Post Titled: DENGLISCH REVISITED mit stylisher bikini...
-a few thoughts and no conclusions on signs of an endangered language...
HERE, die WELT Online takes a moent today to criticize Denglisch, that's right-sweet sweet Denglisch- but, reading this article I realized that their understanding -or- theory on / idea of Denglisch (and what it does (or pollutes) is quite different from what I thought it was. I thought Denglisch was just a mix of German and English, fund and harmless, like- what we speak at home -basically, when you have two opposing native speakers and your brain gets tired so it all gets garbled and sometimes you forget what language you are even speaking but there is information being communicated trotzdem
-but-
according to this article in die Welt, Denglisch seems to be the English-ization of the German language which just results in crappy impure debased Denglischized-German, How did I miss that? Denglisch can also be illustrated with pictures of torsos in bikinis because this is a German newspaper and such a dull topic might need a bit of extra help in attracting readers...
the article is even titled "Warum Denglisch Sprachmüll ist"
or
"Why Denglisch is Language-trash"
or even
"Warum dEnglisch Sprach-trash ist."
Why does this happen to German? (or any European language for that matter?) Repeatedly- or constantly? They are always under-fire, aren't they? Err- Why do English words -or Englishized German hybrid words- just become integrated? Is it purely seduction and globalisation and the prominence of American products and media? Yea, probably. I know French has (or had? or has had) xenophobic-like laws regarding English use in the media and integration into the language, and other languages attempt to invent new words altogether rather than integrate foreign ones, -which is noble- Talking with Vikingur last week I asked him about the Icelander's practice of actually inventing new icelandic words when needed, like when new technologies come along and I was pleasantly surprised when he said that the word for computer was "Well, a mix- of two other words, -of something like a woman who can see the future and ..." (somthing else- I have to ask again)

Indeed, in German, words like "kneipe" have been relpaced by "bar", "schönheit" with "beauty" -and words like "downgeloadet" have been born out of necessity or integrated by pure volume of use, and I donät know if that is really bad... well, then again, I'm not the one having my language over-run by foreign words... and I do appreciate evolution and flexibility.

On the other hand, what of the other changes spoken German is perhaps undertaking? As in the Türkish-Deutsch, which does not always to bother (or sometimes even use) articles at all? Germany has an ever-increasing and ever-isolated immigrant population, who are speaking their own incarnation of the German language, and what of that? As I have written about before: in the recent National Integrationsplan there was a call for all foreigners to learn how to speak German, but -honestly- without mandatory free classes I just donät see it happening, the language is too complex and the immigrants do nto get enough long-term exposure to native speakers, because of these rifts in society.

When I get angry and frustrated with German, especially around NK- who is an impatient teacher- I often like to say things like "German just isn't user-friendly! and you know what people DO with things that aren't user-friendly?! They STOP using them!" Bad- I know.

Anyhow, the English Wikipedia's Denglish page is fun. The German Wikipedia's Denglisch site is, of course, quite different... hm.

Ironically, just after writing this I almost ran into one of my German co-wokers coming out of the restroom, and the only word out of his mouth: "Sorry!"

FOOTNOTE: Upon request, this post has been tinkered-with and re-posted at ELECTROPEASANT ;p