Cool linguistishe Sache

Yup, Cool linguistic stuff. Since I last posted, a good deal has happened. I've traveled to Dresden (a city rebuilt after being destroyed in WWII), Goslar (home to the Holy Roman Emperors in Germany), and the European Bread Museum. I think I'll need some more time than I have to describe those adventures. So instead, I would like to share some, well, Cool linguistische Sache.

I have recently discovered that "because" is both a conjugation and a preposition. German uses two different words for these:

Weil es regnet, nehme ich einem Resenschirm.
Because it is raining, I need an umbrella.

Wegen des Regens nehme ich einem Regenschirm.
Because of the rain, I need an umbrella.

Notice that the first required a verb (or an implied one), thus a conjunction, while the second requires only a noun (or pronoun) and thus a preposition. Awesome stuff, for me at least. I believe that English does this sort of thing pretty often. "Before" is another example. I admittedly haven't spent much time thinking about other examples.

I apologize if your eyes have glazed over. Perhaps a word study would be more interesting. I study history. German does have a similar word, Historie, but it is, ironically, archaic. Instead, I would say that I study Geschichte. What is interesting is that this word has two meanings: history and story. Thus, supposedly (I have yet to ask), when a German hears Geschichte that could conjure up both meanings simultaneously.

I think that there is great truth in having a single word to describe both history and stories. On the one hand, what is history apart from stories? Nothing. Yes, many people associate history with dates and figures, but those are on the periphery. The heart of history is people and their stories. In fact, that is why we call the everything before the invention of writing prehistory. These people couldn't tell us their own stories, therefore the study is not history. On the other side of the coin, many people often disregard the historical significance of the stories and mythology of past cultures. This is a pretty foolish position to take; although the pure objective historical data (if such a thing really exists) may be convoluted, these tales give insight into what the creators believed and found important. Also, it seems that many of the characters existed and the events really happened, they've simply been sensationalized a tad.

Apparently, the English word history originally has similar qualities (thank you OED) but is now used only to describe "true" incidents while a story can be either true or untrue. This is sad, since, as I've said, we can find a good deal of "truth" in what we often believe to be "untruth".

(Also, I am resisting the urge to describe the cool etymology of history. It includes Greek and Latin, Check out the OED if you're interested).


In further news, yesterday on my way to the supermarket I (figuratively) ran into friends from my class. We spoke for a few minutes, in German and with little difficulty, and then continued on our way. Later, I looked up at a sign an realized that I understood what it said. I started looking at more signs that I had previously ignored, and realized that I understood a majority of them with minimal effort. It was then that I realized that I have, to some extent, internalized German. I can't converse about highly complex topics, and my desire for precision in speech often leaves at a loss, attempting to use constructions more complex than some think is completely necessary, but I can communicate and be understood, oftentimes explaining a missing word with German, and not its English equivalent. And less than halfway through.

A week from today I take the B1 exam. It is through these exams that I will get my credits from Gordon. I need to study. My fear of failing has been diminished after taking a practice test, but I would still like to do well. Then comes one more week of classes and a break. I hope to post about Goetttingen, Dresden, Goslar, the Bread Museum, and the learning method at the Goethe Institut soon.

(edit: story, as you might have guessed is related to history. It is an aphetic form of History, meaning that the first unstressed syllable was dropped. This seems to be a rather common occurrence with words that begin with H. Notice: Latin: Hispania; Spanish: España; English: Spain. Oh man, phonological changes are awesome.)