{"id":7061,"date":"2025-11-04T19:20:47","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T18:20:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/german-traces-in-polish-germanisms-that-tell-stories\/"},"modified":"2025-11-09T14:06:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-09T13:06:14","slug":"german-traces-in-polish-germanisms-that-tell-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/german-traces-in-polish-germanisms-that-tell-stories\/","title":{"rendered":"German traces in Polish \u2013 Germanisms that tell stories"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Lately, I\u2019ve been fascinated by literature from Upper Silesia. My favorite author is Szczepan Twardoch, who, in his novels, portrays life in this region over many decades. What I find admirable is his attention to detail, with which he creates a world that feels exotic to me \u2013 full of German loanwords, especially those referring to everyday objects, architecture, clothing, mentality, or the so-called \u201cponiemieckie dziedzictwo<\/em>\u201d (\u201cpost-German heritage\u201d). <\/p>\n\n

I myself come from northeastern Poland, from Podlachia \u2013 a region where Russian linguistic and cultural influence prevails \u2013 so the Silesian linguistic world was unfamiliar to me until now.<\/p>\n\n

In modern Polish, there are around 3,000 to 4,000 Germanisms<\/strong>. For German-speaking learners, that\u2019s good news \u2013 these words are instantly recognizable. The bad news: many of them are now outdated, as they describe a historical reality that no longer exists. <\/p>\n\n



From the Middle Ages to the present day<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

The first major wave of Germanisms in Polish appeared as early as the Middle Ages \u2013 alongside urbanization and Christianization. German settlers, craftsmen, and merchants brought new terms with them that are still in use today. Examples: <\/p>\n\n

    \n
  • handel<\/strong> \u2013 Handel<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • jarmark<\/strong> \u2013 Jahrmarkt<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • kiermasz<\/strong> \u2013 Kirmes<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • folwark<\/strong> \u2013 Vorwerk<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • gmina<\/strong> \u2013 Gemeinde<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • morga<\/strong> \u2013 Morgen (Fl\u00e4chenma\u00df)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • so\u0142tys<\/strong> \u2013 Schulthei\u00df<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • w\u00f3jt<\/strong> \u2013 Vogt<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • burmistrz<\/strong> \u2013 B\u00fcrgermeister<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • ratusz<\/strong> \u2013 Rathaus<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

    In the 20th century \u2013 especially during World War II \u2013 many terms entered common usage that were associated with the German occupation, such as auswajs, gestapo, kapo, lager, szmugler, volksdojcz<\/em>, or in their original spelling Blitzkrieg, \u00dcbermensch, Wunderwaffe.<\/em> Today, these words are mainly found in historical texts. <\/p>\n\n

    In the second half of the 20th century, West and East Germany became symbols of prosperity, working abroad, and consumer culture for many Poles. This is how words like bauer, gastarbeiter, szyberdach, szrot, flomarkt, or polenmarkt entered Polish. Even expressions like jecha\u0107 na saksy<\/em> (\u201cto go for seasonal work abroad\u201d) are still widely known today. <\/p>\n\n



    German word formation in Polish<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

    The German way of word formation has also left its mark. Examples: <\/p>\n\n

      \n
    • Suffix -ung<\/strong> \u2192 -unek<\/strong>: Rechnung \u2192 rachunek<\/em>, Ladung \u2192 \u0142adunek<\/em>, Gattung \u2192 gatunek<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Suffix -man<\/strong>: furman<\/em> (Fuhrmann), hutman<\/em> (H\u00fcttenmann), oberman<\/em>; modern: lekoman<\/em> (Pillenfanatiker), p\u0142ytoman<\/em> (Plattenfan)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Suffix -mistrz<\/strong>: burmistrz<\/em> (B\u00fcrgermeister), baletmistrz<\/em> (Ballettmeister)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

      The combination of two words is a typically German phenomenon \u2013 and a very practical one. No wonder Polish adopted this principle as well. Examples: <\/p>\n\n

        \n
      • czasopismo<\/strong> \u2013 Zeitschrift<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • duszpasterz<\/strong> \u2013 Seelsorger<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • krwiobieg<\/strong> \u2013 Blutkreislauf<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • rzeczoznawca<\/strong> \u2013 Sachverst\u00e4ndiger<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • \u015bwiatopogl\u0105d<\/strong> \u2013 Weltanschauung<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • miarodajny<\/strong> \u2013 ma\u00dfgebend<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • ogniotrwa\u0142y<\/strong> \u2013 feuerfest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n



        Philosophy and culture<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

        The influence of German philosophy and culture is also reflected in many borrowings. Terms like weltschmerz, zeitgeist, angst, gestalt, schadenfreude, or poltergeist appear in opinion pieces, essays, and academic texts. Likewise, expressions such as heglizm, kantyzm, or luteranizm<\/em> refer to philosophical or religious movements. <\/p>\n\n



        My personal favorite<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

        Recently, I came across the word sznapskumpelka<\/strong> \u2013 probably a Polish invention that doesn\u2019t even exist in German. But it\u2019s beautiful nonetheless. <\/p>\n\n



        Common Germanisms in Polish<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

        To conclude, here\u2019s a subjective list of commonly used words of German origin:<\/p>\n\n

          \n
        • fajerwerk<\/strong> \u2013 Feuerwerk<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • obcas<\/strong> \u2013 Absatz<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • urlop<\/strong> \u2013 Urlaub<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • malarz<\/strong> \u2013 Maler<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • blacha<\/strong> \u2013 Blech<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • glanc<\/strong> \u2013 Glanz<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • weksel<\/strong> \u2013 Wechsel<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • szminka<\/strong> \u2013 Schminke<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • szuflada<\/strong> \u2013 Schublade<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • dach<\/strong> \u2013 Dach<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • szlauch<\/strong> \u2013 Schlauch<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • og\u00f3rek<\/strong> \u2013 Gurke<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • granica<\/strong> \u2013 Grenze<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • sznur<\/strong> \u2013 Schnur<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • warsztat<\/strong> \u2013 Werkstatt<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • stempel<\/strong> \u2013 Stempel<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • szynka<\/strong> \u2013 Schinken<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • kartofel<\/strong> \u2013 Kartoffel<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • szyld<\/strong> \u2013 Schild<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • komin<\/strong> \u2013 Kamin<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • plac<\/strong> \u2013 Platz<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • pech<\/strong> \u2013 Pech<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • majstersztyk<\/strong> \u2013 Meisterst\u00fcck<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • rynna<\/strong> \u2013 Rinne<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • zegar<\/strong> \u2013 Zeiger<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • ajerkoniak<\/strong> \u2013 Eierlik\u00f6r<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • grosz<\/strong> \u2013 Groschen<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • kicz<\/strong> \u2013 Kitsch<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • szyba<\/strong> \u2013 Scheibe<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • sznycel<\/strong> \u2013 Schnitzel<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

          While writing this article, I referred to the work of Bogus\u0142aw Nowowiejski<\/strong>, University of Bia\u0142ystok: \u201cZur Frage des Einflusses der deutschen Sprache auf das Polnische\u201d<\/em> (\u201cOn the question of the influence of the German language on Polish\u201d).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Many German words have been part of the Polish language for centuries. From medieval terms and everyday vocabulary to philosophical concepts \u2013 the history of Germanisms shows how closely Poland and Germany are linguistically intertwined. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":6875,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[138],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-about-the-language"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7061\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/po-polsku.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}