Den Vorfall gab es tatsächlich, als TV-Moderatorin Ilka Eßmüller angesprochen wurde mit: "Frau Müller..." - "Eßmüller; macht aber nichts." Machte offenbar doch was.
It's been my experience that only guys here call each other by their last names. In other words, if you heard girls or women doing that, it would be weird.
I think that is more common historically in Germany, especially in the rural areas and amongst the working class than now. How many of these American movies you are talking about are Action-Adventure? That means either military, or police, or former military or police, where last name only is common or normal. Use of initials or initials only? That one goes back awhile in the US. One of the Confederate Generals was known by 3 initials and his last name (P.G.T. Beauregard for Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard), P.T. Barnum of Barnum and Bailey Circus fame, famous German American US Army General H. Norman Schwarzkopf (First Gulf War), and most Americans don't have more than one first name. Some of those last initial only are for somewhat obvious reasons. Duke Men's Basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski is known simply as "Coach K" because, well...even the Poles will tell you their language is difficult to spell. I think the first use of initials for a last name I can recall was in the 1980s TV show "Different Strokes" Arnold and Willis called their adopted father "Mr. D." prior to their adoption.
As a woman I call people by their surnames or a version of it, a lot of people have the same names and it gets confusing if you shout the name and they all respond, there were 7 Megan's in my class at school and 5 Joe's and I lost count of how many Emily's i know about 10 years ago, much easier to just use surnames
Like the Michael j.fox the Samuel l Jackson and people using their middle initial that's just a celebrity thing last names on the other hand are used because especially for men certain first names are just really really common so you're always having to use the person's last name anyway because if I yell Jason and a room full of people 14 people would probably turn around girls don't usually have this problem their names AR more diverse girls with even common first names usually get a nickname like my late girlfriend used to be Denise but her nickname that everybody called her was Niecy .........I think the problem with names in the United States is the lack of diversity of first names especially for men minorities in the United States don't usually have this problem it's mostly just white men I mean black guys are named crazy things like Jamal or Demetrius or Marcus Tyrone Denzel see black people can just make up things white guys are usually named after people in the Bible so I mean there's like a s*** ton of John's and Mike's in Christopher's there is so many Christopher's no one even uses that name Chris I know so many Christopher'sone of them doesn't even go by their last name cuz it's a common last name too so he goes by Topher
The initial or middle initial is more an American thing. My mother and father (who were not American) used to refer to people by their surnames like that all the time. Sometimes it's useful to differentiate people if they have the same first name.
True. I was in the Bundeswehr in 2001. I still remember the last names of my comrades. But only 1 or 2 firstnames... At first it was weird to call everyone by their lastname (and be called by yours) but I adapted it really fast. It became natural pretty quick.
This is definitely a thing in the US. I had a college professor who called me by my last name. It is very helpful if you know more than one person with the same first name.
It's very common, especially in school, to address people by their last names. This is because most first names are very common, but your surname is usually pretty unique. It avoids confusion.
Teachers, especially in secondary school, do so. In the past, with Latin ordinals: "Springham Primus! Don't do that ..." were used for further identification if there were more than one with the same surname, often from the same family. Full names are used for when you are in deep trouble: "Ian Vincent Springham ... Come here!"
Wow, the exact opposite is true here in India. Surnames are pretty common here, especially in smaller towns and rural areas. But first names are less likely to be so.
I had a teacher in junior high whose name my classmates and I could pronounce but not spell. Mr. Kobecheski (I think). We eventually all started to just call him Mr. K for who knows what reason. It's only four syllables.
@@colinstu the pronounciation maybe? An-jurue is how we pronounce Andrew, not And-rue or An-der-rue. Maybe if you have a country accent or something or live in Jersey or Boston you know what I mean? I mean just with standard speaking English.
1. Calling each other by last names: It is common for several people in any group to have the same first name. So often, rather than a full name (too long), or a "Mr., Mrs., Ms.", etc. (too formal), we just use the last name. Obviously. this doesn't work at family gatherings... 2. Shortening the last name to one letter (Mr's K, from your example): This does happen, but it's probably far more common on TV and film than real life. It's meant to show that the child using the abbreviation is has a closer connection to the family, while still being casual - they feel almost like a member of the family. 3. We typically only use full middle names when someone is in trouble: When your mother is yelling at you - "John Michael Thompson, get in here and pick this up NOW!", or in legal trouble - "The shooter was identified as John Michael Thompson.". The abbreviated middle name is also used when the first and last names are common - "John D. Smith, John H. Smith", etc. In entertainment, performers (for legal reasons) need to be distinct, so if there is a "Michael Fox", and your name is Michael Fox, you might add a middle initial - "Michael J. Fox". Or you might use the full middle name, like Anthony Michael Hall, depending on what you think sounds better. 4. The two letter names: You got it - some people think it sounds cool. To be fair, not all combinations sound good in English, and most people don't use them. I don't personally know anyone who goes by just their initials, so I think it's more common in TV and film. Love your channel! I think it's good to ask these questions, since it forces us to think about things we never think about (why DO we do that?). :)
Nicknaming isn't strange just in Australia. I'm German and my friend Michael has many nicknames: Michael (pronounced English and German), Michi, Micky and Mikail (Russian) make sense as they just abbreviate the word or are different pronounced. But don't ask me how we got to pronounce his name French (as Michaël or so). And I absolutely have no no idea why his most used nickname is Myre. Well, another friend is nicknamed Brokkolikopf (broccoli head). I guess we are very mean individuals.
There Be Game Antonym nicknames are common in movies and occasionally in real life. The big bruiser may be called Tiny, an obese person may be called Slim (or a skinny person Fats), etc.
What, would you have liked Greenie better than Bluey? Hahaha. -- Nothing against the ginger-ness. Gingerosity? ;) And either way, it's better than being called Strawberry. Though Rusty seems fine. Hmm, come to think of it, I've never heard a girl called Rusty, but plenty of boys, even without red hair. Huh. Bluey, though, is a perfectly good, if baffling nickname. Hey, if you ever go bald or shave your head, you could be Shiny! See, there are pluses, if you just look a little. (Shiny, going with the Firefly thing....)
I have a very common first name for my generation. I would often have at least one other girl with the same name in one of my classes. We were all known by our first name and last initial. Jennifer h. I work in foodservice and at one time there were 5 Jennifer's. I began not to respond when my name was called as it often wasnt for me. To help clear things up I decided to go by my last name. They would either shout hof or hofmann. If they wanted me. I could have used my middle name but Unfortunatly that one is rather common to, Marie. Lol Going by ones last name is a military thing. I guess it was to help reduce the confusion when people have very common names first names. Not as likely to multiple hofmann's at work unless its a family business. Most americans only use their middle name initial for legal documents or in places where they want to ensure or clarify who they are. If they become famous using the initial in their name then others may continue to use it when introducing them to others so you know this is the famous writer George R.R. Martin. And not the actor George Martin.
For that cause, people rather use nicknames in the German language. For example back when I was in school we were 16 people in Latin class including four boys all named "Maximilian". One was really called "Maximilian", one "Max", one "Maxi" and the fourth one was distinguished by eye contact...
Same here - I got a common forename (Richard) so I know a decent number of people also called Richard. My surname Noble - well, it not rare exactly but it's less common.
In Bavaria, some people actually use the last name in order to talk to someone, especially at school. About half the people in my grade call me "Fink" instead of "Florian". Even my best friends do that. I don't really like that, but I've gotten used to it by now. Also, wenn we write down our names or introduce ourselves, we usually put the last name in front of the first name. So it's rather "Bauer David" than "David Bauer".
I remember with a sense of pride when my buddies in grade school started calling me by my last name because I think they were emulating the sports announcers. They called the TV or radio plays like "Jackson with a catch and a dive for a fist down at the 40!" or "Ramirez with a swing and a drive!" That all came from sports and I think we thought we were kind of cool to get to do that. But in real life, people rarely call me by my last name unless they're just being silly. Also, I have no idea how I got to this video. UA-cam is crazy!
The abbreviation of middle names is usually on paper. Most people wouldn't introduce themselves with their middle name or an initial. Ie George RR Martin is a pen name of sorts.
But some people go by their middle name. I go by Ben, a nickname for my middle name. I don't like my first name. But it gets annoying when filling out forms. People who make forms to fill out do not like middle names. -- I've known a few people who also go by their middle names. But it's not as common. Parents should think more carefully about how they name their kids. (to make it worse, most people and most computers assume my first name is a girl's name. It was really awkward, some of the product samples I got in college in the mail. No, I really can't use that. Wrong body parts!)
The use of middle initials is to differentiate between two people with the same firstname/lastname. If you have a John H. Smith and a John B. Smith in the same company, for eample.
@@benw9949 My granddad on my mother side was one such an example; He was Noel Henry Smith but always known as Henry. Furthermore his middle name kinda has a legacy. As it happens he died when just prior my elder brother being born. My parents already select a name (Thomas James Noble) but added a second middle name to my bro to honour my grandad (so Thomas James Henry Noble). As a result the started a tradition and me and my three siblings each have two middle name (mine is Edward Luke in cas your wondering - forename Richard)
To English speakers, the use of a middle initial almost always makes someone seem smarter or more authoritative. Hence, all of the authors, professors, and presidents who sign their name with their middle initial.
The last name thing, in the US particularly, is because in a group, you could have multiple people with the same first name, but not likely the same last name. It's particularly used in Military, Law Enforcement, EMS/Fire Department and frequently with school sports teams. Frequently we also use nick names derived from our given names. As an example: When I was in the Air Force I went by the nick name of Robi (from my last name.) There was also a Sergeant Robson, Sergeant Robertson, and an airman who's first name was Robert and we all went by the nick name of Robbie (various spellings). One day our commander came into the day room and shouted "Hey Robbie". Four people (counting myself) turned around and shouted back "Hey What". Thus a confusion on the part of our commander. Same thing happens in classrooms, athletic fields or even in large businesses. So frequently familiar groups will use either nick names or last names to avoid confusion when you have more than one person with the same first name.
I'd say that the main reason people are called by their last name in the military is because that's the name they have on their uniform, and oftentimes you won't even know someone's first name until you've already known them for awhile, if you ever learn it at all. I was also in the Air Force, but I have a Polish last name, which some people seemed to have a hard time with, so I was generally known by a host of different nicknames lol
In a society like ours with so many subcultures, it may be a form to create a middle ground between full formality and informality. I also think it comes from the military, like so many other things. (Just look at the language of business).
She said that. It is a form of militarism, and it is meant to be impolite, as a soldier is a subordinated being, not a free man. It is time to stop that in a democratic and free society.
@@schusterlehrling There are reasons why the custom arose in the first place. The United States is the size of half a continent. The people who immigrated here often came from very different backgrounds. (For example:; about a third of the Hessian soldiers who fought for the British eventually settled in America.) That's a middle way between formality and informality.
It's a bit cultural, but it depends on the context, and referring to people by their last names only is quite common in North America for many reasons. 1. Military and Sports teams. It is common among military and sports personnel to refer to one another by last names only. This is because this is how many people are known. You see this especially with professional athletes, because they are known by the public primarily by their last name, as that is a more unique name and is what gets printed on their jersey (uniform). 2. Calling someone by their last name can just be a sort of term of endearment, it becomes like a nick-name for them. 3. Sometimes when a group of people has many people by the same first name, their last names will be used instead, to refer to them, because last names tend to be more unique. For example among my friends, we have a lot of guys with the first name of "Matt" and "Dave". So we just call those guys by their last names most of the time.
So true about the male thing. I worked with almost all men and they were all referred to by their last names. But as a woman they called me by my first name most of the time even though I did the same job at the same pay grade.
@@GGehlker And, from my experience, it's only the outgoing "cool" or popular guys. Neither me (the shy and quiet guy) nor my friend or anyone else I'm friends with does this.
So it seems to be a south-German thing, because I know from BW and Südpfalz, that we do the same thing, but we don't call woman by there lastname. And I lived also in NRW and Hamburg for a little while and don't recall it from there. - Or my memmory is just selective.
That American naming habbit also confuses me sometimes. I am from Finland. P.S. This video was really good. It was nice to hear that I am not the only one who gets confused of those American names.
Many of our naming habits come from us randomly coming up with extra nicknames for each other for the sake of humor, convenience, or even coolness. Convenience coupled with verbal flow while communicating is often the biggest reason though(personal opinion, not fact for everyone). (Answer from American.)
I think the celebrity thing (Michael J. Fox Samuel L Jackson etc) has more to do with the actors Guild. There can only be one person by that name alive and who’s a member of the actors guild, which you have to be if you want to work in movies, so you choose your middle initial.
Right. Sometimes they'll go by their middle names, sometimes by their initials, and sometimes a diminutive. (E.g., and actor named "William [lastname]" if there is another "William [samelastname]" might go by "Bill" or "Wil".) Sometimes child actors will change when they grow up. Billy Moses became William R. Moses. Some will use different names for different purposes. Alexander Siddig, for example, uses that name when he acts, but is Seddig el-Faddil when he directs.
@@natejones8508 Ordinary people may not use their middle initial but it will be included in the credits at the end of the film. Also talk show hosts will use it when introducing the person.
Calling someone by their last name only, in Dutch would only be done in a friendly mocking way (as amongst friends and as far as I know only amongst male friends) or in a negative mocking way. Once again a great video. Zeer bedankt! Baie dankie! Danke sehr!
Friends do not normally call each other by their last name. The middle initial thing is a celebrity thing (the ones you mentioned were celebs) you will hear someone say something like "thanks, Mrs G" to someone else's mother it is less formal than Mrs Grant but more formal than using the woman's first name and seems to fit right for a teenager It is also done if the person has an unpronounceable last name (see Coach K of Duke University). This was a cute video.
The name thing is fairly common with common names -- my brother goes my his last name, because he is one of three "Ben"s in his tight best friend group. Similarly, my husband, Alex, goes by his last name in some circles, because one of his close friends is also named Alex.
Exactly. When I was a teen, the "Mr./Ms. Last Initial." was seen as "casually respectful." The two of you know each other well enough to be on a first name basis, but because the adult is in a position of authority, they are still addressed by title. Addressing someone by last name only is reserved for the military, or occasionally in the corporate world (either the company is strictly formal, in which case it's echoing the military; or the boss is being distant and aloof, he calls you bu your last name, you must address him as "Boss," "Sir," or if the workplace is a kitchen environment, "Chef.") (The distant/aloof boss type has another name, used behind his back, it starts with the letter A and refers to a smelly piece of anatomy all humans have.)
Agree. Mr./Mrs. followed by the surname initial can convey a level of address between formal and casual. Its use goes back quite a ways, though. Two TV sitcoms I can think of from the early 60s routinely used this device. One was "Hazel", where the star of the show is an outgoing maid working for straight-laced wealthy businessman (Mr. Baxter) and his wife. She addresses him as Mr. B. Another is "Dobie Gillis" where beatnik Maynard G. Krebs always calls the parents of Dobie as Mr./Mrs. G. At that time at least, it showed a friendly relationship, but unequal social rank.
1) Calling someone by their last name IS a daily life thing. I think it comes in a pseudo-military context, like in a police force, or in school. 2) The three names come from the newspapers. Easier to identify people that way. (That's why serial killers 'have three names'--people know their names from the newspapers). 3) As for "J.J.', etc., that's just part of the American culture, to abbreviate EVERYTHING.
With the 3 names, I think that's just because legal documents show all the names a person has, and the journalists don't know which is their name of choice. Mark David Chapman for example.
It really depends on what English-speaking country you're in or from - for example, in Australia (my country), it is EXTREMELY COMMON to be given a nickname that ends with -ie, -e or -o, and it may not even have anything to do with your real name. A lot of electricians are nicknamed "Sparky" or "Sparkles". In Australia, having such a nickname is a mark of respect amongst friends - here, it is often said that "if you haven't been given a nickname, then nobody likes you". Also, we almost ALWAYS use first names, unless directly instructed otherwise. Great video btw!
I mean it's pretty much the same here in the states. Except the ending vowels part. Nicknames in the US are given by personality, profession, or other stuff like that. I got my nickname in my airsoft group Bulldog because I am small but I can fight. I'm only 5'4"
The "Mrs. K" thing is often, IMO, a way for younger children to address adults with longer or hard to pronounce last names. I distinctly remember my second-grade teacher had a Vietnamese or Korean last name and did not want the class to refer to her this way, instead opting to spend time teaching the class how to correctly pronounce it. I don't think it really has anything to do with being "chill" or anything like that.
It's also respectful, while being familiar, you would never call them by their first name, if you even knew it in the first place. It's weird to call them by their full last name if you call their child by the last name.
In America, the old tradition in families from England was to name the first-born son, "John". So using their last name (even with older children), "England" or "Williams" for example was sometimes better than calling a thousand English Johnies or a thousand Scottish Charlies, etc. For awhile, there were also many Debbies and many Cathy's. Now, the weirder, the better and fewer children are named after their grandmothers or uncles. In London, the most common baby name is apparently now, "Mohammed". Yes, the purpose of school was to prepare young boys for the military (even in public schools), so phys ed classes did the same kind of calisthenics that the military used in boot camp. Sports teams always used military metaphors also. Remember that all recent American wars have lasted decades and never end. Our involvement with World War Two was barely three years and World War One was hardly one year for us.
1:53 Using the last name can be for a couple reasons. It's often done buy bullies in a derogatory way. For some reason a lot of teenage boys to it to their close friends. And some Americans just prefer to go by their last names for the same reasons one might go by their middle name.
@@hdevivs09 Das Video ist auf englisch, weshalb ich mich entschieden habe ihn auch auf englisch zu schreiben. Somit ist er außerdem für mehr Menschen verständlich.
@@lena__lu ah okay, ich verstehe dich, und es tut mir leid, wenn ich sowieso unhöflich zu dir war.😬 Auch, ich komme aus Indien und zurzeit in stadt Neu delhi leben, und ja ich bin deutsch lernen seit ein jahre. 😬
Trixi, the reason for "last naming" people starts normally in gym class. For some reason, gym teachers think that calling you by your last name somehow adds a military - style mentality, giving them a subliminal edge to keep order. I know it sounds far fetched, but psychology is overused as early as what you would call "Grundschule", or elementary school here. Hope that makes sense.
Omg." Isabel cook", im called "cookie" by PE teachers and i never knew y, my friend was called "marshy" (marsh) "kingy" (king) etc. But he just added Ys onto the end, or for me: ie😂
Calling someone's parent Mr/Mrs plus the first initial of their last name was popularized back in the 1970's by an American TV show called "Happy Days". There was a character on the show known as "Fonzie" or "The Fonz" who was the super cool guy and beloved by millions. He would often refer to the mother of his best friend (Richie Cunningham) as "Mrs C" and the father as "Mr C". I think it caught on because everyone wanted to be cool like "The Fonz". You were also correct about many of us preferring the sound of a first and last name separated by a middle initial. It just has a better rhythm to it for some reason. In fact, one American President - Harry Truman - was given an "S" as a middle initial to his name even though it didn't stand for anything. So his name was "Harry S Truman" and the crazy thing is that the "S" just stood for "S".
Ron Fisher based on your profile pic, you certainly don't look like Abe Vigoda (The reason I say that is because whenever I hear someone being addressed by the nickname "Fish", The first thing that comes to mind is "Barney Miller")
@@jbarninatus5898 Funny, I had a lieutenant with the family name Fischlein. (little fish) One time he told us that he just had to make a call and a Hauptmann (captain) Hering (herring) answered the phone. So a guy picks up the phone and says: "Unit xyz captain herring on the phone" and the other guys says: "here is lieutenant little fish". He said there weren't sure who is pranking whom.
Very interesting topic, Svenja :-) One thing I really love about your German language videos, is how you address the nuances and intricacies of the language and culture. Thank you :-)
Or @ Ben West, in the days before cellphones were carried by everyone, as a parent with a child and 4 of his friends all named Scott, while attempting to get the correct one to pick up the extension phone and speak to their parent.
I liked when you read that article, with the text and translation on the screen. It was so cool to hear you speaking German, with the words in German on the screen so I could start to imagine how those crazy spellings turn into those crazy pronunciations!!
As for the last name thing. It's not super common, but we did it at the comic shop I ran. Mainly because one night, if we used first names, we had Chris, Chris, Chris, Chriss, Crystal, Crystal, Matt, Matt and Matt in the shop at the same time.
The middle initial thing really caught on in the 1980s. It was known as the "power initial" and people used it to make themselves sound important, and get noticed.
Exactly. Who sounds more important? "Sam Jackson" or "Samuel L Jackson"? The middle initial also helps with the confusion. My dad's name was also Harvey. When the phone rang we'd ask "Harvey A or Harvey W"? It sure helped at the Doctor's. No, I'm not on those meds. Check the middle initial. Oop wrong chart. Sorry.
I was one of 5 Jessicas in 8th grade, haha. Of the other four, 3 were bullies and 1 became a very good friend of mine who was also bullied by the other 3 Jessicas. :D
The statement "A one and a two" is a timing count for a musical score usually. And then it is usually shortened to "a one anna two. Hence the joke. And since it is a bad joke, I was "ducking" to avoid getting hit with comments. Also, those can be called "verbal bricks". lol
Das mit den Nachnamen ist in der Schule auch bei uns in Österreich üblich gewesen. Vor allem wenn man mehrere Pauls oder Tobias in der Klasse hatte. Manche Lehrer haben sich auch Spitznamen ausgedacht, zb Joschi für Josef. ^^
In meiner Klasse hatte wir mal nebeneinander sitzen: Einen Sven, dann einen Sven-Daniel, der normalerweise im Alltag Sven gerufen wurde, und dann einen Daniel. Da auf Sven immer beide Svens reagierten, rief sie der Lehrer Sven-Daniel und Sven-ohne-Daniel
Addressing someone by their last name can be when you’re referring to someone who you are friends with but should be formal to. Such as calling a teacher by their last name, or a teacher calling you by your last name Or some people do it when in their friend group there are multiple people with the same first name As with the bully example, if someone doesn’t know you well enough then them calling you by your last name is disrespectful. But on the other hand, if someone knows you well enough it is a friendly gesture Or can even be used in a joking context
1 Crissa has a good explanation for that 2 Shortening last names to one letter is just being close to tge person 3 The middle name initial is common for filling out medical docs 4 two letter nick name just tend to happen.
I was called by my last name all through school. I imagine it's because my first name is so common, that there was always more than one Michael in every class I had.
Da fallen mir noch mehr ein: FJS (Franz-Josef Strauß), TSG (Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel) . Außerdem gibt es die Verkürzung von Doppelnamen: Malu (Maria Luise Dreyer) Hajo (Hans-Josef) Hape (Hans Peter Kerkeling...
@@PewPewPlasmagun, Du kennst die aktuelle SPD-Vorsitzende nicht? Ok, die wechseln ja auch im Sekundentakt :-) Dank Dir höre ich jetzt ua-cam.com/video/ttMt9SHRwsM/v-deo.html
Being called by the last name isn't all that unusual in Germany. The cool teacher (only 1 allowed at each school) at my high school called all the male students by their last name and that isn't the only example I encountered. I have a Serbo-Croatian middle name that is always a hit with English speakers... Duschan, pronounced Douche-an. Yeah... wonder why...? hehehe
We had a lot of guys in our class, to whom we only referred by their last name. By some, it was because their first name was so common in the class, by others, I don't know x)
@ But were your cool teachers "wearing a leather jacket" and "paying 9th graders with beer for helping him wash his Harley" levels of cool? hehehehe Man, the teachers at my school were all like out of a cartoon. I really have to laugh when I think back. We had 2 biology teachers, married to each other, extreme "Öko"-hippies, wearing Birkenstocks and self-knitted clothes and smelling like Pachuli oil, asking kids whether they wanted to go to Anti Nuklear Energy demonstrations, but were total hypocrites, because although they only lived like a mile away from the school and usually came and left at the same time, they always drove 2 separate cars. You always saw them driving off right behind each other in the afternoon and you could almost see their house from the school. And our English teacher looked, dressed and talked like Mr Bean and the cool leather jacket teacher always made fun of him and teased him.
Calling friends by last names usually happens when they met through sports or through work (usually blue collar, military, firefighters, or police). In neighborhoods where everyone’s dad is a cop or a union worker it can spread down to the kids. In action or crime movies it’s common because of the type of background those characters have. With women, it can extend to emphasizing that gender or sexual attraction isn’t important to a particular relationship. It’s often used with female cops and soldiers (even more than with men) to emphasize that they aren’t viewed differently from the men. You might see it sometimes see it used negatively to imply that a woman doesn’t qualify as a woman. It gets used as a literary trick to show some backstory without spending time spelling it out. Calling someone by the last letter of their last name usually means that their name is unpronounceable or unspellable to most Americans. It’s most common with Polish names, but some German names get that treatment too. It can also be used as an affectionate but respectful form, like for a favored teacher or a friend’s parents. In my region it’s a lot more common to use Mr. or Miss plus the persons first name. (We always Miss in this context no matter what the marital status or age; the familiar address is always Miss.)
Throughout high school people always called me by my full name for some reason. Some of them did just call me by my first name but most by my full name.
Most people say Mr. or Ms. depending on the relationship some will state their last name. I have two friends with the same first name so we'll just call them by their last name
Love your channel, by the way. My high school German has to be nearly twice as old as you are, so it's gotten pretty rusty. I have found the couple of times I've been in Germany that I retain enough to meet basic needs, and maybe carry on a very simple conversation, but I've been wanting to brush up on my skills. Thanks!
I enjoy your videos. Historically addressing a person by their last name was the proper and respectful way of doing so. Only when you knew each other very well and considered each other a very close friend did you use the first name. Today this is not necessarily so. It depends on the regional and local customs. In the South, it can still be a respectful way, but always with "Mr."or "Mrs.". In the West, you would never address a friend by their last name. In fact, some friends do not even know the last names of others. In many cases today, a person only gives out their last name when they are trusted. As others have stated, addressing someone by the last name only is usually an authoritative thing. It also comes in handy when you have 4 people with the same first name in your group, In college, we had four guys with the first name of Timothy. We either used their last name or gave them a nickname. At work, I had two guys with the same first name and same initials. I had to give them nicknames.
I am sorry you got called something you didn't want to be called in school. I think that can be permanently damaging since it happens so frequently. But hopefully you can be resilient and not let it get the best of you. Sometimes it helps to think the people who chose to call you that didn't know any better, so you are really the smarter person.
Ryan Johnson she really should have mentioned that "cow" is a slur in German when applied to females. If someone calls a female a cow it means "(dumb) asshole". Must have been some rough years.
Regarding "last names": calling someone by their last name only can either be a way to express familiarity/friendship, OR to express your authority over another person - e.g. military superior speaking to a low ranking person. As for shortening a last name to the first letter - that is typically a way to show familiarity/endearment to the person and still be respectful - i.e Mrs. K from your example is definitely intended with affection (shortening the surname to "K" and respect (saying "Mrs."). As with many such things in English and other languages, it's a matter of the tone in which the words are spoken (including body language) and some knowledge of the background of the relationship between the people speaking. Incidentally, the use of this dialog device in movies/writing conveys a great deal more to the watcher/reader than the strict definitions of the words. One can fully know a language and be technically fluent, but mastering these sorts of subtleties is what makes one TRULY fluent.
Michael J. Fox was born Michael Andrew Fox. When he got into acting, he was forbidden from using the name "Michael Fox" by the Screen Actors Guild because there already was a Michael Fox in the Guild. He didn't like "Michael A. Fox" or "Michael Andrew Fox", so he went with Michael J. Fox.
It's a sports thing. We're mad about our sports. It comes from what's on the back of your jersey. It was dicey for me as my last name is Kumm. So... Hey, you have Kumm on your jersey... Freaking high school boys..
Yeah all of that happens, typically on a very informal level like between friends, or like with a gym coach and student. The middle initial thing is typically how they sign their name or otherwise represent themselves in written language. We use nicknames frequently in the United States, it kind of tells someone that they are part of ‘the group.’ Much of this seems to be related to that.
In the USA, in the 1970s, using the last name as a letter such as referring to Peter Kraus’ mother as “Mrs. K” went from uncommon to part of the mass popular culture due to the hit television show Happy Days. The character of Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) would see his friends address his father as “Mr. C” (Tom Bosley) & his mother as “Mrs. C” (Marion Ross). After the great success of this TV show, it became common for kids, especially the next generation watching in re-runs, would use this type of reference in their lives as well. Those around prior to that show, would remember it was unusual to rare to hear it. After the show, it became more and more common in vernacular use. I hope this sheds some light on its use by Americans. Thanks Ms. Trixie for another interesting, insightful journey into the differences and similarities in languages! 😎
@@dylanbutler698 Like I said to the other conment, it's a casual thing. Maybe she wanted the student-teacher situation to have a less rigid, professional feel.
¡Sí! Es muy común. My friends and I in grade school were not only addressing each other by our last names only, but with as creative a mangle as possible, because guys enjoy being rude to each other. For example, (Billy) Smith is called Shmitt, (Tommy) Jones is actually Bones or Bonie, (Mike) NcDonald is actually Burger-n-fries. The inclusion of our middle initial makes us sound important or helps to avoid confusion with someone else with the same first or last names. A century ago it had become "the thing" for authors and often other famous people, to be known by their first and middle initials followed by their last name. For example, G. K. Chesterton and W. C. Fields. Fun video!
I noticed the differences in naming culture before but never REALLY noticed it. I guess i am consuming too much media in english. Great video Svenja 'Q' Trixington!
The last name thing happens a lot when there are multiple people with the same first name in a given group. Those names often persist beyond those groups, even when they are the only person with their first name, because other people are so accustomed to using their last name and that person is so used to answering to it.
Severian Wintermute in many cases with famous people yeah maybe this is the case. But I’ve heard many people refer to John Kennedy, or just Kennedy. No one really does this with people they know.
Mothers often use full names to indicate you are in trouble. You might be Teddy when in good graces, but Theodore William Miller! When you’ve done something wrong.
Nobody in the USA says "Hi, I'm Bruce R Hamilton". You're looking at movie stars stage/professional entertainer names. Which they probably make as catchy as possible to stay relevant, important, etc etc.
giorgi khutsishvili I think most languages with the intimate-formal second-person pronoun distinction happens when you become friends, so when you stop calling them mister or miss and stop sir or ma’aming them. I think definitely by the first date you’d be thouing someone. Think about how weird it’d be to say “I’ll get the door for you Ms. Johnson” or “I’d like to kiss you, ma’am” to someone before and after the date, formal doesn’t really roll off as romantic most of the time in that way.
I really don't get why so many people in the comments have a hard time to explain it. It starts in school in kindergarten until college. The Teachers call every student by their surnames, if nobody introduces other kid to us, we only know each other by the surname, Them when we want to talk with a colleague, we don't have any idea of how is their first name, and we use the name the teacher use.. And the reason teachers use last names had nothing to do with the military. The reason was that there were too many students with the same first name.
I don't know where you went to school, but I attended 4 different school districts at different times between kindergarten and 12th grade and I never had any teacher refer to any of the students by surname only. Each teacher tried to make a point to learn and use the first name of each child. Only my French teacher regularly called students by different names throughout the year, but that was only because she had us choose either the French version of their English name, or in cases like mine where there was no direct equivalent, I got to choose whatever I wanted from a list she provided of typical French names.
Teachers didn't address students by surnames only in my entire education. There were too many kids with the same surnames for that to be remotely useful.
It is true for all points. Originated in military, became part of the lexicon, made it into movies. It all depends on the tone to determine if it is out of spite, or respect. Many times, a last name is used when many people have the same surname in a group.
@Forrest Gun Tv My maternal great grandfather Konrad Humbert who married Alice Gerhardt( Alsatian) is from Zeiskam, Germany. My last name Greiveldinger comes from Luxemburg.
Miller! It's an everyday thing for the most part, there could be a dozen John's in a crowd so yelling out the last name cuts through most, if not all, of that. You're correct to say there is an authoritarian/military edge to it. I guess that aspect is much more specific auf Deutche.
What would you at school if 5 people had the same first name ?? You start calling them with their last names. It’s normal and also normal in Germany. We do it at work.
"Ich bin Lisa S. Müller." "Alles klar, Lisa Essmüller."
Den Vorfall gab es tatsächlich, als TV-Moderatorin Ilka Eßmüller angesprochen wurde mit: "Frau Müller..." - "Eßmüller; macht aber nichts." Machte offenbar doch was.
@@LigH_de Bei Frauke Ludowig dachte ich lange Zeit erst, sie heißt Frau Keludowig :D
Oder Weiss-muller, Grun-wald ....................
@@ralfhaggstrom9862 - nee, es ging ja um Namenszusätze, die wie einzelne Buchstaben klingen. "Weiss" und "Grun" sind keine Buchstaben.
@@Oo0DaVinci0oO Gab ja vor einiger Zeit auch so eine umstrittene Politikerin namens Frau Kepetry, deren Vorname niemand kennt.
It's been my experience that only guys here call each other by their last names. In other words, if you heard girls or women doing that, it would be weird.
I think that is more common historically in Germany, especially in the rural areas and amongst the working class than now. How many of these American movies you are talking about are Action-Adventure? That means either military, or police, or former military or police, where last name only is common or normal. Use of initials or initials only? That one goes back awhile in the US. One of the Confederate Generals was known by 3 initials and his last name (P.G.T. Beauregard for Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard), P.T. Barnum of Barnum and Bailey Circus fame, famous German American US Army General H. Norman Schwarzkopf (First Gulf War), and most Americans don't have more than one first name. Some of those last initial only are for somewhat obvious reasons. Duke Men's Basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski is known simply as "Coach K" because, well...even the Poles will tell you their language is difficult to spell. I think the first use of initials for a last name I can recall was in the 1980s TV show "Different Strokes" Arnold and Willis called their adopted father "Mr. D." prior to their adoption.
As a woman I call people by their surnames or a version of it, a lot of people have the same names and it gets confusing if you shout the name and they all respond, there were 7 Megan's in my class at school and 5 Joe's and I lost count of how many Emily's i know about 10 years ago, much easier to just use surnames
Like the Michael j.fox the Samuel l Jackson and people using their middle initial that's just a celebrity thing last names on the other hand are used because especially for men certain first names are just really really common so you're always having to use the person's last name anyway because if I yell Jason and a room full of people 14 people would probably turn around girls don't usually have this problem their names AR more diverse girls with even common first names usually get a nickname like my late girlfriend used to be Denise but her nickname that everybody called her was Niecy .........I think the problem with names in the United States is the lack of diversity of first names especially for men minorities in the United States don't usually have this problem it's mostly just white men I mean black guys are named crazy things like Jamal or Demetrius or Marcus Tyrone Denzel see black people can just make up things white guys are usually named after people in the Bible so I mean there's like a s*** ton of John's and Mike's in Christopher's there is so many Christopher's no one even uses that name Chris I know so many Christopher'sone of them doesn't even go by their last name cuz it's a common last name too so he goes by Topher
@@josephatnip2398 Actors use middle initials and strange names because the Screen Actors Guild requires names to be unique.
The initial or middle initial is more an American thing.
My mother and father (who were not American) used to refer to people by their surnames like that all the time. Sometimes it's useful to differentiate people if they have the same first name.
The last name thing is a military thing. From there I believe it leaked into sports. I think it's a way of acknowledging you're on the same team.
And because of the military and sports connections, it's far more common for boys and men to address each other by last names than girls and women.
And men are like that ... a casual insult is the best proof of a deeper level of friendship.
True. I was in the Bundeswehr in 2001. I still remember the last names of my comrades. But only 1 or 2 firstnames...
At first it was weird to call everyone by their lastname (and be called by yours) but I adapted it really fast. It became natural pretty quick.
It's also sports thing but it's for looking professional to others
@@Moritz19081980 Thanks for your service.
This is definitely a thing in the US. I had a college professor who called me by my last name. It is very helpful if you know more than one person with the same first name.
There are five Daves in my friend group. We all go by our surnames
Zu Schulzeiten haben wir Jungs uns fast immer nur mit dem Nachnamen angesprochen...
Ihr seid doch verrückt. Zu Schulzeiten wusste ich eher den Vornamen als den Nachnamen von jemandem.
Ich kenne das auch aus der Schulzeit.
Wir Mädels auch... war ganz normal. Grade weil wir so viele Patricks, Jonasse, Philipps und Lisas hatten.
violinscratcher Wir machen das bei uns der Firma heute auch so!
Arno Nühm In meiner Klasse waren 9 Thomas, 3 Andreas und 2 Armin.
Vornamen machten keinen Sinn.
Und wir kannten von alle Vor- und Nachnamen.
In America, a child is most likely to hear their full name when their mother or father is really angry!
Same in germany^^ - funfact, imagine kids with ridiculous long names xD "Eva Lisa Marie Müller von Thurgau, komm auf der stelle her!"
In United States people steal the name of the whole continent and don't know how names works!
It's very common, especially in school, to address people by their last names. This is because most first names are very common, but your surname is usually pretty unique. It avoids confusion.
Yes!
Teachers, especially in secondary school, do so. In the past, with Latin ordinals: "Springham Primus! Don't do that ..." were used for further identification if there were more than one with the same surname, often from the same family.
Full names are used for when you are in deep trouble: "Ian Vincent Springham ... Come here!"
This
Never ran into this in K12, or even in University.
Wow, the exact opposite is true here in India. Surnames are pretty common here, especially in smaller towns and rural areas. But first names are less likely to be so.
I think youngsters addressing adults as something like “Mrs. K” started with foreign surnames that were difficult to pronounce.
Very Likely. I know a Dr. O. whose last name is indecipherable to americans.. He's Nigerian, so his name just falls apart in most american's mouths.
One of the most famous basketball coaches, Mike Krzyzewski is ofen called "Coach K."
I had a teacher in junior high whose name my classmates and I could pronounce but not spell. Mr. Kobecheski (I think). We eventually all started to just call him Mr. K for who knows what reason. It's only four syllables.
Now a days it's just laziness of proper speaking. It annoys me to boiling point.
Yeah thats one reason but i also take it as showing familiarity with the person but not familiar enough to address themself by their first name.
5:44 fun fact: the "J" in Michael J Fox stands for "Andrew". I'm not kidding, look it up :D
wtf
@@Dzatoah I think there was once some other famous guy called Michael A. Fox, so the Michael (from back to the future) called himself Michael J.
Andrew can be represented by AJ. So it must’ve come from that. Now why does AJ happen? No idea. Andrew Jackson? Couldn’t tell ya.
@@colinstu the pronounciation maybe? An-jurue is how we pronounce Andrew, not And-rue or An-der-rue. Maybe if you have a country accent or something or live in Jersey or Boston you know what I mean? I mean just with standard speaking English.
-SMP- scientific method perspective I just say it An-Drew. I don’t see how the J sound comes from D.
1. Calling each other by last names: It is common for several people in any group to have the same first name. So often, rather than a full name (too long), or a "Mr., Mrs., Ms.", etc. (too formal), we just use the last name. Obviously. this doesn't work at family gatherings...
2. Shortening the last name to one letter (Mr's K, from your example): This does happen, but it's probably far more common on TV and film than real life. It's meant to show that the child using the abbreviation is has a closer connection to the family, while still being casual - they feel almost like a member of the family.
3. We typically only use full middle names when someone is in trouble: When your mother is yelling at you - "John Michael Thompson, get in here and pick this up NOW!", or in legal trouble - "The shooter was identified as John Michael Thompson.". The abbreviated middle name is also used when the first and last names are common - "John D. Smith, John H. Smith", etc. In entertainment, performers (for legal reasons) need to be distinct, so if there is a "Michael Fox", and your name is Michael Fox, you might add a middle initial - "Michael J. Fox". Or you might use the full middle name, like Anthony Michael Hall, depending on what you think sounds better.
4. The two letter names: You got it - some people think it sounds cool. To be fair, not all combinations sound good in English, and most people don't use them. I don't personally know anyone who goes by just their initials, so I think it's more common in TV and film.
Love your channel! I think it's good to ask these questions, since it forces us to think about things we never think about (why DO we do that?). :)
You'd love Australia.
Have red hair, earns the nickname Bluey.
Why? Red hair.
Makes perfect sense.
@Unauthorized Please show yourself out now.
@Unauthorized ...and you should be ashamed. I might make that joke, but then again I am an unashamed punster.
Nicknaming isn't strange just in Australia. I'm German and my friend Michael has many nicknames: Michael (pronounced English and German), Michi, Micky and Mikail (Russian) make sense as they just abbreviate the word or are different pronounced. But don't ask me how we got to pronounce his name French (as Michaël or so). And I absolutely have no no idea why his most used nickname is Myre.
Well, another friend is nicknamed Brokkolikopf (broccoli head). I guess we are very mean individuals.
There Be Game Antonym nicknames are common in movies and occasionally in real life. The big bruiser may be called Tiny, an obese person may be called Slim (or a skinny person Fats), etc.
What, would you have liked Greenie better than Bluey? Hahaha. -- Nothing against the ginger-ness. Gingerosity? ;) And either way, it's better than being called Strawberry. Though Rusty seems fine. Hmm, come to think of it, I've never heard a girl called Rusty, but plenty of boys, even without red hair. Huh. Bluey, though, is a perfectly good, if baffling nickname. Hey, if you ever go bald or shave your head, you could be Shiny! See, there are pluses, if you just look a little. (Shiny, going with the Firefly thing....)
I have a very common first name for my generation. I would often have at least one other girl with the same name in one of my classes. We were all known by our first name and last initial. Jennifer h.
I work in foodservice and at one time there were 5 Jennifer's. I began not to respond when my name was called as it often wasnt for me. To help clear things up I decided to go by my last name. They would either shout hof or hofmann. If they wanted me. I could have used my middle name but Unfortunatly that one is rather common to, Marie. Lol
Going by ones last name is a military thing. I guess it was to help reduce the confusion when people have very common names first names. Not as likely to multiple hofmann's at work unless its a family business.
Most americans only use their middle name initial for legal documents or in places where they want to ensure or clarify who they are. If they become famous using the initial in their name then others may continue to use it when introducing them to others so you know this is the famous writer George R.R. Martin. And not the actor George Martin.
For that cause, people rather use nicknames in the German language. For example back when I was in school we were 16 people in Latin class including four boys all named "Maximilian". One was really called "Maximilian", one "Max", one "Maxi" and the fourth one was distinguished by eye contact...
Usually I call my friends by their last names if there are two people with the same name in a friend group
Precisely. I'm guessing we have a lot more common American names than German ones? I don't know for sure though (being neither German, nor American)
Same here. I'm German by the way.
Same here - I got a common forename (Richard) so I know a decent number of people also called Richard.
My surname Noble - well, it not rare exactly but it's less common.
In Serbia we call everybody "brate" (brother) in everyday speech regardless of their gender/age.
Is that like the soviets referring to everyone as comrade?
Papci jbg...
In Bavaria, some people actually use the last name in order to talk to someone, especially at school. About half the people in my grade call me "Fink" instead of "Florian". Even my best friends do that. I don't really like that, but I've gotten used to it by now.
Also, wenn we write down our names or introduce ourselves, we usually put the last name in front of the first name. So it's rather "Bauer David" than "David Bauer".
I remember with a sense of pride when my buddies in grade school started calling me by my last name because I think they were emulating the sports announcers. They called the TV or radio plays like "Jackson with a catch and a dive for a fist down at the 40!" or "Ramirez with a swing and a drive!" That all came from sports and I think we thought we were kind of cool to get to do that. But in real life, people rarely call me by my last name unless they're just being silly.
Also, I have no idea how I got to this video. UA-cam is crazy!
The abbreviation of middle names is usually on paper. Most people wouldn't introduce themselves with their middle name or an initial. Ie George RR Martin is a pen name of sorts.
But some people go by their middle name. I go by Ben, a nickname for my middle name. I don't like my first name. But it gets annoying when filling out forms. People who make forms to fill out do not like middle names. -- I've known a few people who also go by their middle names. But it's not as common. Parents should think more carefully about how they name their kids. (to make it worse, most people and most computers assume my first name is a girl's name. It was really awkward, some of the product samples I got in college in the mail. No, I really can't use that. Wrong body parts!)
The use of middle initials is to differentiate between two people with the same firstname/lastname. If you have a John H. Smith and a John B. Smith in the same company, for eample.
@@benw9949 My granddad on my mother side was one such an example; He was Noel Henry Smith but always known as Henry.
Furthermore his middle name kinda has a legacy. As it happens he died when just prior my elder brother being born. My parents already select a name (Thomas James Noble) but added a second middle name to my bro to honour my grandad (so Thomas James Henry Noble).
As a result the started a tradition and me and my three siblings each have two middle name (mine is Edward Luke in cas your wondering - forename Richard)
To English speakers, the use of a middle initial almost always makes someone seem smarter or more authoritative. Hence, all of the authors, professors, and presidents who sign their name with their middle initial.
My father was a 'Jr."; he went by his middle name to distinguish himself from my grandfather.
The last name thing, in the US particularly, is because in a group, you could have multiple people with the same first name, but not likely the same last name. It's particularly used in Military, Law Enforcement, EMS/Fire Department and frequently with school sports teams. Frequently we also use nick names derived from our given names. As an example: When I was in the Air Force I went by the nick name of Robi (from my last name.) There was also a Sergeant Robson, Sergeant Robertson, and an airman who's first name was Robert and we all went by the nick name of Robbie (various spellings). One day our commander came into the day room and shouted "Hey Robbie". Four people (counting myself) turned around and shouted back "Hey What". Thus a confusion on the part of our commander. Same thing happens in classrooms, athletic fields or even in large businesses. So frequently familiar groups will use either nick names or last names to avoid confusion when you have more than one person with the same first name.
I'd say that the main reason people are called by their last name in the military is because that's the name they have on their uniform, and oftentimes you won't even know someone's first name until you've already known them for awhile, if you ever learn it at all. I was also in the Air Force, but I have a Polish last name, which some people seemed to have a hard time with, so I was generally known by a host of different nicknames lol
I think calling someone by their surname is a military thing that leaked inti normal speech. I was often called Murphy or just Murph.
In a society like ours with so many subcultures, it may be a form to create a middle ground between full formality and informality. I also think it comes from the military, like so many other things. (Just look at the language of business).
She said that. It is a form of militarism, and it is meant to be impolite, as a soldier is a subordinated being, not a free man. It is time to stop that in a democratic and free society.
@@schusterlehrling There are reasons why the custom arose in the first place. The United States is the size of half a continent. The people who immigrated here often came from very different backgrounds. (For example:; about a third of the Hessian soldiers who fought for the British eventually settled in America.) That's a middle way between formality and informality.
@@sld1776 Really? I never knew that.
@@schusterlehrling What country are you referring to? I have noticed that the U.S. is becoming less "democratic" and less "free" every day-!!
It's a bit cultural, but it depends on the context, and referring to people by their last names only is quite common in North America for many reasons.
1. Military and Sports teams. It is common among military and sports personnel to refer to one another by last names only. This is because this is how many people are known. You see this especially with professional athletes, because they are known by the public primarily by their last name, as that is a more unique name and is what gets printed on their jersey (uniform).
2. Calling someone by their last name can just be a sort of term of endearment, it becomes like a nick-name for them.
3. Sometimes when a group of people has many people by the same first name, their last names will be used instead, to refer to them, because last names tend to be more unique.
For example among my friends, we have a lot of guys with the first name of "Matt" and "Dave". So we just call those guys by their last names most of the time.
Every coach I ever had in school always called me by last name.
Patricia, here's a joke for your channel: What do you call a group of rabbits hopping backwards? A receding hairline! 😂
HAHA. :D Good one, I'm a sucker for cheesy jokes, much to my colleagues' dismay.
Or a bunch of German guys running backwards: a receding Herr line...
Seems like a bit of a leap to me..... :D
@@benw9949 I like that! (BTW, I am not a puppet. I'm a real boy---Pinocchio!)
@@jonthecomposer Ah, that's great!!!
"Hey, I'm talking to you, McFly, you Irish bug.... Hello? hello? Anybody home? Think, McFly, think."
This surname thing can be seen among the males of the species, maybe that's why you never encountered it. And I think it's more common in Bavaria ^^
So true about the male thing. I worked with almost all men and they were all referred to by their last names. But as a woman they called me by my first name most of the time even though I did the same job at the same pay grade.
@@GGehlker And, from my experience, it's only the outgoing "cool" or popular guys. Neither me (the shy and quiet guy) nor my friend or anyone else I'm friends with does this.
So it seems to be a south-German thing, because I know from BW and Südpfalz, that we do the same thing, but we don't call woman by there lastname. And I lived also in NRW and Hamburg for a little while and don't recall it from there. - Or my memmory is just selective.
That American naming habbit also confuses me sometimes. I am from Finland.
P.S. This video was really good. It was nice to hear that I am not the only one who gets confused of those American names.
Many of our naming habits come from us randomly coming up with extra nicknames for each other for the sake of humor, convenience, or even coolness. Convenience coupled with verbal flow while communicating is often the biggest reason though(personal opinion, not fact for everyone).
(Answer from American.)
I think the celebrity thing (Michael J. Fox Samuel L Jackson etc) has more to do with the actors Guild. There can only be one person by that name alive and who’s a member of the actors guild, which you have to be if you want to work in movies, so you choose your middle initial.
Exactly, same with the authors. It’s funny she thinks people go around introducing each other by their full name plus middle initials.
Right. Sometimes they'll go by their middle names, sometimes by their initials, and sometimes a diminutive. (E.g., and actor named "William [lastname]" if there is another "William [samelastname]" might go by "Bill" or "Wil".) Sometimes child actors will change when they grow up. Billy Moses became William R. Moses. Some will use different names for different purposes. Alexander Siddig, for example, uses that name when he acts, but is Seddig el-Faddil when he directs.
@@natejones8508 Ordinary people may not use their middle initial but it will be included in the credits at the end of the film. Also talk show hosts will use it when introducing the person.
I use my middle initial in my signature, and more formal introductions, to distinguish myself from my father, who has the same first name.
@@davidbinau2029 But you're not a junior?
And then there are "bro names" like K-dog, Steve-o, and the like.
how bout D-Bag LMAO
Calling someone by their last name only, in Dutch would only be done in a friendly mocking way (as amongst friends and as far as I know only amongst male friends) or in a negative mocking way. Once again a great video. Zeer bedankt! Baie dankie! Danke sehr!
Friends do not normally call each other by their last name. The middle initial thing is a celebrity thing (the ones you mentioned were celebs) you will hear someone say something like "thanks, Mrs G" to someone else's mother it is less formal than Mrs Grant but more formal than using the woman's first name and seems to fit right for a teenager It is also done if the person has an unpronounceable last name (see Coach K of Duke University). This was a cute video.
The name thing is fairly common with common names -- my brother goes my his last name, because he is one of three "Ben"s in his tight best friend group. Similarly, my husband, Alex, goes by his last name in some circles, because one of his close friends is also named Alex.
Exactly.
When I was a teen, the "Mr./Ms. Last Initial." was seen as "casually respectful." The two of you know each other well enough to be on a first name basis, but because the adult is in a position of authority, they are still addressed by title.
Addressing someone by last name only is reserved for the military, or occasionally in the corporate world (either the company is strictly formal, in which case it's echoing the military; or the boss is being distant and aloof, he calls you bu your last name, you must address him as "Boss," "Sir," or if the workplace is a kitchen environment, "Chef.")
(The distant/aloof boss type has another name, used behind his back, it starts with the letter A and refers to a smelly piece of anatomy all humans have.)
My class allwaya called my class teacher Mrs.T (tea).
I think I have one friend who I call by their first name.
Everyone else has either a nickname or they get called by their last name.
Agree. Mr./Mrs. followed by the surname initial can convey a level of address between formal and casual. Its use goes back quite a ways, though. Two TV sitcoms I can think of from the early 60s routinely used this device. One was "Hazel", where the star of the show is an outgoing maid working for straight-laced wealthy businessman (Mr. Baxter) and his wife. She addresses him as Mr. B. Another is "Dobie Gillis" where beatnik Maynard G. Krebs always calls the parents of Dobie as Mr./Mrs. G. At that time at least, it showed a friendly relationship, but unequal social rank.
1) Calling someone by their last name IS a daily life thing. I think it comes in a pseudo-military context, like in a police force, or in school.
2) The three names come from the newspapers. Easier to identify people that way. (That's why serial killers 'have three names'--people know their names from the newspapers).
3) As for "J.J.', etc., that's just part of the American culture, to abbreviate EVERYTHING.
With the 3 names, I think that's just because legal documents show all the names a person has, and the journalists don't know which is their name of choice. Mark David Chapman for example.
It really depends on what English-speaking country you're in or from - for example, in Australia (my country), it is EXTREMELY COMMON to be given a nickname that ends with -ie, -e or -o, and it may not even have anything to do with your real name. A lot of electricians are nicknamed "Sparky" or "Sparkles". In Australia, having such a nickname is a mark of respect amongst friends - here, it is often said that "if you haven't been given a nickname, then nobody likes you". Also, we almost ALWAYS use first names, unless directly instructed otherwise. Great video btw!
I mean it's pretty much the same here in the states. Except the ending vowels part. Nicknames in the US are given by personality, profession, or other stuff like that. I got my nickname in my airsoft group Bulldog because I am small but I can fight. I'm only 5'4"
The "Mrs. K" thing is often, IMO, a way for younger children to address adults with longer or hard to pronounce last names. I distinctly remember my second-grade teacher had a Vietnamese or Korean last name and did not want the class to refer to her this way, instead opting to spend time teaching the class how to correctly pronounce it. I don't think it really has anything to do with being "chill" or anything like that.
Yes, this.
Yeah, I've seen this a fair bit! In one case, for a German name - Spricher, IIRC. (Though the fellow in question wasn't from Germany, directly.)
It's also respectful, while being familiar, you would never call them by their first name, if you even knew it in the first place.
It's weird to call them by their full last name if you call their child by the last name.
Also, a way of being informal, but still respectful.
You’d love Australian English, we change first names to just ad o to the end of them
John= johno
Tom= tomo
Sam = samo
Etc
It’s cool.
And Timmy if a person's name is Tim. :D
In America, the old tradition in families from England was to name the first-born son, "John". So using their last name (even with older children), "England" or "Williams" for example was sometimes better than calling a thousand English Johnies or a thousand Scottish Charlies, etc. For awhile, there were also many Debbies and many Cathy's. Now, the weirder, the better and fewer children are named after their grandmothers or uncles. In London, the most common baby name is apparently now, "Mohammed".
Yes, the purpose of school was to prepare young boys for the military (even in public schools), so phys ed classes did the same kind of calisthenics that the military used in boot camp. Sports teams always used military metaphors also. Remember that all recent American wars have lasted decades and never end. Our involvement with World War Two was barely three years and World War One was hardly one year for us.
1:53 Using the last name can be for a couple reasons. It's often done buy bullies in a derogatory way. For some reason a lot of teenage boys to it to their close friends. And some Americans just prefer to go by their last names for the same reasons one might go by their middle name.
There's a music group from decades back called the Steve Miller Band.
And, spelled with a ph, the individual who gives evil ideas to our receptive president.
Steve Miller Band were great
Hell yeah
Using first names among Greeks can lead to confusions...imagine how many 'Nick/Niko/Nicholas' there will be in a given room.
How do they deal with all the Mohammeds in Muslim countries? I mean, there must be a lot so I presume they use nicknames.
Same with Italians. I mean Greak and Italian culture were amongst the first civilizations to start out time without surnames.
@@anonb4632 Or Bruce's in Australia
They're all common. My mom pretty much only calls my dad by his last name. And now I'm obsessed with the German pronunciation of Patricia.
That's seem a bit too formal regarding the status of their relationship innit?
I call some of my friends and classmates by their lastname. I am from Germany. 🤷♀️
Macht man aber eigentlich nur wenn man z.B. (wie ich) 4 Julians in der Klasse hat, oder?
okay, aber warum du schreibst dieser Text im englisch? kannst du nicht deutsch sprechen oder?
@@hdevivs09 Das Video ist auf englisch, weshalb ich mich entschieden habe ihn auch auf englisch zu schreiben. Somit ist er außerdem für mehr Menschen verständlich.
@@lena__lu ah okay, ich verstehe dich, und es tut mir leid, wenn ich sowieso unhöflich zu dir war.😬
Auch, ich komme aus Indien und zurzeit in stadt Neu delhi leben, und ja ich bin deutsch lernen seit ein jahre. 😬
@@hdevivs09 Alles in Ordnung :)
Du kannst sehr gut deutsch, fast perfekt!
Trixi, the reason for "last naming" people starts normally in gym class. For some reason, gym teachers think that calling you by your last name somehow adds a military - style mentality, giving them a subliminal edge to keep order. I know it sounds far fetched, but psychology is overused as early as what you would call "Grundschule", or elementary school here. Hope that makes sense.
That comes from Vietnam and the cold war, gym class was seen as military prep.
Omg." Isabel cook", im called "cookie" by PE teachers and i never knew y, my friend was called "marshy" (marsh) "kingy" (king) etc. But he just added Ys onto the end, or for me: ie😂
@@sly4164 exactly right! Most coaches were the same way too.
We did it when there were several people with the same first name
Calling someone's parent Mr/Mrs plus the first initial of their last name was popularized back in the 1970's by an American TV show called "Happy Days". There was a character on the show known as "Fonzie" or "The Fonz" who was the super cool guy and beloved by millions. He would often refer to the mother of his best friend (Richie Cunningham) as "Mrs C" and the father as "Mr C". I think it caught on because everyone wanted to be cool like "The Fonz".
You were also correct about many of us preferring the sound of a first and last name separated by a middle initial. It just has a better rhythm to it for some reason. In fact, one American President - Harry Truman - was given an "S" as a middle initial to his name even though it didn't stand for anything. So his name was "Harry S Truman" and the crazy thing is that the "S" just stood for "S".
As far back as I can remember people just call me "Fish" instead of the full last name "Fisher"
Ron Fisher based on your profile pic, you certainly don't look like Abe Vigoda
(The reason I say that is because whenever I hear someone being addressed by the nickname "Fish", The first thing that comes to mind is "Barney Miller")
I know a guy that´s name is Hering but all say Fish to Him
Your story sounds a little fishy.. By the way, do you like the Barney Miller show?
C. C. I remembered seeing that show back in the day when it was on the air
@@jbarninatus5898
Funny, I had a lieutenant with the family name Fischlein. (little fish)
One time he told us that he just had to make a call and a Hauptmann (captain) Hering (herring) answered the phone.
So a guy picks up the phone and says: "Unit xyz captain herring on the phone" and the other guys says: "here is lieutenant little fish".
He said there weren't sure who is pranking whom.
Very interesting topic, Svenja :-) One thing I really love about your German language videos, is how you address the nuances and intricacies of the language and culture. Thank you :-)
Addressing people by their last name only is usually just something teachers or rude people in authority do. Between friends it is usually sarcastic.
Sarcastic some times in a good way and some times in a bad way
Or alternatively, to differentiate between friends with the same first name
No, your overgeneralizing. It's often neither rude nor sarcastic, but familiar and collegial.
Or @ Ben West, in the days before cellphones were carried by everyone, as a parent with a child and 4 of his friends all named Scott, while attempting to get the correct one to pick up the extension phone and speak to their parent.
I liked when you read that article, with the text and translation on the screen. It was so cool to hear you speaking German, with the words in German on the screen so I could start to imagine how those crazy spellings turn into those crazy pronunciations!!
As for the last name thing. It's not super common, but we did it at the comic shop I ran. Mainly because one night, if we used first names, we had Chris, Chris, Chris, Chriss, Crystal, Crystal, Matt, Matt and Matt in the shop at the same time.
I've worked in two places where there were three Daves all in the same area.
Wait so you had nine people working for you who didnt have any other name besides Chris, Crystal and Matt?
Claus Wilhelm Turtur (echter Name): "Mein Zeh tut weh"
Eugen F. B. Ömmelmann: "Trink einen Zehwehtee!"
Yeah at my high school we had 15 Zachs in my grade/year. To make it easier we just called each Zach by their last name.
The middle initial thing really caught on in the 1980s. It was known as the "power initial" and people used it to make themselves sound important, and get noticed.
Exactly. Who sounds more important? "Sam Jackson" or "Samuel L Jackson"? The middle initial also helps with the confusion. My dad's name was also Harvey. When the phone rang we'd ask "Harvey A or Harvey W"? It sure helped at the Doctor's. No, I'm not on those meds. Check the middle initial. Oop wrong chart. Sorry.
I had 4 Anna's, 1 Anne and 1 Ann-Kathrin in my class once... :'D that was quite confusing
I was one of 5 Jessicas in 8th grade, haha. Of the other four, 3 were bullies and 1 became a very good friend of mine who was also bullied by the other 3 Jessicas. :D
"A One Anna Two. . ."
"Von hinten wie von vorne…"
The statement "A one and a two" is a timing count for a musical score usually. And then it is usually shortened to "a one anna two. Hence the joke. And since it is a bad joke, I was "ducking" to avoid getting hit with comments. Also, those can be called "verbal bricks". lol
Das mit den Nachnamen ist in der Schule auch bei uns in Österreich üblich gewesen. Vor allem wenn man mehrere Pauls oder Tobias in der Klasse hatte. Manche Lehrer haben sich auch Spitznamen ausgedacht, zb Joschi für Josef. ^^
In meiner Klasse hatte wir mal nebeneinander sitzen: Einen Sven, dann einen Sven-Daniel, der normalerweise im Alltag Sven gerufen wurde, und dann einen Daniel. Da auf Sven immer beide Svens reagierten, rief sie der Lehrer Sven-Daniel und Sven-ohne-Daniel
CJ, all you had to do was follow the damn train!
That mission has given me years of PTSD.
It took me forever to beat that mission
I never had too much trouble with this mission. I mean, all you have to do is follow the damn train!
In my experience, last names are only used in the military or on a sports team, usually by the coaches.
Addressing someone by their last name can be when you’re referring to someone who you are friends with but should be formal to. Such as calling a teacher by their last name, or a teacher calling you by your last name
Or some people do it when in their friend group there are multiple people with the same first name
As with the bully example, if someone doesn’t know you well enough then them calling you by your last name is disrespectful.
But on the other hand, if someone knows you well enough it is a friendly gesture
Or can even be used in a joking context
Perfect example
1 Crissa has a good explanation for that
2 Shortening last names to one letter is just being close to tge person
3 The middle name initial is common for filling out medical docs
4 two letter nick name just tend to happen.
Was he able to save the rice or did it just die? 😭
😅
I was called by my last name all through school. I imagine it's because my first name is so common, that there was always more than one Michael in every class I had.
Well... we have AKK in Germany :'D
Da fallen mir noch mehr ein: FJS (Franz-Josef Strauß), TSG (Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel) . Außerdem gibt es die Verkürzung von Doppelnamen: Malu (Maria Luise Dreyer) Hajo (Hans-Josef) Hape (Hans Peter Kerkeling...
@@stoeff2180 Malu? Kannte ich nicht. Das amerikanische Gegenstück wäre wohl Mary-Lou, was wiederum irgendwie stilvoll rüberkommt.
@@PewPewPlasmagun, Du kennst die aktuelle SPD-Vorsitzende nicht? Ok, die wechseln ja auch im Sekundentakt :-) Dank Dir höre ich jetzt ua-cam.com/video/ttMt9SHRwsM/v-deo.html
@@stoeff2180 Ich hatte eig. an DEEP PURPLE gedacht.
Zur SPD kann ich nur eins loswerden: wer hat uns verraten? Sozialdemokraten!
@@stoeff2180 der Gümbel ist doch zurückgetreten oder so, seine Tochter geht auf meine Schule und seine Frau arbeitet mit meinem Vater
Love you Trixi!
remember how Harry Potter called his cousin? "Big D."
Shaji Koi
:0
I use my friend's last name when addressing him because his first name is Parangaricutirimicuaro.
Being called by the last name isn't all that unusual in Germany. The cool teacher (only 1 allowed at each school) at my high school called all the male students by their last name and that isn't the only example I encountered.
I have a Serbo-Croatian middle name that is always a hit with English speakers... Duschan, pronounced Douche-an. Yeah... wonder why...? hehehe
We had a lot of guys in our class, to whom we only referred by their last name. By some, it was because their first name was so common in the class, by others, I don't know x)
@@neni135 Yeah, I think it is more common with men and boys, which probably is why Trixie underestimates how common it is in German culture.
Multiple cool teachers are not against the law. Yes, I had two. And there were a couple I wish I had. :D
@ But were your cool teachers "wearing a leather jacket" and "paying 9th graders with beer for helping him wash his Harley" levels of cool?
hehehehe
Man, the teachers at my school were all like out of a cartoon. I really have to laugh when I think back.
We had 2 biology teachers, married to each other, extreme "Öko"-hippies, wearing Birkenstocks and self-knitted clothes and smelling like Pachuli oil, asking kids whether they wanted to go to Anti Nuklear Energy demonstrations, but were total hypocrites, because although they only lived like a mile away from the school and usually came and left at the same time, they always drove 2 separate cars. You always saw them driving off right behind each other in the afternoon and you could almost see their house from the school.
And our English teacher looked, dressed and talked like Mr Bean and the cool leather jacket teacher always made fun of him and teased him.
Wirklich interessant, hatte mir vorher noch nie groß Gedanken darüber gemacht.
I'm from Argentina and i let you know that muy wife calls me by my lastname.
She says: Juarez !
Del interior?
@@brunique234 Desde hace 7 años, si.
Pero cuando vivía en Bs As, también.
Calling friends by last names usually happens when they met through sports or through work (usually blue collar, military, firefighters, or police). In neighborhoods where everyone’s dad is a cop or a union worker it can spread down to the kids. In action or crime movies it’s common because of the type of background those characters have.
With women, it can extend to emphasizing that gender or sexual attraction isn’t important to a particular relationship. It’s often used with female cops and soldiers (even more than with men) to emphasize that they aren’t viewed differently from the men. You might see it sometimes see it used negatively to imply that a woman doesn’t qualify as a woman. It gets used as a literary trick to show some backstory without spending time spelling it out.
Calling someone by the last letter of their last name usually means that their name is unpronounceable or unspellable to most Americans. It’s most common with Polish names, but some German names get that treatment too.
It can also be used as an affectionate but respectful form, like for a favored teacher or a friend’s parents. In my region it’s a lot more common to use Mr. or Miss plus the persons first name. (We always Miss in this context no matter what the marital status or age; the familiar address is always Miss.)
Throughout high school people always called me by my full name for some reason. Some of them did just call me by my first name but most by my full name.
Most people say Mr. or Ms. depending on the relationship some will state their last name. I have two friends with the same first name so we'll just call them by their last name
Love your channel, by the way. My high school German has to be nearly twice as old as you are, so it's gotten pretty rusty. I have found the couple of times I've been in Germany that I retain enough to meet basic needs, and maybe carry on a very simple conversation, but I've been wanting to brush up on my skills. Thanks!
I have some friends who were only callrd by their last names
And I'm from Germany
I hear that often
I enjoy your videos.
Historically addressing a person by their last name was the proper and respectful way of doing so. Only when you knew each other very well and considered each other a very close friend did you use the first name. Today this is not necessarily so. It depends on the regional and local customs. In the South, it can still be a respectful way, but always with "Mr."or "Mrs.". In the West, you would never address a friend by their last name. In fact, some friends do not even know the last names of others. In many cases today, a person only gives out their last name when they are trusted.
As others have stated, addressing someone by the last name only is usually an authoritative thing. It also comes in handy when you have 4 people with the same first name in your group, In college, we had four guys with the first name of Timothy. We either used their last name or gave them a nickname. At work, I had two guys with the same first name and same initials. I had to give them nicknames.
I am sorry you got called something you didn't want to be called in school. I think that can be permanently damaging since it happens so frequently. But hopefully you can be resilient and not let it get the best of you. Sometimes it helps to think the people who chose to call you that didn't know any better, so you are really the smarter person.
Ryan Johnson she really should have mentioned that "cow" is a slur in German when applied to females. If someone calls a female a cow it means "(dumb) asshole". Must have been some rough years.
TheFeldhamster it’s a similar insult in the US.
Regarding "last names": calling someone by their last name only can either be a way to express familiarity/friendship, OR to express your authority over another person - e.g. military superior speaking to a low ranking person. As for shortening a last name to the first letter - that is typically a way to show familiarity/endearment to the person and still be respectful - i.e Mrs. K from your example is definitely intended with affection (shortening the surname to "K" and respect (saying "Mrs."). As with many such things in English and other languages, it's a matter of the tone in which the words are spoken (including body language) and some knowledge of the background of the relationship between the people speaking. Incidentally, the use of this dialog device in movies/writing conveys a great deal more to the watcher/reader than the strict definitions of the words. One can fully know a language and be technically fluent, but mastering these sorts of subtleties is what makes one TRULY fluent.
Michael J. Fox was born Michael Andrew Fox. When he got into acting, he was forbidden from using the name "Michael Fox" by the Screen Actors Guild because there already was a Michael Fox in the Guild. He didn't like "Michael A. Fox" or "Michael Andrew Fox", so he went with Michael J. Fox.
Fun fact President Harry S. Truman doesn't have a middle name, just a middle initial. The "S" doesn't stand for anything.
Wait, so he gave that to himself because Americans are so used to them or did his parents seriously name him "Harry S"?
He chose Michael J.in tribute to the actor Michael J. Pollard.
Ich hab bei der "Kuh-Anspielung" härter gelacht als ich sollte XD Ich liebe deinen Humor ^^
We have three boys in class, who have the same first name, so we call him by the last name.
Also it’s normal by politicians and famos people.
As to talk about Ms. K it is usually used in schools as to not have kids butcher last names
Based on the title, but before I watched the video, I thought perhaps you might be perplexed at how Americans pronounce character names such as Thor.
...
There can be more than one way to pronounce Thor?
(looks it up) Oh, in some places the h would be silent so that it's Tor? Huh. Okay.
It's a sports thing. We're mad about our sports. It comes from what's on the back of your jersey. It was dicey for me as my last name is Kumm. So...
Hey, you have Kumm on your jersey...
Freaking high school boys..
I wouldn't assume Hollywood has much to do with normal life ...
Hollywood has a lot more to do with normal life than people outside the US realize. Watch the referenced videos by Kelly Does Her Thing.
Last name only is either a show of dominance or there’s more than one Steve in the group.
John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt?
JJJ Schmidt.
that's my name too
Yeah all of that happens, typically on a very informal level like between friends, or like with a gym coach and student.
The middle initial thing is typically how they sign their name or otherwise represent themselves in written language.
We use nicknames frequently in the United States, it kind of tells someone that they are part of ‘the group.’ Much of this seems to be related to that.
In school, we all called us by the surname...I'm not confused by this ;-)
same, but only in middle school
In the USA, in the 1970s, using the last name as a letter such as referring to Peter Kraus’ mother as “Mrs. K” went from uncommon to part of the mass popular culture due to the hit television show Happy Days. The character of Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) would see his friends address his father as “Mr. C” (Tom Bosley) & his mother as “Mrs. C” (Marion Ross).
After the great success of this TV show, it became common for kids, especially the next generation watching in re-runs, would use this type of reference in their lives as well. Those around prior to that show, would remember it was unusual to rare to hear it. After the show, it became more and more common in vernacular use.
I hope this sheds some light on its use by Americans. Thanks Ms. Trixie for another interesting, insightful journey into the differences and similarities in languages! 😎
The "Mrs. K" thing usually happens when the person's last name is hard to say, or we are too lazy to say "Mrs. Keppler"
I had a teacher who we called "Mrs. G" and that's what she wanted us to call her. It made no sense to me and I'm American
@@holger_p They usually don't ask because they know. It's not insulting really-just a casual thing.
@@dylanbutler698 Like I said to the other conment, it's a casual thing. Maybe she wanted the student-teacher situation to have a less rigid, professional feel.
All in all, don't say it in a business meeting, but if someone requests it or it's a friend's parent, no harm done
¡Sí! Es muy común. My friends and I in grade school were not only addressing each other by our last names only, but with as creative a mangle as possible, because guys enjoy being rude to each other. For example, (Billy) Smith is called Shmitt, (Tommy) Jones is actually Bones or Bonie, (Mike) NcDonald is actually Burger-n-fries. The inclusion of our middle initial makes us sound important or helps to avoid confusion with someone else with the same first or last names. A century ago it had become "the thing" for authors and often other famous people, to be known by their first and middle initials followed by their last name. For example, G. K. Chesterton and W. C. Fields. Fun video!
why i always look at the bottom part of the screen when I watch her?
Because you don't understand english and are looking for captions.
I noticed the differences in naming culture before but never REALLY noticed it. I guess i am consuming too much media in english.
Great video Svenja 'Q' Trixington!
Damn gonna be honest Patricia pronounced in German is so beautiful!
It is. Sounds royal, doesn't it? :-)
@@BlackAdder665 Yup! High German haha
@@RiderInRed Hehe :-D
The last name thing happens a lot when there are multiple people with the same first name in a given group. Those names often persist beyond those groups, even when they are the only person with their first name, because other people are so accustomed to using their last name and that person is so used to answering to it.
I don’t think anyone ever really says the middle initial of a person. The middle initial is often used in print.
I don't think that's accurate. George R.R. Martin, Hunter S. Thompson, John F. Kennedy....just try to leave out the middle initial. It sounds weird.
Severian Wintermute in many cases with famous people yeah maybe this is the case. But I’ve heard many people refer to John Kennedy, or just Kennedy. No one really does this with people they know.
Mothers often use full names to indicate you are in trouble. You might be Teddy when in good graces, but Theodore William Miller! When you’ve done something wrong.
Nobody in the USA says "Hi, I'm Bruce R Hamilton". You're looking at movie stars stage/professional entertainer names. Which they probably make as catchy as possible to stay relevant, important, etc etc.
if there's a English romantic film... & wanna translate into German... when romantic couple can move from ''siezen'' to ''duzen''..?
giorgi khutsishvili I think most languages with the intimate-formal second-person pronoun distinction happens when you become friends, so when you stop calling them mister or miss and stop sir or ma’aming them. I think definitely by the first date you’d be thouing someone. Think about how weird it’d be to say “I’ll get the door for you Ms. Johnson” or “I’d like to kiss you, ma’am” to someone before and after the date, formal doesn’t really roll off as romantic most of the time in that way.
@@aerobolt256 i did like your comment... even i thought that after first kiss they could ''duzen''.
Nice one Trisha !
I really don't get why so many people in the comments have a hard time to explain it.
It starts in school in kindergarten until college.
The Teachers call every student by their surnames, if nobody introduces other kid to us, we only know each other by the surname,
Them when we want to talk with a colleague, we don't have any idea of how is their first name, and we use the name the teacher use..
And the reason teachers use last names had nothing to do with the military. The reason was that there were too many students with the same first name.
You can find old comedies where they point that there are too much people with the same first name.
I don't know where you went to school, but I attended 4 different school districts at different times between kindergarten and 12th grade and I never had any teacher refer to any of the students by surname only. Each teacher tried to make a point to learn and use the first name of each child. Only my French teacher regularly called students by different names throughout the year, but that was only because she had us choose either the French version of their English name, or in cases like mine where there was no direct equivalent, I got to choose whatever I wanted from a list she provided of typical French names.
Teachers didn't address students by surnames only in my entire education. There were too many kids with the same surnames for that to be remotely useful.
It is true for all points. Originated in military, became part of the lexicon, made it into movies. It all depends on the tone to determine if it is out of spite, or respect. Many times, a last name is used when many people have the same surname in a group.
I got roots from Germany =) my last name is Greiveldinger.
@Forrest Gun Tv My maternal great grandfather Konrad Humbert who married Alice Gerhardt( Alsatian) is from Zeiskam, Germany. My last name Greiveldinger comes from Luxemburg.
@Forrest Gun Tv Guten tag :) mein forename ist Karl-Edvard Greiveldinger =) ich bin ein Fransosiche ? x)
@Forrest Gun Tv :) sorry but i don't speak it hehe i want to learn it btw!
@Forrest Gun Tv that's it xD! Dankeschön mein brüder!
@Forrest Gun Tv Danke.
It is also common to use a last name if the (guy) has a name that is either cool/fun/funny or something people can make fun of...
Ömmelmann und der Sack Reis
Miller! It's an everyday thing for the most part, there could be a dozen John's in a crowd so yelling out the last name cuts through most, if not all, of that. You're correct to say there is an authoritarian/military edge to it. I guess that aspect is much more specific auf Deutche.
What would you at school if 5 people had the same first name ?? You start calling them with their last names. It’s normal and also normal in Germany. We do it at work.
Admittedly, names like that are so common here it never dawned on me other languages would find it odd. Good to know, actually.