Claim Goethe Institut Claim Goethe Institut

The German Language Column
 Word!

Word! The language column © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

How does one find one's way around the rules of the German language, where do new words come from, and what are the most important changes in the use of the language - for example, due to digitalisation and a higher sensitivity due to the gender issue? These and other exciting topics are the focus of our column about the German language.

The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.

Ludwig Wittgenstein

8th season: Hauke Hückstädt

Hauke Hückstädt
Hauke Hückstädt | © Büro Schramm
Hauke Hückstädt, born in 1969 in Schwedt, Brandenburg, and now based in Frankfurt am Main, has been director of Frankfurt’s Literaturhaus (“House of Literature”) since 2010. Before that, he worked for a number of years at Hanover’s Literarischer Salon and Göttingen’s Literarisches Zentrum. He is also active as an editor, critic, jury member and lecturer, and advises authors on PR matters for selected publishers. A member of the German Book Prize jury in 2019, Hückstädt is also chairman of the board and spokesman for the network of Literaturhäuser in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 A New Chapter

Can modern literature be accessible to all? Hauke Hückstädt and his Literaturhaus team say yes, definitely. And they’ve found writers ready and willing to venture into uncharted literary territory.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Excluded

Our new columnist, Hauke Hückstädt, knows the book trade is forever exhorting everyone to read away. But how many books on the market are really accessible to the millions of people who have difficulty reading?
A thin row of symbols with a book in the center © Tobias Schrank

7th season: Nora Gomringer

Nora Gomringer
Nora Gomringer | © Judith Kinitz
Nora Gomringer, born 1980, is both a German and a Swiss, poet and performer. She writes for radio and television, conceives films, plays and libretti. She has received many awards for her work and is constantly expanding her oeuvre. Nora Gomringer is the director of the “Künstlerhaus des Freistaates Bayern”, which is located in Bamberg as the “Internationales Künstlerhaus Villa Concordia”. nora-gomringer.de

Illustration: An open mouth, an arm pointing to a jagged speech bubble, in the speech bubble a frazzle sign © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 On Inventing

In her final column with us, Nora Gomringer explores the notion that we humans are all inventors and that our inventing is always both salvation and escape. Some inventions cannot be revised – especially when it comes to giants and deer.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 On Imitation

Learning through imitation: This route, according to Nora Gomringer, also leads directly to language. She describes how we can fall madly in love and sings the praises of the act of imitatio.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 On listening

Until now, Nora Gomringer’s column has been devoted to translation. Now she is devoting it to the various pathways to language. She starts with listening. Her essay features a bathtub, porcelain cups and microphones.
Illustration: leere Gedankenblase über einem Buch © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 What Defies Translation

Literary translation involves so much more than just translating words: it’s a matter of rendering a whole way of seeing the world. Nora Gomringer talks about authors and translators working together to thrash out the nuances of poetry in particular, including smells and sounds – and pain, for which it’s hard to find the words.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 The Translator’s Yoke

Translation is an art, explains poet, reciter and our new columnist Nora Gomringer. And it’s backbreaking work, like that of a water buffalo toiling in a rice paddy – though she means that far more appreciatively than it sounds.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Roman-Tick,Tick,Tick – Boom!

It’s the translators who initiate us into the worldwide canon of literature, Nora Gomringer observes upon the announcement of the winner of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature, and carries us back to the age of German Romanticism.
Zwischendings 6

6th season: Henning Lobin

Henning Lobin
Henning Lobin | © PTG/Jochen Kratschmer
Henning Lobin, born in 1964, has been Scientific Director and Chairman of the Board of the Leibniz Institute for the German Language in Mannheim and Professor of German Linguistics at the university of Mannheim since 2018. His new book Sprachkampf (language battle) on current language policy debates was published in mid-March 2021.

Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 The European Language Question and the Use of German in the EU

In his final piece for our “Word” column, Henning Lobin looks into the use of German in EU institutions. What’s the difference between an official language and a working or “procedural” language? Which language has become established as Europe’s “lingua franca”? Our columnist has the answers.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 The Big Fray over the Little Star

The gender star has proved an enduring bone of contention. Henning Lobin now wades into the fray to offer his own two cents on the matter. We clearly need to sheathe our verbal swords, he says, and objectively debate the pros and cons of gender-neutral language.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Is German spoken in Germany?

Nothing in the German Constitution says that German is our official language. Henning Lobin makes the case for a constitutional amendment to enshrine its social function, though not as a symbol of the German nation-state like our national flag.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Everything must go! The long war on foreign words

What is it that irks those who feel compelled to protect the German language against foreign words? Henning Lobin retraces the history of nationalistic linguistic crusades from the Baroque to the present day and age.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Current controversies over language

What are the ideas and values that characterize a given society? And what do debates about the role and use of language have to do with that? Our new columnist, Henning Lobin takes on some controversial language issues.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Much ado about spelling: The tumultuous German spelling reform

The wrangling about the German spelling reform in the 1990s could hardly have been more acrimonious. What caused this heated row in the German press and public administration, in schools and even in barrooms? Our columnist Henning Lobin recaps the tumultuous history of this controversial reform.
Zwischendings 5

5th season: Olga Grjasnowa

Olga Grjasnowa
Olga Grjasnowa | © Valeria Mitelman
Olga Grjasnowa was born in 1984 in Baku, Azerbaijan, and is one of Germany’s most admired young authors. She spent many years living in Poland, Russia, Israel, and Turkey, and her celebrated debut novel All Russians Love Birch Trees was awarded the Klaus-Michael Kühne Prize and the Anna Seghers Prize. Her latest publications are Die Macht der Mehrsprachigkeit and Der verlorene Sohn. All her novels have been adapted for the stage and translated into several languages. Olga Grjasnowa lives with her family in Berlin.

Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Overblown one-word concepts

In her final column, Olga Grjasnowa zeroes in on two words that hold a special place in the German language: „Heimat“, an elusive concept that can be hard to get your head around, and “Wurzeln”, which at least seems quite tangible. Both are heavily fraught with political and emotional connotations.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Learning German made easy

Not all politicians are big on gender-neutral language. Olga Grjasnowa pokes fun at these pockets of resistance by putting forth some truly radical proposals for reforming the German language..
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 The Great Donut Divide

Culture wars are sometimes waged over language – as in the current debate over gender-neutral language. But even dialects are liable to cause some pitched battles.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 It's all in the mix: Language contact and change

Languages are alive. This is obvious from the fact that words and phrases from one language are repeatedly adopted in another – usually as a means of enriching the range of expression.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 German officialese: riddled with incomprehensible jargon

Bureaucratic or even threatening: When German authorities formulate texts, they often seem intimidating to the people addressed.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Mother – or stepmother – tongue?

What does it mean when Germans talk about their “mother tongue”? – Olga Grjasnowa has had very different experiences and gives us hints for rethinking.

4th season: Sharon Dodua Otoo

Sharon Dodua Otoo (*1972 in London) is an author and a political activist.  

Sharon Dodua Otoo
Sharon Dodua Otoo | © Tahir Bella
She writes prose and essays and is editor of the English-language book series “Witnessed” (edition assemblage). In 2017 her first novellas “the things i am thinking while smiling politely“ and “Synchronicity” were published in German translation by S. Fischer Verlag. Otoo won the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize in 2016 with the text “Herr Gröttrup setzt sich hin”. In 2020 her inaugural speech at the Festival of German Language Literature “Dürfen Schwarze Blumen Malen?” was published by Verlag Heyn. Her first novel in German “Adas Raum” will be published in February 2021 by S. Fischer Verlag. Otoo is politically active with the Initiative Schwarze Menschen in Deutschland e. V. and Phoenix e. V. She lives with her family in Berlin.

Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Punctuation

​In terms of their actual extent and distribution in the sentence structure, they are the very smallest units: the punctuation marks. But even a tiny comma can completely change the meaning of a sentence.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Prefixes

They are inconspicuous and usually very short – but they can have a great effect: In the German language, prefixes sometimes succeed in completely changing the meaning of a word. If you read carefully, you can make surprising discoveries.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Prepositions

“From”, “at”, “since” or “around” – prepositions like these help us to locate things. They point us in the right direction – in time or place, for example. But it is not always as simple as it seems.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Pronouns

What is the relationship of German pronouns to gender-equal language? Sharon Dodua Otoo looks at the problem from the perspective of several languages – and has a suggestion.
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Nouns

What is the special perfidy of nouns? They can deceive us by showing us a state of reality that is perhaps quite different. And in doing so, they can even cause great harm. 
Illustration: two speech bubbles above a book © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Grammatik

Our new columnist Sharon Dodua Otoo will devote her contributions to grammar – as an ode to language. In her first contribution, she looks at verbs and their emancipatory effect.
© Tobias Schrank

3rd season: Hernán D. Caro

Hernán D. Caro
Hernán D. Caro | © Jana Burbach
Hernán D. Caro, born 1979 in Bogotá, Colombia, has been living in Germany for about twenty years. He holds a doctorate in philosophy from the Humboldt University of Berlin and is a freelance contributor to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung (FAZ) and freelance editor of the art magazine Contemporary and América Latina (C&AL) and the Goethe-Institut’s Humboldt magazine in South America. He was nominated for a Theodor Wolff Prize for German journalism in 2020 for his essay “Deutschland – Ein  Annäherungsversuch".

Illustration: two mouths, each with a speech bubble © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 On Walking and Talking

Hernán D. Caro isn’t really into strolling around the park or along tree-lined avenues. But he has taken a shine to walking these days as a remedy against lockdown torpor, as a way to rediscover his adopted city – and because he has the most inspiring peripatetic conversations.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 A Courtship Dance with Words

Language is, first and foremost, an exchange of information. But it can also be used for purposes of deception or disguise – or for showing off. The latter, writes Hernán D. Caro, calls to mind birds displaying their colourful plumage for effect.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Fruitful words

Our columnist often finds himself thinking of his late beloved grandmother and her folksy sayings. She was a woman who practised what she preached. Her wise words of advice often come to mind, especially in hard times.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Masks with Benefits

Learning how to write in a new language can prove a long and rocky road – and ultimately a liberating experience. Hernán D. Caro, who has chosen to write in German, agrees on both counts. And he treasures his second language like a second skin.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Weighing your Words

When Hernán D. Caro talks with friends of his in Germany, he tends to exaggerate every now and then. His friends then usually look perplexed. This is reason enough for the author to think about the different ways people communicate in different languages, which sometimes call for a pinch of salt.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 On “Wirklichkeit”: Words that breathe life into reality

How much passion and sensuality lie in the German language? Not much, you’re thinking? Hernán D. Caro, our new columnist, passionately disagrees!
Zwischenüberschrift Thomas Böhm © Tobias Schrank

2nd season: Thomas Böhm

Thomas Böhm
Thomas Böhm | privat
Thomas Böhm, born 1968 in Oberhausen in the Rhineland, is a mediator for literature and cultural journalist. He has curated the guest appearances of Iceland (2011), Switzerland (2014) and Norway (2019) at the book fairs in Frankfurt and Leipzig. His most recent publications are the radio plays for the television series “Babylon Berlin” and - together with Carsten Pfeiffer - “Die Wunderkammer der deutschen Sprache” (i.e., The cabinet of curiosities of the German language).

Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The language column
 Closing Act

How come we speak German the way we do today? In this final piece for his column on the German language, Thomas Böhm has some surprising news for us about modern-day “Hochdeutsch”.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Singing along without knowing the words

What are they actually singing about? Thomas Böhm admits that he doesn’t always get the words to pop songs. When looks them up on the Internet, he’s sometimes unpleasantly surprised. But sometimes he’s delighted to discover the poetry of pop songs.
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Old Relatives

Some words in other languages sound just like German words but don’t mean the same thing. Thomas Böhm takes a close look at these “false friends” … and finds that they’re actually part of the family.

 
Purple thought bubble with coloured dots © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 English is German in Spanish

The language of children is often poetic and philosophical. What can we learn from it as adults?
Illustration: Illustration: Mobile device with mouth and speech bubble © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Invitation to a World Talk

How do you strike up a mutually stimulating conversation with a stranger? Thomas Böhm is sometimes at a loss on that one. But he has an idea: just tell each other your favourite words. That’s liable to open up whole worlds – and even some scrumptious cake recipes!
Illustration: Magisches Auge © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 The Magic of Language

Magic moments in fairy tales: our new columnist Thomas Böhm is still enchanted when he hears the words “Es war einmal…” (“Once upon a time...”). He knows why we love the same stock phrases in every language. And he explains why learning the language of doves can be very worthwhile.
Zwischenbalken © Tobias Schrank

1st season: Kathrin Kunkel-Razum

Kathrin Kunkel-Razum
Kathrin Kunkel-Razum | privat
Kathrin Kunkel-Razum (born 1959 in Potsdam) studied German and history in Leipzig, where she did her PhD in German linguistics. She has been on Duden’s editorial staff since 1997 and editor-in-chief since 2016, so she’s in charge of Duden’s whole range of dictionaries and grammar guides. She is also a member of the German Spelling Council, which develops spelling rules and issues recommendations for state institutions. Since 2020 she is also a member of the Goethe-Institut's advisory board for Literature and Translation Grant Programme Department. She lives in Berlin.

Illustration: Une bouche ouverte avec une pilule sur la langue. © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Ringing in new words and ringing out some old ones

Our language is constantly expanding, so how come the “Duden” still fits into a single printed volume? Because obsolete entries are regularly deleted. In her final contribution to our column on the German language, Kathrin Kunkel-Razum discusses words that have gone by the board and why we shouldn’t completely forget them.
Illustration: Une bouche ouverte avec une pilule sur la langue. © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Gender-Neutral German: Asterisk or Underscore?

What’s the best way to include all gender identities when writing in German? This question has caused quite a stir in the German-speaking world.
Illustration: Une bouche ouverte avec une pilule sur la langue. © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 Words That Make Waves

Why do certain words stir up powerful emotions? Needless to say, Duden dictionary editor Kathrin Kunkel-Razum has other worries right now, in the throes of the coronavirus crisis. But  the word in question is about hope for the future.
Illustration: Dictionary © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The German Language Column
 Duden: Germany’s pre-eminent dictionary

Duden was the authority on German spelling till the 1996 spelling reform. Duden editor-in-chief Kathrin Kunkel-Razum talks about a time-honoured dictionary that’s still going strong today.
Illustration: Une bouche ouverte avec une pilule sur la langue. © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 How do Foreign Words make it into the “Duden”?

English has a considerable influence on German vocabulary, confirms Kathrin Kunkel-Razum. But she still finds questions like “Are we all going to be speaking Denglish anytime soon?” exaggerated. Kathrin Kunkel-Razum on the inclusion of loanwords in the “Duden,” the premier reference work on German spelling.
Word! The Language Column © Goethe-Institut e. V./Illustration: Tobias Schrank

Word! The Language Column
 How many Words does the German Language have?

Coining new words is a cinch in German. But not every neologism belongs in a dictionary. Kathrin Kunkel-Razum talks about sifting through long word lists for the next edition of the “Rechtschreibduden”, the standard German spelling dictionary.
Top