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**ursus arctos** · 22-01-2016, 20:26

The beauty of the German language

This is undoubtedly true, and I think is grounded in the incredible facility that German has for compound words.

It allows anyone with interest to create new coinages, and allows the most successful (like Wutb�rger) to flourish.

**Rogin the Armchair fan** · 22-01-2016, 20:40

The beauty of the German language

I love the German word for those tattoos that were the rage among young women a few years ago, that began on the base of the spine and spread up and across the lower back, usually symetrically. Arschantlers, I think it was spelt.

**Evariste Euler Gauss** · 22-01-2016, 20:42

The beauty of the German language

I mainly agree with that. Love the language and had huge fun with it both at uni and when living and working in Berlin and Hamburg.

But sometimes the ubiquitous compound noun approach gets out of hand. "Hand shoe" and "tree wool" are comical, and "breast wart" is bizarrely unappealing.

I once had to get a sick note from the doctor. They call it a "workincapabilitycertificate" or "Arbeitsunfaehigkeitsbescheinigung".

**G-Man** · 22-01-2016, 20:43

The beauty of the German language

Arschgeweihe. Indeed, arse-antlers.

**ursus arctos** · 22-01-2016, 20:45

The beauty of the German language

There is no positive aspect of the German language that its bureaucrats cannot ruin.

**Evariste Euler Gauss** · 22-01-2016, 20:49

The beauty of the German language

Some German compounds are so good we've just adopted them without translating them: schadenfreuede, kindergarten, zugzwang, wanderlust and so on.

**Stumpy Pepys** · 22-01-2016, 20:53

The beauty of the German language

ursus arctos wrote: There is no positive aspect of the German language that its bureaucrats cannot ruin.

Is that true though? I work for a software firm in Germany where Denglish is endemic.

It's not comparable to France, for instance, where armies of linguists in underground bunkers strive to form French words to substitute for their viral equivalents.

**3 Colours Red** · 22-01-2016, 22:09

The beauty of the German language

Oh yes, l'acad�mie fran�aise...

While the OED and similar bodies embrace the fluidity and adaptability of English, there's L'AF (an abbreviation I'm sure they wouldn't like so I'm going to use it) being all King Canute trying to hold back the tide.

Usage should always be the arbiter, surely.

**ursus arctos** · 22-01-2016, 22:11

The beauty of the German language

I was thinking of usages like Arbeitsunfaehigkeitsbescheinigung.

It isn't a futile state-supported attempt to turn the linguistic clock back to the 18th century as in France, but rather just a tendency to coin words that strike me as ugly.

**Alderman Barnes** · 22-01-2016, 22:26

The beauty of the German language

Give me Beh�rdendeutsch over Denglisch any day. The bureaucratic language was the bane of my life for a long time until it suddenly clicked and I got the hang of it. The thing about it is that it's precise. It might be the most obscure legal or technical concept, but with a bit of experience you can figure out exactly what's meant. I've learned to like it.

Denglisch on the other hand is the language of bullshitters. Management speak, where people make it up as they go along and chuck in a few mangled English words or phrases to make themselves sound clever and put people off the scent. Imprecise thinking.

I make a living out of translating and I'd much rather have a text where all the words have forty letters and you have to find the verb like a needle in a haystack than some bollocks that's half in English and can't go more than three words without. A. Full. Stop. Like. Fucking. Clarkson.

That's because if you look hard enough, in the former you can at least figure out exactly what they mean and then put it into language that human beings will understand. With the latter, it's just shit thrown at a wall by fucking chimpanzees. To make matters worse, these thick, braying cunts are almost certainly twenty years younger than you, get paid better and are your direct superiors in the company.

The compound nouns are indeed great, though. I think I've mentioned it before, but my favourite is Sitzriese (seat-giant), which is someone of normal height but with short legs and a long body who invariably sits in front of you at the pictures.

**Alderman Barnes** · 22-01-2016, 22:32

The beauty of the German language

ursus arctos wrote: I was thinking of usages like Arbeitsunfaehigkeitsbescheinigung.

Well there you go. It's long, but it does exactly what it says on the tin. It's a certificate that says you're unable to work. Bosh.

Erm, hang on, Bosch, or indeed Boche.

And anyway, everyone calls it a Krankenschein.

**treibeis** · 22-01-2016, 23:51

The beauty of the German language

[quote]Alderman Barnes post=1159292Denglisch on the other hand is the language of bullshitters. Management speak, where people make it up as they go along and chuck in a few mangled English words or phrases to make themselves sound clever and put people off the scent. Imprecise thinking.[/quote wrote:
Absolutely right.

"treibeis, kannst du das ein bisschen leveln?"
"I'm sorry, but I don't know what you mean."
"But level's an English word!"

Originally posted by Alderman Barnes post=1159292

That's because if you look hard enough, in the former you can at least figure out exactly what they mean and then put it into language that human beings will understand. With the latter, it's just shit thrown at a wall by fucking chimpanzees. To make matters worse, these thick, braying cunts are almost certainly twenty years younger than you, get paid better and are your direct superiors in the company

Absolutely right.

Somebody commented on that with a German word I didn't know: Wutb�rger.

Not to be confused with the B�rger in Wut, of course.

**Calvert** · 23-01-2016, 00:38

The beauty of the German language

I love Deutsch, me.
Those compound words are fucking hilarious. I bought a beginner's book a while back. Not making much headway, though.
For me it's another good reason to hate my Catholic education. You had to put in order the language you wanted to study for 'O' Level after First Year.
I put 1 German
2 Spanish
3 Italian
4 Latin.

The cunts made me do Latin. No say at all in the matter. Four fucking years of Ecce Bastard Romani with fucking Flavius et cunting Sextus.
Scum
Subhuman scum.

**linus** · 23-01-2016, 04:21

The beauty of the German language

I wish I was forced to do just that after switching from Catholic school to public, one year of latin is barely scratching the surface. You can never learn enough languages, dead or alive. Latin in France is a dying dead language today.

G-Man wrote:
The German language is full of great nouns like that. Kopfkino is another superb one. It means "Cinema in the head", and refers to unwelcome mental images. You just say "Kopfkino" by way of gentle reprimand when somebody puts such unwelcome images in your head.

My German being barely serviceable, I had thought that Kopfkino designated high-brow cinema, as opposed to mental imagery.

Here is the American version of Wutb�rger:

**ad hoc** · 23-01-2016, 05:50

The beauty of the German language

I read recently of a German word that means (as far as I recall) "House (or other structure) that is built purely to piss off the neighbours". Obviously I have no idea what the word is but i did think that was an enjoyable, if somewhat niche, word

**garcia** · 23-01-2016, 08:14

The beauty of the German language

wutb�rger is amazing. you just can't say things like "rage-citizen" in english.

**Anton Gramscescu** · 23-01-2016, 09:40

The beauty of the German language

White Van Man is pretty close though, no?

**Anton Gramscescu** · 23-01-2016, 09:47

The beauty of the German language

A couple of good German words in this list though I don't vouch for the accuracy of the translation:

Fernweh - homesick for a place you have never been to.

Backpfeiefengeshicht - A face badly in need of a fist.

**ad hoc** · 23-01-2016, 09:57

The beauty of the German language

Anton Gramscescu wrote: White Van Man is pretty close though, no?

The way I read it in the OP it would be closer to "Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells"

**ad hoc** · 23-01-2016, 10:00

The beauty of the German language

Anton Gramscescu wrote: A couple of good German words in this list though I don't vouch for the accuracy of the translation:

Fernweh - homesick for a place you have never been to.

Backpfeiefengeshicht - A face badly in need of a fist.

There's a direct translation of "Friolero" in English even though the list is titled untranslatable (it's Nesh)

**Evariste Euler Gauss** · 23-01-2016, 11:22

The beauty of the German language

I read recently of a German word that means (as far as I recall) "House (or other structure) that is built purely to piss off the neighbours". Obviously I have no idea what the word is but i did think that was an enjoyable, if somewhat niche, word

A bit like one of these perhaps? ;-)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spite_house

(Just joshing: I'd actually never heard that English language expression myself until I got a FB feed post about the topic a week or so ago, but it does seem from that Wiki piece to be a very long-standing coinage at least in the US.)

**Duncan Gardner** · 23-01-2016, 11:30

The beauty of the German language

Is there a German translation for antidisestablishmentarianism?

**Calvert** · 23-01-2016, 12:24

The beauty of the German language

I wish I was forced to do just that after switching from Catholic school to public, one year of latin is barely scratching the surface. You can never learn enough languages, dead or alive. Latin in France is a dying dead language today.

Get a grip, linus.
It's absolute shite. Unrelenting utter shite, and as much use as Anne Frank's drumkit.
The exam at the end of it entailed translating the fucking Iliad.
At least 'please can you tell me where the autobahn is?' or 'do you have any hobbies' may have come in useful on German tours.

**G-Man** · 23-01-2016, 12:32

The beauty of the German language

ad hoc wrote:

Originally posted by Anton Gramscescu

White Van Man is pretty close though, no?

The way I read it in the OP it would be closer to "Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells"

Yes, I think that's a pretty good comparison.

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The beauty of the German language

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