Final word on off-topic "Dutch" discussion

Klaus Harms harms313 at web.de
Sun Jun 2 14:19:24 CEST 2002


Harry Fluks:

> Apparently, peoples call other peoples by a name they like. The
> Germans, who
> call themselves Deutsch, are called Allemand by the French. And the
> Italians
> call them Tedeschi (as I experienced this week, when someone in Rome
> thought
> I was a German).

Actually, the Italian "Tedesco" and German "deutsch" are both derived
from a single latinized word "theodiscus" of Germanic origin (as is the
Danish word "tysk"), indeed
meaning "people". The English call us "Germans" (despite being of
Germanic origin themselves), the French "Allemands"
(pointing to the Alemans, a Germanic tribe), the Polish "Niemzij" or
thereabouts (meaning "strangers"), the Baltic people (and Finnish?)
"Saksalaiset" (pointing to Saxon tribes), the Austrians "Piefkes" (just
kidding).

Klaus
(sorry for the off-topic, but I couldn't resist)



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