The German ambassador to Austria, the man’s name is Ralf Beste and was once a journalist, has just presented a study in Vienna that looked at what Austrians think of Germans. Unsurprisingly, the result is ambivalent. On the one hand, the Austrians experience the Germans as reliable, thorough and friendly (who would disagree?), On the other hand, the Germans sometimes come across as quite opinionated and arrogant to the Austrians. And, logically, the further away from the German-Austrian border you ask, the more sympathetic the Germans become to their neighbors. The Bavarians are apparently closest to the Austrians spiritually. While 78 percent of Austrians think that “Germans tick differently”, only 32 percent feel it when thinking about the Bavarian tribe. Such surveys should of course be viewed with caution, especially if they were made in Austria. You often don’t find out who commissioned them and why.
In any case, at the end of the study presentation in the Hietzingen residence of Ambassador Beste, it was very interesting that three quarters of Austrians could imagine a private relationship with a German. But to Germany draw, 55 percent of the 1000 respondents would rather not do that.
So the Germans will probably have to move to Austria in the future as well, if there is any radio. Although they, let’s call them the Piefkes, are already the largest group among foreigners there, with 235,000 immigrants according to the study. This doesn’t necessarily make it more popular with the indigenous coffee house people.
Ambassador Ralf Beste (left) with the Mayor of Vienna Michael Ludwig and the Argentine ambassador to Austria, Gustavo Eduardo Ainchil. Sympathy for Argentines was not asked in the study.
(Photo: Michael Indra via www.imago-images.de/imago images / SEPA.Media)
Although the alleged homogeneity of the Austrians is of course one of those things. For example, the native Carinthian Werner Kofler (the writer; the Vice Chancellor is called: Werner Kogler) once wrote about the city of Vienna that it was maddening “when I have to listen to all its filth, the traffic noise, the horrific ringing of bells at seven in the evening, the unbearable Viennese everywhere, this homely and homicidal singing Viennese, this professional grumbling … “But ultimately the grant is only a” protection from euphoria so that hope cannot become too great “, according to the Austrian cultural scientist Johannes Domsich formulated once in ORF. And as dysphoric as the Viennese may appear, “in the vision of death”, according to Domsich, he is “in a glorious mood”. Nevertheless, there seems to be a certain inhomogeneity within Austria, also on this issue.
What could ultimately make it particularly easy for us Germans to move to Austria at some point in life, that could be this incredible wealth of wonderful word creations. “Schas mit Quasteln”, “brunzeln”, “Gschistischeasti”, “Voikoffer”, “futschikato”. Nowhere between the North Sea and Garmisch-Partenkirchen can you find so much linguistic creativity. The Austrian newspaper described the fear of all unvaccinated people never to be allowed into a 2-G-Beisl again The standard last with: “Schnitzelpanik”. Also very pretty. (In the free Austria newsletter from SZ Such a beautiful Austrianism is mentioned every week, not infrequently characterized by “dialectical masochism”, which the Viennese essayist Franz Schuh once wrote.)
Incidentally, the favorite triacism of the German ambassador Ralf Beste, who was born in Witten in North Rhine-Westphalia, is: “Sternspritzer”. This means: sparklers. Oh well. A little good maybe. But useful for the further expansion of the Austro-German language friendship. We are still at the very beginning here.