German_Spelling_and_Punctuation

German Spelling and Punctuation (Orthography)
Last updated on November 17, 2024
The German alphabet uses 26 Latin characters which can also be found in English. In addition,
there are four special characters, including the so-called Umlaute (ä, ö, ü), and Eszett (ß) that is also
known as scharfes s (sharp s in English). While the letters ä, ö and ü are commonly found in many
other languages, the letter ß is today only used in German. The Eszett is a ligature of s and z and is
normally used in place of a voiced double-s following a long vowel or a gliding vowel called
diphthong (whereas the double-s is used when the preceding vowel is short). The Umlaut signifies a
vowel plus e and on the Internet (e.g., in German discussion forums, blog comments, etc.) words
are often written this way (i.e., ae, oe, ue instead of ä, ö, ü). In very old text, these letters were
printed with a very small e above them instead of the two dots (diaeresis mark).
Font Type and Script
From about 1530 up to 1941, German was printed in a very different font (type face) than it is today.
This old script is called Fraktur (meaning "fractured") and is still used occasionally in Germany today
for fancy titles and signs, just like Old English black-letter script is in Britain. Fraktur evolved from
Schwabacher (and replaced it in the 16th century) but some people still refer to all old German
scripts as Schwabacher. German handwriting called Sütterlin was also very different. German
school boys in the 1930s sometimes called Sütterlin "Zickzack Schrift" (Zigzag script). Today,
German print and handwriting is much like English, but you may find old books printed in Fraktur in
libraries. It is easy enough to read once you get used to it.
German Punctuation Marks
In many cases, German and English punctuation are quite similar, if not identical. However, comma
can be used differently in German when linking two independent clauses, or when writing numbers
as decimal points and commas are reversed in German (1.000 is one thousand while 1,5 is one
point five or one and a half). Also, German uses different quotation marks than English ("...").
Moreover, with few exceptions, German does not use apostrophe for genitive possession (e.g.,
Roberts Fahrrad - Robert's bike). For additional examples of differences between German and
English punctuation see this summary from StackExchange.
Capitalization
In modern German, all nouns, as well as proper names, are capitalized (as they once were in
English several hundred years ago). This makes the nouns easy to spot when parsing (determining
the grammatical structure of) a sentence. But, this sometimes makes it difficult to determine whether
a word beginning with a capital letter is a common noun or a proper name. Thus, for example,
Schneider could refer to a tailor or to a person named Schneider. Adjectives and verbals that
function as nouns are also capitalized. However, there are a couple of nouns that can function as
uninflected adjectives (ein paar meaning "a pair of..." or ein bißchen meaning "a little bit of...") which
are not capitalized when so used. Furthermore, unlike English, adjectives which refer to nationality
are not capitalized. Thus, die indische Küche (the Indian cuisine). The German counterpart for
English "I" (ich) is not capitalized, but the polite counterpart for English "you" (Sie) is (as is the
accompanying possessive pronoun "your" Ihr as well as Ihnen).
Spelling versus Pronunciation
In German there are generally precise rules for spelling and pronunciation of words and, therefore,
spelling is a good indicator of how the words ought to be pronounced. For instance, long vowels are
usually either doubled (e.g., leer), or followed by a single consonant (e.g., mal) or silent h (e.g.,
mehr), whereas short vowels are typically followed by a double consonant (e.g., schnell). Check the
section on German pronunciation for a complete guide.

German Spelling Reform
The aim of the controversial German spelling reform (Rechtschreibreform) of 1996 (revised in 2004,
2006 and 2011) was to simplify the spelling and punctuation rules but critics object that it made
certain things yet more complicated. As a result, you can now find composite words with triple
identical consonants such as the words Sperrrad (ratchet wheel), Schifffahrt (shipping) and even
Flussschifffahrt (river transport with triple-s and triple-f), or with triple identical vowels like the word
Kafeeernte (coffee harvest) and that certainly looks weird. So, do not be surprised when you find
recently published German texts that do not obey all these new spelling rules. However, since you
are learning German today learn the new rules.
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German Spelling and Punctuation (Orthography)

Last updated on November 17, 2024

Font Type and Script

libraries. It is easy enough to read once you get used to it.

German Punctuation Marks

English punctuation see this summary from StackExchange.

accompanying possessive pronoun "your" Ihr as well as Ihnen).

Spelling versus Pronunciation

section on German pronunciation for a complete guide.

are learning German today learn the new rules.

... [Content truncated for brevity]

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