Names for the German language
Encyclopedia
The origin of the name for the German language varies between languages, in a similar way to the various names for Germany
.
) to refer to German (and also to Germans) in Slavic languages is that Germans were the first people Slavic tribes
encountered with whom they could not communicate.
Romanian
used to use the Slavonic term "nemţeşte", but "germană" is now widely used. Hungarian "német" is also of Slavonic origin. The Arabic
name for Austria, النمسا ("an-namsa"), is derived from the Slavonic term.
Note also that though the Russian term for the language is немецкий (nemetskij), the country is Германия (Germania). However, in certain other Slavic languages
, such as Czech, the country name (Německo ɲɛmɛt͡sko) is similar to the name of the language, německy (ɲɛmɛt͡skɪ).
use the term saksa, originally from the Saxon tribe.
use derivatives of the word Tyskland/Þýskaland (from Theodisca) for the country and tysk(a)/þýska for the language.
traditionally (nowadays this is not the case) used the Biblical term אַשְׁכֲּנָז (Ashkenaz
) (Genesis 10:3) to refer to Germany, or to certain parts of it, and the Ashkenazi Jews are those who originate from Germany and Eastern Europe
and formerly spoke Yiddish as their native language, derived from Middle High German
. Modern Hebrew uses גֶּרְמָנִי germaní (Or גֶּרְמָנִית germanít for the language).
term is alemany, and the Portuguese
term is alemão; all derive from the ancient Alamanni
tribal alliance, meaning literally "All Men".
term vācu possibly comes from the German word Volk (folk, people).
term for the German language is "Vokiškai" or "Vokiečių kalba" for the German language.
Names for Germany
Because of Germany's geographic position in the centre of Europe and its long history as a disunited region of distinct tribes and states, there are many widely varying names of Germany in different languages, perhaps more than for any other European nation: for example, in German the country is...
.
Italian
In Italian the sole name for German is still tedesco, from the Latin theodiscus, meaning "vernacular".Slavonic
A possible explanation for the use of words meaning "mute" (e.g., nemoj in Russian, němý in Czech, nem/nijem in SerbianSerbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
) to refer to German (and also to Germans) in Slavic languages is that Germans were the first people Slavic tribes
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
encountered with whom they could not communicate.
Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
used to use the Slavonic term "nemţeşte", but "germană" is now widely used. Hungarian "német" is also of Slavonic origin. The Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
name for Austria, النمسا ("an-namsa"), is derived from the Slavonic term.
Note also that though the Russian term for the language is немецкий (nemetskij), the country is Германия (Germania). However, in certain other Slavic languages
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
, such as Czech, the country name (Německo ɲɛmɛt͡sko) is similar to the name of the language, německy (ɲɛmɛt͡skɪ).
Finnish and Estonian
Finns and EstoniansEstonians
Estonians are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns and inhabiting, primarily, the country of Estonia. They speak a Finnic language known as Estonian...
use the term saksa, originally from the Saxon tribe.
North Germanic languages
ScandinaviansScandinavians
Scandinavians are a group of Germanic peoples, inhabiting Scandinavia and to a lesser extent countries associated with Scandinavia, and speaking Scandinavian languages. The group includes Danes, Norwegians and Swedes, and additionally the descendants of Scandinavian settlers such as the Icelandic...
use derivatives of the word Tyskland/Þýskaland (from Theodisca) for the country and tysk(a)/þýska for the language.
Hebrew
HebrewHebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
traditionally (nowadays this is not the case) used the Biblical term אַשְׁכֲּנָז (Ashkenaz
Ashkenaz
In the Bible, Ashkenaz is Gomer's first son, brother of Riphath and Togarmah , thereby a Japhetic descendant of Noah. A kingdom of Ashkenaz is called together with Ararat and Minni against Babylon In the Bible, Ashkenaz (Heb. אַשְׁכֲּנָז) is Gomer's first son, brother of Riphath and Togarmah (Gen....
) (Genesis 10:3) to refer to Germany, or to certain parts of it, and the Ashkenazi Jews are those who originate from Germany and Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
and formerly spoke Yiddish as their native language, derived from Middle High German
Middle High German
Middle High German , abbreviated MHG , is the term used for the period in the history of the German language between 1050 and 1350. It is preceded by Old High German and followed by Early New High German...
. Modern Hebrew uses גֶּרְמָנִי germaní (Or גֶּרְמָנִית germanít for the language).
Other Romance languages
The French term is allemand, the Spanish term is alemán, the Welsh term is almaeneg, the CatalanCatalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
term is alemany, and the Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
term is alemão; all derive from the ancient Alamanni
Alamanni
The Alamanni, Allemanni, or Alemanni were originally an alliance of Germanic tribes located around the upper Rhine river . One of the earliest references to them is the cognomen Alamannicus assumed by Roman Emperor Caracalla, who ruled the Roman Empire from 211 to 217 and claimed thereby to be...
tribal alliance, meaning literally "All Men".
Latvian
The LatvianLatvian language
Latvian is the official state language of Latvia. It is also sometimes referred to as Lettish. There are about 1.4 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and about 150,000 abroad. The Latvian language has a relatively large number of non-native speakers, atypical for a small language...
term vācu possibly comes from the German word Volk (folk, people).
Lithuanian
LithuanianLithuanian language
Lithuanian is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognized as one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 170,000 abroad. Lithuanian is a Baltic language, closely related to Latvian, although they...
term for the German language is "Vokiškai" or "Vokiečių kalba" for the German language.