I live in Germany. I'm trying to understand the mysterious German soul. I collect gossip about the Germans. If anyone can help with this, I would be very grateful.
Everything is fine in Germany, only you wake up in the morning, look out the window, and there are Germans in the city!
According to a popular joke in Europe, in heaven the Germans are mechanics, and in hell they are policemen.
English playwright B. Shaw: “The Germans have great virtues, but they also have one dangerous weakness - an obsession with taking every good thing to the extreme, so that good turns into evil.”
Madame de Staël noted that the Germans manage to find a lot of obstacles for the simplest things, and in Germany you hear “This is impossible!” a hundred times more often than in France (and this despite the fact that all her work was started as a criticism of the French order).
In pre-revolutionary Russia for a long time There was a popular joke about the revolted German proletarians who walked in an organized column along Unter den Linden exactly until they came across a “No Trespassing” sign. At this point the revolution ended, and everyone went home safely.
Flower coffee.
Actually, this is a German idiom. The Germans call this very weak coffee, such that through the layer of the drink you can see the flower painted on the bottom of the cup. However, with light hand Academician Likhachev, this expression has taken root in Russian speech and now means any thing done not as it should be, but as poverty or stinginess allows.
There is a joke that the Germans made three mistakes - the First World War, the Second World War and the release of the Volkswagen Passat B5.
The unforgettable Dobrolyubov, who was not only a critic, but also a poet, warned 150 years ago: “Our train will not go like the German train goes...”
In “Ode on the Death of Nicholas I,” Dobrolyubov brands the tsar a “tyrant,” a “German brat,” who “sought... to make Rus' a machine,” “exalted only military despotism.”
The idiom “Hamburg score” in the meaning of “a genuine system of values, free from momentary circumstances and selfish interests,” goes back to the story about Russian circus wrestlers told by Viktor Shklovsky late XIX- the beginning of the 20th century, which usually determined the winner of the fight in advance, by agreement, but once a year they supposedly met in Hamburg, away from the public and employers, in order to find out in a fair fight which of them was actually stronger. According to circus legend, retold by Paustovsky, once a year wrestlers from all over the world gathered in some Hamburg tavern, locked the doors, curtained the windows and fought honestly, “without fools.” It was then, under the spotlights, in public, that an elegant handsome man would effectively throw a bear-like strongman over his hip, some “Mr. X” would win a fight against a famous champion... but once a year, in Hamburg, for themselves, the wrestlers figured out who was worth what , who is truly the first, and who is only ninety-nine." ...
“The Hamburg score is an extremely important concept.
All wrestlers, when they fight, cheat and lie down on their shoulder blades on the orders of the entrepreneur.
Once a year, wrestlers gather in a Hamburg tavern.
They fight at behind closed doors and curtained windows. Long, ugly and hard.
Here the true classes of fighters are established, so as not to go astray."
Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol wrote that every nation is distinguished by its own word, which, by the way, expresses part of its character. The word of a Briton will respond with wise knowledge of life, the word of a Frenchman will flash and scatter, a German will intricately come up with his own, “but there is no word that would be so sweeping, lively... would seethe and vibrate so much as a well-spoken Russian word.”
MOUNTAIN ONION
If a person cries, this is bad. But the reason that brings tears to the eyes is not always worthy of attention and respect. Try peeling or rubbing an onion: your tears will flow freely... Out of grief? From onion grief!
The Germans know another expression: “onion tears.” These are the tears that flow over trifles. And in a figurative sense, by “onion grief” we mean small sorrows, insignificant sorrows that do not deserve tears.
The French love the most beautiful, the Germans love the most, the rabbits love the fastest, but the goats love the most.
Germans don't like to work, but they know how.
On August 8, the Stargate ride malfunctioned at the German-American folk festival in Berlin, dpa reports. In a gondola blocked at a height of 15 meters, 14 passengers hung upside down for half an hour. Only after the apparatus was set in motion were people safe. Many of them received medical care. It is reported that one passenger did not notice anything unusual and was sure that the gondola stop was part of the attraction's program.
"German, pepper, sausage,
rotten cabbage!
Ate a mouse without a tail
and said it was delicious!"
©Tease for children, folklore.
For some reason, they tease the German-pepper-sausage; before the revolution, the Germans were called “sausage makers”
Sausage maker, sausage maker's wife. || An abusive or humorous nickname for the Germans.
Dictionary alive Great Russian language Vladimir Dahl
SAUSAGE
One day, Tsar Peter, accompanied by Menshikov, visited the house of the pharmacist Klaus Seidenberg in the German settlement. He demanded Dutch cheese, butter, rye and wheat bread, strong ale, wine and vodka. The pharmacist did not have enough decanters, and he served the Danzig liqueur to the king in a flask. After tasting the liqueur and eating his ger;ucherte Wurst, Peter asked what it was, because he liked this last product. The pharmacist, believing that the question referred to the vessel in which he served the liquor, answered: “Fask, sir.” This is how the famous decree of Peter the Great was born, which ordered all classes to “make sausages from lamb intestines and stuff them with various tripe.”
At the same time, the expression “sausage” appeared. Peter, when he was in a good mood, would often say to Menshikov: “Alexasha, let’s go to the pharmacist and let’s get some medicine.”
The Germans have a saying: “who wears the pants in the family,” which in our way means: “who is the boss of the house.”
The fire at the pyrotechnics factory in Drosselberg raged for 6 hours. None of the firefighters dared to extinguish such beauty. (Joke)
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov died on the night of July 2, 1904 in a hotel room in the German resort town of Badenweiler. The German doctor decided that death was already behind him. According to the ancient German medical tradition, a doctor who has given his colleague a fatal diagnosis treats the dying man with champagne... Anton Pavlovich said in German: “I am dying” - and drank a glass of champagne to the bottom.
The philosopher Immanuel Kant said: “Das ist gut.”
- Last words Einstein remained unknown because the nurse did not understand German.
Alles hat ein Ende nur die Wurst hat zwei. - Everything has an end, only sausage has two (my version is three!).
German folk proverb.
There is an assumption that this saying was born during the storming of Prague in 1794. Having destroyed the pharmacy during street fighting, Russian soldiers took the bottle out into the street and began to drink, praising the contents. A German was walking past. Thinking that the soldiers were drinking water, he drank a glass and fell dead. It was alcohol!
When Suvorov was reported about this, he said that the Germans had no reason to compete with the Russians: they say, what is healthy for a Russian is death for a German. Since then, this phrase has popped up in different situations as confirmation: what is good for some is unacceptable for others. And this is not without reason!
So what is good for a Russian, but not so good for a German, to put it mildly?
1. Feast
Source:Each nation has its own habits and traditions of celebrations. The generously laid tables of the Slavs are very different from festive tables Germans. Many have seen how surprised Germans are when they visit Russians and see a huge amount of food and alcohol on the table. And they are even more surprised - and frankly, they can’t stand it - when you have to keep up with every new toast, and not forget to have a snack, and then dance, sing and drink and eat again! And there is no point in arguing about which is better. To each his own!
2. Alternative treatments
Source:Russians love to be treated folk remedies, tinctures, decoctions and herbs. Reduce the temperature with an alcohol solution, apply an aloe or plantain leaf to a wound, garlic to the wrist to relieve a toothache, breathe over cabbage or potatoes, apply mustard plasters to cure a cough - yes, such remedies used by Russians surprise German doctors.
3. Zelenka
Who among those who grew up far outside of Germany did not have green knees? Many people also remember painted in green chickenpox spots on the body? Zelenka can still be found in almost every home. And it doesn’t matter that there are much more effective and affordable antiseptics. Zelenka was, is and will be among the Russian people. And try to explain to the Germans that better means doesn't happen.
4. Signs
Source:Every nation has a whole series will also accept superstitions, but you must agree that Russians have a ton of them. Sit on the path, knock on wood, don’t whistle in the apartment and don’t come back if you forgot something - this is the minimum that almost everyone observes. It’s interesting to watch the Germans when they see how the Russians, before a long journey, suddenly sit down together and remain silent. On the path!
5. Buckwheat and seeds
You can buy buckwheat in Germany, but Germans don’t eat it. Moreover, many of them do not even suspect that it can be eaten, not counting, of course, those who have Russian relatives. And I can talk for a long time about the benefits of this dietary product, but the fact remains a fact.
And, of course, seeds. Despite the fact that sunflowers began to be grown in France and Holland in the 17th century, it was the Russians who took root in eating its seeds. And no one can understand these gourmets!
What's great for a Russian is death for a German- What is good for one may be disastrous for others. According to one version, the origin of this turnover is connected with a specific case. Once a young doctor, invited to a hopelessly ill Russian boy, allowed him to eat whatever he wanted.... ... Phraseology Guide
Wed. They treated the Germans condescendingly, adding, however, as an amendment, that what is healthy for a Russian is death for a German. Saltykov. Poshekhonskaya antiquity. 26. Wed. It was not in vain that the word of the grandfathers was confirmed by the people's mind: What is healthy for a Russian is for a German... ... Michelson's Large Explanatory and Phraseological Dictionary
It's great for the Russian, but death for the German. Wed. They treated the Germans condescendingly, adding, however, by way of amendment, that for a Russian it’s great, for a German it’s death. Saltykov. Poshekhonskaya antiquity. 26. Wed. It was not in vain that the grandfather’s word was confirmed by the people’s mind: What... ... Michelson's Large Explanatory and Phraseological Dictionary (original spelling)
Kosciuszko Uprising 1794 ... Wikipedia
- (1794) Polish Kosciuszko uprising 1794 Storm of Prague in 1794. A. Orlovsky, 1797 Date ... Wikipedia
Blood with milk. It's about to burst. Don't ask for health, but look in the face. Judge not by your years, but by your ribs (teeth). Healthy as a bull, as healthy as a hog. Strong as a forester. I’m as healthy as a bull, and I don’t know what to do. If you squeeze a twig in your fist, the water will flow. I'll squeeze it into...
Or health wed. the state of the animal body (or plant), when all vital functions are in perfect order; absence of illness or disease. How is your dear health? Yes, my health is bad. Health is more valuable than anything (more expensive than money). He is a stranger... ... Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary
Chu! The Russian spirit smells here. Ancient Novgorod and Pskov are gentlemen (and Novgorod was even a master, sovereign). Heart in Volkhov (in Novgorod), soul in Velikaya (ancient Pskov). Novgorod, Novgorod, and older than the old one. Novgorod honor. Novgorodskaya... ... V.I. Dahl. Proverbs of the Russian people
The Russian gave the German some pepper. A German (French) has thin legs and a short soul. Prussian gut (good), and Russian gutee (soldier). A real Englishman (i.e., he pretends to be a gentleman, is too toff, is an eccentric and does everything his own way). A real Italian (i.e., a scoundrel) ... V.I. Dahl. Proverbs of the Russian people
- [pseudonym of Stukalov, 1900] Soviet playwright. Genus. in a peasant family. He spent his childhood with his mother, who was engaged in sewing in the Don villages. He worked in bookbinding and metalworking shops. I started writing at the age of 20. Worked as a traveling... ... Large biographical encyclopedia
Books
- Why Russia is not America. 2015, Parshev, Andrey Petrovich. This book is for those who decided to stay in Russia. You, dear reader, are apparently thinking about such a decision. Otherwise, why did you pick up the book? For those who are planning to leave...
- Why Russia is not America, Andrey Petrovich Parshev. This book is for those who risked staying in Russia. You, dear reader, are apparently among them. Otherwise, why did you pick up the book? For those who are planning to leave, hundreds are issued...
Photo from the website www.m.simplycars.ru.
22.11.2011 11:26:30
How are Russians different from Germans? At first glance, the question is stupid. After all, people living in different countries, completely different mentality. It is generally accepted that Germans are neat, hardworking, punctual, and love order in everything. I remember for the rest of my life how our school teacher, a German by nationality, at the very first lesson German language wrote on the board “Ordnung muss sein”, which translated means “There must be order.” At the same time, he looked at us so sternly that subsequently we behaved very quietly during his lessons.
The mentality of Russians is completely different. We can say that we are the antipodes of the Germans. It’s not for nothing that the saying “What’s good for a Russian is death for a German” was invented. Russians for the most part are lazy, they can allow themselves, as they say, to lie on the stove and spit at the ceiling, again, they love freebies, which is completely unusual for the Germans.
However, despite the obvious differences, we have a lot in common. It is not without reason that strong friendly ties have long been established between Russia and Germany. In both countries, Russian-German friendship societies operate successfully, and exchanges between schoolchildren and students are practiced. Also, some Russian schoolchildren and students study German, and in some educational institutions Germany is taught Russian.
Friendship is friendship, however, as I had to see, not all Russians and Germans have a positive attitude towards each other... In different countries I found myself in similar situations, from which I drew two conclusions for myself. First: when traveling abroad, Russians and Germans behave in exactly the same way when they think that no one knows their language. Second: some representatives of Russia and Germany really do not like each other.
One story happened to me in Germany. German friends invited me to a show of military equipment. We arrived at military unit where the day was spent open doors. Everyone could walk around the unit, see the conditions in which the soldiers lived, and also get acquainted with the arsenal. This, of course, surprised me very much, because this does not happen in Russia. Entrance to military units is closed to civilians, and even more so to foreigners.
When we arrived at the military unit, there was a long line in front of the entrance. But she moved very quickly. Standing in this line, I was very surprised when I heard Russian speech. At first this made me happy, because at that time I had lived in Germany for almost a month and was tired of the German language. However, then the behavior of the Russians outraged me.
My compatriots were standing not far from us, so I heard their conversation clearly. They said something like this:
These Germans are sick of me. They stand like sheep in this line. No one even tries to jump the line. Everything is too correct, it’s infuriating. Everything about them is not like people...
True, it sounded much ruder, and there were obscene expressions.
Having become quite indignant about the “wrong” line, they began to discuss the people who stood in front of them. Again in a rude manner. Someone was called “fat”, someone “freak”... Naturally, it was unpleasant to listen to them.
When my German friends asked what they were talking about, I was honestly confused. She said that they were unhappy that the line was too long. And the thought flashed through my head to approach my rude compatriots and ask them to behave decently. But I never made up my mind. Or maybe I was afraid that they would pour a bucket of dirt on me too...
It so happened that, leaving the military unit, we again found ourselves next to those same Russians from the queue. This time they loudly discussed how stupid the Germans were for showing their military equipment"just anyone." At the same time, they didn’t even have a thought that there might be Germans walking nearby who studied Russian and who might be offended by such statements...
After leaving the military unit, we went to the cemetery where Russian soldiers were buried during World War II. However, we were unable to get to the cemetery itself. It was surrounded by a high fence, and there was a guard at the gate. My German friends explained that this cemetery is opened once a year - on May 9th. On other days it does not work and is under guard, as there have been several cases of radical young people destroying monuments and desecrating graves.
“Probably, our compatriots are to blame for this, who publicly allow themselves to insult the citizens of the country in which they are as guests...” I thought, but did not say out loud...
Another story happened in Turkey, where, as you know, tourists from Russia and Germany like to vacation. They are the majority there. So, my friends and I decided to go on a yacht. True, the tickets were purchased at a street travel agency, and not from a hotel guide, whose prices were twice as high. As a result, we ended up on a yacht where there were practically no empty seats. To collect more money, a lot was loaded onto the yacht more people than it should be. Moreover, there were approximately the same number of Russian and German tourists.
Interestingly, the Russians had fun, danced, and took part in various competitions. The Germans at this time sat with dissatisfied faces. They were clearly strained by this proximity.
It so happened that a German campaign settled next to us. Two young women with children. While their children were having fun and playing with Russian children, the mothers were heatedly discussing something. At first I somehow didn’t listen to their dialogue, but then I suddenly became interested. After all, I studied German at school, and listening to live foreign speech can refresh your knowledge.
However, after listening to their words, I regretted being with them. After all, their dialogue went something like this:
It's good here...
Yes, everything would be fine, but there are only a lot of Russians...
After that, they began to discuss how disgustingly the Russians behave, how they interfere with their rest. And then they began to ridicule the shortcomings of the people around them... I immediately remembered the compatriots I met in Germany...
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I was interested in the origin of the expression: What's good for a Russian?(Dal’s is great) then the German is dead. As I expected, this is directly related to the German word Schmerz - pain, suffering, sorrow (?), grief (?). Apparently, it was not easy for the Germans to live in Rus', they often complained about life, for which they even received the contemptuous nickname - Schmerz (along with the nickname Sausages).
Information about the exact origin of this particular expression is contradictory, for example, excerpts from the memoirs (1849) of Thaddeus Bulgarin (It’s not a problem that you’re a Pole. ;)):
“You, my dear readers, have no doubt heard the humorous saying more than once: “It’s great for the Russian, death for the German!” General von Klugen assured me that this proverb was born during the storming of Prague. Our soldiers, having smashed the pharmacy, which was already engulfed in flames, took the bottle out into the street, tasted what was in it, and began to drink, praising: glorious, glorious wine! At this time, a horseman of our artillery, originally from the Germans, passed by. Thinking that the soldiers were drinking ordinary vodka, the horseman took a glass, drank a little - and immediately fell down, and a short time later he died. It was alcohol! When Suvorov was informed about this incident, he said: “A German is free to compete with the Russians! It’s great for the Russian, but death for the German!” These words formed a saying. Whether Suvorov repeated the old and forgotten, or invented a new saying, I can’t vouch for it; but I say that I heard.”
N.A. Polevoy (1834) "Stories of a Russian Soldier",
“When our general Leonty Leontyevich Beniksonov showed Bonaparte that a Russian is not a Prussian and that in winter a Russian fights even better, according to the proverb, what is great for a Russian is death for a German, and vice versa, Bonaparte was glad to make peace and pretended to be such a fox that our great Emperor Alexander Pavlovich believed him.”
Let us now turn to the word Schmerz
According to Vasmer, this is “a mocking nickname for a German,” Olonetsk. (Sandpiper.). From it. Schmerz "sorrow, pain", perhaps, according to the consonance of German. words from Russian stink (see below) P.D. Boborykin Vasily Terkin, 1892 “A kind of “schmerz”, a land surveyor, but he speaks to him, Chernososhny, like a boss with a petitioner, albeit in a respectful tone... Nothing to do... Times like these! We must be patient!" Where there are no Germans, she is in the blues, And gave herself over to the smoked heart It's not smoked. By the way, Vyazemsky has funny quatrains about the Germans: The German is a dock for everything, The German is so thoughtful That you will fall into it. But, according to our cut, If a German is taken by surprise, And especially in winter, The German - your choice! - is bad. Sukhovo-Kobylin (who hasn’t read it, I recommend reading his trilogy, especially Delo - modern to the point of trembling) has a character with the last name Shmertz. I can’t get past the completely understandable nickname of the Germans - Sausage Man:), from Dahl I found the word Perekolbasnik (Germanize) with an example: “Peter oversausified all the Russians, everyone became oversausified, became Germanized.” :)). And here "to the sausage" Die Kalebasse (German), calabash (English) calebasse (French) - pumpkin bottle.Sausage is literally an intestine stuffed with meat, shaped like a pumpkin bottle (kalebasse)." -I was joking :), I know that Vasmer vehemently denies this etymology :)). But, by the way, I myself use the word kolabashka in relation to solid subject round shape approximately the size of a fist :). But I digress, I continue. The origin is German word Schmerz I don’t know, I don’t know German, I really ask German-speaking friends to help with the etymology of this word. I hear in it Russian Death(in German death is Tod). By the way, let’s look at the etymology of the word Death and at the same time Smerd. Smerd(there is an opinion that the German nickname Schmerz also meant from Smerd, in a negative sense): Vasmer: other Russian. smird "peasant" Praslav. *smеrdъ from *smеrdeti (see stink). This word bears the imprint of contempt for agriculture, which was regarded as a base occupation and was the lot of slaves and women From the Brockhaus-Efron dictionary: From one place in the Ipatan Chronicle (under 1240) it is clear that S. could rise to the highest strata and even to the rank of boyar; at least the Galician boyars, according to the chronicle, came “from the Smerdya tribe.” At the initiative of Leshkov, in our historical and legal literature for quite a long time they took S. for a special class, which consisted in some close relationship to the prince I have not been able to find out at what point the word acquired an abusive meaning (back in the 16th-17th centuries, the word smerd was used to designate the service population in official appeals to the tsar and the tsar to the population.) And then such proverbs appeared (from A.G. Preobrazhensky)
- The distance is short - expletive: German, sausage maker
In the dictionary M.I. Mikhelson we find a quote from a poem by P. Vyazemsky Eliza (I couldn’t find the poem itself on the Internet)
Her mind is delirious with smoked shmertz,
The German is ranked among the sages,
There is also an opinion that the nickname Schmerz hints at German sentimentality (on the popular rhyme Schmerz-Herz - heart).
Death:
Vasmer: Praslav. *sъmьrtь along with *mьrtь (in Czech mrt, gen. p. mrti zh. “a dead part of something, dead tissue on a wound, barren land”), it finds common roots even with ancient Indian. mrtis, not to mention the understandable Latin mors (mortis). Slavic *sъ-мърть should be associated with Old Indian. su- “good, good”, original. “good death”, i.e. “one’s own, natural”, is further connected with *svo- (see one’s own).
In Karamzin we read: “The name smerd usually meant peasant and mob, that is ordinary people, not military, not bureaucrats, not merchants... Under the name of smerds we mean the common people in general. .. Probably the name smerd came from the verb to stink... Smerds were free people and in no case could they be equal to slaves... Smerds paid the princes sales, tribute or penalties, and there was no monetary penalty from the slaves, because they did not had property" (I apologize, I am writing in Russian because I have no other font). You can also look in different dictionaries or on the wiki.
A stinking look is worse than a curse!
The spruce stump is unbroken, the stinking son is unbowed.
