Linguistic fashions come and go: the Berlin language 100 years ago and today

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Die Sprache und der Sprachgebrauch verändern sich im Laufe der Zeit immer wieder. Was vor einigen Jahrzehnten noch gebräuchlich war, kann heute kaum noch jemand verstehen. Ein Beispiel dafür ist der Berliner Sprachwitz aus den 1920er Jahren. Damals war es üblich, die Wendung „Bei mir – Schiefertafel“ zu verwenden, um auszudrücken, dass man auf jemanden zählen kann. Eine Schiefertafel war ein beliebtes Hilfsmittel, um Rechenaufgaben zu lösen. Doch nicht nur Schiefertafeln wurden in die Sprache integriert. Es gab zahlreiche andere Wendungen, die mit „Bei mir“ begannen und auf unterschiedliche Situationen und Bedeutungen hinwiesen. Ein Beispiel dafür ist die Wendung „Bei …
The language and language use change again and again over time. Today, hardly anyone can understand what was still common a few decades ago. An example of this is the Berlin language joke from the 1920s. At that time it was common to use the phrase "with me - slate table" to express that you can count on someone. A slate was a popular aid to solve computing tasks. But not only slate boards were integrated into the language. There were numerous other turns that started with "with me" and pointed out to different situations and meanings. An example of this is the phrase “at ... (Symbolbild/MB)

The language and language use change again and again over time. Today, hardly anyone can understand what was still common a few decades ago. An example of this is the Berlin language joke from the 1920s.

Back then it was common to use the turn "With me - slate table" to express that you can count on someone. A slate was a popular aid to solve computing tasks. But not only slate boards were integrated into the language. There were numerous other turns that started with "with me" and pointed out to different situations and meanings. An example of this is the phrase "With me - kangaroo", which meant as much as "make big jumps with an empty bag". Another turn was "with me - pocket watch", which meant as much as "You can remain stolen" or "I can let you go".

Today one might think that the Berlin dialect and communication in the city are difficult by the increasing influence of English and Kiezdeutsch. But already 200 years ago in Berlin with the use of language at the time, it would probably have been just as difficult. A look at old stage plays or books from past times shows that the language and language usage are always subject to change.

In this context, it is interesting to know that many goods used to be transported with dog cars in Berlin. A dairy dealer once said that his employees were "dog maids". This name stems from the fact that the goods wagons were pulled by dogs. Nowadays you think of small buggies in the term "dog cars" with which you can walk your dogs.

Even 100 years ago, there would be a lot of things in Berlin. At that time, twists like "You are Manoli on the left" (crazy) or "haste wire?" (Money). In Hans Fallada's novel "Little man - what now?" From 1932 there are also many expressions and turns that are hardly used today. So the exclamation meant "something like that doesn't live!" At that time astonishment about the behavior of certain people. The expression "You sole yes" also stood for lies or dizzys.

It can therefore be seen that language and language joke are closely linked to contemporary history and social developments. In many cases, what was once understood can only be understood in many cases. A look into the past shows that Berlin's language and dialect have always had its own charm and will certainly make one or two laughs in the future.