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This year is the Reformationsjubiläum, the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg, which was a key event for the Reformation. This day now symbolizes the beginning of the Reformation and the far-reaching effects that have reached around the globe. All year long there are activities all over the world to celebrate this anniversary, most especially in Germany.
They're celebrating the life and work of Martin Luther: the man who lived secretly under the name "Junker Jörg," gave us the word Rotzlöffel, and translated the New Testament into German.
Rotzlöffel
This descriptive insult translates literally to "snot spoon," and correctly translated, it gives us "snotty-nosed brat." How Luther helped this word get into better circulation, I have no idea, but you can find out more in Mit Feuereifer und Herzenslust from DUDEN.
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A lot of folks in the US ask me what German health insurance is like. As a former resident of Germany (2003 to 2008) and a participant in their public health insurance program (there is also a separate, private system, which I know nothing about) here are 7 differences I noticed:
1. It has a different name.
It’s not “health insurance.” It’s Krankenversicherung, or illness insurance. Krankenversicherung is a protection against financial devastation, it’s no guarantee you’re going to be healthy.
Personally, I refer to my policy payments every month as Illsurance. We have car insurance for our cars, and home insurance for our homes, why not Illsurance for illnesses?
2. Your payments are percentages, not flat fees.
Depending on your Krankenversicherung, you pay roughly 14% of your income towards your policy. Your employer pays a bit less. Thus the monthly payments change depending on and related to your income changes, but there is a cap on how much you pay when you’ve reached EUR 4,350/month gross.
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and make German a part of your everyday life.
Sometimes it amazes me how quickly people can pick up German words and sentence structure, even though they've never been to Germany and haven't learned German before. Clients come to a lesson and they have no idea what German bread tastes like, but they can talk about German breakfast: das Brot, die Marmelade, der Kaffee.
It can be a source of frustration, however, to learn German, but only to have all these North American elements around us: speed limits, white bread (igit!), and 2 weeks of vacation a year. (Germans have a minimum of 4, on average 5, and many have 6 weeks). German culture sometimes feels so far away.
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When the calendar turns to the holiday season, it's time to talk about holiday greetings! This year Christmas and Hanukkah even take place at the same time. So here you've got all the holiday greetings you need for this week & next!
But wait! It's still Advent--it isn't even the Christmas season yet!
Advent! - die Vorweihnachtszeit
In the US we fever and shop and practically race our way to Christmas and Advent is often left up to the church calendar. However in Germany it's also cultural--Advent ist nicht Weihnachten! Advent is the 4 weeks leading up to Christmas--it's the time of waiting for Jesus' birth.
Words to know:
der Advent - Advent
die Vorweihnachtszeit - the pre-Christmas time. a/k/a Advent.
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Besides books and reading, it's safe to say the board games are an important German cultural element. Games are so important to Germans that there is a Verein (club) that reviews games every year known as the Spiel des Jahres (Game of the Year).
German board games are awesome and some of them are now cult games of epic proportions. You might have seen Catan spread out on the coffee table in an episode of The Big Bang Theory. (Das war echt toll zu sehen.)
Here are a few games you could get to know any day of the year, and if you're looking for some German Christmas presents, they'll serve you well!
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