Little German Lesson

Ok, as I have been asked to teach some elementary school kids some basic German things, I thought I might as well teach you some basic things as well.

Let's start with the essentials:

I love you = Ich liebe dich

Help! = Hilfe!

Cheers! = Prost!

Thank you = Danke

Shit! = Scheiße!

Now, we can move on to more sophisticated language.

Hello, I am... = Hallo, ich bin ...

How are you? = Wie geht es dir?

I am fine. = Mir geht es gut.

What is your name? = Wie heißt du?

Ok, now that we know our German aquaintance's name and that s/he is fine, we can get down to what we really want to know (Attention, adult content...):

Do we go to you or to me? = Gehen wir zu dir oder zu mir?

Does your husband/wife have a weapon? = Hat dein Ehemann / deine Ehefrau eine Waffe?

Do you have a hot female friend? = Hast du eine heiße Freundin?

Note: If you receive a kick between your legs or some other sort of violence in response to the first question, do not proceed to the other two questions.

The Legend of “SHIT”

I have always been a lover of trivia, of things that most people don’t know.

Also, I am a lover of words, so obviously, one of my favorite trivia stories is the one about how the term “SHIT” came about. I have absolutely no idea if this is accurate,but the story is awesome and people really get a kick out of hearing it. So, without further introduction, here is the legend of “SHIT”:

In the old days, manure was transported in large ships. They would store the manure in the bottom cargo area of those ships. But, little did they know at the time that the manure they were transporting released methane gas. Well, that methane gas producing manure was responsible for the many ships which were blowing up while transporting the manure.

Finally, after losing many ships, they figured out what was causing the loss of the ships and designed a new way to transport the manure. They put the manure in cartons and clearly marked on the outside of the cartons:

Ship

High

In

Transit

And there you have the legend of “SHIT”.

This amusing legend has been written down for us by Jennifer Wright, a dear writing colleague and friend of mine. Her first book, "The Birth of Jaiden", is to be released soon. You can find her on Associated Content (Now Yahoo!) too.

My Two Cents ... XV

Today's phrase is one we probably all know and don't even realise as idiom anymore:

"to take something for granted"

What does it mean?

It means that you don't really appreciate something because you just assume that it is there. For example, if someone helps you and you take it for granted, you aren't grateful because you just expect others to help you.

Where does it come from?

The meaning of this phrase goes as far back as to the early 13th century.

My two cents:

I was really surprised to learn that this phrase is actually that old. I don't even remember when I first stumbled upon it but I have known it for a long time and constantly use it. In my opinion, it's a nice phrase to keep in mind.

Fully Switched to a Second Language?

So, you've lived in another country for some time, speak the other language fluently and have fully switched your mind to the second language. You dream in the second language, you think in it, you do everything in the second language.

Are you sure?

How about math? Counting or doing calculations? Usually, this is one of the fields where we automatically return to the language in which we first learnt it, so normally our native language. The reason for this is that exact math is directly connected to our language centre. While you can evaluate which one of any given numbers is higher or give an approximate result perfectly well in another language, exact calculations as well as counting are unconsciously done in our native language (or the second language which was the first we were taught to count and do calculations in).

What about cussing? Granted, most people learn how to curse in another language pretty soon. But let me tell you a short story: A few days ago, I slipped on the stairs within an Amtrak train, sailed down and landed hard on my arm. The first word which escaped my lips was...German (my native tongue). Although I immediately and without thinking switched to English curse words afterwards, in the first moment of surprise and fury, I unconsciously cursed in the one language in which I had first learnt to speak.

Another situation: You're completely exhausted from lack of sleep, long travels etc. and are just waking up again after having dozed off for a bit. Well, what shall I say: It took me a few moments to realise that the reason why my American boyfriend didn't understand my question was because I was speakind German!

So, you see, there are a few situations in which our brain may unconsciously switch back into our first language although everything else (including thinking and dreaming) is done in the second language. We can't help it; that's just the way our brain works.

Do You Speak...? - The 5 Essentials of Any Language

I have been wondering...what are the essentials of a language that you really need to know when you visit a foreign country? Are they really phrases like "What is your name?", "How are you?" and "My name is..."? I daresay no.

My view on it is like this: You only need the above phrases if you want to start a conversation. So, let's say you do, and the other person answers. And then what? How far might the conversation possibly go if all yo know are the above few phrases? See?

So, let's get down to the real essentials.

1) Cursing. You don't believe me? Have you ever sailed down the stairs in a foreign country? Believe me, that is a situation which asks for cursing, and if you want others to be part of your anger, what better way to do so than to curse in their native language?

2) "Thank you." Yes, that phrase is important. If you know how to say thank you, and you say it with a smile, people tend to help you more readily. On a side note, even if you don't know this phrase, an honest smile of gratitude normally conveys its meaning without words as well.

3) "I love you." How else would you make make clear that you have fallen for that cute girl/cool boy you've met on your trip? And once that is said and understood, you can take it from there on...

4) "Cheers!" No better way to find new friends in a bar than to raise your glass to them. You are invited to take a seat at their table but don't understand a word of what they are asking or telling you? Have a few more drinks and you guys will understand each other well in spite of the language barriers...

5) "Help!" Of course, this one is a must. Whenever you are in trouble, you need to know how to make sure others become aware of it.

So, now that we have our five most essential phrases listed, watch out for our comprehensive list of essentials in a variety of other languages!

My Two Cents ... XIV

Today's phrase is:

"to be caught red-handed"

What does it mean?

This common phrase means that someone is caught in the act. It can be anything wrong, from being caught having sex (with the best friend's wife...) to being caught at stealing.

Where does it come from?

The explanation which sounds most likely to me is that it originated during the 15th century in Scotland and was used to refer to someone who was caught in the act of murdering someone or just afterwards, with his victim's blood still on his hands. If you want to read more about other possible origins, I will refer you to Angela Russell's article on it this time to give her the credit due.

My two cents on this:

I really think that the Scots might have coined the phrase. Although some of the other explanations Angela Russell found out seem probable as well, I think that catching a murderer with his victim's blood on his hands is exactly what this idiom expresses. It is a literal describtion of the situation as well as the exact meaning of the idiom.

How Can a Language Family Affect Your Learning?

Languages are categorised in language families. English, for example, belongs to the same family as German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish and Norwegian. Italian, Spanish, French and Portuguese belong to the same language family.

So, how can this knowledge help you when you want to learn a second language?

I will tell you a story about myself. I know German and English fluently. So, when I attempted to learn Dutch, I noticed that I already understood really much of the language without any knowledge of it. Why was that? Because I could relate to both German and English to help me understand. It isn't only certain words but grammar and sentence structure as well. Related languages have much in common so if you know one language of a family, learning a second language from the same language family will be easier for you.

Are there any negative effects as well?

Yes, definitely, if you aren't aware of them and watch out. See, while it can help you a great deal that those languages are close to each other, it can also make you mix them up. Let me tell you another story. I had Spanish at school and, at the same time, tried to learn Italian at home. So, when I got a Spanish exam back, my teacher asked me if I, by any chance, learnt Italian as well. I had a look at my exam papers and knew why he had asked...I had used some Italian words in my Spanish texts. Bummer!

My best advice is to be aware of the relationship of the languages and watch out for possible danger of mixing them up while at the same time enjoying the advantage of understanding quite a lot without having to learn that much.