December is the ultimate holiday month and that includes gifts and good reading in front of the fireplace. But what to give or read during the holidays? The History, Language &Culture editors of Kennislink recommend three interesting scientific books. Nice for in the pocket or under the tree! And to keep for yourself of course…
Merlijn Schoonenboom Why we suddenly love the Germans (but it scares them themselves)
The month of December has not yet started or Christmas markets are appearing all over Germany again. They have been held since the nineteenth century, but in the last few years they have been expanded even more in the major cities. Extra emphasis is placed on the nostalgic aspect, with old German log cabins and 'traditional' wood carvings from the Saxon Ore Mountains. For a few years now, the Munich Oktoberfest has been characterized by hip guys in lederhosen and hip girls in dirndls.
It took a while after the Second World War, but interest in the own culture is allowed again in Germany. And not just among our eastern neighbours:Dutch visitors flock to cities such as Cologne and Düsseldorf for the Christmas markets and to Munich for the Oktoberfest. In the financial crisis, it was the German economy that had to drag the failing Europe forward. The leading role of Chancellor Angela Merkel earned Germany a lot of international praise. How do the Germans do that, are the only ones to continue to grow while the rest of Europe is sinking?
It should be clear, we suddenly love the Germans again. While at the turn of the century the country still had an image of men with mats in faded denim jackets and boring industrial cities, Berlin is now hipper than Amsterdam has ever been. The book 'Why we suddenly love the Germans' by journalist Merlijn Schooneboom is about how all this came about. This book is about much more than just the title question. On the one hand, it is about the success of the German economy, embodied by the many old family businesses in Baden-Württemberg. Often little-known companies that, through years of patient investment and innovation, are world leaders and make the best products in the world:screws, tin-cutting machines or bucket handles.
But the book also deals with the downsides of this success. Germany, for example, has no minimum wage. As a result, prices in the catering industry and at the hairdresser are relatively low, but there is a growing underclass that can barely make ends meet from his or her work. Angry residents of Berlin fear that their city will be taken over by hip and wealthy South Germans. Their cars are often set on fire. For many Dutch people, Germany seems to be the country where high culture is still appreciated and where no cutbacks are made, but many Germans mainly see flat entertainment and bad game shows on public TV.
With a pleasant, smooth style and journalistic acuity, Schoonenboom covers all aspects of Germany that you might want to know more about. The 'Energiewende', the government's decision to abolish nuclear energy, for example. Does that perhaps stem from the old 'German Angst', a deeply ingrained German fear of catastrophe, or is there more to it? And despite the fact that we love the Germans again, the war past and the Holocaust continue to leave a mark on the country, as does the East German GDR past. A very nice book for anyone who wants to know more about our dear eastern neighbors.
Wim Daniëls (ed.) Tales about language – 150 years of Van Dale
Who doesn't know the dictionary game, a game you play on a warm winter evening with a group of friends. Preferably with a mulled wine by the fireplace. All you need is a dictionary. One of the attendees opens the dictionary and chooses a word that most likely no one has ever heard of:tagrijn, welie, zwalp. Then the other attendees write their own definition of the word on a piece of paper. All the papers go together in a jar and are read one by one. Hilarity all around:tagrijn, a grumpy person with a tabard. Then everyone chooses the definition that they think is the right one. A point for a good answer, but also if someone has chosen your description.
For those already eager to play a game of dictionary, Tales about language a must (in which dozens of entries are already listed as a snack at the bottom of the pages). This year it was exactly 150 years ago that the first Dikke Van Dale appeared. Wim Daniëls compiled this book especially on the occasion of this anniversary. The hard cover looks pretty solid, but you have to poke through it. The inside, on the other hand, is very nicely designed, and contains stories by very diverse authors:writers, journalists, editors and Dikke van Dale fans. That variety makes it very pleasant to read.
First of all, read Ewoud Sanders' contribution about the schoolmaster Van Dale, who worked on the dictionary in his spare hours. A job that nearly killed him, as evidenced by the correspondence with his pastor. Up to the letter Z, the book was finished when Van Dale died of smallpox at the age of 44. He was remembered as a very humble man, an example to all.
In the pieces by Wim Daniëls you can read about the etymology of 'normal' words like fiets and football, but also about ghost words (which dictionaries include to prevent plagiarism) such as honduree and sand soap soda mineral water stone blasting (nice for hangman). Writers such as Kristien Hemmerechts and Ronald Giphart tell how they use the dictionary while writing. Vincent Bijlo explains that he never got the chance, because 'no one ever bothered to braille the Dikke'. The Prisma Pocket Dictionary does, but it was 1 meter 43 thick.
René Appel makes a nice addition to the Van Dale with slang words that are still missing, such as fa waka 'how are you?' and loesoe 'gone, gone'. A word like duku 'money' has already been withdrawn. Jos Swanenberg wonders why the word fries missing, and fries does occur. Is fries than a Brabant word? In any case, it is regionally colored. And Vivien Waszink discusses Van Dale's definition of rapping:'singing lyrics to a musical rhythm'. Then she has a number of rappers give their own definition. That gives great results, because rappers are naturally very creative with language. Together with Marianne Boogaard I also wrote a piece about the definition of 'language'.
All these contributions show once again how dynamic language is. Just like the dictionary game. Because it's still fun to bring up old forgotten words, or just new vette make up words.
Anton van der Lem The Revolt in the Netherlands 1568-1648. The Eighty Years' War in words and images
Playing a dictionary game together in front of the fireplace… this image fits perfectly with the cozy December feeling. It's cold and dark outside, cozy and warm inside. For those who don't feel like playing a game or just looking for a good book, The Revolt in the Netherlands a nice alternative. William of Orange, our Father of the Fatherland, plays an important role in the book, but the good man did not stand alone, of course. He lived in a complex time that we have retrospectively labeled as The Eighty Years' War or the Revolt. Have not enough books been published about the Rebellion, you may ask? The answer is no, not if you are looking for a clear and concise overview of this exciting time.
Van der Lem tells chronologically about the political and military developments in the Netherlands. After all, you have to draw a line somewhere to keep things organized for eighty years. This may sound a bit dry, but it certainly isn't. Van der Lem gets straight to the point in his introduction:why did the Dutch revolt? The book makes it clear that the events in those eighty years did not stand alone, but can be reasoned back to this core. This is nice, because otherwise you would soon lose sight of the forest for the trees.
The three main reasons that ultimately resulted in war are freedom of religion and conscience, the right to self-determination and the right to co-determination. Freedom of conscience was threatened because the Catholic King Philip II persecuted dissenters in the Netherlands. According to him, two religions side by side was not possible:there is only one truth. This stalemate was an important reason for the long duration of the war. The self-determination of the Netherlands was in jeopardy because Philip II forgot that they were not his property. The king should look after their interests, but he didn't.
The Netherlands also lost their co-determination when Philip II imposed decisions on them without consultation, such as extra taxes. That this was about the principle and not about the money, is apparent from the fact that the Netherlands were willing to give William of Orange large sums. Van der Lem adds that Alva was very surprised by this generous behaviour. A good example of how the author not only gives political facts, but also places them in a human context.
The book takes you through eighty years of struggle for rights that are still relevant today. The recognizability and the objective view of the author ensure a lively story. We tend to look at our history with hindsight. But history depends on chance. During that long period, things could have turned out differently so often and Van der Lem makes sure you realize that.
Last but certainly not least, the book is beautifully illustrated. The subtitle is therefore not unjustified 'The Eighty Years' War in word and image'. The many colorful and sometimes unknown images from that time and the maps make the already clear story even clearer. And they are a feast for the eyes. This is not a pure flip book and skipping the text would do a lot of damage to the content, but also the less die-hard history enthusiast can have his or her fun with this beautiful book. Highly recommended for in the shoe, pocket or under the tree.