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German word of the day: Das Unwort

An “Unwort” essentially refers to an ugly word, and there were no shortage of them to choose from in an annual competition whose results were announced Tuesday.

German word of the day: Das Unwort
Photo: DPA

One of the strengths of German is how easy it is to create new words to describe anything, be it feeling, concept or actual object. Yet this has often been abused throughout history to the modern day to create negative and often taboo words which reflect rising political or social sentiments.

This is where the idea of an Unwort comes in. ‘Un’ itself is often added to a noun to connote something unpleasant or unacceptable, much like in English. For example, when Un- is added to Tier (animal) it becomes an Untier, or a monster.

Every year since 1991, German linguists have chosen an Unwort des Jahres (Unwort of the Year) on the principles of going against “human dignity” or the “principles of democracy”. Usually marking a negative trend in politics, such an Unwort discriminates against specific groups or is deceitful or misleading.

2018’s ‘Unwort des Jahres’

Linguistics professor Nina Janich announced the “Unwort des Jahres” as “Anti-Abscheibe-Industrie”, or anti-deportation industry, on Tuesday at the University of Darmstadt.

The neologism was first used by Christian Democratic (CSU) politician Alexander Dobrindt during an interview in May. The head of the CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag had described a lawsuit against the deportation of rejected asylum seekers as sabotage of the rule of law.

According to an analysis Tuesday in the Süddeutsche Zeitung, the “powerful” term addresses “powerful and deep-seated emotions and fears”.

Essentially, “criminals” (which many in the right assume these deported asylum seekers to be) are taking advantage of the German legal system by trying to reverse their deportations. And that the lawyers who help them are also corrupt by earning money on their cases.

Janich said that such a statement by an important politician of a ruling party shows “how the political discourse has shifted linguistically and in substance to the right, and thus also the rules of what’s say-able in our democracy are changing in a precarious way”.

In other words, politicians can now getting away with expressing themselves in a less measured way than in the past, using more fear mongering and less logic. This also shows in some of the other Unwörter which were submitted, and initially used in 2018 by conservative politicians, such as Sprachpolizei (language police) and Asyltourismus (asylum tourism).

The former refers to things one supposedly can and cannot say in Germany and the latter is a smug term towards the masses of refugees who come to Europe, as though they descend upon the continent by choice.

A man photographing the ‘Unwort des Jahres’ after it was announced on Tuesday morning. Photo: DPA

A record number of submissions

A full 508 words were submitted for the “Unwort des Jahres” competition, which the judges narrowed down to 15 for the final round of the selection process.

For the 2018 competition, the jury received a total of 902 submissions, a record for the competition’s history. Anti-Abscheibe-Industrie was suggested 10 times. It was not, however, the most heavily submitted word. “Asyltourismus” was suggested more than 120 times.

In 2017 the term Alternative Fakten (alternative facts) was chosen, while in 2016 the word Volksverräter (traitor to the people) was selected.

This isn’t the only linguistic competition in Germany. Exactly a month ago on December 14th, the word Heißzeit was announced as the German Word of the Year by the Society of the German Language.

Yet it is also not the nicest word, considering that it refers to both the unusually hot and dry summer that stretched on between April and October in Germany, as well as climate change in general.

Do you have a favourite word you’d like to see us cover? If so, please email our editor Rachel Stern with your suggestion.

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EURO 2024

The German words and phrases you need for Euro 2024

With the Euros being hosted by Germany this summer, it's a great opportunity to broaden your German football vocabulary. Here are a collection of words and phrases to know to get into the games.

The German words and phrases you need for Euro 2024

Auf geht’s!

You’ll usually hear this as the match gets underway and it means: let’s go! Another common expression that means the same thing is Los geht’s! and Fans will often stick their team on the end – Auf geht’s Deutschland! or Los geht’s Dänemark!

You can also shout: Deutschland vor! (Go Germany!) and Weiter, weiter! (keep going) as the match goes on.  

If you’re not feeling so confident at screaming these phrases at a TV, a simple way of explaining which team you’re supporting in a conversation is by saying: Ich bin für Deutschland or Ich bin für Italien. 

Tor!

If you already speak some German, you might recognise this word, which means ‘”gate” or “door” (think Brandenburger Tor) However, in football terminology, it is probably the most joyous word you’ll hear at a match because it means goal. Shout it out when your team gets one in the back of the net!

Italy's defender #05 Riccardo Calafiori reacts after scoring an own goal during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group B football match between Spain and Italy at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 20, 2024.

Italy’s defender #05 Riccardo Calafiori reacts after scoring an own goal during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group B football match between Spain and Italy at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 20, 2024. Photo by KENZO TRIBOUILLARD / AFP

This is a chant involving Tor that you might hear at a match or screening: “Los geht’s Deutschland, schießt ein Tor” (Let’s go Germany, score a goal!).

Meanwhile, the goalkeeper is called der Torwart or der Tormann. Some fans will use the English – goalie. 

READ ALSO: Where are the fan zones for Euro 2024 in Germany?

Elfmeter

For England fans – this is an important one, as England has had some famous trip-ups at penalty shootouts during international tournaments over the years.

The word for penalty kick in German literally means “eleven meters” – the distance from the penalty spot to the goal.

You’ll sometimes hear German fans shouting Elfer! If they think a player has been wronged and deserves a penalty.

Gut gehalten!

This is an excellent Fußball phrase to use if your team’s goalkeeper has just saved an Elfmeter. Literally translating to “well held”, this phrase means “good save”.

Denmark supporters cheer in front of a group of England supporters in Frankfurt on June 20th.

Denmark supporters cheer in front of a group of England supporters in Frankfurt on June 20th. Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP

Schiedsrichter

Der Schiedsrichter – or referee – is often the most unpopular person on the pitch. When watching a match with disgruntled German football fans, you might hear this word shortened to Schiri!, similar to how Ref! is used in English.

Schwalbe

The German word for the bird swallow – Die Schwalbe – is used as a rather poetic description for when a player takes a dive. In these situations, when a footballer dramatically falls to try to earn a free kick or a penalty, they often lie on the ground with their arms and legs spread out, resembling a swallow with its forked tail.

IN PICTURES: Football fans take over German cities for Euro 2024

A swallow in the night sky.

A swallow in the night sky. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Karl-Josef Hildenbrand

Abseits

You’ll hear this term frequently, especially if your team plays an attacking game. It’s the German word for “offside,” and fans will call it out whenever the linesman’s flag goes up. 

Meanwhile, der Freistoß is free kick and der Anstoß is kick off. 

Raus!

You’ll hear this being shouted out when things get tense. Raus! which means ‘out!’ is signalling for the players to quickly get the ball away from the box near their goals to avoid danger. 

Arschkarte

Getting shown die Arschkarte (literally arse card) is another word for getting a red card or Rote Karte. 

It dates back to the 1970s and is connected to referees keeping the yellow card in their shirt pocket and the red card in their back pocket, next to their butt. So it is literally an Arschkarte. You’ll also hear fans shouting Gelb! (yellow) or Rot! (red) if they think someone deserves a booking. Or simply Foul! or Foulspiel! (Foul or foul play). 

By the way, there’s an idiom that is used off the pitch. Die Arschkarte ziehen – ‘pulling the arse card’ is the equivalent to the English ‘drawing the short straw’. So if someone says: ‘Du hast die Arschkarte gezogen’, they mean – ‘you’re out of luck’ or ‘you drew the short straw’.

READ ALSO: How to watch the Euro 2024 tournament in Germany 

Das war knapp! 

Das war Knapp means ‘That was close!’ or ‘that was a close call!’ The Euro 2024 tournament is already proving to be nailbiting so this little phrase is a perfect one to call out in a variety of circumstances such as when your team nearly lets in a goal or when the game finishes, but you just made it. If your team wins by a whisker, you can also use the phrase: Um ein Haar! which translates to ‘by a hair!’

For example – Die deutsche Mannschaft hat um ein Haar gewonnen! – ‘The German team won by a whisker!’

With reporting by Rachel Loxton and Sarah Magill 

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