18 Jun Note on enunciation : The «ie» try pronounced like English «ee», in contrast to English «eye»

Periodic musings, Geistesblitze, pictures, illustrations an such like. by a «resident alien», that has got on US soil from a far-away globe known as «Germany».

Word-of the period: Liebeskummer

A variety of Liebe (love) and Kummer (grief, sorrow) that refers to the state of mind of individuals whoever love life is certainly not supposed better, particularly the sadness considered by jilted fans.

10 responses:

Hi Ulrich, i believe this can be a meer dan 50 dating delightful phrase, and that I can’t contemplate a similar in English. although at one time or other, all, or at least a lot of, people bring necessary to make use of it. What’s the book when it comes to? I like the subject.

The succinct subject associated with the publication, Moselfahrt aus Liebeskummer, is tough to convert gracefully–the literal meaning was «Moselle lake Excursion because of Liebeskummer». It is a novella, written in the 30s, explaining a trip along and on the Mosel (Moselle) river during which the narrator tries to overcome his Liebeskummer. It has warm descriptions associated with the lake, the villages that line they, in addition to those who grow drink there–I stayed in one of these villages as I went to primary college.

Upon rereading passages of it, though, i need to confess that title could very well be the best part on the publication!

«The Germans should have an expression for it. Doppelgedanken, maybe: the feeling, whenever checking out, that your particular own thoughts are having a baby on terminology while they show up on the page. This type of will be the ego that throughout these rare times you ask yourself, a€?exactly how could mcdougal has recognized everything I ended up being thinking?a€?

In my opinion the quotation suggests that the reviewer stocks exactly what your blog has over and over shown, your Germans become masters at coming up with phrase that specifically identify states of notice. Liebeskummer is actually just one more example.

: Thx for aiming this assessment away. I recovered the analysis from your pile of tabloids to-be recycled (I experienced misied they a week ago).

Their estimate, produced even more persuasive b/c it’s the starting section of this overview, confirms, just like you say, that it is an easy task to coin brand-new words on the spot in German by hitching collectively two separate statement (usually nouns, but not necessarily therefore). Doppelgedanke is an example–I’ve never seen it in German, but Germans would comprehend it from inside the framework wherein its offered, given they have the allusion toward well-established DoppelgA¤nger.

I’m additionally, needless to say, quite taken because of the ‘official’ acknowledgment of this capability of German in section and surprised the customer thinks that way, that she finds it–apparently–convenient, sometimes, to ‘think in German’.

It certainly inspires me to manage using my word-of-the-month threads. But I also need declare that English offers coinages with no counterpart in German, and I may build a thread soon working with this complementary subject.

Which is an interesting subject, the English coinages which have no actual equivalent in German. I question for a moment find in English–and perhaps you will–the form of phrase I have found very wonderful in German, those substances showing, extremely specifically, a certain frame of mind. Not all of the German advice did that but several have and that I fancy them a lot better than their own English alternatives, if not equivalents, for-instance, Fraidy cat versus Angsthase. I really do expect you will definitely carry on with your phrase associated with the month. I really take pleasure in them.

The typical examples of English words w/o real counterpart in German is «fair enjoy» and «typical sense»–they have been used like this in German long before current tsunami of English words started to strike German, which include keywords that you don’t have whatsoever, like «game», whoever connotations have absolutely no way different from regarding German Spiel. In teenager talk, on line, marketing and advertising etcetera German comes up today as a mixture of German and English. I will be, in fact, contemplating witnessing exactly how this will pan out in the end–i.e. if this will blow over as a fad or will have a long-lasting affect German, e.g. notably boost its vocabulary. My estimate will be your second can happen.

The upshot is when I want to start a bond on English terms and conditions with no genuine cognates in German, the problem is manufactured more complicated through this state of affairs. Nevertheless, i am starting a typical page in which I accumulate prospect phrases–I need undoubtedly a lot more than «reasonable play» and «common sense».

Gorgeous phrase, Liebeskummer, and there is a Dutch equivalent, liefdesverdriet. Really it is amazing that there surely is no English phrase for it. It occurs often that I’m trying to convert an English expression into Dutch, there just isn’t any right phrase. I’ll remember to tell you, Ulrich.