What The British Really Think Of The Germans

[@jackkruese4258]

I have been learning German for 5 years, as a Brit I love the way it sounds. Viele grüsse aus England.

[@AltIng9154]

Have you been to Northern Germany?

[@vornamenachname4387]

Viele Grüße zurück!

[@jackkruese4258]

@@AltIng9154 Hi your comment is a month old so I hope it’s not too late to reply. No I haven’t been to Northern Germany yet. May I ask why you asked me ? Weil ich neugerig bin.

[@jackkruese4258]

@@vornamenachname4387 Thank you. Danke

[@AltIng9154]

@@jackkruese4258 Ich bin neugierig, ob sich Engländer in Norddeutschland zu Hause fühlen. :-)

[@MrcWdmnn]

Brits are too polite to be honest. Germans are too honest to be polite. Other than that we are shockingly alike.

[@hainsey6264]

The British and Germans are probably more alike then they'd care to admit. Hence the tension.

[@britingermany]

Yep. There are a lot of similarities

[@lynnm6413]

Well, ‚we’ colonized the isles before the Normans came, so…duh…and no one seems to want reparations for that…lol

[@cloudybeforerain7134]

@@lynnm6413 I wouldn’t say that too loudly. The current government might actually oblige.

[@lynnm6413]

@@cloudybeforerain7134 lol 😂

[@karstenbursak8083]

When you Look at all the british royals starting with George I. who have german ancestry...

[@Bellasie1]

I'm French. I think we all three nations actually love to hate each other, but really admire our respective strengths and past achievements, and in truth, we are very complimentary. Most of modern Europe was in fact mainly built by either one of our nations during its development. The French equally have a very ambiguous relationship with Germany, but secretly wish we were more like them when things don't work well in our country. Languages: In France, all students learn 2 foreign languages. English is of course the most chosen language, usually started early on as the "first foreign language", but for a long time, there were also German classes of "first foreign language". These were a kind of hidden way to have one's kids get into the elite classes (or perceived as such), because only kids with good results were directed to choose German as either a first or second language choice. These kids would normally choose English as the "second foreign language" choice in high school later on. Thus, for a long time, English and German were the chosen languages by the majority of high school students, but in the past generation (since the 2000s), the second choice became Spanish, which used to be the less popular alternative. In the late 2000s, the huge popularity of the band Tokio Hotel helped change that trend for a while, and they even got officially recognized for that. The generalization of German language lessons in the French education system is the reason why so many older French people know some German, even though very few are actually able to speak any, unlike the Germans who are usually great at both English and French!

[@britingermany]

Interesting. I think the popularity of Spanish in U.K. schools is also fairly recent. The standard used to be French and German.

[@gabe8390]

This reminds me in the early 1970s, a French exchange student was by neighbors in a small town in northern Germany. His uncle, a French priest, wanted to learn more German and had a pen pal relationship with my mother. Due to time constraints, my uncle took over this friendly pen pal relationship until his death. When the French priest died we were informed by his family.

[@Bellasie1]

@@britingermany Exactly.

[@Bellasie1]

@@gabe8390 Yes we all had penfriends, at least with natives in our first language of choice. In France, the emphasis was more on the written language than the spoken language. This is also one reason French people are usually not great at speaking foreign languages, although the internet has helped a lot in recent decades.

[@ndie8075]

Germans french and the english are so close during the past......despite the wars.....we should stick together.....as good friends.....

[@albionmyl7735]

I've been in England many times always had good experiences.....more than this.... I've spoken to many nativ people everybody expressed our common Anglosaxon heritage.... their are no prejudices against Germans it seems.... more against the EU superstate or the french😉which a sense of humor....

[@martypines9704]

Having worked in a multi-national company with many Germans, Spanish, Italians, French, Dutch, Italians and people from the US, it seemed to me all of the Europeans had more in common with each other than any had with people from the US. Not representative as these were all highly educated people who chose to work in a multi-national environment. Overall I'd say the Germans and the British are very similar - but (again, this is just my persepctive) not as simialr as the British and Polish, who just seem to get each other.

[@publicminx]

I dont agree. In all global contexts, from all multi user online games throughout the time, meeting with Americans on world wide travel locations to global companies (like Amazon, Google, BMW, VW, Siemens and so on), Americans are usually very pragmatic, open minded, good to work and communicate with. The only drawback can be in some contexts that on some management levels in the US project to much the American headquarters view on Europe or other parts of the world (in case of American Companies). IN the case of Amazon or similar companies they have so called country offices in many parts of Europe and the world. And one can clearly see that there are more differences between European countries than to the US. Most of the smaller country offices (Spain, Italy, Poland, South-/Eastern Europe etc.) are usually friendly, pragmatic, good to work with. Lesser ambitions for greater things (also due to the experience that bigger ones push more). Quite similar countries like the Netherlands: pragmatic, open minded, good to work with. All those country offices are quite similar in a way: you have high skilled people with more global experiences who have not much attitudes. This is NOT true for the bigger European countries: Germans tend to question much more the sense of projects (with all pros/cons, sometimes its just being risk averse/over-concerned or just the missing lust to decide). French are much more used to a classical hierarchy and pointless ideologic disputes which makes them by far the least pragmatic. Its too often just bla bla noise without any outcome (btw. one reason why France has from all the big guys the worse performance regarding economy, also in difference to antiBrexit propagandists. I was also against the Brexit but I am also against false propaganda. UK has a comparable population size but a higher GDP and higher GDP/capita than France which remained part of the EU. And France is already since a long time behind the more wealthy and productive part of Europe (which is more Central and Northern Europe, of course the former political Eastern Central European are still behind but the mindset is similar and they are on a good way): The UK country offices are were awake, fast, but sometimes over-ambitions and they tend to try to get the projects AND the marketing of their doing too over-ambitious. Usually good to work with but too much (self-) marketing. You have of course also in all of those big countries a lot of pragmatic people but those cultural attitudes are noticeable differences. And while in all country offices you also have people from many parts of the world but culturally affected - countries like Luxemburg or Brussels/Belgium are usually rather less cultural driven and more meeting places or workplaces from people from all the country offices for some time. This creates an own - more expat like - fluctuating culture which is usually not directly comparable to the country offices (in Luxemburg which is usually a bit more of a real working place people are usually open minded, pragmatic). If one looks at the global travel/expat/foreign students hotspots in Germany, UK, France, Greece, Thailand, China, Germany, Spain, Netherlands, Portugal etc. then usually those people/expats have usually much less frictions/cultural differences (also due to less pressure) - and all kind of combinations work. Young students are almost always exchangeable. Retirees or other people who move somewhere have usually some differences in a bit lesser developed countries. Here Germans, US, UK, Netherlands are more likeminded (and tend to organize better and do more 'productive action' than locals or many from other countries - even if they try to sell that they are not 'typical Germans' or likeminded and/or 'not so punctual like the stereotype'. Thats usually idealized bullshit).

[@OnlineEnglish-wl5rp]

Oh I find Poles to be miserable unsympathetic people

[@Astrofrank]

Die Stimme überrascht - und erfreut - mich immer wieder.

[@vpalmer]

My husband served in BAOR, my son was born there, spent 4 years living in West Germany, it was eye opening at the time how efficient and clean it was to someone from the UK. I wish we would invest money into teaching our children in the UK a European language so they are fluent be it German, Spanish or French. We should build our future generations up, give them confidence with languages, its vitally important to our future

[@linajurgensen4698]

5:30 to this point, I don’t think Germans prefer Switzerland or Austria for holiday over other European countries like Sweden, Britain or Italy for instance. I never even heard anyone in my friend circle say they go to Switzerland or Austria (other then for apres ski). But maybe I don’t know about it bc I‘m from the most northern part of the country (Schleswig-Holstein).😅 As far as I know Germans are not really welcome in either of the southern Germanic neighbors.

[@Slipstream2009]

I'm English and we have a deep respect for Germans. First time I drove through Germany I was in disbelief in how similar it felt to home. Also the modern German flag is by far the most beautiful colour scheme. Oh and the engineering, I have an FW-190 in my profile pic :)

[@AltIng9154]

Yes,... you could take the area around Cambridge and move it to Northern Germany and it would fit in perfectly. 😂 Even the names of the rivers are the same.. after only 1400years or so. And if you find a name at the countryside like "Elm"... it means what you read .

[@perrin6]

I'm more of a '109 guy, she's just a little cutie.

[@AltIng9154]

Ha, ha,... and I like your flag! Northern Germany is really quite similar to parts of England. Brits visit Bavaria..in general.... and they may not recognize much similarity.

[@peterd788]

I was born in Germany and lived in Braunschweig. For the first 9 years of my life I didn’t speak a word of English until my family moved to England when I was 9 in 1972. The British children were always welcoming even if they occasionally laughed at my accent but they did that to the Irish and Scottish kids. My mother never lost her accent and she never had a problem. I sound English when I speak English and German when I speak German. People in both countries find that slightly disarming. The idea that Germany is more receptive to foreign cultures than Britain is complete nonsense. More languages are spoken in British schools than anywhere else on earth.

[@Eyyoh755]

"There is no such thing like friendship between England and Germany when it comes to football. During a championship game it's always US or THEM!" (Franz Beckenbauer, 1996)

[@rogink]

Quite. I'm surprised he didn't mention football. Up to around 20 years ago we saw ourselves as inferior to Germany football-wise. Winning a World Cup in 1966 was a constant refrain, but the Germans won 4 times since then. OK, so the men's team still haven't won at a national level, but we have a league that surpasses the rest of the world put together. The idea that we still think of Germany as an enemy is pure nostalgia on both sides. As hinted at, France is the 'bête noire'. Germany doesn't come close!

[@publicminx]

similar to Germany vs. Netherlands such old rivalry is not anymore that hot between younglings - and became now partly oldschool. it still exists but on a lower level. and people who still believe that show in reality that they are already a bit older or among those bubbles who still hold on that. I have nothing against a bit friendly rivalry but one has to notice that there is a changes since the last decade of the 21. century ...

[@AltIng9154]

Agree, when I was young the Dutch were reserved. To say it mildly. They only ... as we say literally "melted up", auftauen, when I could tell them that my mother's maiden name was Dutch. Yes, I got Dutch ancestors... . And know where they lived , centuries ago.

[@leopoldbloom4835]

It’s kind of frustrating that you just can’t argue against clichés. When Kimmel said in the Oscar show about a German film about Auschwitz it were the German equivalent of a romantic comedy, it was received in Germany as highly inappropriate. Yet, as a German, if you complain about such bad taste, you get answered you have no sense of humour. Sorry, that’s not the point.

[@mcarlsson74]

German media in the last 10 years portrays British people as barely human. Do you want to make excuses for that, too?

[@leopoldbloom4835]

@@mcarlsson74 I‘m honestly puzzled. Where did I make excuses? Where do you get your perception of German media from? None of them is 1% as harsh on Britain as British Comedian Jonathan Pie or the Peaky Blinders - and still Germans love Downton Abbey. Now, come on.

[@skywalker7778]

Spot on! Thank you for the two surveys reference 😊

[@britingermany]

Thanks a lot for watching as always :)

[@Hongaars1969]

Good evening. Trust you are well. Thank you for your ongoing insights. ZZ

[@britingermany]

Thanks. Hope you slept well

[@GermanGreetings]

My goddaughter is half British. I was so proud, teaching her the naval traditions of England, when she was twelve. Thank God, I was prepared best by reading C.S. Forester maybe 40 times, and Admiral Nelson hung at the wall upon my bed, since I visited HMS Victory as a young man. Our common history is so much deeper, than those fiew bloody Hitler-years. Richard Lionheart chose his nephew Otto IV. of Braunschweig (Grand-grand-Father of Ernst August von Hannover, who married Princesse Caroline of Monaco) to follow him becoming King of England. But tha`s only half the way to the eldest common roots: Beowulf is a fantastic source for both langauages today... even back to Stonehenge is on 51°N, the `Scheibe von Nebra` was found on 51° N... but that`s another subject, where science has just begun to discover the borderless ancient roads of Europe. Love to GB !

[@sabinekoch3448]

CS Forrester ❤😂

[@jcoker423]

Stonehenge was built by the First Farmers. They were not Indo Europeans like the English & Germans. You also forgot the Saxe-Coburg aka Windsor royal family. I live in Bohemia and the Cz's are still a very Germanised Slavic people, despite the Benes Decrees. I enjoy driving to Germany, the place names and language feel much more familiar to an English-speaker.

[@1956paterson]

German should not be hard for English speakers because so many of words and certainly the vowels are the same. The case system is more of a challenge only because Latin is no longer taught in most English schools. Latin helps students to understand inflected languages such as German.

[@sabinekoch3448]

I teach German ! It is a very difficult language … Dativ, Akkusativ, Genetiv, Ausnahmen and words that may sound the same, have VERY different meaning so- e.g. ‘brav’ is not brave , it’s well- behaved etc…

[@1956paterson]

@@sabinekoch3448 yes, learning in a foreign language as with anything else in life requires some effort. Modern technology has made this effect easier. Originally Latin was taught in schools not only because Latin was at one time the lingua Franca in Europe but also because the inflected language taught the mechanics language -grammar. By training the mind with the grammar of any subject, pupils and students would be able to learn any language and any subject.

[@sabinekoch3448]

I’m German - I LOVE English literature and Britain 🇬🇧 in general.❤

[@Angelcynn_2001]

Cheers mate!

[@deandavies9576]

ich liebe Deutschland

[@jackkruese4258]

Danke und ich leibe Deutschland. Viele grüsse aus England.

[@sabinekoch3448]

@@Angelcynn_2001 Cheers!👋😁

[@sabinekoch3448]

@@deandavies9576 Freut mich! 🤗

[@philip.morris]

I've become obsessed with the German band Rammstein. I cant speak or read German, but translating the lyrics into English makes me understand Germans a bit more.

[@britingermany]

you're not alone there. They have a massive international fan base

[@CavHDeu]

Their lyrics often include double entendres, hidden meanings, multiple layers, wordplays and old language. So it is even hard for native speakers to get every detail. When you're really obsessed with Rammstein you already have the best reason to learn german and discover their lyrics in full depth.

[@philip.morris]

@@CavHDeu That's a really good idea, I'd love to learn German. I thought it was the case with the lyrics, i heard German doesn't always translate well into other languages.

[@CavHDeu]

@@philip.morris yea it's a very precise language with special word creations and compound words. You can also create very complex and long sentences. The tag of being the language for the poets and thinkers is very fitting but on the other side it isn't a melodic language like english or latin based languages.

[@britingermany]

Morning all 🌞Is this representative in your opinion? Where there any surprises?

[@arnodobler1096]

Hi Ben, did I understand you correctly that Germany is more conservative than the UK? That's why it's more popular with Tory voters? I am confused. Brexiteers in particular blame Germany for everything! Percentage wise it's even between the two countries as far as religion is concerned.

[@britingermany]

@@arnodobler1096 hi Arno. No the result found that British conservatives view Germany more positively than any other political group in the U.K. and my take is that I do not find this surprising.

[@CavHDeu]

I don't find it surprising too. Germany is based on many values and rules that can be described as conservative. We are not very fast when it comes to new developments - everything has to be planned, tested and proven to be safe before we change a bit.

[@holger_p]

Not really, it's always the effect, people who talk by themselfes are more negative and louder, they bias the perception. But if you ask people directly in a survey, also the 'friends', the positive people speak up.

[@DoorsOfPerceptionPDM]

@@CavHDeuhaha yeah just watch the theatre for CanG cannabis legalization 😂

[@publicminx]

you have to keep in mind that the first decade of the 21. century was different than the situation is today, also the British perception about Germany. While during the 20. century the world war as well as certain stereotypes (between European countries) was much more virulent this changed since the last decade massively (btw, also together with more English skills, more traffic (especially in Germany as center of Europe (which means also more internet traffic, more railway traffic, more car/road traffic and so on - with faster fluctuation. also one reason why the pressure on the Deutsche Bahn infrastructure raised massively and more than in most other European countries - but some have similar problems). Back then in the 20. century and early 21. century all those stereotypes you found also in football and so on. Now since some time this changed especially with the younger generation. This is also the reason why often youtuber are not aware about how to read stereotypes: some are in reality old school and not anymore used, others are still around but younglings dont know where they are from and so on. You also have now less harsh stereotypes from Austrians against Germans (which was very common back then for a couple of reasons which had to do with history: Austria/Habsburg, Bavaria vs. Prussia etc. which led to 'Saupreissn' or 'Piefke'. In football they were rooted always for the opponent of Germany, thats since a decade not anymore the case, its now mixed, often older generations are still a bit more in that). Nowadays the stereotypes are different and already a bit more globalized. The focus changed. Already in the first decade of the 21. century where you had a kind of transition from the 20. century stereotypes with newer EU/Europe 'Germany dominates the EU' stereotypes (especially rom UKIP but later in the finance crises also from Greece and some other countries) slowly changed the perception, also because the focus on pro/con EU in itself separated now ppl in a different way which also weakened older stereotypes and led slowly to a new focus. In other Central Europe countries, especially Poland and further East you still have much more old school war stories and polarized stereotypes, while in more Western Europe even the old 'football rivalry' is not anymore that hot as it once was. Now to the languages: apart from English it makes most sense to learn German in Europe, because its not just the most relevant language in Europe after English due to being spoken by basically the wealthy and most dominant center of Europe, but also its the most populated region in the relevant part of Europe. It actually makes much more sense to learn German than French (which has outside of Europe a greater number but all the regions where it is spoken are irrelevant or you can speak English anyway). Spanish makes outside of Europe more sense, due to Latin America and part of North America (Mexico). But thats not the main reason why Spanish became a thing in UK. Its the combination of the influx of more and more Latin-Americans (especially Mexicans) in the US (which also made the 'Burritos' more en vogue (not because its a really good fast food (its actually not) but because a part of a country always tend to idealize polarized/idealize big migrant groups. And this also is influencing the UK in combination with refreshed old school steroetypes about Southern countries in general nand within Europe about Southern Europe in particula - as idealized vacation spot and retiree lifestyle spot (warm sunny weather, more relaxed lifestyle, warm- friendly open ppl and the other usual bla bla). Such stereotypes are in reality shared between all more wealthy central-northern countries (only that the US has a bit more focus on Mexico and the Caribbean while within Europe the focus is a bit more on Spain, Portugal, Greece, Italy and so on ... Another aspect is that England and France share historically as neighbors with a lot of polarized aspects more 'experiences' and stories - and France is still de facto on the other side of the channel. And: while Germans and likeminded (Netherlands, Northern Europe, Austria etc.) have better English skills (Portugal which sucked in the past just like most Spanish speaking countries still do (Latin America was and is much worse with other languages than the US in this regard (but most bashing is in reality inner-western while most (like scripts without any awareness) follow the political correct code not to bash 'weaker cultures' which in reality means also they get less focus and everyone knows that everyone also idealizes/culture relatives them - especially left wing are most far away from the reality which also leads to a total lack of knowledge about the real cultures). Btw, despite being neighbors, the relation between Germany and France is for ordinary people mostly 'nothing' = more neutral. Not much interest. Most is rather political idealized. Germans 'feel' much more for the Italy, Greece, Spain, the UK etc. ... of course ppl in the border region more, ppl in the region to Poland, Czech or Austria less. The relation between UK and France is still more intense, has among them more focus ...

[@Phiyedough]

I'm British and I regard Americans as far more foreign than Germans, despite the roughly similar language. I think the negative stuff is mostly just banter, just part of the British sense of humour. It is unfortunate that German is a harsh sounding language, so Germans may appear more serious than they really are. If you think German is hard you should try Hungarian!

[@alansmith4748]

I don't believe German is a harsh sounding language

[@gulliverthegullible6667]

how is German harsher than e.g. English or Polish? I fail to see that, please enlighten me.

[@Barbarossa125]

I thought the 'harsh language'-thing was a stereotype origing in WW2-times, which already was debunked? Or is it something you perceived yourself? 🙃

[@publicminx]

@Phyyedough: German is not a harsh sounding language. Thats a wrong stereotype (which btw. goes back, to the Prussian military and bureaucracy sound- which was indeed harsh. If anything one could (especially still during the 20. century) say that you have still in Berlin sometimes this 'harsh' sound (especially in all kind of services and so on). But since a decade or so that is slowly dying out - just like Metrolects in general are slowly overgrown due to further globalization ... btw, especially in Berlin (the hotspot of this Prussian sound) people often ironized that which led then to a certain usage for instance the intonation of 'rrrrrrrr' - which is why you hear that from Rammstein often, or Nina Hagen and other Berlin artists ... - its also a kind of referencing the 'Golden 20ties) of the Weimar Republic)

[@bissigerChristian]

@Phiyedough Ich glaube, das Sie das richtig liegen. Das haben auch schon einige gesagt. Vielleicht liegt es daran,das einige, der oft sehr direkten Deutsche, unbeabsichtlich oder absichtlich, den Imperativ zu oft verwenden. Habt ihr das jetzt verstanden! 😉

[@RaimoHöft]

Cor blimey... Carry On, Carry On!!! 🤗

[@OnlineEnglish-wl5rp]

😀

[@CavHDeu]

Wie immer ein sehr informatives Video, allerdings finde ich, dass ein gewisses Maß an Chaos nicht schädlich ist.

[@britingermany]

Danke sehr.

[@Nils.Minimalist]

Find ich auch. Bei uns ist es doch zu oft zu strukturiert bzw. geordnet und deswegen festgefahren, aus diesem Grund kommen wir oft nicht voran.

[@sabinekoch3448]

Herrliches Kommentar! ❤😊

[@katharinabruns9480]

I'm not sure how accurate the thing with the Americans is. I remember when I studied in the UK and we were in a pub after fencing training and then some American guy came over and nobody knew him and he was like all friendly and told us everything about him. After he left, everyone, Germans and Brits, were just so startled and we couldn't stop laughing because that had been sooo American and sooo weird. We all agreed that Americans were nice - but also very different to Europeans. We also speculated why that could be the case... Anyway, that was a very funny evening. Same language, but culturally I would say the British are different to Americans.

[@mcarlsson74]

I agree that the English are nothing like Americans outside of the language. The Dutch and Danes are most similar to Americans in terms of the money-orientation, rudeness disguised as directness, not caring about others disguised as liberalism, etc

[@bissigerChristian]

@@mcarlsson74 And yet, throughout your history, you always prefer ties with the USA. We Germans feel left behind in this regard.😔

[@thisismetoday]

0:25 As a German, I agree with this 100 per cent. Also I cannot count the times drunk Brits have said to me during a night out in a pub “We won the war”. And no, I did not want to talk about WWII when I was out, nor would I ever engage in any conversation about it. They just wanted to find a way to say this to me.

[@publicminx]

I had and have as German no problem with all of that and would also not avoid a conversation/discussion (most people can anyway not have a proper discussion with arguments, because most just exchange some superficial stereotypes) - or doing just fun bashing (unless i have no time/lust for other reasons)

[@thisismetoday]

@@publicminx I guess we have to agree to disagree. I find that a highly arrogant statement. It shows a nation hung up on a glorious moment they had 80 years ago. It shows a lack of sensitivity to all the thousands of people dying in the war. Also, saying something like that to a modern German somehow suggests that they are still conflating Nazi Germany to today’s nation. The sentence is just off on so many levels.

[@mcarlsson74]

@@thisismetoday Why did so many Germans disrespect Britons' right to self-determination and their right to vote in 2016 then? Just accept their decision and stop bullying them. Also, Germany was extremely authoritarian in 2020-1 and made a mistake in backing Ukraine imo. So yeah, Germany makes mistakes. People will talk about those mistakes. Get accustomed to it.

[@thisismetoday]

@@publicminx Lucky you! I must be making that all up then 😒

[@thisismetoday]

@@mcarlsson74 The first part of your post is just some weird conspiracy shit. The second part - i am not sure what that has to do with my original post. So because the German government has made policy decisions you disagree with, people are allowed to be rude towards Germans in the pub? Is that your logic?

[@colinpearce5856]

Having conducted business with German companies, visited Germany several times, they have identical philosophies. Pay your bills & provide good service & product. In my dealings with the people, they are polite, respectful & amiable. They get irony ( they would tease about U.K. weather & enjoy that my observation that it would soon become theirs ) & could be comedic. A great nation & people.

[@bissigerChristian]

Dankeschön! ❤

[@eisikater1584]

The war and the Nazis also dominated the classrooms when I went to school in Bavaria in the 1980s. Although it's okay to teach German children what happened, and how it happened, and history doesn't necessarily have to repeat it self, there comes a point when you say "no, not again", or "heard that before, it's enough now". I'm German, I live in Germany, I'm not a Nazi, and I don't feel guilty of the past because I wasn't there. "Organized, efficient, hard-working", well, I don't consider myself to be exactly that, and probably most Germans won't. What we do, however, is think ahead and make a plan. What do we need? Which work has to be done? Where do we get the materials from, and when? How many workers do we have, and what are they capable of? Works fine most of the time but, of course, there are exceptions, and some plans fail miserably. Going on holiday, well, I always try to avoid places where Germans amass, that's why I've never been to Mallorca. And, yes, you're right, I prefer places where people speak a language I can also speak and understand, and that's basically German and English, with pieces of French and Italian. Maybe I should start learning Russian; might be useful some day. "Learning German is hard for native English speakers", yes, that may well be, but learning to WRITE English is equally hard for a German native writer because English doesn't seem to have any spelling rules, or none that could be put together into a concise concept. German with its grammar and the three genders (der, die, das) sure ain't easy, and why is the sun female in German (die Sonne) and the moon male (der Mond), while in French, it's the other way around (le soleil / la lune)? Germany upholds conservative beliefs? Yes, I think most people here do. They fared well so far by being and voting conservative, so why should they change their view? You may see from my writing that I disagree, but I won't go into politics here and now. Please let me know if my English was lousy, poor, or understandable, and thanks a lot for your video which, as always, had some deep-founded thoughts in it I will have to think about.

[@Phiyedough]

I was at school in the '70s and we did WW1 but WW2 was considered too recent to be classed as history. Similarly, the period since WW2 may now be viewed as too recent to be included in syllabi.

[@holger_p]

appearing in a curriculum in classroom, is different from appearance in daily life, in daily jokes in the pub. Prince Harry was kind of the climax. The "hard working" is just a matter of culture difference. An American never ever is talking about working without using the word hard. He is always hard working, you will never hear anything else. While a German is more into understatesment, never praising, glorifying himself, will almost never say he's hard working.

[@thenorthstar311]

I`m English .... never had any problems with Germans oh and I love the German Christmas markets ❤👍

[@As3th8r]

German here. We don't learn much about our cultural heritage. What we learn about our history in school is 90% of the time just the years 1933-1945. You have to have some self motivation to learn about things you can be proud of as a country. And most of those things are gone by today. Science and culture are niche in our population.

[@holger_p]

You learn it by your parents and grandparents, how to celebrate birthday and christmas. It's nothing you learn in school. To perceive something as German, you need to do something else: You need to look abroad and see what others do differently. Then you know what is German. Pride is not a necessary thing. You don't need to be pround Rudolf Diesel was a German, or things like that.

[@geraldwagner8739]

I don‘t know which school you visited but I learned the whole bunch of German history from the middle ages up to the Grunlagenvertrag between the Federal Republic of Germany and the GDR.

[@MichaelBurggraf-gm8vl]

My first opportunity to visit the UK was a pupils exchange program in the early 1980ies (during the Falkland war). Entering the home of my host family the first thing that happened was being offered a cup of tea. The second thing was the mother of the family pointing at several household items of German brands like Rowenta, Krups, Miele. By the way, learning English and understanding and speaking English in England appeared to be two completely unrelated things to me at first. It was really shocking for me that I seemed to understand next to nothing being said despite the good grades I had received in school. So much about English being a simplified version of German 😅. The next surprise was a friend of the family coming over for a visit. He was driving a BMW and was quite interested in several German football teams and the Bundesliga which - I sadly have to admit - wasn't and still isn't a particularly strong matter of interest for me. Somehow I must have managed to understand and communicate with people around me. The adults actually put quite some effort into allowing me to adapt and get used to speaking English. The younger people a bit less so but I think that had to do with a comparatively big difference in age between German and English pupils participating in the exchange program. Apart from football teams and leagues Europe didn't seem to exist. I can't remember having seen any news stories about Europe in England, neither during that stay nor during later ones. However I think that in that regard the UK isn't much different than eg. France. And to be honest, just a look at a map of Europe would explain why generally people in German speaking countries are a bit more interested in things happening abroad and around the world (same explanation applies to Czech, Slovakian, Polish, Dutch and Belgian people and many more; admittedly I like the approach of the French Annales school of history after reading books by George Duby and Fernand Braudel; also Michael Pye). But I've got the impression that a lot has chanced since then and interest in Europe and Germany has changed in the UK even before the entire Brexit episode. As for Germans I think we're still a bit like "Schief ist Englisch und Englisch ist modern!" (... wondering how you would translate that 🤣 )

[@britingermany]

Sounds like you had an interesting time. I have to admit I’ve never heard that saying before but looking it up it’s about how the English wear their hats at an angle which is fashionable? Or is there a double meaning here?

[@GermanGreetings]

@@britingermany Shurely no double meaning: We grew up with Emma Peal and John Steed :)

[@MichaelBurggraf-gm8vl]

@@britingermany I think that saying was qite popular still in the 1950ies and 1960ies. My mother quoted it from time to time when someone else was hinting at a rather negligible flaw. My grandfather did that too. I'm still thinking that it's a line of an old German song, Schlager to be precise, of the 1920ies. Unfortunately I can't remember where I've heard it. I've got a collection of CDs full of such songs. Possibly I'll have to go through all of them - there are certainly worse things to do but it'll take quite some time I'm afraid. Most of them are similar to the style for which the "Comedian Harmonists" were notorious. Maybe you've heard one or another song of them like "Mein kleiner grüner Kaktus" or "Veronika, der Lenz ist da!" . Although often given as an explanation I'm not convinced that it had that much to do with clothing habits of English people originally. Many of the authors and composers of such songs were living in Berlin which experienced waves of anglophilia (possibly rather London-philia) from time to time. And America was taking an increasing influence on music, fashion and entertainment at that time too. Hence the term "englisch" doesn't necessarily refer to the UK exclusively.

[@jcoker423]

I think the English might have known about the Bundesliga when there were English like Keegan playing in it. Maybe also now with Bellingham & Kane. Most English-speakers know very little of history, literature etc especially if it is 'foreign'. It's easier to pick up Twain than Goethe. I grew up in England, but left over 30yrs ago. Recently I've been living in Cz. I love Germany and Middle Europe and it makes total sense to recreate a Holy Roman Empire (of the German People!). Crossing the border nothing changes apart from the language (and that was less so in the past). Most of today's pretty towns in Cz, Sk, Pl and Ro used to be German-speaking 100yrs ago. But historically England is not part of the European core, and never has been. They have looked to the sea and kin such as Aus/NZ/Ca/USA. Good relations with the Europeans, but standing apart.

[@mcarlsson74]

@@jcoker423 "Most English-speakers know very little of history, literature." Quite a snobby comment which doesn't reflect reality in my experience. Also the English are not that similar to Americans or even Australians.

[@bendjohans3863]

finually i think its not easy theese days to get ab opinion about germany for people visiting germany as it very much depends on the place where they goto as germany is more and more divided inside itself so depending where you gotoyou will get different experiences which is a bit weired for such a small country as germany

[@britingermany]

I would agree. Although some of those surveyed have not been to Germany and don't know much about it. Which I find interesting because then the opinions are based largely off of stereotypes and what you read or see on the news

[@bendjohans3863]

yeah i know even its nothing new that winners history becomes official history its been like that all over time but its a sad time we live in when the news in general turn more and more into propaganda Informations with a predigested opinion added than the simple information about facts so you can make your own opinion about whatever ... clown world swapped over from the colonies to Europe like it always did the last 70 years and this time it might be fatal for European cultures. Wish you a relaxed Sunday 🙂

[@bendjohans3863]

and last not least... its funny that even after 40 years after Monty Python made the famous Walker Brigade Sketch its still such a big topic in England ;P

[@MsPataca]

Not really weird though, Germany is a country with over 80 million people (so it cannot really be considered small, can it?) and has been divided for a good part of the last century, so of course there are going to be huge differences.

[@peterhaughton8348]

As usual, your chat/video is very thought-provoking and interesting, thanks so much for that, even though I am watching it later! I'm a Brit, living just north of Frankfurt and I will be retiring here in a few weeks time, with no intention if moving back to the UK pernanently-Germany is my home, and I love being here! I suppose that the typical WW2 image of Germany that I shared with my friends growing up was countered for me by reading "German Genius" by Peter Watson that provides a superb balance to my childhood war comic reading - do read it if you haven't already - it provides a wonderful perspective and balance to the goosestepping image of the 1930's

[@britingermany]

Thanks for the tip and congratulations on you retirement, although I do hope you still go back now and then. There’s still a lot of great things about the UK

[@mjheal]

As a Brit, I love visiting Germany. Okay, I don't find German people as open and polite as the English, but I love the food, beer, and the traditions-something we don't really have in the UK...

[@flopunkt3665]

Germans are indeed introverted and reserved 😅 It's not just a cliché. And the British are known for their great sense of humour over here, but British food has a bad reputation 😅

[@DailyDamage]

Im a born Londoner of German parents. I lived in London until I was 11, then I moved to Germany until I was 18 and moved back to London 1985. Back then Germans were still the baddy in film and tv shows. If I mentioned my German heritage I’d get an odd look and people would exclaim how surprised they were on the lack of accent. One thing that nearly always came up: How I felt about what „I“ did in the war. I definitely had occasional somewhat aggressive reactions, f-ing kraut and similar expletives. I noticed a shift towards the late 90s, especially amongst those who’d studied a little history. They came to the conclusion that the black and white picture of Germany solely being to blame for the wars was somewhat unfair. Also, Germany was shedding itself of its past and many quite admired how openly we confronted our past and now were perceived as a positive contributor to the world we live in. I feel that the football World Cup really was the clean break from history. Germany was an excellent host and the great weather helped show Germany and the Germans as the quite incredibly gracious hosts they can be. Personally I find that the Brit’s and the Krauts are like cousins. So close that they get each other riled up over nothing… but secretly both admire the other for being who they are 😊

[@markusamshoff7359]

i don’t thinks so. Many, many Germans are doing holidays on Grand Canaries either and elsewhere. Germans are masters of holiday abroad and not only in Spain. We’re on the top of that list . And, French, Italian and other European Countries are learning other languages quite good today. Germans are aware of being bullied but that doesn’t mean we don’t care. It hurts. We have a way to turn that around and focus us of being better than others. Maybe someday we will lose this behavior.

[@thomasalbrecht5914]

The language learning question is purely hypothetical, in my experience. „Imagine it would ever cross your mind to learn a foreign language” would be more suitable for British people (and most other English speaking countries). Not that learning English as a second language from your very first school years, as we now do in Germany, would have any equivalent of a similar practical implication for any native English speaker. But usually we learn at least a second, and often a third foreign language on the continent, not to mention that one third of the German population have a bit of migration experience in their family background. The importance of learning other languages to the mindset with which you perceive other countries can’t be overstated, and the global prevalence of English is actually quite an obstacle that few English people overcome (kudos to you on this point). I have worked for decades in a French corporation’s German subsidiary, and in international meetings at the time, everyone spoke French… except for three Englishmen and one Australian (the corporation wasn’t in the American market at the time, I guess these days meetings are held in English). They got a simultaneous translation for everything that was being said in French. Of course, when they spoke in English, everyone understood them… but still kudos to the French for keeping it in French. It was a French company, after all. Cultural things have a significance. The significance being that it’s not the same when everyone is just speaking English. I have seen it firsthand when Germans who didn’t speak French joined, and meetings at the subsidiary had to be held in English for the good of the one person who didn’t speak French. The exchange wasn’t on the same level as when the French could speak French with the mostly almost bilingual German staff, and it wasn’t because the Frenchmen weren’t good at English. In fact, they spoke English as good as the Germans. But the cultural subtext got lost almost completely. You could argue that in completely international surroundings, this evens out, and the omnipresence of the Anglo-American popular culture gives everyone something that makes up for the ignorance of each other’s backgrounds on a bilateral level. It’s not true. Overall, you see a growing lack of effort, because the English language and its subtext is seen as “good enough”. Its Pareto efficiency applied to human contact, in other words, it is superficial and uncaring. Trying to understand another person and their culture without leaving the comfort zone of your own mother tongue is impossible. Trying to do so by just speaking English is like putting on a glove to shake hands. You can never be sure what the real thing feels like.

[@andylee7862]

Better level of English... All the Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands... Hold our bear 😅

[@britingermany]

Totally - there’s a scale and Germany is towards the upper end of that with Scandinavia at the top.

[@USEismydream]

Apparently English was the only subject German teenagers did very well and even improved in the last Pisa catastrophic. I was also surprised hearing that.

[@KenTucky089]

We simply have the disadvantage/advantage that all series and films from abroad are translated here. So it's not really necessary to know English in Germany. But it's becoming more and more important.

[@tzazosghost8256]

Could we hold beer instead? I'm not I like the idea of holding you bear!

[@OnlineEnglish-wl5rp]

At the end of the day, British people simply imbibe what the media put out for decades. WW2 cost Britain so much that the Establishment had to turn it into this great moral victory. I grew up watching war films in the 80s listening to my grandparents' generation talking about the war like it was yesterday The Sun newspaper is probably the worst element of this which when it gets tied to football culture becomes particularly noxious. Anyway, hopefully this era might be coming to an end now. I think most British people admire Germany deep down. There is much we could learn or re-learn from them. I certainly wish we were less class bound than they are

[@OnlineEnglish-wl5rp]

Just listened to a reading of George Orwell's "The English people" from 1947. He wrote "The English people are not good haters, their memory is very short. Their patriotism is largely unconscious, they have no love for military glory, not much admiration for great men. They have the virtues and the vices of an old fashioned people. To twentieth century political theories, they oppose not another theory of their own but a moral quality which must be vaguely described as decency" So it would seem it's largely the media which are responsible for the cult of World War Two - although it may be the case that some British people need something positive to cling to right now

[@mcarlsson74]

Maybe if Germans hadn't so stubbornly refused to accept Britain's decision for self-determination in 2016, then those stereotypes wouldn't persist? That's before we consider the totalitarianism of 2020-1 and the decision to back Ukraine against Russia's warnings. Germany makes mistakes. And they are subject to scrutiny just like everybody else. Sucking up to them doesn't make you look more sophisticated, either. Just a few thoughts.

[@eleveneleven572]

My feelings are rooted in the experiences of my grandfather's and my father in both world wars. I saw the common men on both sides being used as cannon fodder. As even today wars are driven by the sociopathy, ego, greed, criminality and hegemony of a tiny group of people. I've always got on with Germans but maybe because, living in France now, I am often mistaken as stereotypically "Aryan" German in appearance. 😂

[@britingermany]

Yeah some things never change unfortunately.

[@sportswriter]

Hi there Benjamin Many thanks for your becoming comment on Germany I do language tandems all the time If you're keen on language exchange don't hesitate to drop me a line I wish every success with your channel on youtube

[@minimax9452]

Don‘t mention the empire 😅

[@britingermany]

🤣🤣

[@Arsenic71]

Why? I mentioned it once and I think I got away with it.

[@minimax9452]

@@Arsenic71 it?

[@Arsenic71]

@@minimax9452 The empire....

[@minimax9452]

@@Arsenic71 You mentioned it! 😅

[@scarba]

As a Scottish woman living half my life in Germany I find the words in German that are actually English words the most difficult. Mostly they have a different meaning in Germany and a different pronunciation. I prefer to keep German words. I blame all the stupid marketing people who started this in the 1990s here. Every week I discover there’s a new‘English’ word in German usage. 🤮

[@lynnm6413]

I think you are right on the money with the sex differences and the different sorts of things they appreciate. However, I would hazard a guess that the overall distribution of ‚German-friendliness‘ goes from Scotland as the highest percentage down to below appreciative in and around native Brits still living in London. If your family doesn‘t remember the bombers, if they don‘t have old pictures of the damage the Blitz caused and had been struggling more during the rationing in a city full of hungry people, …I do understand that the old resentments are harder to overcome. I‘ve had the best experience as a German teenager travelling to my Scottish penpal at 14, ….everyone was amazing, friendly and so wholesome in their national pride…I just loved it so much. If one has a look at who voted leave / remain during the Brexit referendum, the numbers would probably fit as a good prediction in regards to percentages overall of where people don‘t mind Germans much any longer

[@colinsmith1288]

The germans are better educated and more law abiding.

[@lynnm6413]

@@colinsmith1288 we also have/ used to traditionally have 3 different difficulty levels of schools, so that the more tradespeople oriented crafty people could focus more on more practical classes, and on the other hand the nerds and more academically inclined pupils not get held back overmuch, waiting for the slow learners to ‚get it‘. It isn‘t working so well anymore because helicopter parents tend to force kids into the higher level with little regard for their actual talents

[@Nils.Minimalist]

​@@colinsmith1288The "law abiding" thing is often a bit too much of a good thing and also a bit embarrassing.

[@mcarlsson74]

lmao. The people of Glasgow have absolutely nothing in common with Germans. For Germany, Scotland is merely a vehicle to break up the UK, which is the main reason why Scots receive good press. It's the most transparent 'soft power' technique ever. Furthermore, small countries like Scotland are more self-conscious about pushing a contrived national brand, which helps to bring all the orchestrated media stunts together. On the other hand, in England, it's seen as self-evident that people are completely different. As an Englishman, if I give up my seat to an old person on the train, it won't receive international press coverage, and I will still be portrayed as a piece of sh*t in the media. All the propaganda about Scotland is delusional. I'm amazed that so many people fall for it.

[@fekixrudolfbischof]

We Germans speak very often a kind of English, called Denglish. We just mixe up English with Deutsch. We also speak Denglish between friends: grammar is easier😅😮😢❤When you ask a German 'do you speak English?' he answers: 'Of course I do, I'm not an analphabet!😅

[@lennardschneider6847]

I really hate the foreign influence seeping into the German language. German as it was spoken up until the 80s is a beautiful language, capable of expressing poetry as well as precise technical descriptions. A language both suited for science and fiction. There is the famous saying about Germany: "Das Land der Dichter und Denker", the country of poets and philosophers. Our language is suited for reflecting, thinking, inventing, but also for dreaming, admiring, praising, mourning. It is the language of Goethe, a writer, poet, and scientist himself. Just watch German movies from the 1930s to the 1960s and you know what I mean. What the younger generation has done to my language is a crime. What globalization, internet and social media have done to German during the last 20 to 30 years is disgusting. As to the British-German relationship, I think there is a lot of love-hate on purpose. We love to banter with each other, pull each other's leg, but it is never as serious as with the French. A Brit could tell me he hates us Krauts, and I would cheerfully answer "Yeah, to hell with the Tommy's, too". If a Frenchman would say he hates Germans, I'd mumble Aurevoir and be gone. Because we Germans can do British dry humor. But I wouldn't know what French humor is.... all I know is they fiercly hate when they hate. So, yes, we like British humor. My generation grew up with Monty Python movies, with crime novel adaptations like the Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot movies (featuring Margaret Rutherford and Sir Peter Ustinov), with TV series like "All the creatures, big and small" (?, the famous series about a vet and his brother, with the incredible Robert Hardy). I would love to see Cornwall once in my life. Or do a Garden tour. Or a road trip to all your famous castles. I am very sad that Britain is facing these huge problems with migrants right now. Your government should take care of the growing poverty of their own people and stop letting foreigners invade the country. Europe is facing cultural and linguistic destruction these days. It's heartwrenching that our governments are still sleeping on that.

[@axellieb]

As someone who grew up in Germany and left after college in the 1990s, I find this one of the most irritating aspects whenever I briefly return to see friends and family. Tons of English loan words, always poorly pronounced, often with their meanings warped, and sometimes weirdly conjoined with German words... why, why, why? I don't get it. So cringe.

[@AltIng9154]

@@axellieb Ich bin 64 und wurde schon angeschnauzt , vor ca. 40 Jahren: Sie sprechen ja Schriftdeutsch!😃

[@axellieb]

@@AltIng9154 Ja, das geht ja gar nicht!!

[@prototypega8257]

True Lenguage is Key for connections, but as further South you as harder thay are to understand. On Mallorca i almost feeled like some Speek an other Language.

[@britingermany]

I suppose it depends where you go. People automatically spoke to me on German when I was there. Even when I replied in English they just continued to speak on German…

[@AndyKing1963]

I’m half English half German and have never been on holiday in an English speaking country ;)

[@emiliajojo5703]

We are culturally conservative,like cash culture,privacy,sundays,I could go on.not so much politically,just average there,I would say.a little bit reluctance towards americanization might be quite charming.I like it.

[@britingermany]

Interesting distinction, I was thinking in cultural terms but I would agree that Germany is politically more centre right than conservative

[@ilsekuper3045]

The less people have the opportunity to meet foreign people or rather visit other countries, the more stereotypes and prejudices will be applied. I see this as a longer lasting family problem among first cousins for the attention of their grandma. This is a kind of rivalry on the edge of mockery and sarcasm. From the psychological point of view, people criticize mostly what they have in common. It's sometimes challenging to look into your reflection. 😜 Regarding the difference between women and men judging Germans, I think, we German women had more chances to meet British men, at least during the Cold War period, when many British were stationed in Germany. When you take a look into my home town's phone book, you will find many British names, already 2nd and 3rd generation. I am sure, if as many Germans had lived in the UK, some British girls would have found German guys attractive and lost a lot of prejudices. Well, the employment situation is not the best throughout the country, meaning the family had to live in Germany. There might be one initial obstacle as well for British women: German men are very straightforward.....you should not be a daisy.

[@augustiner3821]

I generally enjoy your videos very much, mainly the underlying descency of your approaches. This video espacially knots together some loose ends of my observations. I was always wondering, why even the high value British press like Financial Times, Economist or The Guardian reserve so much more space on, let's say, Australian issues at the other end of the world than on European news, which directly occur at their doorsteps - unless of course, there is a disaster to report from there. My conclusion is, this is one fact, which finally led to the unfortunate Brexit process. Britain, in this case, lives rather in the past than in the present. Before this background, I'm also surprised about the overall positive reception of Germany/Germans. So, there's still hope and I would like to see lot more Brits coming to Germany, just to experience first hand how close we're basically to each other.

[@britingermany]

I wouldn’t call that “living in the past”. It’s just that there is already a close existing relationship- politically, economically and socially- it’s not as simple as just saying ok we’re now going to deprioritise this relationship in favour of another…

[@augustiner3821]

@@britingermany o.k , understandable, thanks for clarifying that.

[@LaureninGermany]

I feel the same way about the Labour Gov. I hardly dare say what I think, but maybe we‘ll have a chat and a collab and I‘ll risk it with you holding my hand. Yes, I think the Brits have a great deal of respect and admiration for modern Germany, too. I‘ll think about why women apparently don‘t view Germany as positively as men. I can only think of the top of my head that it‘s because they don‘t know Germany. It‘s not all perfect for women here in ways that I think people would find surprising - in my opinion. But it‘s definitely one of the top places for women, I think.

[@britingermany]

haha well not everything has to be shared online...politics can get pretty nasty pretty quickly

[@jimknopf3935]

@@britingermany I can sing a song about it 😂

[@barbsmart7373]

Why would women not view Germany as positively as men?

[@docsnider8926]

I read online The Telegraph, the Guardian and the FAZ. The Telegraph is outright anti German, the Guardian is highly critical but there are several articles about Germany every day in these papers . On the other hand, the FAZ is positive about Britain, but mentions GB only occasionally.

[@mcarlsson74]

Why be positive towards a country, Germany, that is openly hostile towards your right to self-determination? If you going to do that, be prepared to receive justified criticism.

[@Habakuk_]

Nice to hear, I can still remember in the 90s and early 2000s that many Brits had a hatred for Germans.

[@colinsmith1288]

We generally have a racist media in the Uk that manipulate peoples base instincts.

[@geraldwagner8739]

They still have!

[@mcarlsson74]

@@geraldwagner8739 Nope. It's more the other way around. There is way more hatred for Britain in German media than vice versa. British media would never get away with saying things that Germans say about Britain. German media portrays Brits as barely human. So you're completely mistaken here.

[@geraldwagner8739]

@@mcarlsson74 What an idiotic comment!

[@neilfazackerley7758]

I think it it too easy to stereotype. Not all Germans are organised for example, though the country is generally organised I would agree and the Germans I know definitely like a sense of predictability and order. Then again, so do I! Despite their money saving, Germany has not totally run their public services down which might give things a sense of order too. Regarding language, people do not speak English to me in my small town and I do not speak English to them either, so I think that speaking English might be a city thing.

[@britingermany]

Yes I would agree but it seems the idea of Germany being organised has lodged itself in the minds of the British - even for people who have never been to Germany. I’m sure the English thing is a city thing

[@neilfazackerley7758]

@@britingermany I agree. People in UK always say Germans and Germany are organised. Until they try the trains of course!

[@bissigerChristian]

@@neilfazackerley7758 Ja, die DB, die Deutsche Bahn ist der Horror! Inbegriff der Unpünktlickeit, Desorganisation und der Unhöflichkeit.

[@richardcranium3403]

I definitely appreciate our German ancestors. Would like to visit Germany someday.

[@britingermany]

It’s definitely worth a visit

[@Be-Es---___]

For the rest of the world it would be like having an old uncle coming for the holidays. Glad when he's gone back home.

[@britingermany]

Sorry I don’t get it…? 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@Steeler-wg5zo]

@@britingermany There must be trolls too 😏

[@winfel]

You said that most Germans would disagree that German is hard so learn. That is not at all my perception. Everyone who has learned either English, Spanish or even French knows by comparison, how complicated German is in comparison.

[@crowkraehenfrau2604]

As a German I like the British. Very sad about the Brexit.

[@LaureninGermany]

Thank you.

[@Habakuk_]

Result of Thatcher's policies. The Tories have changed little since then.

[@colinsmith1288]

We messed up on that one. Time for a decent british politician to go to the european parliament and apologise for leaving our friends.

[@crowkraehenfrau2604]

As a teenager I rode Devons country lanes on a Dartmoor pony, I love Cornwall and am certain I would love London, I love the language, Tolkiens and the Agatha Cristie books, watching ETTC, Irish and Scottish music, even bagpipes I have childhood memories... 🥰 I am sure there is more...English landscape, cottages and gardens... politics are stupid!

[@colinsmith1288]

@@crowkraehenfrau2604 Exmoor is beautiful too. Wild ponies run free and the coastline is stunning.

[@AltIng9154]

Most of the Germans are anglohile. 😊The British always wonder... why the Germans are anglohile. But we are. We can't help. Der Doktor und das liebe Vieh,... Creatures big or small?! was very populare around here. I heard the Brits like "Heimat".

[@beyourself9162]

A lot of generalizations about our nation. Germany is after WW2 much more than this. And Italy is indeed a country we Germans love for a long time….

[@torstenberlin4088]

Well, Benjamin, do I understand you right; you believe that many or even most of us Germans don't understand how hard to learn foreigners consider our language? You might be mistaken, even natives often stumble over e.g. punctuation, vier Fälle, das/dass ... Most of us are aware of certain classical difficulties. Almost everybody here is familiar with the saying: Deutsche Sprache, schwere Sprache! And everyone with a sense of logic concludes: if certain grammar obstacles make our mother tongue hard to learn, how hard must it be to people from abroad?! I am glad too that I didn't have German as a foreign language at school. Now I am saying something very easy to you, Ben, and everybody here: Schönen Sonntag! 🌻😊

[@britingermany]

Viel dank und gleichfalls

[@torstenberlin4088]

​Danke schön😊

[@22Too]

He looks like Prince Harry.

[@AndyKing1963]

Narcissism of small differences

[@francisbyron-falconer]

At the End of the Day both People are closely related to one another. Deep rooted in History. Look at Me....Lad of English Descent (my Mother was Born in Camden Town in 1965 and I was Born in 1989 in Western Germany) I am a Mix of Both Cultures❤

[@britingermany]

You must have an interesting perspective :)

[@francisbyron-falconer]

@@britingermany I suppose so🙂I mean there are really Things that I find very moving between Brits and Germans. Look how Prince Albert is cherished in England. In these Times,where a Lot of People are in Search for Meaning and Identity.... these Historic Bonds and Admirations for one another are really important. Let me also say,that when I observe the increasing Level of Poverty in the UK is deeply unsettling for Me. It makes me very sad to see our People suffer in such a Way. Greetings, Francis

[@xaverlustig3581]

@@francisbyron-falconer Your habit of capitalising nouns is also very German :)

[@francisbyron-falconer]

@@xaverlustig3581 *Grin* Good One Mr.X❗️😀

[@bissigerChristian]

The Germans and the British probably have more in common than we would like to admit. British culture (Orwell, John Christopher, Depeche Mode, countless British actors, etc.) is not only equal to the German culture, but far superior. There is only one thing that always hurts us...that the English always talk so much about the war. "Don't mention the war!" (John Cleese). I suspect...I'm not sure...that they do it because they are traumatized that they have LOST their british EMPIRE.

[@martinwilliams9776]

Some Germans stare too much. Smoke too much. Some Germans working in customer service seem to take some kind of pleasure in being rather cold. Some of them can be rather unapproachable. In the richest parts you sometimes get the feeling that some Germans are a bit cocky, materialistic etc

[@freddiemedley5580]

UK needs to become more Germanified. Same way Wales has most signs in Welsh and English, we should have most signs in English and German. England is the second oldest Germanic country after Denmark, so we should celebrate that and not hide it 🇬🇧♥️🇩🇪 Also we need to ban most latin words from the dictionary and adopt more German words

[@FrikaWies]

I just don’t get why young woman worldwide are so much leaning to the left, since the left has destroyed so many crucial values in the last few decades. Especially when it comes to migration. I think most of them don‘t understand how close chaos is and how fragile civilisation is. Best wishes from Bavaria.

[@britingermany]

Thank you. I’m not sure about that or if that is even the case. I believe the general tendency is that young single people tend to be more left leaning and as soon as people get married or start a family they become more conservative in their political views. Probably because the left is more about inclusion and the right is more about preservation.

[@barbsmart7373]

I don't understand what the crucial values are that have been destroyed by the left, (especially regarding immigration) are... Also what chaos etc the world is getting close to?

[@loc4725]

*"while the Germans are obsessed with the British Royal Family"* I'm starting to wonder if there is a country in the world who's people are not "obsessed" with the Royals' antics.

[@britingermany]

To be honest I think that there is more interest from other countries than from a lot of Brits themselves. It is really only the English that are royalist and even many of them are not particularly interested.

[@loc4725]

@@britingermany I think you're right. There aren't many people here who really care and generally those that do seem to see the Royals as a kind of emotional crutch, a familiar constant in a world changing faster than they can cope with.

[@markusamshoff7359]

Not with Scholz 💁‍♂️

[@a.mie.533]

I suppose, Germans can be considered as hard-working and well-organized only by people who judge us from a certain distance. As soon as they had their first immediate experiences with inefficient administration and horrificly delayed public projects, most of the foreigners yo that I know give up on that stereotype - if they ever subscribed to it...

[@johnhanson5943]

That is because most Britons have no idea about Germany (especially under Berlin). Huge degrees of ignorance about the fascistic / Prussian / deviously manipulative tendencies.

[@anthonyferris8912]

Making itself reliant on Russian energy was probably not quite so 'responsible '.

[@publicminx]

it was one of many stupid left wing ideology driven decisions. one should not forget that during the 20. century and still deep into the first decade of the 21. century, left wings/socialist had still more of a ritualized left wing/anti capitalist/socialist/communist pro russia/soviet habit and anti western attitude. this changed, especially among the younger generation when Russia attacked the second time (2014 wasnt enough to convince most). now you have often a kind of separation of left wings. the old ones often still stick to this old ideologies, the youngsters changed this tradition partly (not entirely, they are still with their antiwestern/antiwhite racism, selective anti colonialism (without the european colonialism you still had slavery btw. and much worse habits - left wings are too stupid to know that and what other colonialism did. and that out of africa was the first colonialisms is also not in everyone awareness. most just reproduce nonsense anyway). any because almost no one realizes that 'right wing' doe snot exist but is only a left wing projection (fitting to their 'left' identity) they are also to stupid to get what is happening. former 'left wings' (the older ones) are now often called 'right wing' (everyone should know that at first it was mostly left wing/greens who were all the time against Vaccines as part of a typical esoteric movement. During Covid those where all of a sudden and on the fly called 'right wing' (which shows that the media are dysfunctional and dominated by the newer left wing (intersectionalists) and that there is also a generation conflict. same is true for Russia. and because most are stupid like hell and follow wrong narratives, they forget that part of the AFD are also LEFT WINGS (and its the one who are pro Russian, together with the NPD which also had all the time like all real Nazis exactly the same socialist core ideology like all socialists - Nazis were indeed in reality a mixed-left wing movement back in time. thats also why all are antisemitic/antizionist to this day. this is usually still shared between old and new left wings - just like the antiwestern/antiliberal racism - and keeping the 'racist' sorting alive (thats the REAL racism - which also could everyone with brain have recognized. neither religions nor cultures nor skin colors (which left wings are much more referring to - like nazis did!) are 'races'. races exist or not. if not but people used that outside of deconstruction then they are the real racist). And the Wagenknecht party (which also represents older left wings) as well as parts of the SPD (exactly the same left wing spam) are also for those very reasons still partly too uncritical about Russia - or try to relative it and so on .. all those are old socialist traditions!

[@stephenchappell7512]

not with 'friends' like us

[@publicminx]

@@stephenchappell7512 the other way around. Russia created a distance to the given hand of the west - just in the tradition of all imperialist left wing/socialist influenced dictator ships and parties. and they attacked the Ukraine, no one else. They were not attacked by the West or the Ukraine. That you have in a complex world always also different interests and also in the Ukraine influences from the West (as well as Russia, China, many other countries) doesnt change a bit. Making out conspiracy theories by selective focus is just that. conspiracy theories. Apart from that it was a mistake in Germany in the first place to focus on 'gas' instead of nuclear power. this mistake was mostly by left/green wing influences, who were on one hand against nuclear power and on the other continued their old tradition to support russia as old socialist tradition. In this case its ok that Russia tried to sell Gas. thats a legitimate intention even if thats not exactly very climate friendly but on the other hand its also true that gas is at least better than coal and oil. But it was better for all to go to an Energy mix of nuclear power and wind, water, solar (but not ideological, only there where it makes sense. a lot of wind and solar ist totally irrational and non-beneficial, being at the wrong place or not fitting to the general infrastructure and just being there for ideology and non-beneficial money which will never give any benefit in return - also not for the climate = it corrupts the greater network). but again, this doesnt change the fact that Russia/Putin (and the likeminded bubble) is black and white the aggressor who caused a totally unnecessary war which benefits in the end no one - even not Russia ...

[@DasLicht2907]

yeah... now it's frackinggas from usa... not better...

[@anthonyferris8912]

@@DasLicht2907 Do you expect an invasion by the US?

[@geraldwagner8739]

I read the online editions of the Daily Express and the Daily Mail on a regular base. I can't remember having read anything positive about Germany in these newspapers ever. Every article about Germany in these newspapers is ALWAYS negative, full of antipathy and sometimes even open hostility. And if you read the comment sections of these nespapers you come very fast to the conclusion that that's exactly what their readers think!

[@mcarlsson74]

Maybe they've been to Germany and noticed the dehumanising way that Brits are portrayed in German media? Some food for thought.

[@geraldwagner8739]

@@mcarlsson74 What an idiotic comment!

[@mcarlsson74]

@@geraldwagner8739 Nope. Modern Germany has an Anglophobia problem. I'm not going to ignore or downplay it just because that's convenient for you. I will expose it and continue to expose it, so get used to it.

[@gulliverthegullible6667]

the stereotypes are very alive here in Australia, which is apparently still a British colony in the mindset of many Australians. As a German, I get bombarded with stupid stereotypes. Therefore, I have stopped telling people that I am German a long time ago. Latest peak was my boss excusing my behaviour with me being German and therefore rude by nature.

[@Steeler-wg5zo]

bevor die dort zur Arbeit gehen, saufen die wahrscheinlich erst einmal 'ne Flasche Lenor oder Perwoll. Dann geht das 'beating around the bush' besser...

[@mcarlsson74]

The Dutch and Germans are well known for being rude under the guise of 'honesty' and 'directness.' They are also proud about it. Seems like the main group of people perpetuating these 'stereotypes' are you guys, not England, Australia or anybody else.

[@diki1967]

I like every German born on or after 8th May 1945.

[@bissigerChristian]

Thank you. At least something 😉

[@timvanbeek8987]

Mallorca is German. Glad that this is now also officially recognized by Brits!

[@britingermany]

100%

[@geraldwagner8739]

@@britingermany Have you ever been to Magaluf? It‘s 100 percent British and many other resorts on Mallorca are as well.

[@britingermany]

@@geraldwagner8739 yes I passed through there but it was just after the lockdown and it was like a ghost town. Nothing was open

[@geraldwagner8739]

@@britingermany It‘s not true that Mallorca is „German“. Many Europeans holiday there. The two largest groups are the Germans and the Brits - strictly separated from each other. But there are also many Dutch, Scandinavians, Belgians and even some French.

[@britingermany]

@@geraldwagner8739 of course many people holiday there but Germans make up the vast majority

[@Sat-Man-Alpha]

Thanks for your insights which are 90% wrong….with Brexit everything changed and the interest in UK nobility has much more to do with the fact that the royals are from German origin….😢

[@britingermany]

Well the insights were based off of the opinions of the British public - so there’s no real right or wrong here - wasn’t that always a part of the fascination with the royal family? It’s not like they suddenly revealed their German heritage after Brexit…

[@danallen3947]

if Klopp is anything to go by the Germans are top draw

[@mcarlsson74]

Yes. Because a football coach really tells you a lot about an entire society of 80m+ plus. LOL.

[@wr6293]

Just recently saw a video explaining that in man are overwhelming fact and order loving while women are more social and caretaking thinking when taking decisions. Maybe that is why the typical view of Germany is more appealing to man. Take this with a grain of salt as I am absolutely not sure that this would be the simple answer or any at all….

[@britingermany]

Yeah I'm thinking that might have something to do with it.

[@MichaelBurggraf-gm8vl]

Possibly there are just a bit more things in Germany which men can find interesting as compared to what women tend to find interesting here. And these things are also more prominent in the media. For example football, cars and trucks, politics and economy. And I remember that for example during the late 1990ies and early 2000s there was an increased number of people from the UK working in Germany, not only in finacial service companies but also on construction sites and in engineering companies.

[@tomsuzyinfluencerinfj2712]

I (German) lived in UK 20 years. They (UK): Don't mention the war. I said: Yes, why not, the French won!!!

[@britingermany]

🤣and..what response did you get?

[@tomsuzyinfluencerinfj2712]

It was all good banter @@britingermany

[@stampcollector74]

To me the UK is sisters & brothers. 🇬🇧 ♥ 🇩🇪 What I like the most? --> Last Night of the Proms ♪♪♫♪♪ kzbin.info/www/bejne/nX2uhHeKlJethqMfeature=shared

[@britingermany]

Hear hear

[@comentedonakeyboard]

So we häve to promote the Kindergarten more to impress British Women

[@typxxilps]

and suddenly the video was over - maybe time for an outro or say goodbye aka Auf Wiedersehen to not break up a kind of conversation that just had started. quite abruptly at least this time which made me question if abruptly even exists in english even though I somehow feel or tend to remember to heard that before. I like these kind of conversations or monologues where it is for me a conversation in the moment where you start asking questions to the audience cause those questions make me think about an answer and therefore I call it conversation (cause I reply to that even though you might no be able to listen or read if I do not write a comment and give the answer silently). I personally feel sad for the UK and the populism and false promises that lead to brexit cause it has changed the reception of UK and Britain by us . It looks like even the poor fishermen that should have found such a better life after brexit are now sitting on the losses of a bet they all have lost due to a bet that went wrong. Remember those patients from the NHS which got back then in germany spots for surgeries, especially these older generation and survivors of the war, those bomber pilots or crew members that went to a heart surgery in Hamburg which they had last seen from the sky back in 1944 or 1945 during an airraid and now got their surgery there and were so greatfull and respectfull and of cause in tears cause they said they had survived the war and even a heart surgery on that ground or are they think to have hit hard back then. And those are no longer coming - and I do not complain about the business side cause that has not caused any issues cause others have taken the free spots within months or weeks . I am talking about those patients in the UK who will not get such treatment anymore and sit and wait on a quite long list - at least based on the reports of those patients back then who talked about years not month or weeks. Back then NHS paid it as usual among EU countries , but since then no NHS patient has arrived again, which means that they all have to wait and suffer or might all dy till the NHS will have found or built the capacities needed for their british customers. And that should have been paid easily by the savings from brexit but I doubt that as the fisher men are no longer happy with anything brexit related. Good luck, great video and of cause analysis.

[@britingermany]

Thanks for commenting. I wasn’t sure if anyone actually watches my videos I told the end so it’s nice to hear that you did😀. Yes the NHS is a very contentious issue. It was been pretty much since it’s inception and although there is talk of overhauling it every year nothing ever comes of it🤷🏼‍♂️

[@clemenshampel]

Ok, let´s change the stereotype: Don´t mention the Brexit

[@mcarlsson74]

Good idea. Try respecting other countries' desire for self-determination, as well as recognising your own faults and mistakes. Then Germany might become more popular.

[@-----REDACTED-----]

Perhaps the piss taking is like banter with a friend: the harder it goes the closer the relationship…? 😂 Edit(s): Actually german culture has always been inclusionary, expansionary, and “multikulti”. A couple thousand years ago there was no such thing as German culture, it slowly built by continually embracing, including, and incorporating other cultures that now are considered German but were in fact once foreign, for example Saxon culture, Swabian, etc. etc. etc. German culture (and language, but let’s include that under the term of culture for easiness’ sake) is not rigid and instead highly malleable, flexible, and thus alive. Rigidity only came when the unnatural scourge that is blind foolish nationalism started to poison german culture in an attempt of cultural “unaliving”. In fact such forces attempt to “unalive” German culture and language to this very day…

[@britingermany]

You could be right. If Brits take the piss out of you it often means that they like you 🤣

[@-----REDACTED-----]

@@britingermany Yeah, in my experience the viciousness may be the same but the quality between positive banter and negative abuse is usually seizable even for Germans…or at least it has been so far in my fairly limited experience. Then again I only encountered the negative variety once…

[@holger_p]

Since the strong link to Canada and US, the UK is almost not perceived as a country or nation of it's own at all. The same as William Shatner is perceived as Hollywood actor, not as canadian, I perceived Sean Connery or Peter Ustinov for a long time as Hollywood actors. They made english movies. Today even language schools move from British english, to American English. Britain is loosing identity, it's loosing the role as the home of the english language. Economywise, I could not name any consumer product I use from UK. I know Rolls Royce - end of list. Even the cheddar is from Kerrygold. Maybe scotch whiskey.

[@Astrofrank]

And even Rolls-Royce is owned by BMW …

[@mcarlsson74]

The last 10 years really has brought out the nasty side in a lot of Germans. Anyone who spends a lot of time in Germany and observes their media will have noticed that Britain-hating sentiment is very common, including a lot of authentic hatred, not just tongue-in-cheek complaints. As somebody who is half-Swedish, half-English, it kinda puts me off. I cannot demand that they like us, because of obvious historical reasons, but you're denying the extent of anti-English feeling in Germany, which there is rarely any pushback against within Germany itself. Please try to be more honest about this topic. It's not all down to English people being ignorant or stuck in the past. There are faults on the German side too.

[@britingermany]

I have not experienced what you are talking about in my 10 Plus years living here. The only thing was a bit of drama around brexit but that’s pretty much died down now.

[@markmerry1471]

I have some gp mates from Germany and have been there a few times

[@tamasmarcuis4455]

If you would stop using the word British it would be better. Because everything you say can be said generally only about the English. I lived in Scotland for almost seven years and don't recognise that country in what you call British. I can not speak for the Irish but I tend to think they and the Scots have attitudes much in common. One thing those two sister countries seem to have in common is believing the English to be quite insular and superior as well as deluded. Negative to the standing of other countries in general and delusional grandios about England and it's place in the world.

[@britingermany]

Well the studies were representative of the U.K…as in people from Scotland wales and Northern Ireland were also asked…so it would have been in a inaccurate to only reference the English. How Do you think the Scottish and Irish see Germany then? In what way to their attitudes differ…or where you just trying to take a dig at the English? 😉

[@mcarlsson74]

That would be an inaccurate view. I understand that Scots crave to become 'more like' Denmark - but with a GDP that is 10 times lower despite having similar population numbers. That's what you call deluded. By contrast, the English are quite realistic about their place in the world. If anything they're too self-hating.

[@jandamskier6510]

Are you a Conservative?

[@chocolatesugar4434]

White British may be obsessed with Germany but the rest of us “Brits” can’t relate honestly. But when you say Brits that doesn’t include us 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@britingermany]

I'm not really too sure who/what you are referring to when you say the rest of us "Brits"...I'm talking about people who are from the UK...that's it really

[@holger_p]

@@britingermany He's referring to non-white Brits. And maybe you are unable to represent UK people with Indian heritage ...I don't know. But it's a point to think about.

[@RaimoHöft]

Non white Brits... is that something like a white Zulu or black Sioux? 😎

[@Slipstream2009]

If you don't like the UK, its people, culture or it Germanic cousins, there is always the option to leave.

[@valeriedavidson2785]

I was a small child during the war. I will never forget it and it spoilt my childhood. I would have no desire whatsoever to spend much time in Germany. I have been to Austria twice and I thought it was a beautiful country. I do hold some resentment for the poverty and chaos that the Germans caused. I definitely dispute that Britain has lost its relevance. It is still the most important country in europe and around 4th important in the world. I was desperate for Brexit. I objected to being ordered about by Germany. I am extremely patriotic and very proud of my country's achievements. We have given so much to the world. If you left England as a teenager you would find it to be a very different country now and one of the richest countries in the world. We have problems as every country has but I love it here and would not live anywhere else. My favourite country in europe is Spain. It is my second choice. If I were younger I would learn the language. I cannot, for the life of me, understand why an English person would wish to live in Germany.

[@britingermany]

Well there is a lot of personal experiences at play. Obviously if you remember the war I can understand why you would resent Germany. I have no relation to it. Reading about something is very different to experiencing it first hand. On a personal note the U.K. hasn’t changed much for me. I grew up in rural England and things do not change fast there

[@valeriedavidson2785]

@@britingermany Thank you for replying.

[@AltIng9154]

I often think about how Jewish people feel about Germans and Germany. Believe it or not, I am ashamed although born after the war. My parents were kids and my father's parents died previously to the war. Well my grandfather mother's side worked in the U-Boat maintenance.... but I can live with that. British hedgehoppers fired at German kids riding bicycle ( my mother, her little brothers and cousins) or did ice skating... . Other allied airmen did not.... only " greeting " with their wings. Spoiled youth anyway... . Both sides. My mother died recently... aged 93. You are 85 or so? Well I am 64... . What a pity... the bloody war still got an impact. Which you all the best!

[@antoniescargo1529]

🇦🇹🇧🇪🇨🇭🇩🇪🇱🇺🇳🇱

[@Za9xe]

Sie siehen wie Freud aus 😂

[@k.kunibert6411]

As a German I can understand people speaking english pretty well ... except british...

[@bjolie78]

The British have more common ground with Pakistan than with Germany

[@Habakuk_]

Why is it no different in Germany?

[@ndie8075]

Don't tell this a native englishman if you haven't a quick horse.....😂😂😂😂

[@bigernie9433]

To be exact, it is not the British who uselessly keep harking back to WWII, it is just some of the English.

[@mcarlsson74]

Tedious comment. Also Germany is and remains a dangerous country. People will continue talking about that, so you'd better get used to it.

[@y.p.735]

Who gives a Crap what they think?

[@USEismydream]

Seems like you do.

[@mcarlsson74]

Germans are obsessed with England. And of course, the plucky Scots, who can always be counted upon to save local children from a burning orphanage whenever they're in town or in passing. Amazing people. Almost worthy of a collectively-awarded sainthood.