'Come in and find out': How Germans Really See English Ad Slogans

[MacGuffin]

English is all the rage in Germany -- the height of fashion, except that many people don't understand it. Consumer groups would like to see the language banned from German ads altogether.

If you spend much time in Germany, it won't take long before you notice that speaking the language really isn't that difficult. Any time you're at a loss for a German word, just throw in some English and move on. For one thing, it's the height of coolness to sprinkle your German with English. And for another, even if your German friends don't understand, they'll smile and nod for fear of looking dumm.

Plus, they do it too. Words like "office" and "meeting" long ago entered the German vocabulary. "Babysitten" and "downloaden" have been adopted. Even the word "people" has been molded to suit the needs of the German language -- the term has a negative connotation to indicate folks who are disagreeable and tiresome.

But when it comes to advertising slogans, the use of English is becoming passé. Some advertisers have realized that many Germans just don't understand -- or even worse, misunderstand -- their hip slogans. Even such straightforward lines like "Come in and find out," for a chain of perfume stores, can be dodgy. It seems most Germans cycled the slogan through their spotty understanding of English and thought it meant, "Come in, but then go back out again."

On Thursday, Germany's federal consumer advocacy and protection body held a symposium in Berlin to discuss the issue. The group -- whose name "Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e.V." might also benefit from a bit of simplification -- pointed specifically to the use of English in advertising and said that consumers should not be made to feel excluded just because they can't understand foreign slogans.

Study after study has indicated that many cannot. The Vodafone slogan "Make the Most of Now" has weird associations with fruit juice ("Most") for many Germans. "Welcome to the Beck's Experience" didn't work so well because many thought the last word meant "experiment." The grand prize for slipshod slogans, though, goes to German television station Sat1, which used the catchphrase "Powered by Emotion." This was taken by many to be a modern version of "Kraft durch Freude," the Nazi party's leisure organization, often translated into English as "strength through joy."

The Thursday symposium comes just a week after delegates to the Christian Democratic party congress called for German to be written into the constitution as the country's official language. Among other arguments, the encroachment of English on the German language was noted. Conservative mouthpiece Die Welt wrote that "you don't have to be a nationalist or an anti-American to feel that the English advancing into German officialdom is a sign of the neglect of our own language."

The encroachment into officialdom, in fact, was one of the problems under discussion on Thursday. Consumer protection head Gerd Billen even called for a ban on English-isms during speeches in the Bundestag, the German parliament. He said he wasn't interested in purifying German, but in helping comprehension.

Berlin may be a good place to start this campaign. The German capital has just chosen a new -- English language -- slogan for the city: "Be Berlin." But at least that catchphrase doesn't exclude any part of the population. No one, after all, seems to have the slightest idea what it means.

cgh -- with wire reports

Source: http://www.spiegel.de/international/...596128,00.html

Isn't it so, that especially German automakers use German language in English-speaking countries to advertise their products?

[Hidden_Hunter]

No different to whats happening to other languages throughout thousands of years of history

[avanti]

Its the same everywhere, and I think it is really lame, it often makes me cringe in fact!

[MacGuffin]

Oh, I completely agree that a language must evolve and develop, adapt new terms, change meanings of words over time, etc. That's normal. But that is not what that news report is about.

The problem at hand is a different one. It's verbal smoke throwing - people who use a lot of English terms while they talk, seem to be more hip and more sophisticated and can cover up that they actually have no idea what they're talking about.

Even worse, they often have trouble translating those terms into German, if asked. Talking in English terms has become so much of a fashion in management circles here, that in our works meetings, when the management states its annual report in front of the whole workforce, they repeatedly get requests to leave away the English terms, so everyone can understand what they are blabbering on about.

Even I have problems with those English terms sometimes (because they are also often used in a wrong context) and when you ask them for a translation into German, so everyone can understand them, you often get puzzled faces - because they don't know the meaning of the English term themselves.

There is of course an anti-movement to that kind of stupidity. And it has lead to the development of funny games like "Bullshit Bingo", where you are given certain English terms on a paper for a meeting and the first one who ticks off all, calls "Bullshit!" and wins

We once got a memo that our telephone system was now equipped with "Speed Numbers". I asked since when we were allowed to have phone sex at work and my superior looked at me with a question-mark on his face. I then explained that the German translation of "Speed Number" is "Schnelle Nummer", which is an expression for a quickie

So frankly yes, the (stupid) use of English terms has gotten a bit out of hand here lately and it's really annoying - and I am actually a fan of the English language. The phenomenon has lead to the creation of completely new words, that neither existed in German, nor in English before, but sound English and therefore are considered cool.

For example a cellphone is called a "Handy" in Germany. Don't ask me why but fact is, that it has made its way to the dictionaries already.

[vegasrebel29]

This is not something that needs to be legislated, and if I were a Deutschie I'd be offended that elected officials were seriously considering such notions.

With that said, I am tickled pink at the equivalency of English and the United States. I mean, they have their own punching bag a few miles away...

[theGerman]

First of all I'd like to note that I very much doubt that the general public in the UK (for example) speaks better German than the German public speaks English. Same goes (in a way) for all languages / countries I guess. But I too have do admit that the 'overuse' of English terms is really startig to go on my nevers.

English is today's business language though, so I guess there is no way to avoid it "bleeding into" the rest of the world's languages. Except French maybe.

*e* And fo me, personally ... there is something much, much worse than the occasional 'strange' use of English vocabulary. And that's English with a strong German accent. Makes my ears bleed.

[idk]

Well sometimes it's extreme. My grandmother doesn't understand any English and she has really problems buying some products.

Especially some body lotions or shampoos, hair spray and so on. It's full of English phrases that even i find hard to make sense out of it.

Shouldn't be that way... There are also too many "false friends". English words that have a different meaning in English.

Like a mobile is here.. "handy"

[Goose+]

English is originally a Germanic language anyway?

[theGerman]

English is originally a Germanic language anyway?

He's right, that's a very good point actually. So it's all good after all.

[Crazyjeeper]

English is originally a Germanic language anyway?

About 60% Germanic, the other 40% is Latin based.

[Rokovak]

How the world sees Germans:

[MacGuffin]

You know... back in the 80's I would have agreed with you...

But the British had Hazee Fantazee (or however it is spelled) and Adam Ant back then, so I really don't feel guilty

[Whappeh]

It happened to English from German too.

Words like "uber" have become common place in English lexicon, even away from the internet.

[MacGuffin]

Yes but as I explained above already, this is not about single words dripping into another language over time, because that language has no own words for them...

There are enough German words in existence to get through a conference or meeting without having to fall into the pattern of using a mishmash-speak called "Gernglish".

To give you an example, here is part of an interview with German fashion designer Jil Sander for a German newspaper. This particular excerpt became one of the prime examples of how people can mutilate their own language:

"Ich habe vielleicht etwas Weltverbesserndes. Mein Leben ist eine giving-story. Ich habe verstanden, daß man contemporary sein muß, das future-Denken haben muß. Meine Idee war, die hand-tailored-Geschichte mit neuen Technologien zu verbinden. Und für den Erfolg war mein coordinated concept entscheidend, die Idee, daß man viele Teile einer collection miteinander combinen kann. Aber die audience hat das alles von Anfang an auch supported. Der problembewußte Mensch von heute kann diese Sachen, diese refined Qualitäten mit spirit eben auch appreciaten. Allerdings geht unser voice auch auf bestimmte Zielgruppen. Wer Ladyisches will, searcht nicht bei Jil Sander. Man muß Sinn haben für das effortless, das magic meines Stils."

Note how she uses German grammar for English words (anybody cringing at that?) and combines English with German words to form horrible combined terms, that you won't find in any dictionary! This piece of adulterated language can only be understood if the reader both speaks English and German and even then it's unclear what she really means. It's a clear case for a facepalm.

This is the kind of speech you will hear in conferences and meetings in almost all businesses in Germany today. This phenomenon started in the mid 1990's. It has slowly seeped even into companies who do not deal with English-speaking customers at all - just because people think it's cool to talk jibberish like that!

The sad part is, that those who use it, usually neither speak good German, nor really understand English well... That's why they flee into that ridiuclous pattern of "Gernglish".

[theGerman]

MacGuffin - Seriously, it's about the single worst example you could find. Jil Sander is a god damn fashion designer and (maybe as a result of that) the woman is absolutely nuts.

So yes, that particular example is seriously terrible indeed. But let me make absolutely clear that except for some "nutters" and a few "business folks" nobody talks like that. Granted, it is a little (maybe a lot) more prominent in the business world but I still think that is what happens with English being the definitive business language. It's terrible but somewhat unavoidable ...

[Hidden_Hunter]

Looks no worse than your average BMW or Audi brochure

[chaos386]

MacGuffin - Seriously, it's about the single worst example you could find. Jil Sander is a god damn fashion designer and (maybe as a result of that) the woman is absolutely nuts.

So yes, that particular example is seriously terrible indeed. But let me make absolutely clear that except for some "nutters" and a few "business folks" nobody talks like that. Granted, it is a little (maybe a lot) more prominent in the business world but I still think that is what happens with English being the definitive business language. It's terrible but somewhat unavoidable ...

^QFT. You see a lot of fashion designers in the English-speaking world throw around French (and sometimes Italian) terms to sound more "sophisticated", and on the business side of things you see a lot of people doing the whole Zen/Buddha/Chi fad (and need I mention "Vorsprung Durch Technik"?). It's hardly worth legislating, though. Like all fads, it'll die out on its own, in time.

[MacGuffin]

MacGuffin - Seriously, it's about the single worst example you could find. Jil Sander is a god damn fashion designer and (maybe as a result of that) the woman is absolutely nuts.

So yes, that particular example is seriously terrible indeed. But let me make absolutely clear that except for some "nutters" and a few "business folks" nobody talks like that.

I just wanted to illustrate the problem and show the fundamental difference between the gradual changes that every language has to accept over time, and what is currently happening here.

Because there is a difference between using English as a business language, when you have to deal with international business partners, and using it as a cover-up to mask incompetence. Make the test: Ask those, who constantly use those English terms, for a German translation of what they just said - and they will begin to stutter, because they do not know the German counterpart of that term. I always have fun with that in my company

Look around you. Look how many adds in German TV use English phrases and slogans. Why? Why do they use slogans that half of the viewers don't understand or misunderstand? Why do they use all that "Total Quality Kokolores" and "Visionary Wanker Dummschwätzing"?

There is some madness in it, you have to admit that. And that madness is all I am opposed to: The overuse of English terms, when it isn't necessary or appropriate. I'm very fond of both languages, English and German, so it actually hurts me when they become an object of abuse and mutilation.

And representative of that madness is the legendary Jil Sander interview. It illustrates the problem, even if she is indeed a unique nutcase.

No kidding: Deutsche Bahn, the national German railway company, once renamed the public toilets in their stations to "McClean". How can it get more mad and embarrassing than that?

[lip]

The main problem is national pride. As always. For the Germans and especially for the French, who are quite militant about their rhetorical habitat.

We swiss don't have a national language. We have four. And the one most of us use (Swiss german) isn't even one of those four, it's a fifth one. And there are no rules how to write in swiss german. So the influence of other languages, especially english, is quite large here. But this is not seen as something negative.

Finally: If you complain about too much foreign language used in a commercial or advertisment, then you are simply not in the target group for that product. Move over. Point.

Greetings, lip

[MacGuffin]

The main problem is national pride. As always. For the Germans and especially for the French, who are quite militant about their rhetorical habitat.

We swiss don't have a national language. We have four. And the one most of us use (Swiss german) isn't even one of those four, it's a fifth one. And there are no rules how to write in swiss german. So the influence of other languages, especially english, is quite large here. But this is not seen as something negative.

Finally: If you complain about too much foreign language used in a commercial or advertisment, then you are simply not in the target group for that product. Move over. Point.

Greetings, lip

Maybe you should check this out: http://www.spiegel.de/unispiegel/wun...310548,00.html