DDR German

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The German language developed differently in East Germany (DDR), during its existence as a separate state from 1949 to 1990, from the German of West Germany because of significant differences in the country's political and socio-cultural environment. Additionally, from the late 1960s onwards the political leaders of the DDR were intent on affirming the independence of their state by "isolationist linguistic politics" [1] with the objective of demarcating East Germany from West Germany by actively reducing the unity of the German language. [2]

Contents

This political effort did not amount to the creation of a new language in the DDR but brought about a particular usage of the language and of linguistic behaviours specific to it, [3] felt not in syntax or grammar, but in vocabulary, [4] and manifesting itself in both the official and non-official spheres. [5]

Vocabulary

The most prominent changes in the German language in the DDR were at the level of vocabulary. [6] Most of the differences in DDR vocabulary were a result of the East German government attempting to construct a new socialist lexicon that would help to create and develop a new socialist identity in the DDR. [7] An example of a word that was changed to promote a new socialist identity was the change from the word for flag from Fahne to Winkelement, meaning "waving element." The idea behind this change was to encourage people to wave flags that authorities would hand out to them before parades and other events to signify East German pride. [7] Another word that was created to promote a new socialist identity was to change the word for cow ('Kuh') to Großvieheinheit meaning "large livestock unit." Communist agricultural planners made this change to show that a socialist cow was different, and something special compared to a capitalist cow. [7]

The government of the DDR and its organizations controlled many aspects of everyday life and created new words to express themselves. Words such as der Stattsrat (the governing body of the DDR), der Staatsratsvorsitzende (the chief executive of the governing body), and die Volkskammer (the one legislative body in the DDR) were created for the new governing body. [6]

Economic, political, and social changes in the DDR as well as the total reorganization of government, industrial, and employment systems resulted in new words and compounds being developed. [6] Words such as Betriebspaß ("the general characteristics of a factory in regard to its technical and economic state") and kollektivieren (the verb used for the action of nationalizing land) were established and given meanings to activities specific to the East German government. [6]

As the new nation was developing, so were new words to fill in the gaps of DDR society. An example of this would be Intershop which was the word for a store that exchanged foreign currencies for western goods. [7] Hausbuch was the book each residential block kept to enter residents' and visitors' details and to document visitors from West Germany, which was checked regularly by East German police, and Westpaket was the word for care packages that were sent to East Germany from the West. [7]

In addition to creating new words, words that previously had existed were given new meanings (or modified slightly) to reflect the values of the DDR. Das Aktiv was "a group of workers which strives collectively to fulfill socio-political economic and cultural tasks and strives for above average achievements." [6] Der Arbeiterstudent was created to describe a student who was previously a manual worker before deciding to study. [6]

Pronunciation and Grammar

Linguists in East Germany focused on the norms of pronunciation rather than grammar. In 1961, the Wörterbuch der deutschen Aussprache (Dictionary of German Pronunciation), a separate dictionary focused on pronunciation, was created in East Germany. [8] Meanwhile in West Germany, two distinct pronunciation dictionaries were created, Sieb's Deutsche Aussprache and Duden's Aussprachewörterbuch, which furthered linguistic and pronunciation differences in the DDR. [8] Sieb's Deutsch Aussprache aimed to provide an ideal pronunciation standard that focused on uniformity and rules whereas Duden's Aussprachewörterbuch provided pronunciation differences that focused on documenting actual usage. [8] No corresponding dictionaries or books focusing on grammar were produced in East Germany, and grammar trends taking place during this period were documented as occurring in both East and West Germany. [8]

Examples

Controversies

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References

  1. ↑ Müller, Gerhard (1994), "Der "Besserwessi" und die "innere Mauer". Anmerkungen zum Sprachgebrauch im vereinigten Deutschland", In "Muttersprache. Vierteljahresschrift für deutsche Sprache" (in German): 119 ff
  2. ↑ Hellmann, Manfred. Deutsche Sprache in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland und der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik. In: Althaus, Hans Peter u.a. (eds.). Lexikon der germanistischen Linguistik. Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1980, p.520: see the paragraph on die ostdeusche Betonung sprachlicher Differenz
  3. ↑ Peter Von Polenz (1999): Deutsche Sprachgeschichte vom Spätmittelater bis zur Gegenwart, vol. 3: 19. und 20. Jahrhundert. Berlin, New York, Walter de Gruyter, 776 p. ISBN   3110143445 and ISBN   9783110143447, p. 428
  4. ↑ Ibid, p.424-425
  5. ↑ On the distinction between the two, see Gotthard Lerchner (1996), Sprachgebrauch im Wandel: Anmerkungen zur Kommunikationskultur in der DDR vor und nach der Wende, Frankfurt am Main, Peter Lang
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Russ, Charles V.J. (November 3, 1994). The German Langauge Today: A linguistic introduction (in 639-1) (1st ed.). London: Routledge (published 1994). pp. 100–117. ISBN   0415104386.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Walsh, Mary Williams (1994-08-16). "Culture : One Germany, Two Languages, Much Confusion : East and West developed their own lexicons during 40 years of separation. Some variations are minor, but others reflect different ways of looking at the world". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Russ, Charles V.J. (November 3, 1994). The German Langauge Today: A linguistic introduction (in 639-1) (1st ed.). London: Routledge (published 1994). pp. 100–117. ISBN   0415104386.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  9. ↑ Mary Williams Walsh (16 August 1994). "Culture: One Germany, Two Languages, Much Confusion: East and West developed their own lexicons during 40 years of separation. Some variations are minor, but others reflect different ways of looking at the world". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  10. ↑ "Culture: One Germany, Two Languages, Much Confusion: East and West developed their own lexicons during 40 years of separation. Some variations are minor, but others reflect different ways of looking at the world". Los Angeles Times . 16 August 1994.
  11. ↑ Mrozek, Bodo (25 December 2006). "Wortmysterium "Jahresendflügelfigur": Wer sagt denn so was!". Der Spiegel.

Bibliography

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In English

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