Gender-neutral language is gradually gaining ground in Germany. In addition to the German media, government departments and institutions of higher education gendergap, gender star or neutral appeals are also used in business – both for internal communication and for communicating with customers.
Sometimes it’s the consumers themselves. Yes, railway Deutsche Bahn concern after the appeal of one passenger to the court, will change its form for online booking of tickets. In the “gender” option, a third option will appear along with male and female, or questions about gender will be removed altogether.
But it also happens the other way around – sometimes in the companies themselves there are opponents of language innovations, as happened in the Audi concern.
Volkswagen manager vs. Audi
“Dear Audians,” is how the automotive company Audi addresses its employees. In the past year, she has created a special guide for staff on the use of language in business correspondence, work orders and company presentations. In appeals, they are asked to use a gender streak in order to avoid discrimination.
But the manager of the Volkswagen concern, which includes Audi, is not satisfied. By his own admission, he is generally against discrimination, but imposed use gender neutral language he thinks so. To fight against the violation of his personal rights, the manager even went to court, where, as a linguistic example, he cited, in particular, the concept of “Der_die Fachexpert_in” (expert_ka) from corporate management. When working with colleagues from a subsidiary, a VW employee would like to be “left alone” and addressed in the usual manner. And in case of violations, it requires the employer to pay a fine of 100 thousand euros.
“Parking for residents of adjoining houses” – inclusive language increasingly common in Germany
The case was heard by the Regional Court in Ingolstadt. The presiding judge suggested a settlement and that Audi should address this employee “in the usual way.” However, the company refused such an offer. Removing gender-neutral messages from all emails, applications and presentations is unrealistic, they note, so compromise is impossible. The verdict will be delivered on July 29. But it is already clear that the lawsuit will not become a precedent, because, as the plaintiff was explained in court, this is an individual case that reflects his personal perception.
Gender-neutral language in the German business environment
Among linguists in Germany, gender-neutral language is perceived ambiguously. In particular, the manager’s claim was supported by the Association of the German Language (Verein Deutsche Sprache) from Dortmund, which considers it “annoying tutelage” and “ideology”. The larger and more authoritative German Language Society in Wiesbaden, on the contrary, finds this form of anti-discrimination useful, but rather advocates the use of two options: for example, “Schülerinnen und Schüler” (“pupils and pupils”) instead of a gender gap – since “language should be understandable and conform to the rules of grammar.
According to a survey conducted among HR managers by the Munich-based ifo Institute and the consulting firm Randstad, almost one in three companies in Germany use gender-neutral, or, as it is also called, inclusive language, primarily for external communication. And in general, large companies are showing great openness here. Some of them have signed “Charter of Diversity” and participate in an initiative that aims to “promote recognition, respect and diversity in the business environment in Germany”. In total, the initiative includes more than 4,000 organizations. Among the signatories of the charter are 30 companies from the list of the DAX index: Deutsche Post, Siemens, BASF, Adidas, Bayer, Deutsche Telekom, EON, Siemens, McDonald’s – and Audi.
Gender asterisk has taken its rightful place in Duden’s dictionary
One of the recommendations of the authors of the initiative is to use gender-neutral language at your own discretion. And, as DW spokesperson Stephan Dirschl notes in a commentary, most of the charter’s signatories are convinced of the need for inclusive language to overcome prejudice and discrimination.
But the case of Audi shows how important and at the same time difficult it is to involve and convince as many employees as possible. To do this, many enterprises employ the so-called diversity managers (Diversity Manager).
“Society in Germany today is more diverse than ever. And our awareness of our individuality is greater than ever before. As a result, employers are expected to see and take into account this diversity,” Dirschl explains.
On the one hand, when looking for a job, specialists attach great importance to business culture, on the other hand, firms consider the diversity of the team a key factor for business success and innovation.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Favorite words of German teenagers
Every year in Germany they hold a competition for the most popular word in youth slang. Words are offered by teenagers. In 2021, 1.2 million people participated in this action. From this list, by online voting in several stages, they themselves determined three favorites, and then the winner. Once again, it was Anglicism.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Cringe – “Spanish shame”, “that’s crap”, “damn”
So, the word “ringe” is the most popular youth word of 2021. “Spanish shame”, “that’s crap”, “damn” – so it can be translated into Russian. It pops up in situations where one is ashamed of others, such as when adults borrow teenage language to make themselves look cool, but get the context wrong. The concept of “ringe” is common in social networks and is found in comments under posts and memes.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Parasitic words from TikTok
The other finalists were two exclamations. The word “shees” – “Oh my God!” – common on TikTok and helps to express surprise, doubt or outrage. According to one version, it comes from the English “Geez” or “Jesus”, according to another – from the Turkish “Çüş” in the same meaning. The second word – “sus” (from the English “suspect”) means “weird”, “suspicious” and also came from TikTok and online games.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Lost – “no idea”
By the way, back in 2020, “сringe” was among the favorites of the competition, which is organized by the Langenscheidt publishing house. And the most popular then was the anglicism “lost” – “lost”, “having no idea.” In Russian, it can be compared with the obscene abbreviation “khz”. And then the top 10 included “Wyld / Wild” – “Class!”, “Super!” or “Tin!” and a new version of “bro” – “Digga/Diggah”.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Ehrenmann/Ehrenfrau – “bro”
There was no contest in 2019. And a year earlier, the analogue of “bro” – “Ehrenmann / Ehrenfrau” won. So it is customary to talk about someone who is respected, who keeps his word and remains true to his principles. It came to the youth environment not without the help of rappers, however, they use this concept in an ironic way. Bushido, Kollegah and his partner Farid Bang dedicated more than one song to the “man of honor”.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Verbuggt – “with a bug”
On the list of favorites in 2018 was the word “verbuggt” came from the jargon of IT people. “Verbuggt” or “buggy” – “with a bug” – is used in relation to software that has crashed. German youth use this word when criticizing someone. Can be translated as “You’re not all at home.”
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
I bims – “It’s me”
This is almost from the series “Their bean cudgel.” The German “their bin” has taken root in Russian colloquial speech – even those who do not know German are familiar with this expression. Young Germans also got carried away with mangling the German language, especially on the Internet, sometimes due to ignorance of complex German grammar. This trend is criticized, which, as we can see, did not prevent I bims (correctly “Ich bin´s”) from becoming the most popular in 2017.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Tinderjährig – “tinder summer”
Tinderjährig is the name of a person who has reached the age when he can use the famous mobile dating application. “Tindersummer” was one of the top nominee words in 2017. A year earlier, many voted for Tindergarten. So in German youth slang they denoted a collection of online contacts on Tinder.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
fly sein
Fly sein became the youth word of 2016. It comes from hip-hop and describes the state of being “totally wild” and being ready to party until you drop.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Hopfensmoothie – “hoppy smoothie”
Smoothies are the drink of a new generation of healthy eating fans. Berry, fruit, with the addition of yogurt … Barley, wheat? Hopfensmoothie – Hopfen – German “hops” – a new, playful designation for beer. And hipsters have this traditional drink in fashion.
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Smombie – “smart phone zombie”
In 2015, the jury voted for “smart phone zombies”. This is the name of a person who constantly looks at the display of a phone or tablet, not paying attention to where he is going. The term originated from the abbreviated merger of the words “smartphone” and “zombie”. Among the favorites was the verb “krimmen” – “first give, then take away.” Crimea in German – Krim. And also a word associated with the German chancellor…
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Youth slang: favorite words of the Germans
Merkeln – “mow under Merkel”
“Merkel”, “Merkel”, “mow like Merkel” – the verb “merkeln” was popular among young Germans in 2015, but still did not become the youth word of the year. The word is derived from the name of the current German Chancellor and means doing nothing, avoiding answers and postponing decisions until later.
Author: Tatyana Vaynman, Marina Borisova
