Information AboutGermanization |
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Germanisation or '''Germanization''' is either the spread of the German Language and Culture either by force or assimilation, or the adaptation of a foreign word to the German Language in linguistics, much like the Romanisation of many languages which do not use the Latin Alphabet . It was a central plank of German liberal thinking in the early nineteenth century, at a period when liberalism and nationalism went hand in hand. There are historically very different forms and degrees of adopting German language and elements of German culture. Besides eclectic adoptions there are also examples of complete "melting" into the German culture, as it happened with the pagan Slavs in the diocese of Bamberg in the 11th century. A perfect example of eclectic adoption of German culture is the field of law in Imperial and present day Japan, which is organised very much to the model of the German Empire . Germanisation took place by cultural contact, by political decision of the adopting side (e.g. in the case of Japan) or (especially in the case of Imperial and Nazi Germany) by force. In Slavic countries the term Germanisation often is understood solely as the process of acculturation of Slavic Speakers and Baltic Speakers , populating, after conquests or by cultural contact in the early Dark Ages , areas of the modern eastern Germany to the line of Elbe . Whether this process was solely performed by elimination of the leading groups and pushing most of Slavic speakers into status of serfs yet in Middle Ages might be doubted, as the Middle ages usually did not yet know concepts of national clashes. In East Prussia , extermination, enslavement and forced resettlements of the Prussians by Teutonic Order and Prussian state, but also acculturation to immigrants from various European countries (Poles, French, Germans) contributed to the eventual extinction of the Prussian Language in the 17th century. HISTORICAL GERMANISATION A complex process of Germanisation took place in Bohemia after the 1620 defeat of Bohemian Protestants . The Protestant Bohemian king elected against the Habsburgs by the Bohemian estates in 1619 was defeated in 1620 by Catholic forces under the German prince Frederick V of the Palatinate. Among the Bohemian Lords being punished and expropriated after Frederick's defeat in 1620 were German- and Czech-speaking landowners as well. Thus this conflict was by far an internal conflict resulting from the Feudal System than a clash of different nations. Although the Czech language lost its significance (as a written language) in the aftermath of the events, it is questionable whether this was primarily intended by the Habsburg rulers, whose intentions were in religious and feudal categories. Countermeasures to Germanisation did not arise until the 19th century. The rise of nationalism that occurred in the late 18th and 19th centuries in Bohemia , Moravia , Silesia , Pomerania , Lusatia and Slovenia led to an increased sense of "pride" in local cultures during this time. However, centuries of German dominance left the German mark on many societies; for instance the first modern grammar of the Czech language by Josef Dobrovský (1753-1829) – "Ausführliches Lehrgebäude der böhmischen Sprache" (1809) – was published in German because Czech language was not custom in academic scholarship. In the German Colonies , the policy of having German as official language led to the forming of German-based Pidgin s and German-based Creole Languages , such as Unserdeutsch . Germanisation in Prussia occurred in several stages:
In the era German Confederation (1815-1866) the German-Polish relations were of dual nature. Poles undoubtedly were suppressed in Prussia after it had taken over Polish territories during Partitions of Poland already in the late 18th century. The Eastern provinces of Prussia were not part of the German Confederation , to which deliberately belonged only the Western parts of Prussia. Polish struggle against the Russians in 1830/31 attracted some sympathy. Especially in the Southwest of Germany (in the kingdom of Württemberg and the Grand Duchy of Baden ) liberal and democratic minded citizens formed the so called Polenvereine ("Poland societies"), intended to support the gallant Polish struggle for freedom and to take care for exiled Poles. These societies were regarded with suspicion by the authorities, as they were obviously not only aimed against Russia, but also against Prussia, which didn't have much sympathy among the population of the constitutional monarchies in southern Germany. State legislation and government policies of Germanisation in the Kingdom Of Prussia , Imperial Germany and Nazi Germany aimed to expand the German language and culture in areas populated by non-Germans, the eradication of Polish national identity, and integration of conquered territories into German states {Link without Title} . Another example of Germanisation was aimed at national minorities in the Prussian state. The Polish language was persecuted in Prussia, and Polish monasteries were viewed as "lairs of idleness" and their property often seized by Prussian authorities. It should be noted that the Secularisation of clerical property was common among European countries of the era (e.g. Austria, Bavaria) without respect to the monasteries' nationality. Frederick started Germanisation efforts in territories of Silesia acquired in 1740-1745. They were later expanded on territories gained by Prussia in Partitions of Poland-Gdansk Pomerania, Warmia, and certain regions of Greater Poland. Prussian authorities settled German speaking ethnic groups in Polish territories after the ). Germanisation policy in schools also took form of torture of Polish children by Prussian officials (see Września ). Germanisation stimulated resistance, especially by self-education and solidarity between the minority members. In 1910 Maria Konopnicka in response to increasing persecution of Polish People by Germans wrote her famous song called Rota, that instantly became one of national symbols for Poles, with its sentence known to every Pole:''The German will not spit in our face, nor will he Germanise our children''. Thus the forced German efforts to eradicate Polish culture, language and people met not only in failure, but managed to enforce Polish national identity and strengthened efforts of Poles to re-establish a Polish state. An international meeting of socialists held at Brussels in 1902 condemned the Germanisation of Poles in Prussia, calling it "barbarous". {Link without Title} . Similar Germanisation also happened for the Lithuanians ( Lietuvininks ) living in East Prussia, numbers of whom, once making up a majority of population in large areas of East Prussia (these areas are referred to as Lithuania Minor ), decreased by much during 16th-20th centuries; policy of Germanisation was tightened during the 19th century; in the early 20th century Lithuanian majority remained only in the northernmost parts of the province ( Memelland and some areas south of it). Similar development happened with Courlandians , but this ethnic group never had a large population. Another form of Germanisation was the relation between the German state and Polish coal miners in the Ruhr Area . Due to migration within the German Empire , an enormous stream of Polish nationals (as many as 350,000) made their way to the Ruhr in the late 19th century, where they worked in the coal and iron industries. German authorities viewed them as potential danger and a threat and as a "suspected political and national" element. All Polish workers had special cards and were under constant observation by German authorities. In addition, anti-Polish stereotypes were promoted, such as postcards with jokes about Poles, presenting them as irresponsible people, similar to the treatment of the Irish in New England around the same time. Many Polish traditional and religious songs were forbidden by Prussian authorities Their citizens' rights were also limited by German state[http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&hl=en&vid=ISBN1571814078&id=5sUdzh98A44C&pg=PA11&lpg=PA11&dq=ruhr+poles&prev=http://books.google.com/books%3Fq%3Druhr%2Bpoles&sig=b2ImFDrsl5Oc9YTMq_3VAeqeIBU . In response to these policies, the Polish formed their own organisations to defend their interests and ethnic identity. The suppress Catholic services in Polish language by Polish priests, the Poles had to rely on German Catholic priests. Increasing intermarriage between Germans and Poles contributed much to the Germanisation of ethnic Poles in the Ruhr area. During the Weimar Republic Poles first were recognised as minority only in Upper Silesia. The peace treaties after the First World War did contain an obligation for Poland to protect her national minorities (Germans, Ukrainians and other), whereas no such clause was introduced in retorsion by the victors in the peace Treaty Of Versailles with Germany. In 1928 the "Minderheitenschulgesetz" (minorities school act) regulated education of children form minorities in their native tongue. From 1930 on Poland and Germany agreed to treat their minorities vice versa.[http://www.tcm-kp.de/geschichtliches/johannziesch/ In the membership made dialogue between old and young next to impossible, as use of languages other than German was discouraged by officials. Members of minority organisations were sent to Concentration Camps by German authorities or have been executed. Specific examples Oletzko County was a historic East Prussian county with its capital at Oletzko . The county was populated by Mazur s, a Polish ethnic group. In the process of Germanisation, the proportion of Polish -speaking people declined steadily: 1818 - over 90% of population 1852 - 65% 1861 - 58% 1890 - 46% 1900 - 33.5% (Prussian census) CURRENT STATE In modern Germany and Brandenburg . Nevertheless most of the Sorbs are bilingual and the Lower Sorbian language is regarded as endangered, as the number of native speakers is dwindling. Descendants of Polish migrant workers and miners have mingled with the local population by intermarriage and are culturally no more identifiable as Poles. It's different with modern and present day immigration form Poland to Germany after the fall of the are Polish citizens, whereas the Poles that lately migrated to Germany usually stay Polish citizens and as such are treated as other foreigners by the EU . LINGUISTIC GERMANISATION In linguistics Germanisation usually means the Change in spelling of loanwords to the rules of the German language — for example the change from the imported word 'bureau' to 'Büro'. The local dialect of the Ruhr Area still contains words derived from the Polish language, which have been Germanised in the linguistic sense. Among other things the Poles of the Ruhr also contributed much to German football. The club Schalke 04 had a very strong Polish influence up to the 1930s with Fritz Szepan and Ernst Kuzorra , both of Mazurian origin being outstanding players, running for the German national team as well. SEE ALSO
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