As the year draws to a close, it's time for rankings again! In her last column, Susi Bumms presents her most bizarre favourites.
At the end of the year, ranking lists are often used as a way of looking back on things that have happened. Ranking lists are so popular that even people who usually complain about English words being used in German no longer notice the Anglicism.
I want to get in on the rankings! Here are my two winners and two losers:
Ranking list number one: winner of the complaints competition
The first name to make the most complaints on the internet: Michael
The Casino Online website analysed over 141,000 negative reviews on Trustpilot and found that people with the name Michael most frequently leave bad reviews. Followed by Peter and Thomas.Congratulations on winning this title, Michael!
Ranking list number two: winner of the egg fight
Eieiei v. Ei, Ei, Ei, Ei, Ei
In a legal dispute between two manufactures of egg liqueur, a Düsseldorf court ruled that the promotional slogan “Ei, Ei, Ei, Ei, Ei” was not a trademark infringement of the rival product, which is advertised with “Eieiei” – Ei meaning egg in German.“Eieiei” is more an expression of surprise, the court argued, whereas “Ei, Ei, Ei, Ei, Ei” is an enumeration.
Congratulations to team “Ei, Ei, Ei”!
Ranking list number three: the most dangerous loser
Responding to a parliamentary question from Germany’s Die Linke party, the Berlin authorities made a worrying confession in November. Since 2021, the Berlin police force has mislaid over 100 rounds of ammo, almost 390 cans of pepper spray and around 130 batons. A pistol and 35 bullet-proof vests are also missing.The Brandenburg police are “losers” too. After a shooting exercise, 4,400 rounds of ammunition “disappeared”. Given that ammunition can’t move on its own, we declare the police to be the winners of our most dangerous loser competition!
Ranking list number four: the best loser
It’s 2000 and Daniel goes to the cinema. He watches Mission Impossible 2 or Chicken Run. Somewhere between the seats, he loses his wallet, and with it, a swimming pass, his parents’ lottery tickets and several Pokémon cards. It’s 23 years before the seats are removed and the wallet is retrieved. This is a little trip back in time to the year 2000, and Daniel and the cinema seats are winners of my best loser category.
December 2023