called by its more endearing term, Ampelmännchen) has been doing in Germany and Austria over the years! A LITTLE BACKGROUND The fascination with pedestrian crossings in Germany started with the famous Ost-Ampelmännchen, which was born in Berlin…
Rumspringa With Pennsylvania German Posted by Constanze on Aug 5, 2015
It was some years ago when watching a documentary on Amish teenagers that I heard the word Rumspringa for the first time. But that sounds like a Bavarian word!, I thought. At this time I knew nothing about the Amish, let alone their German roots. Everyone knows that German is spoken in Germany and Austria…
Untranslatable German Words: der Kulturbeutel Posted by Constanze on Jul 31, 2015
Guten Tag! Welcome to another edition of German untranslatable words, dedicated to teaching you quirky German words, their meanings, and how to use them! Today the word is der Kulturbeutel. What does Kulturbeutel literally translate to? This German compound noun is made up of the words die Kultur (culture) + der Beutel (bag/pouch). Its literal…
Refugees Welcome? Germany’s Reactions Posted by Constanze on Jul 24, 2015
Hallo! Wie geht’s? 🙂 In März I wrote this post on PEGIDA and the German word Überfremdung (‘over-foreignisation’). Since that time, the topic of immigration in Germany has been making headline news – mostly due to the refugees coming to live in Germany. According to the interior minister, Germany is expected to receive a record…