List of German expressions in English

This is a list of German expressions used in English; some relatively common (e.g. "hamburger"), most comparatively rare. In many cases, the German borrowing in English has assumed a meaning substantially different from its German forebear.

English and German both descended from the West Germanic language, though their relationship has been obscured by the great influx of Norman French words to English as a consequence of the Norman Conquest in 1066, and the second Germanic sound shift. In recent years, however, many English words have been borrowed directly from German. Typically, English spellings of German loanwords suppress any umlauts (the superscript, double-dot diacritic in "Ä", "Ö", "Ü", "ä", "ö" and "ü") of the original word or replace the umlaut letters with "Ae", "Oe", "Ue", "ae", "oe", "ue", respectively (influenced by "Latin": æ, œ.)

German words have been incorporated to English usage for many reasons: common cultural artefacts, especially foods, have spread to English-speaking nations and often are identified either by their original German names or by German-sounding English names; the history of academic excellence of the German-speaking nations in science, scholarship, and classical music has led to the academic adoption of much German for use in English context; discussion of German history and culture requires knowing German words. Lastly, some German words are used simply to a fictionalise an English narrative passage, implying that the subject expressed is in German, i.e. using "Frau", "Reich", and so on, although sometimes usage of German words holds no German implication, as in "doppelgänger" or "angst".

As languages, English and German descend from the common ancestor language West Germanic and further back to Proto-Germanic; because of this, some English words are identical to their German lexical counterparts, either in the spelling (Hand, Sand, Finger) or in the pronunciation (Fish = "Fisch", Mouse = "Maus"), or both (Arm, Ring); these are excluded from this words list.

German terms commonly used in English

The German words of this category will easily be recognized by many English speakers; they are commonly used in English contexts. Some, such as "wurst" or "pumpernickel", still retain German connotations, while others, such as "lager" and "hamburger", retain none. Not every word is recognizable outside its relevant context.

Food and drink

*Beergarden, open–air drinking establishment
*Bratwurst (sometimes abbv. ), type of sausage
*Delicatessen, specialty small food store and also fine (specialty) food in Canada
*Hamburger, sandwich with a meat patty and garnishments
*Hasenpfeffer, type of rabbit (or hare) stew
*Frankfurter, pork sausage
*Kirschwasser, spirit drink made from cherries
*Kohlrabi, type of cabbage
*Kraut, cabbage; derisive term for Germans
*Lager, beer made with bottom-fermenting yeast and stored for some time before serving
*Liverwurst, pork liver sausage
*Muesli, breakfast cereal
*Pilsener (or Pils, Pilsner), pale lager beer
*Pretzel, flour and yeast based pastry
*Pumpernickel, type of sourdough rye bread, strongly flavoured, dense, and dark in colour
*Rollmops, rolled, pickled herring fillet
*Sauerkraut, fermented cabbage
*Schnapps, distilled beverage
*Spritzer, chilled drink from white wine and soda water
*Stein, large drinking mug, usually for beer
*Strudel (e. g. Apfelstrudel), a filled pastry
*Wiener, hot dog
*Wiener schnitzel, crumbed veal cutlet
*Wurst, sausage, cold cuts
*Zwieback, a "twice baked" bread; variants: German hard biscuits; Mennonite double yeast roll.

Sports and recreation

* Abseil (German spelling: "sich abseilen", a reflexive verb, to rope (seil) oneself (sich) down (ab)) is also commonly called "rappelling" in America, "abseiling" in Australia, "roping (down)" in various English settings, and "snapling" by Israelis.
* Blitz, taken from Blitzkrieg (lightning war). It is a team defensive play in American or Canadian football in which the defense sends more players than the offense can block.
* Foosball (German spelling: "Fußball"), originally referred strictly to the field sport football; known as soccer in the United States, Canada and South Africa, today foosball refers exclusively to a mechanical game found in arcades, drinking establishments and some homes. The game features numerous spinning handles along two sides (for each team) controlling the players, a miniature ball and two goals. It is also called "table football" in the UK, Australia and the rest of the Anglic world.
* Carabiner (German spelling: Karabiner), Snaplink, a metal loop with a sprung or screwed gate, used in climbing and mountaineering); modern short form/derivation of the older word 'Karabinerhaken'; translates to 'Riflehook'
* Fahrvergnügen meaning "driving pleasure"; originally, the word was introduced in a Volkswagen advertising campaign in the U.S., one tag line was: "Are we having Fahrvergnügen yet?").
* Kletterschuh
* Rucksack (more commonly called a backpack in U.S. English)
* Schuss, literally: shot (ski) down a slope at high speed
* Turnverein, a gymnastics club or society
* Volksmarching
* Volkssport
* Volkswalk
* Volkswanderung
*

Other aspects of everyday life

*–bahn as a suffix, e.g. Infobahn, after "Autobahn"
*Dachshund, a dog breed
*Doberman Pinscher, a dog breed
*Doppelgänger, "double-goer"; also spelled in English as "doppelganger"
*, literally dirt or smut, but now means trashy, awful
*, "dumm"=dumb/not intelligent + "Kopf"=head; a stupid, ignorant person
*Ersatz, replacement
*, festival
*Flak, "Flugabwehrkanone", literally: "air-defence cannon", for anti-aircraft artillery or their shells, also used in flak jacket; or in the figurative sense: "drawing flak" = being heavily criticized
*Gesundheit, literally: health; an exclamation used in place of "bless you!" after someone has sneezed
*, afternoon meeting where people (most times referring to women) chitchat while drinking coffee or tea; Kaffee = coffee, Klatsch = gossip, klatschen = chitchatting
* (German spelling: "kaputt"), out-of-order
*Kindergarten, children’s garden, day-care centre, playschool, preschool
*Kitsch, cheap, sentimental, gaudy items of popular culture
*Kraut, a derogatory term for a German
*Lebensraum, space to live
*Meister, Master, also as a suffix: –meister
*Nazi, short form for National Socialist
*Neanderthal (modern German spelling: "Neandertal"), of, from, and or pertaining to the "Neander Valley", site near Düsseldorf where early "Homo neanderthalensis" fossils were found
*Oktoberfest, Bavarian Folk Festival held annually in Munich during late September and early October
*Poltergeist, mischievous, noisy ghost; cases of haunting, involving spontaneous psychokinesis
*Rottweiler, breed of dog
*Schadenfreude (also "Schadensfreude"), delight at the misfortune of others
*Schnauzer, breed of dog
*Spitz, a breed of dog
*, over; used to indicate that something or someone is of better or greater magnitude, e.g. "Übermensch"
*Ur– (German prefix), original or prototypical; e.g. "Ur"–feminist, Ursprache, Urtext
*, prohibited, forbidden
*Volkswagen, brand of automobile
*Wanderlust, the yearning to travel
*Weltanschauung, world view
*, wonder child, a child prodigy
*Zeitgeist, spirit of the time
*Zeppelin, type of airship named after its inventor

German terms common in English academic context

German terms sometimes appear in English academic disciplines, e.g. history, psychology, philosophy, music, and the physical sciences; laypeople in a given field may or may not be familiar with a given German term.

Academia

* , basic approach
* Festschrift, book prepared by colleagues to honor a scholar, traditionally presented sixty years after the first major work by the individual being thus honored.
* Leitfaden, ('guiding thread') illustration of the interdependence between chapters of a book.
* Methodenstreit, disagreement on methodology
* Privatdozent

Architecture

* Jugendstil
* Plattenbau
* Biedermeier

Arts

*Gesamtkunstwerk, "the whole of a work of art", also "total work of art" or "complete artwork"
*Gestalt "The Sum of the parts are greater than value of the whole"

Music

* Fach, method of classifying singers, primarily opera singers, by the range, weight, and color of their voices
* Flugelhorn (German spelling: "Flügelhorn"), a type of brass musical instrument
* Glockenspiel, a percussion instrument
* Heldentenor, "heroic tenor"
* Hammerklavier, "hammer-keyboard", an archaic term for piano or the name of a specific kind of piano; most commonly used in English to refer to Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata
* Kapellmeister, "music director"
* Leitmotif (German spelling: "Leitmotiv") a musical phrase that associates with a specific person, thing, or idea
* Lied (pronounced "leet"), "song"; specifically in English, "art song"
* Lieder ohne Worte, "songs without words"
* Liederkranz, male singing club [http://germanenglishwords.com/rlgl.htm liederkranz]
* Liedermacher, Singer-songwriter
* Meistersinger, Master-singer
* Minnesinger (German spelling: "Minnesänger"), "Love poet" or minstrel
* Schlager, "a hit" (German "schlagen", to hit or beat)
* Schuhplattler, a regional dance from Upper Bavaria and Austria
* Singspiel, German musical drama with spoken dialogue
* Sitzprobe, rehearsal of a musical stage work where singers are sitting and without costumes
* Sprechgesang, form of musical delivery between speech and singing
* Sturm und Drang, "storm and stress", a brief esthetic movement in German literature, just before Weimar Classicism
* Urtext, "original text (of the composer)"
* Volksmusik, traditional German music
* Waltz (German spelling: "Walzer")

Theatre

* Verfremdungseffekt

Typography

* Fraktur, a style of blackletter typeface

Biology

* Bauplan
* Anlage
* Bereitschaftspotential

Chess

* Fingerfehler: slip of the finger
* Luft
* Zeitnot
* Zugzwang
* Zwischenzug

Economics

*Freigeld
*Freiwirtschaft
*K In economics, the letter K — from the German word "Kapital" — is used to denote Capital [cite web
url = http://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/homch10_e.htm
title = Productivity Measures: Business Sector and Major Subsectors
accessdate = 2008-04-10
year = 2007
work = BLS Handbook of Methods
publisher = U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics] [cite web
url = http://www.gamsworld.org/mpsge/debreu/shock/
title = Modeling Unanticipated Shocks: An Illustrative GAMS/MCP Model
accessdate = 2008-04-10
last = Rutherford
first = Prof. Thomas F.
publisher = MPSGE Forum] [cite web
url = http://lofi.forum.physorg.com/Economic-Curiosity.-%5BSolow-model%5D_4864.html
title = Economic Curiosity. [Solow model]
accessdate = 2008-04-10
author = "Drude"
date = Date|2006-02-09
publisher = PhysOrg.com] [cite book
last = Lequiller
first = François
coauthors = Derek Blades
others = Translator: F. Wells
title = Understanding National Accounts
url = http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/37/12/38451313.pdf
format = PDF (4MB)
accessdate = 2008-04-11
series = Economica
year = 2006
publisher = OECD
location = Paris
isbn = 92-64-02566-9
pages = p. 160
chapter = ch. 6
quote = “K” (for the German word “kapital”) indicates capital accumulation items.]
*Lumpenproletariat
*Takt
*Wirtschaftswunder

Geography

* Hinterland
* Inselberg
* Mitteleuropa
* Thalweg (written "Talweg" in Germany today)

Geology

* Gneiss (German "Gneis")
* Graben
* Karst
* Dreikanter

Minerals including:
* Quartz (German "Quarz")
* Feldspar (German "Feldspat")
* Meerschaum

History

(Some terms are listed in multiple categories if they are important to each.)

The Third Reich

See Glossary of the Weimar Republic and Glossary of the Third Reich.

Other historical periods

* Junker
* Kaiser, "emperor" (derived from the title "Caesar")
* Kulturkampf, literally the 'struggle for culture'; Bismarck's campaign for secularity which mostly went against Catholics in the newly formed German state, ostensibly a result of Bismarck's suspicion of Catholic loyalty
* Landflucht
* Ostflucht
* Ostpolitik
* Ostalgie (nostalgia for the former Eastern Bloc, specifically for the DDR)
* Realpolitik (Political science: "real politics"); usually implies the way politics really works, i.e. via the influence of power and money, rather than a principled approach that the public might expect to be aligned with a party's or nation's values, or rather than a political party's given interpretation.
* Reichstag (Imperial Diet; see Reichstag (building) and Reichstag (institution))
* Sammlungspolitik
* Völkerschlacht — the Battle of Nations
* Völkerwanderung — the Migration (and Invasions) of the Germanic peoples in the 4th cent.
* Weltpolitik — the politics of global domination; contemporarily, "the current climate in global politics".
* Biedermeier, era in early 19th century Germany

Military terms

* Blitzkrieg, Lightning war. Phrase invented by a Spanish journalist to describe mobile combined arms methods used by Nazis in 1939–1940.
* Flak ("Flugabwehrkanone"), anti-aircraft gun (for derived meanings see under Other aspects of everyday life)
* Fliegerhorst, another word for a military airport
* Karabiner type of a gun. For the climbing hardware, see carabiner above
* Kriegspiel, war game; correct German word: "Kriegsspiel")
* Luftwaffe, air force
* Panzer refers to tanks and other armoured vehicles, or formations of such vehicles
* Panzerfaust, tank fist anti-tank weapon, a small recoilless gun.
* Strafe, punishment
* U-Boot (abbreviated form of "Unterseeboot" — submarine, but commonly called "U-Boot" in Germany as well)
* Vernichtungsgedanke (thought of annihilation)

Linguistics

* Ablaut
* Abstandsprache
* Aktionsart
* Ausbausprache
* Dachsprache
* Dreimorengesetz, "three-mora law", the rule for placing stress in Latin
* Grenzsignal, "boundary signal"
* Loanword (ironically not a loanword but rather a calque from German "Lehnwort")
* Leitmotiv, a recurring theme
* (Biblical linguistics mainly; the study of Pragmatics has a similar approach)
* Sprachbund, "language union", a group of languages that have become similar because of geographical proximity
* Sprachraum
* Suffixaufnahme
* Umlaut
* Urheimat
* Ursprache, "proto-language"
* Wanderwort

Literature

* Bildungsroman
* Künstlerroman
* Sturm und Drang, an 18th century literary movement; "storm and stress" in English, although the literal translation is closer to "storm and urge".
* Urtext, "original text"
* Vorlage, original or mastercopy of a text on which derivates are based
* Wahlverwandtschaft (pronounced with a v) (from Goethe's "Die Wahlverwandtschaften")
* Q, abbreviation for "Quelle" ("source"), a postulated lost document in Biblical criticism

Mathematics and formal logic

* Ansatz (lit. "set down," roughly equivalent to "approach" or "where to begin", a starting assumption)
* "Eigen-" in composita such as eigenfunction, eigenvector, eigenvalue, eigenform; in English "-self" or "own".
* Entscheidungsproblem
* Grossencharakter
* Hilbert's Nullstellensatz (Without apostrophe in German)
* Ideal (Originally "ideale Zahlen", defined by Ernst Kummer)
* Kernel (ger.: "Kern", translated as "core")
* Krull's Hauptidealsatz (Without apostrophe in German)
* Möbius band (ger.: Möbiusband)
* quadratfrei
* Stützgerade
* Vierergruppe (also known as Klein four-group)
* "Neben-" in composita such as Nebentype
* $mathbb\{Z\}$ from (ganze) Zahlen ((whole) numbers), the integers

Medicine

* Kernicterus
* Mittelschmerz ("middle pain", used to refer to ovulation pain)
* Rinderpest
* Spinnbarkeit
* Witzelsucht

Philosophy

* An sich, "in itself"
* Dasein
* Ding an sich, "thing in itself" from Kant
* Geist, mind, spirit or ghost
* Gott ist tot!, a popular phrase from Nietzsche; more commonly rendered "God is dead!" in English.
* Übermensch, also from Nietzsche; the ideal of a Superhuman or Overman.
* Weltanschauung, Worldview or View of the world
* Weltschmerz, World-weariness/World-pain, angst; despair with the World (often used ironically in German)
* Wertfreiheit, Freedom from value judgements; ethical neutrality (in a post-modernistic philosophy sense)
* Wille zur Macht, a central concept of Nietzsche's philosophy; it means "the Will to Power."

Physical sciences

* Ansatz, an assumption for a function that is not based on an underlying theory
* Aufbau principle (physical chemistry)
* Bauplan, body plan of animals
* Bremsstrahlung
* Entgegen and its opposite zusammen (organic chemistry)
* Föhn, also foehn, a warm wind which sometimes appears on the northern side of the alps in south Germany and Austria.
* Gedanken experiment (German spelling: "Gedankenexperiment"; more commonly referred to as a "thought experiment" in English.)
* Gegenschein
* Gerade and its opposite ungerade (quantum mechanics)
* Heiligenschein
* Lagerstätten, repositories
* Mischmetall, alloy.
* Rocks and minerals like Quartz (German spelling: "Quarz"), Gneiss and Feldspar (originally "Gneis" respectively "Feldspat"), Meerschaum
* Reststrahlen (residual rays)
* Schiefspiegler, special type of telescope
* Sollbruchstelle, predetermined breaking point
* Spiegeleisen
* Umpolung (organic chemistry)
* Vierbein, and variations such as vielbein
* Zitterbewegung
* Zwitterion

Politics

* Machtpolitik, power politics
* Putsch, overthrow of those in power by a small group, coup d'etat
* Realpolitik, "politics of reality": foreign politics based on practical concerns rather than ideology or ethics.
* Rechtsstaat, concept of a state based on law and human rights
* Berufsverbot
* Vergangenheitsbewältigung

Psychology

* Angst, feeling of fear, but more deeply and without concrete object.: (Many think the meaning is much more specific in English and the German "Angst" equals "fear". Yet, this is not true, as the German "Furcht" means fear. The difference is that "Furcht" is provoked by a specific object or occurrence, while "Angst" is a more general state of being that does not need to be initiated by anything concrete. It can happen autonomously, e. g. influenced by prior experience of "Furcht" without reason. "Angst" is more appropriately equated to the English concept of "anxiety.")
* Sorge, a state of worry, but (like "Angst") in a less concrete, more general sense, worry about the world, one's future, etc.
* Gestalt (psychology); much narrower meaning than in German, where it is a generic word with meanings like shape, form, likeness, figure
* Schadenfreude, gloating, a malicious satisfaction obtained from the misfortunes of others
* Umwelt, environment
* Zeitgeber (lit. time-giver), something that resets the circadian clock found in the Suprachiasmatic nucleus
* Weltschmerz, world-pain or world-weariness
* Wunderkind, child prodigy

Sociology

* Gemeinschaft, community
* Gesellschaft, society
* Verstehen, understanding
* Weltanschauung, world view
* Zeitgeist, spirit of the times or age

Theology

* Heilsgeschichte (salvation history, God's positive saving actions throughout history)
* Sitz im Leben (setting in life, context)

German terms mostly used for literary effect

There are a few terms which are recognised by many English speakers but are usually only used to deliberately evoke a German context:

* Autobahn — particularly common in British English and American English referring specifically to German motorways which have no general speed limit.
* — Literally, "attention" in English.
* and Fräulein — Woman and young woman or girl, respectively in English. Indicating marital state, with Frau — Mrs. and Fräulein — Ms.; in Germany, however, the diminutive "Fräulein" lapsed from common usage in the late 1960s. Regardless of marital status, a woman is now commonly referred to as "Frau", and "Fräulein" has come to be perceived as insulting.
* Führer (umlaut is usually dropped in English) — always used in English to denote Hitler or to connote a Fascistic leader — never used, as is possible in German, simply and unironically to denote a (non-Fascist) leader or guide, (i.e. Bergführer: mountain guide, Stadtführer: city guide (book), Führerschein: driving licence, Flugzeugführer: Pilot in command, etc.)
* Gott mit uns, (in German means "God be with us"), the motto of the Prussian emperor, it was used as a morale slogan amongst soldiers in both World Wars. It was bastardized as "Got mittens" by American and British soldiers, and is usually used nowadays, because of the German defeat in both wars, derisively to mean that wars are not won on religious grounds.
* — hands up
* — evokes German context; In modern German either the equivalent of Mr./Mister, used to directly adress an adult male person or used in the of "master" over something or someone. (ex.: "Sein eigener Herr sein": to be his own master) Derived from the adjective "hehr", meaning "honourable" or "senior", it was historically a title noblemen were entitled to, equivalent to the english word "Lord". (ex.: "Herr der Fliegen" is the German title of Lord of the Flies) In a religious environment used to denote God, there in a colloquial context often contracted into "Herrgott" (Lord-God).
* Lederhosen (Singular "Lederhose" in German denotes one pair of leather short pants or trousers. The original Bavarian word is "Lederhosn", which is both singular and plural.)
* Leitmotif (German spelling: "Leitmotiv") Any sort of recurring theme, whether in music, literature, or the life of a fictional character or a real person.
* Meister — used as a suffix to mean expert ("Maurermeister"), or master; in Germany it means also champion in sports ("Weltmeister," "Europameister," "Landesmeister")
* — no
* Raus — meaning "Out!" - shortened (colloquial) version of "heraus", the imperative form of the german verb "herauskommen" (coming out (of a room/house/etc.)as in the imperative "komm' raus"!).
* Reich — from the Middle High German "rich", as a noun it means "empire" and "realm", which may still be seen in the English word "bishopric". To English speakers, "Reich" does not denote its literal meanings, "empire" or "rich", but strongly connotes Nazism and is often used to suggest Fascism or authoritarianism, e.g., "Herr Reichsminister" used as a title for a disliked politician.'
* Ja — yes
* a German term that connotes an emphatic yes" — "Yes, Indeed!" in English. It is often equated to "yes sir" in Anglo-American military films, since it is also a term typically used as an acknowledgement for military commands in the German military.
* Schnell! — "Quick!" or "Quickly!"
* Kommandant — commander (in the sense of "person in command" or Commanding officer, regardless of military rank), used often in the military in general("Standortkommandant": Base commander), on battleships and U-Boats (Schiffskommandant or U-Boot-Kommandant), sometimes used on civilian ships and aircraft.
* Schweinhund (German spelling: Schweinehund) — literally: Schwein = pig, Hund = dog, Vulgarism like in "der verdammte Schweinehund (the damned pig-dog)". But also used to describe the lack of motivation (for example to quit a bad habit) "Den inneren Schweinehund bekämpfen." = to battle the inner "pig-dog".

German terms rarely used in English

"This is the unsorted, original list. If a term is common in a particular academic discipline, and there is no more commonly used English equivalent, then please move it to the list above."

* Aha-Erlebnis literally "aha experience" eg "Eureka".
* Besserwisser [ [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=besserwisser Urban Dictionary: besserwisser ] ]
* (German spelling: "Fahrvergnügen", literally pleasure of driving. Coined for a Volkswagen advertising campaign; caused widespread puzzlement in America when it was used in television commercials with no explanation.)
* Gastarbeiter — a German "guest worker" or foreign-born worker
* Kobold — a small mischievous fairy creature, traditionally translated as "Goblin", "Hobgoblin, and "Imp"; the roleplaying game Dungeons & Dragons has included reptilian Kobolds (as well as creatures called "Goblins", "Imps" and "Hobgoblins" in completely separate forms) as part of the bestiary for a number of editions, including the current edition, D&D d20 v3.5. "Kobold" is also the origin of the name of the metal cobalt.
* Schmutz (smut, dirt, filth). This term is, however, particularly popular in New York, reflecting the influence of the Yiddish language.
* (originally "Deutschland über alles" (this sentence was meant originally to propagate a united Germany instead of small separated German Territories only); now used by extension in other cases, as in the Dead Kennedys song "California Über Alles"). This part (or rather, the whole first stanza) of the Deutschlandlied (Song of the Germans) is not part of the national anthem today, as it is thought to have been used to propagate the attitude of racial and national superiority in Nazi Germany, as in the phrase "Germany over all".
* Vorsprung durch Technik ('headstart through technology'): used in an advertising campaign by Audi, to suggest technical excellence
* Zweihander (German spelling: "Zweihänder")

Quotations

Many famous English quotations are translations from GermanFact|date=August 2007. On rare occasions an author will quote the original German as a sign of erudition.

* "Muss es sein? Es muss sein!": "Must it be? It must be!" —Beethoven
* "Der Krieg ist eine bloße Fortsetzung der Politik mit anderen Mitteln": "War is politics by other means" (literally: "War is a mere continuation of politics by other means") — Clausewitz
* "Ein Gespenst geht um in Europa — das Gespenst des Kommunismus": "A spectre is haunting Europe — the spectre of communism" — the Communist Manifesto
* "Proletarier aller Länder, vereinigt euch!": "Workers of the world, unite!" — the Communist Manifesto
* "Gott würfelt nicht": "God does not play dice" — Einstein
* "Raffiniert ist der Herrgott, aber boshaft ist er nicht": "Subtle is the Lord, but malicious He is not" — Einstein
* "Wir müssen wissen, wir werden wissen": "We must know, we will know" — David Hilbert
* "Was kann ich wissen? Was soll ich tun? Was darf ich hoffen?": "What can I know? What shall I do? What may I hope?" — Kant
* "Die ganzen Zahlen hat der liebe Gott gemacht, alles andere ist Menschenwerk": "God made the integers, all the rest is the work of man" — Leopold Kronecker
* "Hier stehe ich, ich kann nicht anders. Gott helfe mir. Amen!": "Here I stand, I cannot do differently. God help me. Amen!" — attributed to Martin Luther
* "Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen": "Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent" — Wittgenstein
* "Einmal ist keinmal": "What happens once might as well never have happened." literally "once is never"; theme of "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" by Milan Kundera

Music

For terms used in music, see above.

Meanings of German band names

* 2raumwohnung = 2 room apartment
* Böhse Onkelz = this is the correct but idiosyncratic spelling of the name of the German band (the correct plural would be "Onkel" without the z or an s, and "böse" for the correct German word for 'evil') "evil uncles," a term used in German as a euphemism for child molesters. The peculiar spelling of the band is intended to "harden" the appearance of the name ("h" in this context amplifies the ö; "z" is pronounced "ts" in German, and sounds sharper than s). The umlaut over the o in "Böhse" is not a heavy metal umlaut.
* Deichkind = dike (or levee) child
* Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft (or "D.A.F.") = German-American Friendship
* Die Ärzte = the (medical) doctors, a German Punkrock band.
* Die Sterne = the stars (celestial body)
* Die Toten Hosen = literally "the dead trousers". A slang expression for a boring place to be (phrase: "Hier ist total tote Hose.") (commonly used in the northern parts of Germany), it can also refer to impotence.
* Dschinghis Khan = The German spelling of Genghis Khan.
* Einstürzende Neubauten = "collapsing new buildings". For the band this evokes the image of buildings built during the postwar era, which were very hastily erected, hence supposedly prone to collapse.
* Eisbrecher = Ice breaker
* Fettes Brot = literally "fat bread", but "fett" is also a Slang expression for cool
* Juli = "July".
* Klee = not only the painter Paul Klee, but also German for clover.
* KMFDM = "Kein Mehrheit Für Die Mitleid" ["sic"] (literally "no majority for the pity," which is a grammatically incorrect "headline clipping" style rearrangement of "Kein Mitleid für die Mehrheit" or "no pity for the masses.")
* Kraftwerk = power plant
* Massive Töne = massive sounds
* Neu! = new!
* Rammstein = "ramming stone" (literal) or "battering ram" (figurative), refers to the Ramstein airshow disaster. Some translate it as " [stone] hammerhead"
* Silbermond = literally "silver moon". A German Popband.
* Virginia Jetzt! = Virginia now!
* Wir sind Helden = we are heroes

ee also:

* "Krautrock": "Kraut" (= cabbage) rock". A German-like English name for a variety of German rock music.
* "Neue Deutsche Welle (NDW)": "New German Wave". A genre of German music originally derived from punk rock and New Wave music.

Selected works in classical music

* Johann Sebastian Bach's "Das wohltemperierte Klavier" ("Well-Tempered Clavier"); "Jesus bleibet meine Freude" ("Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring")
* Brahms's "Schicksalslied" ("Song of Destiny")
* Kreisler's "Liebesleid" ("Pain of Love"), "Liebesfreud" ("Joy of Love")
* Liszt's "Liebesträume" ("Dreams of Love")
* Mozart's "Eine kleine Nachtmusik" ("A Little Night Music"); "Die Zauberflöte" ("The Magic Flute")
* Gustav Mahler's "Kindertotenlieder" ("Songs on the Death of Children")
* Schubert's "Winterreise" ("Winter Journey")
* Schumann's "Dichterliebe" ("The Poet's Love")
* Richard Strauss's "Der Rosenkavalier" ("Cavalier of the Rose"); "Also sprach Zarathustra" ("Thus Spoke Zarathustra"); "Vier letzte Lieder" ("Four last songs")
* Johann Strauss II's "Die Fledermaus" ("The Bat"); "An der Schönen Blauen Donau" ("On The Beautiful Blue Danube")
* Richard Wagner's Die Walküre ("The Valkyrie"); Götterdämmerung ("Twilight of the Gods"); both from his opera cycle "Der Ring des Nibelungen" ("The Ring of the Nibelung")

Carols and hymns

* "Stille Nacht": "Silent Night"
* "O Tannenbaum": "O Christmas Tree"

Modern songs

* "99 Luftballons": "99 Balloons" (English title: "99 Red Balloons") by Nena

See also

* Germish (English loanwords in German)
* List of Portuguese words of Germanic origin
* List of Spanish words of Germanic origin
* List of French phrases
* List of Latin words with English derivatives
* List of Latin phrases
* List of Greek phrases
*
* List of French phrases used by English speakers
*
* Yiddish
* Yinglish
* List of English words of Yiddish origin
* List of English words of Dutch origin
* Jerrycan
* List of pseudo-German words adapted to English
*

References

External links

* [http://www.germanenglishwords.com Dictionary of Germanisms]