German language an official language in the United States? Have you ever heard the story that English only narrowly defeated German language to become the official language of the United States? Although a very popular story, it turns out it’s just another urban legend. However, as is the case with any other myth, this one too is associated with some interesting historical facts. SEE ALSO: American English Pronunciation Lesson for German Learners German settlers The first German ever to settle on what is now known as United States’ soil was Dr. Johannes Fleischer, who came with the first English settlers in 1607. They founded Jamestown, Virginia– the first permanent English settlement in North America. Soon, more settlers came and in 1683 the first German settlement was formed: Germantown, Pennsylvania. Hollywood acctress of German origin, Sandra Bullock speaks in German: Over the next couple of centuries, German migrants continued arriving in the expanding continent, attracted by religious freedoms and economic opportunities. Great revolutions in Europe, beginning in 1848, brought even more Germans to the US and they soon became one of the largest ethnic groups. Even today, German Americans constitute the largest ancestry group in the US, comprising around 50 million people. Having this number in mind, one shouldn’t be surprised to learn that German was the most widely spoken language after English. An interesting fact is that the first newspaper to publish the news about the Declaration of Independence was Pennsylvanischer Staatsbote, the German language newspaper from Philadelphia. Only five days after the signing of the Declaration, a German version was printed, again in Philadelphia. The Muhlenberg Legend Front page of Pennsylvanischer Staatsbote, first publication of Declaration of Independence And now we come to the Muhlenberg legend. In 1789, Frederick Muhlenberg became the first Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Five years later, a group of Germans from Virginia petitioned Congress to print federal laws in German as well as in English. Although the motion was never passed, for several years laws were in fact printed in both English and German. Allegedly, it was Muhlenberg’s vote that defeated the motion, which led many German Americans to blame him for its failure and, consequently, for the failure of German to become the official language in the United States. As for Muhlenberg, his reason for voting as he did was clear: “the faster the Germans become Americans, the better it will be.” However, many different sources question the historicity of this account, claiming that German was never actually suggested as the official language and that even if it had been, such a proposal could not have been rejected by a single vote. Whatever the case, the legend remains alive and forms part of the life story of some of the first settlers in the US. The 20th century German American It may be said that everything changed after the US entered WWI in 1917. German now came to be thought of as an “enemy language” and a language only a traitor or a false patriot would speak. The process of assimilation, which had proceeded slowly during the 19th century, now manifested in the almost instant disappearance of the German language in the United States. Furthermore, it was not only the Germans’ language that was “Americanized,” but their family names as well – soon Schmidt became Smith and Feuerstein became Firestone. (Fun fact: Firestone’s rival’s name, Goodyear, is also in fact the Americanization of a German surname – Gutjahr). It must be noted that this was not happening in the US only; even the British Royal family changed its name during WWI, from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor, which of course is how we know them today. “Scrubs” star Sarah Chalke, another American actress with German origin demonstrates her German language skills: Traces of German language Although the German language disappeared, it left a definite mark on American culture and, perhaps even more importantly, on American English. German’s influence is not limited to words that are used in American English, like noodles, hamburger or sauerkraut, but also appears in grammar constructions that are not common in British English. The German word shon is used as an imperative, as in “Mach es schon!”, which was literally translated into an expression unique to American English: “Do it already!” Also, telling the time is different in British and American English. In England, when someone says it’s “half ten”, that means 10:30, which was alien to Germans, who used the phrase “halb zehn” for 9:30. So, slowly in United States the British way of telling time disappeared. Polizei vehicle in city of New Ulm, Minnesota Have you ever noticed that in England people say two hundred and forty but in the US they say two hundred forty, without “and”? The American English version is a literal translation of the German zweihundertvierzig. And finally, the use of adverbs of manner is different in British and American English. For example, “He sings loud” is completely correct in American English, unlike in British English, and this is directly connected with the German use of adverbs of manner, which are identical to their adjectival form. Even though the myth recounted at the beginning of this article may be completely untrue, the fact is that the German language does have a special position in contemporary American culture. After Fleischer and Muhlenberg, there remain plenty of descendants of original Germans in the US… You may know of some. Perhaps you’ve heard of Sandra Bullock, Meryl Streep, Bruce Willis or Dwight D. Eisenhower. Photo credit: Wikipedia Moments in History that Shaped the English we Speak Today Some funny pronunciation moments in TV and film Pronunciation Lesson from Arnold Schwarzenegger The Sounds of American English Overcoming the difficulties in understanding people with strong accent 0 Responses to “German language an official language in the United States?” Leave a Reply Click here to cancel reply. - mandatory field