Comments on: Perpetual handshaking and timely greetings.

By: robert

robert — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:15:37 +0000

[quote]Manchmal werden Sie vergessen, welchem Kollegen Sie schon die Hand gegeben haben und werden eventuell versuchen, dies ein zweites Mal zu tun und ihr Kollege wird Ihnen die Hand auch entgegenstrecken, bis er –>>realisiert<<–, dass das 2 Mal Schütteln an einem Tag bedeuten würde und so muss der Kollege oder Sie beide die Hand wegziehen und rufen: “Wir hatten schon!”, weil zweimaliges Händeschütteln an nur einem einzigen Tag genauso inakzeptabel wäre wie zwei warme Mahlzeiten an einem Tag zu essen.[/quote]

Das realisiert ist an dieser Stelle in seiner Bedeutung im deutschen Sprachgebrauch falsch!
Im Deutschen bedeutet „etwas realisieren“, daß etwas von der Theorie in die Praxis umgesetzt wird. Die aus dem Englischen kommende, und auch falsche Bedeutung, etwas bisher unbekanntes akut wahrzunehmen, festzustellen, zu erkennen usw. hat sich zwar, zum Leidwesen der guten deutschen Sprache, recht stark eingebürgert, ist aber nichtsdestotrotz ein Fehler und könnte von entsprechend wissenden Personen für peinlich befunden werden.
Zumindest sollte es hier im Text ausgebessert werden.

By: NickoFromBavaria

NickoFromBavaria — Thu, 22 May 2008 12:21:25 +0000

well, “Mahlzeit” is not sooo uncommon, but I agree that it is quite annoying. And don’t forget the “Kleines Arschloch”- T-Shirts with “Mahlzeit” on them, the treasure of every non-conformist in Mahlzeit-heavy work-environments !!!
(Ha, and who said that Germans have no sense of humour? =) )

As for the hand-shaking … well, that really depends on your colleagues … it is, of course, common with clients/customers.
Amongst colleagues, it really does depend on the type of relationship you have. If it is very formal (”per Sie”), than yes, a firm (! and I mean firm, not a handshake in that disgusting french way) handshake is common practice.
On a “per Du”-level, a handshake is rather uncommen (you know the man/the woman well enough to not reduce your wonderful relationship by insisting on such petty rituals as shaking hands and being overly polite to each other =) ), really depends on the colleague. In some cultures a handshake is more common amongst friends than in others (youth culture, the French …), So generally: no, but there are exceptions.

And whoever told you the “Es gilt” thingy deserves to be yelled at/spanked/whatever-he-dislikes-most.

Nice blog btw., I really like it =)

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 20 May 2008 22:12:27 +0000

Would you have called them “colleagues” before spending time in Germany? I would’ve called them “co-workers” (or however you spell it), but now I think the German is rubbing off on me and sometimes I say “colleagues”.

By: Kurpfalz Guy

Kurpfalz Guy — Sun, 18 May 2008 22:13:58 +0000

This Mahlzeit thing indeed is a strange one. In work environments we say that from abbreviated “gesegnete Mahlzeit” - blessed meal. Ususally only the employees used to say that when they interrupt their work to have lunch. But often everybody says “Mahlzeit” to anybody between 11:30 to 14:30. It shows that German days are organized around the Mittagessen. I remember my english lessons in school many years ago. The book told us that British have breakfast as their most important meal, Germans have lunch, French have dinner.

By: Katja

Katja — Sat, 17 May 2008 15:33:19 +0000

I live in the middle of the western part of Germany and the only time I was confronted with “Mahlzeit” as a greeting at lunchtime was when I had a student job at a bank. It felt really awkward to me and I never got to like it. I believe it is only used in some work environments.

By: MuGo

MuGo — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:36:50 +0000

@Herman:

Better say: “Nobody says ‘Mahlzeit!’ at all, unless he’s working at construction.”
Funny, though, that you think Mahlzeit is from northern Germany whereas in the North we’re thinking of it as a expression from the southern parts.

By: HermanTheGerman

HermanTheGerman — Sat, 17 May 2008 10:48:28 +0000

I’m from Germany and nobody offered me an elbow or a wrist to shake, yet and i’d advise you not to knock on the table and say “Es gilt!” during a meeting. You can do that in a bar but not at work.
And one last thing: “Mahlzeit” is common in the northern parts of Germany but not at all in the south. You say “Guten Morgen” , “Guten Tag” and “Guten Abend/Nacht” or in Bavaria “Grüß Gott”.

By: MuGo

MuGo — Fri, 09 May 2008 12:24:39 +0000

Ah, I think that’s one of the cultural diversities each country has. It’s like the rules for using “Buenos dias”, “Buenas tardes” and “Buenas noches” in Latin America. I can’t name any American, well, Eigenart because I haven’t been there yet but I’m pretty sure there are as well.

The bow I practice myself as well but only if I introduce myself to people I have a formal relation to, e.g. people I talk to about an internship. If I’m shaking hands with people I know (which I do occasionally), I would never do so.

By: John

John — Wed, 07 May 2008 23:26:21 +0000

I have never noticed the slight bow either, but I read that in USA Erklärt. I wonder if I started doing it too subconsciously…

By: realityking

realityking — Wed, 07 May 2008 23:12:30 +0000

Another interesting thing is that germans make a little bow while shaking hands, I never noticed until one of my american friends told me.