I honestly can't be friends with people who use beamer and public viewing in one sentence.
On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
61–70 of 362 posts
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#62(joke warning) The omnipresent English in Europe is the Mohammad English, a very simplified and useful version - spoken by most middle-eastern emigrant, and some Balkan residents. Next to it is the very distinct (by its accent) French-English.
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#63Observation of Berlin from the weekend I spent there last month: literally the only place I was better off speaking German rather than English was a Turkish cafe. Everywhere else? Too many people understood English far better than they did German, especially anywhere to do with tech. Some of the tech people I talked to were running into being otherwise eligible for a permanent residence permit, but not being able to…
A permanent residency (PR) in Berlin does not require German language skills anymore. Maybe this is official or just established practice but regardless, there’a no reason not to have your PR if you qualify otherwise.
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#64Very nice overview of our Berlin patois. As an Italian living in Berlin, my favorite (which makes my Aussie partner roll her eyes) is saying something like “you are invited” when you pay for someone else’s coffee or meal. It’s a literal translation of “du bist eingeladen”. My partner taught me “I shout you”, but I also have the feeling that’s pretty Aussie or Brit. Any non-native friend understands “I invite you”, bu…
“My shout” is typically how I would use it - something like “should we split the bill, oder?” “Nah, my shout”
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#65The great strength of English is its uncanny ability to create new words and vacuum up material from other languages... and make it sound good. Other languages are left with the problem of Anglicisms where handy English words and phrases are imported but never sounds like natural parts of the language.
The ultimate champions in "new word creation" are languages which allow the creation of new compound words, though, like e.g. German. That's the way you get those hyper-specific words in "the language has a special word for the concept of " articles most of the time. :P
"Neologismuskreierungsmeister" (new word creation champion)
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#66As a native Urberliner I am both flattered and confused by the fact so many young Americans choose to live in my home town. I always wondered what makes it so attractive to you. I mean, winters are miserable, the city is ugly compared to many others in Germany, the people are rather not friendly to each other, the German language is difficult to learn, our history is troublesome, German immigration laws still difficu…
Bowie. It all goes back to Bowie. He's really the one who made Berlin so attractive to young Westerners.
We think Berlin is a lovely city, with lots of tolerant people and a diverse set of cultures providing a rich and interesting outlook. Of course, the reality is, Berlin is as much of a shit-hole as any other major European city, but the fantasy of meeting an intelligent, inspired, enlightened 'newly free' young German thing in the streets of Berlin is just too enticing to a lot of us romantics.
I live in Vienna. I love to visit Berlin just so that I can come home to Vienna and appreciate what I've got, even if the effect wears off after a week of interacting with Vienners ..
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#67Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#68Why would anyone use "downloaden" when there already is "herunterladen" is beyond me.
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#69> The other day my friend S., an American Berliner, said that he had noticed his English-language social circle starting to use the word « spontaneously » wrong. When Germans say they’ll organise a social event spontan, they mean they’ll work out the details at short notice. To socialise spontaneously, in English, means something rather different. But S. and I and our Neukölln friends have started using it in the sense of spontan. « OK cool text me Sunday and we’ll choose a place spontaneously. » This error is becoming part of our little language, our ultra-local dialect, just among us.
On behalf of the entire Netherlands also using this wrong in the same way: what does the Anglosphere consider correct usage of spontaneously then?
Re: On the unexpected joys of Denglisch, Berlinglish and global Englisch
#70As a native Urberliner I am both flattered and confused by the fact so many young Americans choose to live in my home town. I always wondered what makes it so attractive to you. I mean, winters are miserable, the city is ugly compared to many others in Germany, the people are rather not friendly to each other, the German language is difficult to learn, our history is troublesome, German immigration laws still difficu…
As a new Berliner who immigrated here I can answer some of those: - Berlin has a reputation for its artsy party scene and lax enforcement of drug laws. People come here in their 20s to let themselves loose. - German universities are good quality and free for all (excluding the Semesterpauschale, but for my American or British friends this 300€ is basically nothing in comparison - especially when you count in the publ…
You can get a PR faster (3y) if you’re here on a blue card (which is likely true for all non-EU tech workers).
Universities are not all free for non-EU citizens and some programs (generally English-speaking) Masters are (properly, not the 400€) paid for citizens and non-citizens alike.