Little Christmas spirits with the Christmas spirit
How to express Yule-tide greetings in German and the Scandinavian countries - inspired by 1960s postcards. Plus examples of some Scandinavia
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Pamela Israel
Dec 12, 20193 min read
1960 Christmas Card Mystery
Why were there piles of Christmas cards from 1960 sent from around the world to a young girl in Virginia?
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Stefan Israel
Oct 7, 20192 min read
German in English I
Gesundheit! Bless you? In the American melting pot, you hear bits of the various ingredients still in the mix. Here are a few examples of Ge
235 views
Christine Israel
Mar 8, 20195 min read
The Scandalous Pauline: Discovering a Fascinating Woman
One of the early things my father told me when I asked him about his family was that my great-grandmother, Pauline Volkmann, had left her hu
259 views
Pamela Israel
Oct 23, 20182 min read
German in the Cemetery
Some old cemeteries have gravestones written in German. Here are some tips to help translate some key words.
5,308 views
Pamela Israel
Oct 3, 20181 min read
Tip: German-Language Newspaper Search
Here’s a fun tip for researching relatives, especially 1st generation German ones. The Library of Congress’ Chronicling America: Historic...
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Stefan Israel
Sep 21, 20184 min read
Clues Hidden in "von" and "van"?
People's surnames often provide clues into their way back family history. Learn what Von and Van mean for the Dutch and Germans.
21,589 views
Pamela Israel
Sep 10, 20181 min read
When is October in September?
Beer lovers and German fans can likely answer this riddle in a second. We are talking about Oktoberfest! September brings a nip in the...
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Stefan Israel
Mar 14, 20184 min read
the FEMININE of FAMILY NAMES
The history behind some of those last names - many had a feminine meaning. In some languages, the end of names still changes!
1,801 views
Stefan Israel
Jan 18, 20182 min read
What’s with the -ch- in German?
German has two variants for ch, depending on whether the surrounding letters are ‘bright’ or ‘dark’. If you say “ee, ey” versus “o, oo, a
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Pamela Israel
Dec 30, 20172 min read
Ticket to a Year of Happiness
One of the fun things about digging through old family papers is discovering the whimsical pieces that someone has tucked away. Here's
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Stefan Israel
Dec 5, 20172 min read
St. Nicholas - Bringer of Gifts
Martin Luther, who grew up with the tradition of gifts on Nikolaustag, shifted gift-giving to Christmas, since saints were no longer a focus
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Stefan Israel
Dec 4, 20172 min read
St. Nicholas's Bad Cop: Krampus
Was zum Teufel? What the freaking devil? Santa. Krampus
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Stefan Israel
Nov 15, 20172 min read
The Curious History of the German 'Doubled S' - ß
Ä, Ö and Ü are simple variations of familiar letters, but the fourth letter that German has that we don’t is the real kicker: ß Eszett
5,670 views
Pamela Israel
Oct 10, 20172 min read
Where is that in English?
When it comes to place names, getting from English to German and vice-versa can be challenging, but it's also loads of fun, and useful,...
109 views
Stefan Israel
Oct 2, 20172 min read
Are those even the same letters in old German?
Old German letters are tough to read but they are mostly the same alphabet we use - just with a few variations.
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Stefan Israel
Sep 26, 20172 min read
Why'd Germans have a different alphabet way back when?
Explanation on why old German writing was different than today's writing.
675 views
Pamela Israel
Aug 28, 20172 min read
The Twins from Two Different Countries
One says he's German. The other says he's Danish. They're twins. It actually makes sense, but there's history to understand.
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