'Abwrackprämie' Named Word of the Year

The GERMAN WORDS OF THE YEAR are: 

1. Abwrackprämie – "wrecking premium"
2. kriegsähnliche Zustände – "war-like conditions"
3. Schweinegrippe - "swine flu"
4. Bad Bank - "schlechte Bank" in German
5. Weltklimagipfel - "world climate conference"
6. Deutschland ist Europameisterin - "Germany is the [feminine] European Champion"
7. twittern – "to twitter"
8. Studium Bolognese – "Bolognese studies," a sarcastic reference to the Italian dish that reflects German universities' failure to properly integrate the Bologna education reforms
9. Wachstumsbeschleunigungsgesetz – "growth acceleration law"
10. Haste mal ’ne Milliarde? – "Can you spare a billion?"


The Society for German Language (Gesellschaft fuer deutsche Sprache - GfdS) crowned Abwrackprämie, or “wrecking premium,” the most important German word of 2009. The word was coined to describe the country’s popular cash-for-clunkers scheme, which paid people to junk their old cars as part of the government's stimulus programme. The word was chosen to represent the “linguistic chronicle of the past year,” the organisation said from its headquarters in Wiesbaden.

The second place phrase was kriegsähnliche Zustände, or “war-like conditions,” used to describe the situation faced by German troops in Afghanistan – and also an indication of the enduring taboo of referring to Bundeswehr mission there as “war.”

Meanwhile Schweinegrippe, or “swine flu” came in third place for the year’s most popular word.

This year's winning word was made popular by average Germans and advertisers, GfdS head Rudolf Hoberg said, adding that the concept was carried over from cars to furniture, washing machines and bicycles. “One breaks something and gets money for it,” he said, explaining the word’s appeal. The original Abwrackprämie offered Germans €2,500 to scrap their old cars and buy new, more environmentally friendly models. Hoberg criticised the second place word, though, saying it trivialised reality. “Of course we’re in a war there,” he said, referring to Afghanistan.

Other words on the list are very recent editions to the German vocabulary. The fifth place Weltklimagipfel, or “world climate conference,” threatened to collapse on Friday as the word list was released, while the Bundestag approved the ninth place word Wachstumsbeschleunigungsgesetz, or “growth acceleration law” on Friday too.

Each year the GfdS selects words and phrases made popular by the German media and public discussion, voting for the term that best embodies the zeitgeist. This year they chose among some 350 entries.

Hoberg said he was particularly amused by the creative solecism in the phrase Deutschland ist Europameisterin, or “Germany is the [feminine] European Champion,” used to describe the women’s national football team victory in the European championships.

Haste mal 'ne Milliarde?, or "Can you spare a billion," was an ironic take on how the financial crisis has changed how Germans think of money. “In the last year we’ve started thinking in billions,” he said. “Millions are peanuts today.”

Last year's #1 word was Finanzkrise, or financial crisis. Seen at: http://www.thelocal.de

Speaking of food...

What's on your Christmas menu this year? (And where are you from?)

WORT DES TAGES
aufbauschen - to exaggerate, blow up (fig.), hype; billow (sail), billow out, puff up; magnify

Den Berichten zufolge habe der President die Gründe für den Irak-Krieg aufgebauscht. [Zeitungsartikel] - According to the reports, the President exaggerated the reasons for the war in Iraq. [news article]

Er übertreibt gerne. - He likes to exaggerate.

Related:
übertreiben - exaggerate, overstate, embroider [fig.]
verstärken - amplify, exaggerate, reinforce

WORT DES TAGES
auf Anhieb (idiom) - right away, straight away, straight off, right off the bat; offhand, first go

Hollywood war nicht auf Anhieb ein goldenes Pflaster. -
From the first go Hollywood wasn't paved with gold.

Das kann ich nicht auf Anhieb sagen. - I can't say offhand.

Sie haben sich auf Anhieb gut verstanden. - They got along well from the start.

Related:
von Anfang an - from the very beginning, from the start
anfangen - to start, begin

MORE> German Idioms
An idiom (= eine Redewendung) is an expression that usually can't be translated literally. Its meaning is often quite different from the word-for-word meaning. For many idioms, either you know what it means or you don't. Sometimes a German idiom is similar to its English equivalent: "He's getting on my nerves." = Er geht mir auf die Nerven. or "She's got a screw loose." = Bei ihr ist eine Schraube locker. But more often the German and the English are nothing alike: "He had the nerve to say that?" = Er hatte die Stirn, das zu sagen? (Literally, "he had the forehead..." But then the British refer to yet another location when they say, "he had the cheek..."). Continued here with more examples~

http://german.about.com/library/weekly/aa030899.htm

I realize I left it kind of late, but now here it is the Sunday before Christmas and I haven't figured out what to give my neighbors.  These are people who we wave to and say Morgen or Abend to, help with putting their garbage cans out, talk about the weather, etc.  Not close friends for sure. 

We are probably known as "those Americans" to the rest of the people on the street, which is short.  There are only 7 houses that I would want to give something to. 

At home (i.e, Seattle or San Diego) we gave hand-made marzipans, cookies or fruit.  The first year we lived in Germany, the kids were here and we did make marzipan fruit, but the general reaction was fairly cool, I guess because marzipan is so common here.  The next year I made cookies, which were better received.

Now, this is a new neighborhood and I have a chance to do better.  The people are mostly single people and are older (that's to say, 60+), 3 quite old (i.e, about 90).  There are no young children or families.

So what do you think?  Wine? Cookies?  At this point, I'd have to buy whatever it is.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

 


Marzipan-Pralinen

1 lb Marzipanrohmasse (Raw Marzipan at Quality Level 100:0)
3/4 cup chopped Walnuts
2 teaspoons Rum
1 lb Semi-Sweet Chocolate (for melting)
40 Walnuts or almonds, halved

Knead raw marzipan, chopped walnuts, and rum together to combine. Roll out the marzipan mix to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out 1 inch squares. Place chocolate in microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 1-2 minutes (stir to check if it's completely melted, if not, repeat). Using a toothpick or fork, poke a marzipan square and dunk it in the melted chocolate, making sure the entire square is covered. Let any excess chocolate drip off, then place square on a plate or cake cooling rack. Immediately place a walnut (or almond) half on top, lightly pushing down so it sticks to the chocolate. Allow squares to cool in the fridge until chocolate hardens. Enjoy at room temp like regular chocolates. :)

WORT DES TAGES
die Attrappe (pl. die Attrappen) - mockup, dummy, fake device, facade, model [architec.]; sham, hoax; requisite; blank [tech.]

Zur Sicherheit wurde die Bombenattrappe beschossen. -
For safety's sake, they shot the fake bomb device.

Bei ihm ist alles Attrappe. - Everything about him is false.

Das ist alles nur Attrappe. - That's all just smoke and mirrors.

Related:
die Fälschung - counterfeit
falsch - wrong; fake
die Etappe - leg, stage [sport]; back area [mil.]

WORT DES TAGES
die Atemnot - breathing difficulties, breathlessness, labored breathing [med.], shortness of breath [med.], dyspnea/dyspnoea [med.]

Der Vizepräsident hatte nach Angaben von CNN über Atemnot geklagt. -
According to CNN, the vice-president had complained of difficulty in breathing.

Bemerkt nicht dessen Atemnot... -
Doesn't notice (the child's) breathing difficulty...
(From the song "Dalai Lama" by Rammstein, for more see~
http://german.about.com/library/blmus_rammst05.htm)

Related:
der Atem - breathing; breath
atemlos - breathless(ly)
die Not - need, poverty; emergency