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Your opinion on the German language



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Muke

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So, I figured since this is an English forum I'd just ask here.
What do you think about the German language? Many americans say it sounds harsh and even saying nice things sounds like we're angry, but I just don't see it. It's not like we yell around all the time? Is it because of the vowels? Consonants?

I'm really curious about all of this and I'd love to get a discussion going. :)
 

Divine Past

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The long words make the language seem angrier to us Americans. Plus most of our exposure to German in film is a bad person or someone yelling in it.
 

catcake

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It can sound a bit harsh since it has... I don't know how to describe it but "hard" sounds a lot. Like it doesn't sound very soft and flowing. But I honestly like it a lot, it has lots of pretty words and it sounds cool. I wouldn't want to learn it myself because the word order is confusing but I like listening to it.
 

VoidGear.

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The word order is best tho. You can basically put almost everyword in a sentence elsewhere and its still correct somehow.

Anyways, it might be the kind of way we pronounce harsh sounding consonants like t, k or p and stuff like ck. Our r is also way less flowy I think.
 

DarkosOverlord

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I did German for three years before changing language for other reasons and I quite liked it.
My teacher also had the sweetest pronounciation with a really kind voice, so the old "German is always angry" trope never got me.
As soon as I finish my other studies I'd wish to go back to it.

I'm not American, but figured I'd give my own thoughts.
 

Laeril

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Hate to Godwin the thread already, but if you listen to the speeches of Adolf Hitler, they aren't exactly the nicest bits of human language to ever grace the air. Add decades of Germans, particularly Nazi's, as villains in Anglophone cinema, and there you go.

Might also have something have something to do with the general sound of German band Rammstein.
 

Muke

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Hate to Godwin the thread already, but if you listen to the speeches of Adolf Hitler, they aren't exactly the nicest bits of human language to ever grace the air. Add decades of Germans, particularly Nazi's, as villains in Anglophone cinema, and there you go.

Might also have something have something to do with the general sound of German band Rammstein.
So we are all little Nazi-Hitlers who yell around all the time? No.
It's not like everybody talks that way. Hitler yells around and pronounces shit way worse than a normal person ever would.
Please don't associate us directly with him, because it is seriously ridiculous.

Other than that, I can kinda see why our consonants (like Void said) could sound more harsh to Americans because of the really... rounded(?) sound of English.
 
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Chuuya

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I recently went to a Christmas concert and everyone sang a particular song in German. Should've got video of it.
Anyway, it's definitely an interesting language I wouldn't mind learning. I know it might take awhile to master it though. ;_;
 

Rix

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I can also agree that it sounds kinda harsh sometimes, which is funny since German is kinda similiar to Norwegian, and I've been told that Norwegians sounds like they're happy and singing all the time xD

I don't think German sounds that harsh all the time though. To be honest, I didn't like the langusge when I was younger, but it has grown on me, and I find it to be a beautiful language bow :)
 

Ballad of Caius

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Besides finding it harsh, I also find it funny because of the word "ja", which means "yes", but sound funnier xD and I also find it sexy because of the word "fraulein", which means "woman" (though I think you guys told me that turned into an unused word, or I had it wrong, seeing as how I learned my German from Ace Attorney, HAHA xDD).
 

Muke

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Besides finding it harsh, I also find it funny because of the word "ja", which means "yes", but sound funnier xD and I also find it sexy because of the word "fraulein", which means "woman" (though I think you guys told me that turned into an unused word, or I had it wrong, seeing as how I learned my German from Ace Attorney, HAHA xDD).
Well, Fräulein is more like "Young Lady"? It has the suffix (Frau +)"-lein" which is often used to describe something "cuter" just like "-chen".
But yeah, it's not being used frequently anymore and is rather offensive (at least where I live).
 

VoidGear.

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Yeah, most people these days use "Fräulein" as a way to tell a girl/young woman that she is inferior to them.
But there are also people who just say it in a funny way. It depends on who says in to whom, really.
 

Ballad of Caius

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Well, Fräulein is more like "Young Lady"? It has the suffix (Frau +)"-lein" which is often used to describe something "cuter" just like "-chen".
But yeah, it's not being used frequently anymore and is rather offensive (at least where I live).

Yeah, most people these days use "Fräulein" as a way to tell a girl/young woman that she is inferior to them.
But there are also people who just say it in a funny way. It depends on who says in to whom, really.

Ahh, I see. Thanks for the clarification. If I ever go to Germany, I now know not to use it to refer to a woman. xD Then how do you now call women? Herr + an a, Herra...? (just kidding xD)
 
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