Lost in Translation?

The German language is one of my absolute favorite things about Germany. It’s tough to learn, but it’s (mostly) logical and I really like the way it sounds. A lot of people say it’s too harsh, but I completely disagree. Some of the sounds are tricky, but words are relatively easy to pronounce and are written as they sound. Plus, lots of words are incredibly similar to English! I never realized how much English is related to German until I got here, but it’s so reassuring to constantly run into the words “Auto” and “Wasser” and “Haus” and know what they mean automatically. If only all my conversations consisted of English-German cognates…

It’s been great living with Germans because I learn useful phrases and idiomatic expressions much more than I would in class. Of course, they’re not always appropriate for daily use (that’s what I get living with five guys), but it’s great to see how people my age actually speak. We normally speak “Denglish” around the flat – I try to practice German a lot, but we tend to switch between the two languages while speaking. A typical conversation might go like this:

Flatmate X: Hallo! Wie geht’s? (How are you?)
Me: Hallo! Mir geht es gut, und dir? (I’m good, and you?)
Flatmate: Ugh, it’s okay. Ich habe so much f****** Arbeit. (I have so much… work.)
Me: Ja, ich auch. I can’t wait to be done. Ich bin so müde und ich will schlafen. (Me too…I’m so tired and I want to sleep.)
Flatmate: *nods*

The best conversations include mistranslations from German to English or vice-versa. In English, we say “I have to study for my test.” In German, they say “Ich muss für meine Prüfung lernen.” When Germans speak English, they ALWAYS say “I have to learn for my exam.” One of my flatmates in particular says this all the time – “I have to go learn now. I’ve been learning all day. I’m so tired of learning.” It sounds so funny to me, but it would be the same if I said “Ich muss studieren” in German. I’ve gotten so used to say “Ich muss lernen” now – I’ll probably come home bemoaning all the “learning” I have to do for the next school year.

My other favorite is the German phrase “Party machen”. It means “to party” in English, but when you translate it directly, it’s “make Party.” This means you get Germans saying things like “I’m going to make party tonight. Did you make party last night?” That one NEVER gets old…
The other interesting translation I heard yesterday was when my flatmate and I were watching some boys playing soccer out of our window. I commented, “Oh, one of them just fell! That sucks,” and my flatmate responded with “Did it hurt itself?” Of course, das Kind (the child) is neuter in German – no masculine or feminine article required. Oh, German…

That’s all for now. I have to get some work done before going to the local Irish pub for Quiz Night (“Das Quiz”). Listening to guys speaking German with Irish accents should be interesting/fantastic.

Bis später!