55
votes
How offensive is Fachidiot?
It can be very offensive.
The term (which could be literally translated as "Expertise Idiot") implies that the person is over-specialized in their expertise to the point of being dysfunctional. Not ...
- 1,287
45
votes
Is it okay to have an email address called "SS"?
It's not Ok, but not for the reasons you mention.
Business emails need easy recognition, ss is not an email I can easily match with a person or department.
If your company has such email naming ...
42
votes
Is it okay to have an email address called "SS"?
German administration does take such issues seriously enough to not allow certain letter combinations as parts of car license numbers (which are made of two one-to-three letter codes and a number): SA,...
- 1,371
32
votes
Is it okay to have an email address called "SS"?
This might or might not be an issue if a German company chose such an abbreviation for business correspondence. Personally I would consider this a non-issue, but there is probably enough residual ...
- 15.1k
22
votes
Accepted
Why do translations of German books read so differently from other books?
The answer to your question is actually simple:
The books you are currently reading are books from late 19th (or early 20th) century; moreover they seem to tend to be written by statesmen (politicians ...
- 31.2k
18
votes
Accepted
Cultural context for "Abendland" and "Rettung" in this song lyric
While I agree on the core of Philipp's answer, I'd like to elaborate about the song context a little bit more:
First about the context:
As the page says, it is about Alice (Weidel) and Sarah (Bossard)...
- 3,919
12
votes
Is it okay to have an email address called "SS"?
Another of our employees say that this would make it very hard to deal with germans, as they would be offended by the email address.
Maybe it wouldn't be a good idea to use such an email address, if ...
- 9,120
10
votes
Cultural context for "Abendland" and "Rettung" in this song lyric
This is just an extended comment to Shegit Brahm's fitting answer.
The word "Abendland" is basically a synonyom for the Western world or simply "the West". Quotation from Wikipedia:...
- 11k
9
votes
How offensive is Fachidiot?
Nein, ja, ja, kommt drauf an.
Über den Betreffenden wird gesagt, dass er zwar Experte auf seinem Gebiet ist, aber ansonsten Scheuklappen aufhat. Ein Kompliment ist das nicht. Wenn man aber weiß, dass ...
- 23.6k
9
votes
Polite way of asking for a discount?
There was one answer by @Marzipanherz yesterday which strangely was deleted later on. He or she suggested quite correctly
Können Sie mir beim Preis entgegenkommen?
Which is a good expression, as ...
- 31.2k
9
votes
Accepted
Käse aber auch Wurst
Use one food idiom, get one free!
These are two idioms put together, which in itself forms a pun.
The Cheese
Das ist (totaler) Käse
is colloquial and means
it's (complete) nonsense
This usage ...
- 18.6k
8
votes
Polite way of asking for a discount?
To get a better price you could ask the seller:
Gewähren Sie Rabatt[, wenn ich 10 Stück bestelle]?
(Do you offer discount[ if I order 10 pieces]?)
Or even more polite:
Würden Sie Rabatt ...
- 16k
7
votes
How offensive is Fachidiot?
From my point of view:
The idiot bit does not does not imply a lack of intelligence, but a lack of interest in dealing with issues ouside the person's specific field of expertise and may also imply ...
- 281
7
votes
Cultural context for "Abendland" and "Rettung" in this song lyric
Rettung des Abendlandes originally refers to the Ottoman wars in Europe, particularly to the defeat of the Ottomans at the second siege of Vienna 1683.
I think you can guess how modern speakers could ...
- 464
7
votes
Could a translation error lead to squares to not be considered as rectangles?
German language does not differentiate between oblong and rectangle - both are called "Rechteck".
(There is actually a wikipedia entry for German Oblong, but having gone to school in Germany,...
- 17.4k
7
votes
Could a translation error lead to squares to not be considered as rectangles?
"Squares are not rectangles, if both are mentioned"
I purposefully formulated it provocative, so take it with a grain of salt. Anyway:
If someone were to show me1 a picture of two rectangles ...
- 18.6k
6
votes
Should a non native try to adapt his German when traveling to Austria?
From my own experience as a tourist in Austria I can confirm that all Austrian people I met were extremely friendly and open-minded. They will do all to make you feel welcome in their country.
This ...
- 70.6k
6
votes
Why do translations of German books read so differently from other books?
While I am native in German, I still had problems to understand the English translation. The German sentence is definitive complicated, but not as brain damaging as the English one.
It took me quite ...
- 61
6
votes
Is it okay to have an email address called "SS"?
Since "Germans" includes "German Jews", you can bet that there are at least some people who will take serious offense. Imagine some Karl-Klaus Krüger using [email protected] in correspondence with a US ...
- 201
6
votes
Accepted
Pattern jokes in German culture?
I know two common German joke templates:
The first and I think most common is the "alle Kinder" templates, there are probably hundreds of them and I could tell at least 20 right away.
The second one ...
- 2,353
6
votes
Could a translation error lead to squares to not be considered as rectangles?
Yes, this happens in German. German does not have a separate word for a non-square rectangle (i.e. for an oblong). So what does the German word Rechteck [= rectangle] mean?
We must distinguish between ...
- 11k
5
votes
Pattern jokes in German culture?
Two well-known "fill-the-pattern" traditions are the children songs
1) Meine Oma fährt im Hühnerstall Motorrad where there is something like a "standard" set of stanzas, but enthused singers may ...
- 31.2k
5
votes
Käse aber auch Wurst
Das ist totaler Käse.
means: it doesn't make sense 1
Es ist Wurst.(or Wurscht)
means: it doesn't matter 2
So all together
Das ist totaler Käse aber ist es auch Wurst?
would be something like:
...
- 9,120
5
votes
Is it normal to understand German but can't explain/translate it, as a third language (trilingual)
I don't think the described effect is related to the number of languages one understands, but typically devlops with higher proficiency. If you are understanding fast speech, it means you obviously ...
- 29.6k
4
votes
How offensive is Fachidiot?
There exists only one setting where you can use the term "Fachidiot" outside of bantering with (rather good) friends: when you are referring to yourself (hopefully in jest).
Every other usage will be ...
- 253
4
votes
Polite way of asking for a discount?
In such a situation, I would say something like:
Gibt es vielleicht einen Rabatt, wenn ich 10 Stück davon bestelle?
Is there perhaps a rebate, if I order 10 pieces?
or
Kriege ich vielleicht ...
- 2,615
4
votes
Accepted
Nod and Shake Head
Nodding means to agree in my place but it means to disagree in some places, what about in German?
The same, this means yes.
What about head shake?
This means no or disagreement.
Are there ...
- 2,177
4
votes
Accepted
Should a non native try to adapt his German when traveling to Austria?
Using regionally known words is fine. Schrippe, Brötchen, Semmel, Wecken ... if you know how to call it you will have an easyer time at the local bakery. The same for Schlagsahne or others. Yes why ...
- 2,177
4
votes
Polite way of asking for a discount?
Germans usually don't ask for a discount that directly, we compare prices and directly go where it is cheapest. Or we say something like
"Im anderen Laden habe ich das billiger gesehen." (I've seen ...
- 368
4
votes
What can you say after introducing yourself?
Ich habe mich gefreut, dich kennenzulernen
This is Perfekt (perfect tense) and sounds indeed artificial. If you use Präsens (present tense) instead:
(Es) freut mich, Sie/Dich kennenzulernen.
or:
...
- 12.1k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible