German in the USA

There is a widespread legend according to which German almost became the official language of the United States. According to this legend, the corresponding vote against this proposal was only one more than in his support, and this vote belonged to an American of German descent Frederick Mulenberg . This story has been recalled in the German press since 1840 as an illustration of the fact that in the United States already in the 18th century there were many immigrants from Germany.

Around 1800, two German-speaking Methodist churches were created in Pennsylvania, the United Brothers in Christ and the Evangelical Association. In both churches, the statutes and methodological books of chants were written in German, in addition, they published newspapers in German, one of which lasted until 1937. From the middle of the XIX century, English became the second language in them, but until the XX century there were areas where German was the main church language. In 1937, both churches united, and in 1968, together with the Methodist Episcopal Church, they formed the United Methodist Church.

Inside the Methodist Episcopal Church, German-speaking “conferences” that intersected with English-speaking were also formed in the middle of the 19th century. An example is the German St. Louis Conference, which in 1925 dissolved in the surrounding English-language conferences. But, unlike the United Brothers and the Evangelical Association, parishioners of these conferences attended the same churches as their English-speaking brothers in faith.

Those Methodists who returned from America to their homeland were the first distributors of Methodism in Germany and Switzerland.

German newspapers in the USA have a long history. The German newspaper Pennsylvanische Staatsbote was the first to report on July 5, 1776, about the signing of the Declaration of Independence by Congress , and the first to print its text in German. The printed English text was available to members of Congress as early as July 4, but ordinary citizens could only read it on July 6 at the Pennsylvania Evening Post.

In the 19th century, the German-language press gained more importance and authority, which contributed to the emergence of a number of new newspapers in German. However, during World War I, many of them were forced to close due to a reduced number of readers.

Some German-language newspapers are published in our time. The first edition of the New Yorker Staats-Zeitung took place on December 24, 1834, making it one of the oldest newspapers in the United States. The Washington Journal, a German-language newspaper in Washington, is the oldest newspaper in the US capital. From 1934 to 2004, the Jewish German-language newspaper Aufbau was published in New York; Now it is published in Zurich. A more complete list can be found here .

In addition to German, numerous newspapers are also published in the Yiddish language, which is close to Middle German dialects . The world famous newspaper Der Forverts ( German: Vorwärts ); Now it is released under the name "The Forward" in Yiddish, Russian and English. The former name came from the eponymous newspaper of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .

After the United States entered World War I in 1917, anti-German sentiment prevailed in the American public. German Americans, especially immigrants, were accused of German sympathy; speaking German was considered unpatriotic. For example, a hot dog was so named during the First World War, before that it was called "frankfurter". Many German families at that time gave their surnames a more English sound (Schmidt in Smith, Schneider in Taylor, Muller in Miller, etc.), almost all drastically reduced the use of the German language. Many states have banned the public use and study of German. In Ohio , Iowa and Nebraska, German was banned even in private schools. In 1923, the US Supreme Court repealed these laws as contrary to the Constitution (the Meyer vs. Nebraska trial). However, it was already impossible to reverse the consequences of anti-German hysteria. German has almost disappeared from public use.

In general, Americans of German descent are very well integrated , and the use of the German language is again significantly increasing. According to the latest census (2000), 1,382,610 people call German their mother tongue. In everyday life, only in some religious communities is German or some of its dialects used, for example, German-Platonic (a variant of Low German ). For the conservative part of the Amish , Mennonite and Hatterite, the preservation of the German language is part of religious beliefs and a shield against the corruption of the modern world.

Ultimately, only a few borrowings remained from German in the USA. Most of the German words borrowed from American English are related to food and drink - for example, `` sauerkraut '' (sour cabbage), `` Schnaps '' (schnapps). But some also testify to the cultural influence of the Germans in their new homeland: '' fest '' in words like '' songfest '' (singing in chorus), '' kindergarten '' (kindergarten).

Since Germans predominantly settled in already colonized areas, not many German geographical names appeared in the USA. During the official renaming of localities during World War I and the inclusion of localities in cities, the number of German place names became even smaller. German surnames often come across, although they are constantly changing, leading to English spelling.

In Germany, about 6 million students study English as a foreign language in secondary schools. In American schools, approximately 375,000 students study German; It is the third most popular language after Spanish and French. In 1997, the German government allocated about US $ 6 million to teach German in American schools. These funds were invested in teacher training, school exchange projects, seminars, the development of teaching materials and competitions in the German language. Six US Department of Education ( California , Georgia , Pennsylvania , Virginia , Washington, and Wisconsin ) have German language consultants in charge of teaching German. These experts, supported by the German government, help develop plans and common standards at the federal and regional levels.

Seven branches of the Goethe Institute carry out cultural programs, German language classes in the USA with the support of the Federal Republic of Germany, support teachers, universities and institutions supporting German, offer up-to-date information about Germany; In the 15 branches of the Institute in Germany, about 2,500 Americans study annually in intensive language courses.

• German Americans
• Pennsylvania German dialect
• Pennsylvania Germans