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GERMAN LANGUAGE

10 German words you need to know to keep up with the coalition talks

There's a whole set of German vocabulary you'll need to know if you want to follow the ins and outs of the coalition talks. Here are ten words that can help you impress your friends during your next heated political debate.

10 German words you need to know to keep up with the coalition talks
Traffic Lights outside the German Bundestag. Are you in favour of an Ampel coalition? Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Julian Stratenschulte

1. (die) Sondierungsgespräche

Right now the Sondierungsgespräche – or exploratory talks – are happening between parties. These talks are for the political big-wigs to sound each other out, to see if there is a possibility to work together or if it will be too difficult. It’s basically the talks before the talks. And of course there’s a word for that in German.

READ ALSO: What you need to know about Germany’s upcoming coalition talks

2. (die) Selfie-Sondierung

The very first exploratory talks took place in secret on Tuesday night and caught everyone by surprise. The Greens co-leaders Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck, along with the pro-business FDP’s head honchos Christian Lindner and Volker Wissing then almost broke the internet by posting a selfie of the group to each of their Instagram accounts. And that’s why we are including “selfie exploration” as a word you need to know. 

“Jokes or not – the four have achieved what they wanted to achieve with their joint post: to be the talk of the town everywhere,” said Bavarian broadcaster BR24.

“Some even want to recognise a historic moment. Media journalist Stefan Niggemeier says maybe it’s ‘silly to be impressed by such cheap Instagram symbolism, but this still feels like a bigger moment that you’re witnessing here.'”

3. (die) Gesprächsrunde

Formulated with the German word for conservation or discussion (das Gespräch), this is basically a round of talks. A little more substance than the exploratory talks, the round table discussions will involve a bit more thrashing out of the key policy issues, like that niggling question of the Tempolimit on the Autobahn (to speed or not speed – that is the question). We told you this was riveting vocabulary right? 

4. (die) Regierungsbildung

Now that the election is over, the parties have been entrusted with the formation of a government – or Regierungsbildung. 

In this election the two smaller parties – the Greens and the FDP have wasted no time in teaming up in their quest to make a new government. They’re keeping the two bigger parties – the Social Democrats (SPD) and the centre-right CDU/CSU on their toes.

5. (die) Koalitionsverhandlungen

Finally we get to the official coalition negotiations. This is the moment where the finer details will be discussed in preparation for launching a new government partnership. We’re expecting three political parties in the new German government (more on the formations below). As you can imagine, it will take a good bit of time to keep everyone happy in the negotiations. 

Now you can see why it takes months for Germany to form a government.

6. (der) Rücktritt

All is fair in love and war… and politics. And it may come to a point where we see someone having to hand in their resignation – der Rücktritt.

At the time of writing on Friday, there were calls for CDU leader and chancellor candidate Armin Laschet to stand down. A majority of people in Germany believe he should give his resignation, according to a recent poll.

7. Ampelkoalition

Let’s look at those coalition formations starting with the Ampel – or Traffic Light. It’s part of the German obsession with colour-coded politics. 

An Ampelkoalition describes a coalition government led by the SPD (red), with the Greens and the FDP (yellow).

The term Traffic Light coalition originates from Germany and has subsequently been picked up by other countries to describe similar coalitions between social democrats, liberals and green.

A majority of Germans say they want this type of coalition following the election, with the SPD’s Olaf Scholz as chancellor.

READ ALSO: Jamaica or Traffic Light? What’s next for Germany and what does it mean?

8. Jamaika-Koalition

There’s another contender for the hearts of the Greens and the FDP – that’s CDU leader Armin Laschet. He wants to form a coalition with these two parties which would be a Jamaica formation. It has nothing to do with the country. It’s called that because the party colours of black, green and yellow match the Jamaican flag. 

Even though the SPD scooped first place in the election, it’s not inconceivable that the CDU could form a coalition government.

9. Große Koalition (GroKo)

A Große Koalition, or a grand coalition in Germany describes a governing coalition of the two biggest parties in one parliament.

In the caretaker German government, a Große Koalition (GroKo for short) exists between Angela Merkel’s CDU party and the SPD party. But neither side is eager to continue this so you probably don’t need to be talking about this too much at the moment unless you want to declare how annoyed you are at GroKo, or that GroKo is dead which would probably earn you some brownie points among your German friends.  

A guest at the SPD election party in 2017 holds up a 'no more GroKo' sign.
A guest at the SPD election party in 2017 holds up a ‘no more GroKo’ sign. Photo: picture alliance / Christian Charisius/dpa | Christian Charisius

10. bevorzugte Regierungsoption

What is your bevorzugte Regierungsoption – preferred government option?

Are you an Ampel, Jamaika or GroKo kind of person? Or did you have a completely different wish for the next German government? Take your pick and impress your friends with your German current affairs knowledge and vocabulary because who doesn’t love a politics nerd? 

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GERMAN LANGUAGE

Fettnäpfchen to Pechvogel: What’s the story behind ‘unlucky’ German phrases?

For superstitious Germans, Friday 13th is a time to stay home if you want to avoid stepping in a puddle or busting a tyre. But if misfortune does strike, there are plenty of German idioms that deal with these unlucky situations.

Fettnäpfchen to Pechvogel: What's the story behind 'unlucky' German phrases?

As Halloween approaches at the end of October and the nights start closing in sooner, it’s a time of year when many people’s thoughts turn to the darker side of life. And on Friday 13th, those of us with a superstitious mind may feel inclined to be that little bit more careful while we’re out and about.

Traditionally, this is a date with an unheimlich – or rather creepy – reputation. It’s a day known for bringing bad luck – a connection that is largely believed to stem back to the story of Jesus’ Last Supper in the Bible. 

During the Last Supper, which happened on a Thursday, 13 people – Jesus and his 12 apostles – were seated at the table. Jesus was arrested later that night and was crucified on the Friday. The crucifixion therefore brought together this day of the week with the unlucky number 13.

Though not all Germans believe in the morbid power of Friday 13th, the German language does offer a wealth of sayings that deal with  misfortune and impending doom. Here are our five picks and the stories behind them.

READ ALSO: Friday the 13th: Eight strange superstitions that Germans hold dearly

Vom Regen in die Traufe

If you start with a minor bit of a bad luck and end up in a far worse situation, you might want to tell people you’ve gone “vom Regen in die Traufe” – or from the rain into the eaves. This analogy has apparently been used in Germany to describe such situations since the 17th century.

If it doesn’t sound too bad at first, it’s worth remembering that the eaves – or Traufe – refer to the bottom of the roof where rain collects and spills off. In fact, it comes from the Old German word ‘trouf’, which means ‘dripping’. So if you find yourself sheltering from a storm under the eaves, you might just find yourself hit by a fountain of cascading water and far wetter than you were to begin with.

In English, we have a similar phrase, but with a far more hellish connotation: jumping from the frying pan into the fire.

Pech haben

Whether it’s a Pechvogel (unlucky person), a Pechsträhne (streak of bad luck), or being ‘vom Pech verfolgt’ (followed by misfortunate), German is littered with phrases that deal with the subject of ‘Pech’. On its own, you may recognise Pech as meaning bad luck, but you may not be aware that the word literally means tar.

A calendar with Friday 13th marked with a pin.

A calendar with Friday 13th marked with a pin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Christoph Soeder

So how exactly did this gooey black liquid come to be associated with the worst of misfortunes? Many believe it relates to the world of hunting. In the Middle Ages, people would rub tar on tree branches for birds to get stuck on. Any unsuspecting fowl caught in this way came to represent a figure of misfortune, which is where the German phrase ‘Pechvogel’ likely comes from. 

Another less likely explanation comes from Germany’s beer-making traditions. In order to store beer over longer periods, barrels used to be coated with tar on the inside – meaning some unlucky pub-goers may well find some of the black liquid floating in their drink. 

READ ALSO: German word of the day: Der Pechvogel

Ins Fettnäpfchen treten

Whether you’ve blabbed about a surprise birthday party or accidentally offended a work colleague, Germans have a phrase to describe these silly blunders: stepping in a bowl of fat. 

In recent years, the fat-bowl – or Fettnäpfchen – in itself has come to signalise a blunder or a piece of bad luck, in a similar way to the French phrase ‘faux pas’. 

According to the chemist and author Georg Schwedt, the metaphor dates back to a time when farmhouses would often keep a bowl of fat near the front door in order to clean and preserve wet shoes. If people weren’t careful, however, the bowl could easily be stepped on or kicked off, spreading stubborn grease stains all over the floor. 

In English, incidentally, clumsy people also “put their foot in it”. In this case, however, the unpleasant substance you step in is left up to the imagination.

Damoklesschwert

English speakers may well recognise this reference to the ‘Sword of Damocles’ – an idiom indicating that a streak of luck or happiness may soon end in misery.

The expression has its roots in a story by the Roman writer Cicero that has been handed down from antiquity. In it, the courtier Damocles praises the tyrant Dionysius of Syracuse as the most fortunate and happiest king.

Damocles' sword

Damocles’ sword. Photo. Wiki Commons

Dionysus agrees to swap places with his courtier, but has a sword hung above the throne, hanging only by a horse’s hair. This sword comes to symbolise a constant threat to Damocles’ present happiness.

In die Bredouille kommen

Anyone who finds themselves in a sticky situation in Germany may well tell the world that they’ve fallen into the mud – or “Bredouille”, in French.  

The reason for this, according to cultural historian Andres Furger, was the decades-long occupation of large swathes of German land between the French Revolution in 1789 and the Congress of Vienna in 1815. During this time, combat forces would often find themselves in tricky situations – in the “Bredouille”, so to speak.

READ ALSO: 10 German words to get you in the mood for autumn

However, others believe that the phrase may have it roots in a popular boardgame. 

In the French backgammon variant Tricktrack, the Bredouille is a game advantage that makes it much harder for the opponent to win. So if the person you’re playing gets into this position – especially on Friday 13th – you’re likely to be well and truly in the Bredouille. 

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