Thank you very much for your replies all of you, they are really fascinating to read
![Smile [:)]](/emoticons/emotion-1.gif)
At my uni, our exchange students regularly do a presentation in what they mention (cultural)differences in Germany in contrast to their home countries and that's always very interesting.
I always get things to know I never would have thought of before. *hehe*
(e.g. that Germans don't cross a road if the traffic light shows red, that Germans always use fork and knife while having a meal... things like that - and that's true btw *lol*).
Trellis, it seems you met lots of different people.
I've often been told that Germans are not really that social, and it's very difficult to get to know them - which is true in certain cases I'd say - but as soon as the ice melts, the sociality comes out *g*
It's true that there's German in the British Royal Family, but I don't know in how far. I was told that Queen Elizabeth II. can speak German, and I think also Queen Mum could speak it.
Interesting is the last thought you mentioned:
"I have guessed that maybe this is because they avoid the forums and chatrooms that use English because they like their own language..."
--> This isn't true; actually this is a very complex thing:
First of all: Most people aged 30 and younger have learned or are learning English at school and have at least some knowledge about the language.
German language is also very strongly influenced by English, i.e. we use loads (really loads!!) of English words in our language, and it gets more and more every day. Especially in commercials and advertisements, but also everywhere else, it's nearly impossible not to use English words.
Also we make new words up, which seem to be English and which are pronounced English, but they aren't English. The most popular example here is: "Handy". Handy is the German word for cell phone!! Another one is "Talkmaster" which is talk show host in English.
Remarkable here is btw that esp. verbs take over German inflection, so we have e.g. words like "e-mailen", "usen", "downloaden", "checken", "einchecken"(to check in) ... which are pronounced in the English way, but have German inflection in addition when used in diferent tenses like:
"Ich habe gee-mailt" (I have e-mailed); "Er checkt seine Post" (He checks his mail); "Ich habe eingecheckt" (I've checked in)... etc.
Unlike Germany, France e.g. has an institution (the Accademie de la Francais) that cares of language and for example makes laws concerning the use of foreign words. They also regulate that there aren't too many English songs broadcast from French radio stations, while in Germany, noone cares (most songs in the Hitlists are English here).
Germans also have difficulties in being proud of something that has to do with their country. Hardly anyone would e.g. say that he's proud of being a German, that has to do with World War 2, of course.
You will also hardly find German flags in, at, or around towns or houses. Germans usually thought/(think) that if they had one in the garden, that would mean they were Nazis, so hardly anyone did/(does) it. ->That has been very slowly changeing for a few years. This way of thinking is now developing here and you can notice that people here get more and more open minded to these topics and sometimes you can already find a German flag in someone's garden, which was quite impossible about 5-10 years ago.
And even talking about the war is not really a problem anymore.
>>I am glad you are here Mac.
Thanks, trellis, so am I
Thank you very much again for all your replies and please go on posting if you have some more thoughts to share. It's really incredible what you can learn about yourself and your own culture/country by a view from outside.
Have a great day, hope to talk to you soon
Mac