Ask rothaer anything

[rothaer]

What are your thoughs about this topic?

I think it was a proposal and in the future also related things are not impossible.

Why would Germany reject it in case it was indeed proposed? (...)

Because it very likely was not offered to turn it over emptied (of that abt. 1 million Russians).

A number of countries and populations would maybe like to gift themselves to Germany and be part of it with all that population becoming German citizens and receiving instant social care next day on the level of the FRG.

[Etelfrido]

I think it was a proposal and in the future also related things are not impossible.



Because it very likely was not offered to turn it over emptied (of that abt. 1 million Russians).

A number of countries and populations would maybe like to gift themselves to Germany and be part of it with all that population becoming German citizens and receiving instant social care next day on the level of the FRG.

I appreciate your opinion. Could you talk about how Germans viewed the Eastern territories (stereotypes and the like) and your opinion about them pre-1945? I asked you in the last post but I think you missed it (if you chose not to answer it then I apologize).

Also, knowing that you're an East German I think you might like to know (if you don't already) that East Pomeranian's still alive. I bet it's even easier to understand than Hunsrückisch for you. Is it similar to the dialects still spoken in Mecklemburg-Western Pomerania?

Sorry for all the questions, I promise they're my last ones.

[Mortimer]

Do you think some germans (in some regions, like in neighbouring regions) of the netherlands are closer to dutch than to austrians? I mean the dialect, other aspects of culture... Or you think all germans are closer to austrians? Do you consider the dutch as germans? Or that they have been germans once, and became different at a shift in history?

Do you consider switzerland as part of germany? And if not why do you consider austria as part of germany, explain the differences, i think i know it anyways, but curious what you will say.

[rothaer]

Do you think some germans (in some regions, like in neighbouring regions) of the netherlands are closer to dutch than to austrians? I mean the dialect, other aspects of culture... Or you think all germans are closer to austrians?

As for the local dialects there is a dialect continuum from Dutch to German. This is also the reason why there is no Dutch minority on the German side of the border and no German minority of the Dutch side of the border. It's originally one people and only the border (and its implications) determined who became Dutch and who became German.

I think that the cultural and mental development the last centuries has made a Northwestern German "closer" to an Austrian than to a neighbouring Dutch. Though one would have to define "closeness" to perfectly answer that question.

Do you consider the dutch as germans?

I do not consider them Germans but Germans in a wider sense.

Or that they have been germans once, and became different at a shift in history?

Simplified you can say so. But expressing it that way makes the impression that the Dutch have once been something else while the Germans have remained Germans. This is not correct. The Dutch have likewise stayed what they were. Both areas, the Dutch speaking and the Standard German speaking have both developed their own standard language based on some of their dialects and in both areas the standard language has strongly expanded at expense of the local dialects.

This is what happened.

Do you consider switzerland as part of germany?

The Swiss German part of it you likely mean. This is one of the most tricky questions to me and I'm myself somewhat torn forth and back and dissatisfied by this unclarity. Terminologically they should be as Germany / Deutschland means the country of the Germans / German speakers. In a political and an emotional sense they are not to me.

And if not why do you consider austria as part of germany, explain the differences, i think i know it anyways, but curious what you will say.

The Swiss Germans were hardly at any time part of a pan German movement and they exited a common political statehood as early as 1648. I consider them in a national sense unsolidaric and selfish Germans, which I consider is also deeply rooted in Switzerland. Although it has to be acknowledged that they determinedly want to be part of the German cultural Nation. They have always considered their books and newspapers to be a product for the whole of Germany and f. i. the NZZ (Neue Zürcher Zeitung) is read throughout Germany. They also very consciously use Standard High German as official language and they are taking part in the strive to keep a common German language with common spelling rules etc.

The big difference to Austria is from 1648 on Austria has been united with the other parts of Germany within the HRE from 1648-1806, in the German Confederation (Deutscher Bund) from 1815-1866, they decided in 1919 to join the German Empire (it was forbidden by the Entente states) and it was a common state 1938-1945 and Germany was only again divided by the power of our enemies, not by any internal wish for such a division. Austria is not just an integral part of Germany but has politically for a long time even beens its core, considering that the Emperor of the HRE most of the lastes centuries was in Vienna. It's not by chance that the German Imperial insignia (Reichskleinodien) also today are located in Vienna.

Not too relevant but maybe interesting: Within the later days of the German Confederation we eventually even had a common currency: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vereinstaler

[rothaer]

I appreciate your opinion. Could you talk about how Germans viewed the Eastern territories (stereotypes and the like) and your opinion about them pre-1945? I asked you in the last post but I think you missed it (if you chose not to answer it then I apologize).

I saw it and as it requires more effort to answer I decided to wait for if you really will come back to that question that was just one among many others. But you did.

Already Mecklenburg was considered notorious backward throughout history and Pomerania was just considered somewhat better, but maybe also because it was part of the Prussian state and decided elsewhere improvements were carried out there no matter what. To my knowledge Pomeranians had no specific reputation among Germans. The common to Prussia structure of local nobles that had big agricultural areas (so called Junker) appiled much to Pomerania as well as to Brandenburg. Eastern Brandenburg that is now also within the eastern territories is the same.

East Prussia has always been seen as particularly remote and different by other Germans. Not just because of the Polish speaking Masurs in the south - they were all Prostestants - but also because of the wilderness. The inhabitants were considered pretty primitive. My grandfather told me a pre war joke about East Prussians: (Translated) There is a man in East Prussia that they call the bookworm / reading rat. He subscribes to the "Wild und Hund" (Wild Game and Dog) magazin.

All these three regions mentioned do not have a high density of culture.

The Danzig area was somewhat different as it was a whealthy and big German city from within the Hanseatic league. It's situated in West Prussia and while other German parts of West Prussia after WWI were joined with Pomerania and East Prussia, Danzig was forced to exist separatedly from the German Empire.

And then we have Silesia. Or more correct: the Prussian province of Silesia. Silesia itself was bigger and a notable part of Upper Silesia belonged to Poland. Btw. Auschwitz is situated in that part of Silesia. Now, as for the mentioned Prussian province you had abt. 2/3 of Silesia, essentially Lower and Central Silesia, being ethnically German kind of ever since (since the so called German new tribe of Silesians came into existence) and abt. 1/3 that had just very recently become Germanised and that still 1907 had been both ethnically and politically Polish. The background of this "turbo self-Germanisation" between 1920 and 1940 was the referendum that was held after WWI and where they in Upper Silesia (that is part of the dealt with Prussian province) had to decide whether they want to belong to the German Empire or to Poland. The referendum turned out being a big disappointment to Polish expectations as now a huge proportion of these ethnic Poles ("classical" Catholic Poles) voted for belonging to Germany. Considering their still politically Polish voting in 1907 their decision after WWI will have been economically motivated and not by an identification as Germans. This now likely became internally, mentally, problematic. Should they still identify as Poles and if so, where they anything else than traitors? They will have found the solution in identifying as Germans and they rapidly self-Germanised between 1920 and 1940 and became even particularly pronounced Germans and anti-Polish nationalists. Nevertheless most Germans were not very convinced by their new ethnicity. What was called Upper Silesian dialect was often (not always, there are a few old German parts in Upper Silesia as well) simply a primitive and bad German with Polish accent.

Now, the experience of such Silesians has much damaged the reputation of German Silesians among other Germans, however, if they do not distinguish between those and the ever since Germans in Lower and Central Silesia. The latter do speak an own German dialect. Actually the traditionally German part of Silesia exhibts the highest density of culture of all areas spoken of (except for Danzig) and is in that aspect comparable to Upper Saxony, Bohemia and Moravia.

Btw. as for my own geographic ancestry, you can see that here: https://www.theapricity.com/forum/sh...=1#post7719679

Also, knowing that you're an East German I think you might like to know (if you don't already) that East Pomeranian's still alive. I bet it's even easier to understand than Hunsrückisch for you. Is it similar to the dialects still spoken in Mecklemburg-Western Pomerania?

Very nice! Well, it's Low German while Hunsrückisch is much closer to High German so from a Standard High German point of view that Farther Pomeranian Low German is much harder to understand. But after I happen to be a little bit into Low German I understand quite everything well. Besides this you will have to consider that kind of 97% of the population in Northern Germany does not actively speak Low German but Standard high German with a regional "coulouring" just. On the other hand much more do have an understanding of Low German. This is somewhat supported by the fact that many folks (including me) are saying some short single sentences or comments in Low German when they talk with each other. F. i. if you finish a conversation and do leave and it fits you say :"So mok wi dat" (Standard High German: "So machen wir das", we do it like that).

[Regnera]

Can you classify this face?
https://www.theapricity.com/forum/sh...e-can-she-pass

[Jana]

what are popular card games in Germany and which ones (if any) do you like?

[Ugo]

I think it was a proposal and in the future also related things are not impossible.



Because it very likely was not offered to turn it over emptied (of that abt. 1 million Russians).

A number of countries and populations would maybe like to gift themselves to Germany and be part of it with all that population becoming German citizens and receiving instant social care next day on the level of the FRG.

Ahaha, do you want to get a million Russians like me? It will be "fun" for the Germans.

[rothaer]

what are popular card games in Germany and which ones (if any) do you like?

A game called Skat has an enormous tradition and requires some skills. There is even an established Skat court in Altenburg/Thuringia that decides about any arguments among Skat players. I can play it and I like it and it's crazy that I was not confronted with that for decades kind of. I'm afaid that younger generations don't know to play it. A centuries old tradition seems to die. How can such things compete with the electronic entertainment and gamig industry? Very, very sad. I started to teach it two sons of mine but I didn't manage to really catch their interest.

Btw. there are card decks with French pics and German pics. I attach an example for German pics.



Besides this there is known Poker and Black Jack from the casino sphere which is palyed with the internationally well known French pics.

[rothaer]

Ahaha, do you want to get a million Russians like me? It will be "fun" for the Germans.