Now I’ve learned that this has never been the case. …And there is not just one, or two but some two dozen other regional currencies in existence in Germany currently. Especially in southern Germany, Bavaria and Baden-Wurttemberg those regional or micro currencies are particularly popular.

Some of them have very creative names such as the “Sterntaler” (Star Money), “Kirschblüten”(Cherry Blossoms), the “Lechtaler” and the “Chiemgauer”.

The “Chiemgauer” has its name from a region in southern German and is the most popular regional currency.

This currency was established around the same time (in 2003) the Euro was adopted as national currency. Now, over 7 years later this regional money is accepted in about 600 businesses in the Chiemgau region. In 2008 alone 1,072,818 Euro were exchanged into the Chiemgauer. Regional businesses can even get interest –free loans in this currency.

http://www.chiemgauer.info/

http://www.der-lechtaler.de/lechtaler-profil.0.html

Could regional currencies replace the Euro?

Not at all. Regional or micro currencies are not in competition with the Euro. The regional currencies are only used to support regional, small business. The exchange rate is 1:1 and there is no interest-bearing value to the micro currencies. In other words you can’t buy stocks, options or shares in “Chiemgauer.” For example: They are not backed by the local or federal government. In fact, if you exchange the regional back into Euro you lose some of its value. The regional money is made to encourage people to spend it in their local businesses, e.g. at their bakery or at their butcher’s around the corner.

This money is only accepted in small regional areas, sometimes just within a town. But it helps to protect jobs and to counteract the growing debt of the local government.

So, what is the reason behind this “monopoly” money?

One major reason is certainly that the Germans had been very proud of their former currency – the Deutsche Mark. It was a strong and historic currency. In the decision to adopt the Euro in Germany, Germans themselves had no say. The German government under Kohl at that time just went ahead, in strong contrast to other nations such as the UK were a referendum turned the Euro down, or Ireland were people voted for adopting the Euro.

A recent poll by Germany’s Ipsos Institute showed that more than half of all Germans still want a return to the Deutsche Mark.

A second reason is also the very deep regional connection of many Germans. Reflected by dialect, traditional costumes and their states’ flags, many people carry a deep pride in their home region. They strongly support regional businesses and efforts to keep things local.

The German Genitive is also used to express possession and also used with the following prepositions, e.g. trotz, während, wegen, anstatt, laut, jenseits, angesichts, gemäß, entspechend, entgegen, nahe, …and many more. If you’d like to see the entire list, check out this German site. http://www.canoo.net/services/OnlineGrammar/Wort/Praeposition/Kasus/Genitiv.html

Examples:

wegen des Wetters        due to the weather

trotz des Schnees            despite the snow

nahe des Flusses              close to the river

But, do we Germans really speak the Genitive with these prepositions?

 You might be surprised to hear that the German Genitive case is hardly being used in spoken, every day German. Instead we use the Dative.

wegen dem Wetter

trotz dem Schnee

nahe dem Fluß

Now you might argue that this is only the case with those prepositions. Then look at this:

This is my Dad’s hat.

Das ist der Hut meines Vaters. (Genitive)

I’d never say this in spoken language. Rather I’d say it like this:

Das ist der Hut von meinem Vater.          OR          Das ist meinem Vater sein Hut. (both Dative)

It amazes me that many German language courses haven’t picked this up yet because this development has been going on for many years already. I can think back to my childhood when this trend was already common even though in the written language we still had to use the Genitive.

Using the Dative instead of the Genitive in the German language has become widely accepted now, even in written German and on TV and radio. Already in 2003 an article in the Spiegel covered this topic http://www.spiegel.de/kultur/zwiebelfisch/0,1518,267725,00.html

Even a book has been written by Bastian Sick about this trend. “Der Dativ ist dem Genitiv sein Tod“. Bastian Sick is a popular German translator, author and journalist who takes on the decay in German grammar and language in a educative, humorous way.

These days you will still find the German Genitive in poetry, legal and official writing and some industries. German linguists and supporters of the German language fight to keep the German Genitive alive. Using the Genitive in spoken language adds sophistication and an up-scaled touch to speech. It also is an intricate part of German language history.

So, should you still learn the German Genitive?

 My answer is: It depends on what you want to focus on. If you learn German for travel and more personal use I’d suggest focusing on the other 3 cases. You should know about the German Genitive but not focus on it. Instead focus on learning how the German genitive is being expressed in spoken language. In the end, you will have less trouble understanding and speaking conversational German.

Great question!

In fact the only difference we can see in German is in the article.

Ich fahre in der Fahrspur.

Ich fahre in die Fahrspur.

As a learner of the German language this is important to know because this tiny switch in the article changes the meaning of the entire sentence.

Ich fahre in der Fahrspur.             I am driving in this lane.

Ich fahre in die Fahrspur.              I am driving into this lane.

With the English translation you can see the difference clearly in this example.

Ich fahre in der Fahrspur. Dative –>Expresses a location I am driving in this lane.

Ich fahre in die Fahrspur. Accusative –> Expresses a Direction I am driving into this lane.

Let me give you an even more drastic example related to the change in meaning:

Ich fahre in dem Auto. Dative –> Expresses a location I am driving in the car.

Ich fahre in das Auto. Accusative –> Expresses a Direction I am driving into the car. (Ouch!)

You see in this case how important it can be to use the correct German case and article.

There are many more German verbs that can express both – location as well as direction.

gehen

fliegen

hüpfen

springen

schweben

rollen

rennen

laufen

and more…

All of these verbs express some movement. The movement can happen in a particular spot = location.

The movement can also happen into a direction.

German prepositions like: an, in, über, hinter, unter, vor, auf, neben, zwischen can be used in both cases – for location (Dative) and direction (Accusative).

As you can tell already in some cases only the case of the article determines whether one or the other is being expressed.

Recently I read a discussion about how important grammar is in language. This proves the point that grammar can be extremely important in expressing meaning in a language. The German cases and prepositions can make that much difference.

Let’s step it up a notch. Even trickier in these examples:

Er läuft hinter dem Haus. Dative –> Expresses a location He is walking behind the house.

Er läuft hinter das Haus. Accusative –> Expresses a Direction He is walking behind the house.

Der Hund rennt vor dem Auto. Dative –> Expresses a location The dog is running in front of the car.

Der Hund rennt vor das Auto. Accusative –> Expresses a Direction The dog is running in front of the car.

Dog Tired After Running...

For the Germans among us these two examples won’t pose a problem.

But how about the German learners – Can you figure out how the meaning changes in these two examples and what the two cases in each one of the above examples exactly express?

Feel  free to give me your take on it in the comment section…

What would you say is right: Reflektion oder Reflexion? Even I had to think for a moment.

You’ll find a lot more like these two in this blog.

So enjoy the Wörter Blog http://woerter.germanblogs.de/

A lot of folks from the LinkedIn discussion group gave me great feedback about my previous post about the English words in the German language. I appreciate your input and decided to write a post about it.

Actually, doing my research on this post I’ve figured out that there  is not really much difference between the challenges people have who want to become fluent in German and to maintain their fluency in German as a native speaker or language learner.

Now, how do you actually notice that your German is becoming “rusty”?

In my first year here in the US I didn’t speak much German on a daily basis. The first months that didn’t really matter. I was fine when I spoke to my parents and friends in Germany. After about 6 months I noticed that I started to scramble for certain expressions and could not come up with certain words. One I still remember was “Müsli” as my brain could come up with the English word “Cereal”. I tried to explain to my Mom in German what I actually ate that morning. At that point I knew it was time to change something.

I had the privilege over the past 8 years have a position that kept me in touch with the German speaking countries. But I also made a conscious effort to develop a network of German speaking friends and networking groups. I watch German TV on a daily basis, tutor German, read German, etc.  But my greatest supporter for speaking German daily is my son, who is now 6. Speaking German to him from the very beginning has not only made him bilingual, but has helped me to stay fluent and up-to-date in German. Talking about a great deal!

Here is something we all need to remember: In a world where English is around us every single day it becomes very handy to just stay in English. We all want to fit in.

It takes a conscious decision to change that – either when you learn German or to keep your German language up and running as a native speaker. In other words, you compete against the main language. This takes Discipline and Effort!

It is a DAILY effort to keep your German fresh and it takes DISCIPLINE to do that. One phone call a week to Germany or one German lesson a week doesn’t cut it.

When I started this conscious effort about 9 years ago I asked myself what I could gain from it.

Here is a list of what I came up with:

• Maintaining a close relationship with my parents and relatives
• Maintaining my friendships in Germany
• Improving my employment potential
• Keeping my German heritage
• Raising a bilingual child with a native German capability
• Helping other people to become fluent
• Developing multi-cultural and broader relationships

Today’s technology gives us numerous avenues and possibilities to become and stay fluent in German. We have satellite TV, Skype, Online TV, email, online chat rooms, online pen pals and more… It is really up to us to take advantage and just do it.

What do you do to stay or become fluent in German? Appreciate your feedback…

KCHB2DEZF6VS

Did you know that Germans have a marked preference for adding English words into the German language? Yes indeed, and not just since the internet made the round and conquered the world. There are two expressions that describe this phenomenon – Anglicism and the other more German one – Denglisch (German version) Denglish (English version).

Anglicism is the English language influence and impact on other languages (according to Wiki).

Denglisch just refers to a mix of German and English words and expressions within the German language. Wiki explains it as ‘”an influx of English, or pseudo-English, vocabulary into the German language through travel and English’s widespread usage in advertising, business and iInformation technology are Gerglish, Angleutsch and Engleutsch.”

When I grew up I learned words like pullover, teenager, t-shirt and TV. As a teenager, I and my friends found it very attractive to express ourselves in English. Words like “cool”, “partyen” and “relaxen” belonged to our daily vocabulary. Most of our ‘cool’ English expressions came from English speaking songs as there was no internet or English speaking TV program yet. Our parents mostly shook their heads. My parents never learned English at school and found it hard to keep up with the constant influx of new English words into the language.

I still remember one day when my mom was reading ads in the newspaper and wondered what a “Monteinbieke” is (had to spell it in German J). I looked puzzled first, then took the paper myself and figured out that it actually was a ‘mountain bike’. I knew then that this was getting to a point of ridiculousness.

These days Germans almost need to have learned English in order to still understand the media, advertising industry and politics in Germany. Several years ago my mom finally bought an English – German dictionary to keep up with this crazy trend.

Of course a lot of words related to computer technology, the internet, the software industry came from the English language as countries like America were the trend setter in these industries. In some cases there didn’t even any German words exist for the English expressions. Examples are ‘internet’, ‘software’, ‘to surf’…just to mention a few.

But Germans also adapted words where we had had German expressions in the past. Instead of  ‘eine Firmenmarke’ we now have a ‘brand’ , ‘eine Schönheit’ is now a ‘beauty’ and ‘eine Veranstaltung’ is an ‘event’ today. The first Denglish dictionaries popped up over the past years, which indicates that this trend is going to stay.

German is a beautiful, deep and complex language. Goethe, Brecht, Schiller, Lessing, Grass and other German poets used it to create beautiful, lasting masterpieces of literature out of it.

Living in the US as a German is a constant struggle – not only to improve my English but to also maintain my German as clean as possible. Seeing my fellow countrymen then using all that English because it may sound better and feels more hip saddens me.

You can imagine if English all the sudden got invaded by a bunch of Spanish, French or even Chinese words? You would start to wonder at some point what may become out of your mother tongue. I find myself in the same situation wondering what the German language will look like in 20, 50 or 100 years. Will there be a German language left or just Denglish?

1. Learn German with German language books?

Let’s be clear: The main part of language learning is learning to speak. German language books won’t teach you how to communicate properly. They are a great add-on and very helpful to understand various subjects e.g., grammar, synonyms and cultural aspects. However books should not be used as your primary learning tool for learning German.

2. Learn with a German pen pal?

Some people who intend to learn German form sort of an alliance with a person who wants to learn English. So the person who wants to learn German only speaks German to the person who wants to learn English and visa versa. Mostly people communicate by email. In this case the entire verbal communication is missing which doesn’t lead to speaking German fluently. Please note that for someone who doesn’t speak your language nor knows any linguistics it is difficult to teach you German properly. The other dangers are that there is no lesson plan or formal commitment. So learning goals are hard to achieve and progress is hard to measure. That’s why as primary method a pen pal is very little suited for learning German.

3. Play German language learning games?

There are some interesting German learning games on the market teaching vocabulary and basic grammar. Those games are fun and come handy as a training tool to repeat and exercise what you have already learned. As primary learning tool I would not suggest using them, as they do not provide real human interaction in German and therefore do not help you to become fluent.

4. Join an immersion program at a German language school?

There is a lot of discussion about whether immersion programs for adults work or not. Having learned several languages myself I can tell you this: Please stay away from them as a beginner. Immersion is based on the concept that you learn a language the way children do. The problem is that as we grow up the way we learn languages changes. Immersion programs are only successful once you’ve mastered the basics of German and can follow conversations already

5. Move to a German speaking country or German community?

“Great if you can!” You’d think I’d say that.

If you really intend to move to a German speaking country then please start learning German right away. Just imagine: Besides being in a different country, not knowing your way around, not being familiar with their culture, laws and customs you can’t even understand anything or ask simple things. How frustrating! Certainly not a great way to start learning German…

How should you then learn German the right way?

Countless successful people in history learned from another successful person who was their mentor, coach, trainer, teacher-however you want to call it. Just to name a few: Oprah Winfrey mentored “Dr. Phil” McGraw, Christian Dior mentored Yves Saint Laurent, Richard Nixon mentored George Bush, Drew Bledsoe mentored Tom Brady, Mark O’Meara and Butch Harmon mentored Tiger Woods.

• A qualified German tutor will take you by your hand and guide you through the hurdles of learning German:
• You will learn proper pronunciation, grammar, and all other things that lead to German fluency.
• Personalized lesson plans and progress checks will keep your goals on track.
• Your motivation will stay alive.

But first and foremost your tutor will give you the confidence to speak in German.

You can opt for in-person tutoring or online tutoring depending on your personal preference and available time. You can also sign up for our F.REE ebook to get more information about this topic.

So no need to go through a lot of trial and error as many others did. Utilize proven methods and start learning German successfully from the very beginning!

Online German tutoring

Online German tutoring has really just developed over the past 5-7 years. While private German tutoring in a class setting and your home is unaffordable for a lot of people online tutoring is actually very reasonable and effective. Online classes usually only take ½ an hour to 45 minutes. You biggest advantage is that any distractions e.g., non verbal, gestures, other disruptions that you usually have with in person tutoring gets eliminated online. You can fully focus on your German tutor and thus develop your listening and pronunciation skills.

An additional benefit is you don’t have any wasted prep time before, or after, your lesson (i.e. getting ready to go to the tutor, preparing for the tutor the come to you, etc).

When comparing different online German tutoring provider please make sure you do your due diligence:

• Look at their references
• Make sure they are native German speakers and have enough English language knowledge
• Ask about the teaching experience of any online German tutor you intend to work with

From a technical perspective online German tutoring services usually work with Skype, VoIP, web conferencing providers or even regular phone lines. So please ask them what your options are and make sure you meet the technical requirements before you sign on. You can also get in touch with me to schedule online Skype lessons if you’d like to try it out.

Software to learn to speak German

There are some great German software courses available right now. I prefer software to learn to speak German that also includes speech recognition as well as visual aids.

This is especially helpful when learning pronunciation and memorizing vocabulary. Some German software courses also have the option to download the audio file to MP3 which is very convenient for on-the-go. When comparing German software courses also check whether you have exercises and games included. This has shown extremely helpful to me when practicing grammar and vocabulary. Before purchasing any software to learn to speak German please make sure it is compatible with your PC or MAC as well as your OS.

Take your German software course as a supplement to your tutoring lessons. Your tutor and I can even orientate your lesson plan on the lesson outline of your German software course.

Here is my rule of thumb for best learning results:

Take 15 to 20 minutes a day for learning and repeating German content

Learn 2-3 new words each day (730 to 1095 new words in one year)

Take 1 or 2 tutoring lessons a week

You won’t overload yourself when you learn like this, and also memorize each single item better since you learn them in little tit-bits. Frequency will help you to keep your mind on German as much as possible.

5. German DVD course

Well-made DVD courses have good entertaining value and offer content with enough vocabulary to start out with. For beginners they do not give enough detail to learn grammar or language structure. If you find a good Learn German DVD use it as supportive method together with other learning methods.

4. German language classes

Ask yourself whether you really have the time to do that on a weekly basis. If you have that time available ask about their class size. If their class has above 5 students please stay away from it because you won’t get enough individual time during class. Get an idea about their teaching method and make sure it is not immersion for beginner students. For fast progress you want to learn from bilingual native German teachers.

3. German CD or MP3 language course

There is a wide range of well-made CD and MP3 German courses available. They will help you to learn German vocabulary and pronunciation. You get a good idea about German grammar and language structure. CD and MP3 courses make a great learning tool for on-the- go, whether in your car, traveling or at home while doing other things. They only lack one important thing though: They are not interactive. To become fluent in German interactivity is one of the most important factors for success.

2. Online interactive German course

Thanks to the internet this has become a growing area. Some of these online interactive German courses have outstanding quality

and produce fast results. They offer clear lesson plans with exercises and tests to measure your progress. Speech recognition tools help you with correct pronunciation. Grammar and language structure are covered in an easy to understand form. Even exciting learning games are offered to practice vocabulary and grammar. You need to be a highly self-motivated and self-disciplined person though to use an online interactive German course as your primary learning tool. If you are not sure about this opt for a different primary method for learning German.

1. German one-on-one tutoring

Not only for learning German or other foreign languages this has been a proven method to produce fast, sustainable results. Whether you look at sports, business or entertainment having a trainer, mentor, and teacher or in this case a tutor on your side is a great way to success. Having a German tutor covers the most important areas for your success:

- Becoming fluent in German fast by interactive learning

- Staying motivated through constant feedback, personalized lesson plans and progress checks

- Getting a good understanding of language structure, grammar, subtleties and exceptions through a first-hand expert

You have two options for one-on-one German tutoring: You can either take lessons in person or online via phone or Skype depending on your personal preference and the time you have available to learn German.

Successfully learning German is determined by your motivation, discipline and the learning tools you chose. Proven by countless examples in history highly successful individuals e.g. Tina Turner mentor to Mick Jagger, Richard Burton mentor to Sir Anthony Hopkins, Phil Jackson (NBA coach) mentor to Michael Jordan and Andrew Carnegie mentor to Charles Schwab have shown it is very important to have a great tutor, mentor or trainer to become successful. A qualified German tutor will lead you to success.

The doors to the annual German Book Fair in Leipzig just opened. It’s the 2nd largest German book fair after the Frankfurt Book Fair, which is the largest and most important one worldwide. In fact, Germany has a long history in the book industry. Not only that Gutenberg invented the printing in 1440 but also the first book fair in Germany took place around the 15th century. The Leipzig book fair dates back to 1632, when for the first time it had more visitors than the Frankfurt book fair ever before.
In 2008 Leipzig had its record year with 129,000 visitors and 2,345 international publishers from 39 countries.

But on the other hand, according to a German study in 2008 by the” Stiftung Lesen” every 4th German NEVER reads a book. http://www.stiftunglesen.de/lesen-in-deutschland-2008/default.aspx 45% of the 14 to 19 year olds confessed that they never received a book as a gift during their childhood. The study also concludes that there are the hardcore readers but the group of occasional readers has declined by 6% again.

So, for learners of the German language – Does reading still have a place?
A lot of language learning course, schools and programs market the slogan “Learn Conversational German”. That means: SPEAKING really is considered the “non plus ultra” and reading and writing has moved to the background. Internet and technology have taken over most of our lives – we watch news online, the most we are writing are emails and SMS. Most of us don’t even get a newspaper anymore.

Is reading still important to learning and developing the German language?
Which benefit can reading German books give you?
What is your favorite German topic/author/genre to read about?

I invite you to comment and help me to answer these questions. Please add your experiences and feedback below.

Vielen Dank, Annett