The "past" usage of a word, which may be different from the present one.
12
votes
3answers
451 views
Neuter gender for nouns referring to children
In German we say der Mann/die Frau, but then we say das Kind/das Mädchen, so I got two questions:
Are there particular historic and/or etymological reasons for this?
"Das Mädchen" refers to a ...
8
votes
2answers
213 views
Warum erhalten Zahlwörter manchmal das Suffix “-e”?
Es gibt seltene Varianten, in denen Zahlwörter ein Suffix "-e" erhalten:
Sie streckten alle viere von sich.
Beim Kegeln fielen alle neune.
"Ach, du grüne Neune!"
"Wir treffen uns um Zwölfe." ...
6
votes
3answers
239 views
Do the noun 'Reich' and the adjective 'reich' have a common origin?
The adjective rich in present-day English used to be spelled rice in Old English and its meaning was then actually broader than it is today.
For instance the adjective rice could mean "wealthy" as it ...
25
votes
1answer
301 views
What is the origin of the rules about the capitalization of the first letter of each noun?
To my knowledge, German is the only language which capitalize the first letter of each of its nouns. Why is there such a rule?
Meines Wissens ist Deutsch die einzige Sprache, in der der erste ...
13
votes
2answers
346 views
Why are the German guillemets inverted?
I've been wondering for some time,
Why do Germans use inverted guillemets (»…«) in contrast with the original French use (« … »)?
When did such usage begin?
(They are originally French, right? ...
9
votes
1answer
149 views
Wann ging der häufige Gebrauch des »th« verloren?
In alten deutschen Texten liest man häufig Wörter mit th geschrieben, die heutzutage ohne ein Solches geschrieben werden. Beispiele sind Theil, Thor. Wann wurden diese Schreibungen abgeschafft? Nach ...
