GermanPod101.com Blog

Young children attend a Kindergarten (children’s garden). Gesundheit doesn’t really mean “bless you,” it means “health” — the good variety being implied. Psychiatrists speak of Angst (fear) and Gestalt (form) psychology, and when something is broken, it’s kaputt. Although not every English-speaker knows that Fahrvergnügen is “driving pleasure,” most do know that Volkswagen means “people’s car.” Musical works can have a Leitmotiv. Our cultural view of the world is called a Weltanschauung by historians or philosophers. Such terms are commonly understood by most well-read English-speakers. More English words borrowed from German: (Notice how many have to do with food!) - blitz, blitzkrieg, cobalt, dachshund, delicatessen, ersatz,... Show more

Reflecting the history of the area in which it is spoken, German is a language of great regional diversity. The area we now call Austria, Germany, and Switzerland was once a bewildering jungle of separate kingdoms, principalities and duchies. So too, the German language; even today it remains a jumble of dialects and linguistic variations stretching from the Danish border to northern Italy (the region of Südtirol in German or Alto Adige in Italian). Even though the driving distance between them is only 365 miles, the German spoken by a Berliner is worlds apart from the German spoken by a Bavarian in Munich. Swiss German, Schwyzerdütsch, is Chinese to the ears of someone from Düsseldorf. The regional dialects of Austria, a country no... Show more

If you only know a few words of German, having the ability to be polite will make those few words go a lot farther because people will appreciate your effort to be courteous and respectful in their language. Below you'll find a collection of common, everyday German greetings (Grüße) and courtesies (Nettigkeiten). Be aware that German makes a clear distinction between formal and familiar forms of expression (Sie = formal form and du / first name = familiar form). Phrases marked "familiar" or "casual" should only be used in informal, first-name situations. Everyday Pleasantries Guten Tag!  / Tag! --> Hello! / Hi! Grüß Gott! --> Hello! (southern Germany & Austria) Grüß dich! --> Hello! (familiar, informal) Guten Morgen!... Show more

“Say thank you!" is what your parents always reminded you to say. While you may were annoyed by it as a child, today it happens many times in life that you wish to thank someone, appreciate someone's gift or express your gratitude towards someone. To say "thank you" in German, the simple word Danke will do the job. However, as in English, there are many variations and styles of expressing thanks in German. Here is a look at ten ways to say "thank you" - plus some related German words and expressions for expressing your gratitude. 1. Danke! - Thanks! Thank you. Note: If you say "Danke!" in response to an offer, it may be understood as "no thanks." To say "thanks, yes" use "Bitte!" (please). 2. Danke schön! - Thank you! Hear it! ... Show more

When you learn a language it is certainly of interest to know where it is spoken. The chart below shows where in the world German is spoken and how many people speak it. German is the Dominant Language in - Germany - 82.7 million - Austria - 8.1 million - Switzerland - 4.6 million (The rest of Switzerland's 7.2 million citizens speak French, Italian and Romansh) - Liechtenstein - 32,000 German has Official Status in - Luxembourg - 400,000 - Italy (Bolzano/Südtirol) - 200,000 - Belgium - 70,000 German is Regional/Minority Language in - Former Soviet Union - 1.9 million - France (Alsatian) - 1.5 million - Poland (Silesia) - 500,000 (400,000) - Romania - 150,000 - Hungary - 62,000 - Czech Republic - 50,000 - Denmark -... Show more

Except for the national holiday (German Unity Day), public holidays in Germany (gesetzliche Feiertage) are determined by the federal states and can thereby vary or not considered as holidays at all on some states. The most important public holidays are: Public Holiday Local name Date New Year's Day Neujahrstag January 1 Epiphany Heilige Drei Könige January 6 Shrove Monday Rosenmontag Date depends on Easter Good Friday Karfreitag Easter Sunday - 2d Easter Sunday Ostersonntag Easter Sunday (varies from year to year) Easter Monday Ostermontag Easter Sunday + 1d Labour Day Tag der Arbeit May... Show more

Learning a new language has a lot to do with learning to make mistakes. And what is the point of making mistakes? Right, to learn out of them! When learning German there are unfortunately many more mistakes you can make than the ten we listed below. However, we want to concentrate on the top ten kinds of mistakes that beginning learners of German are likely to make: 1. Grammatical Gender: It's not always easy to tell the gender of German nouns since every noun in German is either der, die, or das, you need to learn each noun with its gender. 2. 'Sie' and 'Du' - 'You' in German: Learning to use and differentiate between 'Sie' (formal form) and 'du' (familiar form) for the English word 'you' can be tough. 3. Plural forms of German... Show more

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Siebenschler is refered to as “Seven Sleepers Day,” which means if it rains on a particular day, the belief is that it will rain seven weeks in succession or the remaining summer days. It reminds people of the Legend of Seven Sleepers and is a German holiday, but particular in the southern parts of Germany. This belief started with the Egyptians five thousand years ago and was adapted by the Romans. However, it was the Christians that used it to connect with their annual weather calendar year. July 7th of each year is the correct date for Seven Sleepers Day except for the Julian calendar’s version. The legend stands that during the Roman Emperor persecution, there were seven young men who were blamed for adapting the Christian... Show more