Thesis (MA) -- Stellenbosch University, 1976. / No Abstract Available

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / Thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (German) in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Stellenbosch University and for the degree of Master of Arts (Deutsch als Fremdsprache im deutsch-afrikanischen Kontext) in the Faculty of Philology at Leipzig University in terms of a double degree agreement. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis aims to make a contribution to the field of teaching German as a foreign language. It investigates the role of metaphors in language and more specifically in foreign language learning. Firstly it advocates the inherent, although often invisible, presence of metaphors in all types of language by exploring the cognitive linguistic theories of Lakoff and Johnson, among others. Secondly it explores the necessity of integrating metaphor-awareness raising by looking at the current situation of German at South-African universities, as well as referring to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. In addition it is argued that by experiencing the metaphorical nature of language from the onset of language learning (A1-level), learners can develop and improve their linguistic-, literary- and cultural competencies, as well as developing the ability to independently reflect on language. To demonstrate how metaphor-awareness raising can be integrated into language teaching by using existing textbooks, two conceptual lessons are developed for adult learners at university level by using two sections from the textbook Menschen A1. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis poog om n bydrae te lewer tot die onderrig van Duits as n vreemdetaal. Dit ondersoek die rol van metafore in taal en meer spesifiek die aanleer van n vreemdetaal. Eerstens berus dit op die beginsel van o.a. Lakoff en Johnson dat metafore inherent is tot taal, alhoewel dit nie altyd sigbaar is nie. Tweedens word die noodsaaklikheid om metafoorbewusmaking in vreemdetaal-onderrig te integreer ondersoek, deur te kyk na die huidige duitse aanbod aan suidafrikaanse universiteite en deur te kyk na die ”Common European Framework of References of Languages“. Daarop word geargumenteer dat leerders hulle linguistise-, letterkundige-, en kulturele vermoëns kan verbeter, asook om onafhanklik oor taal te reflekteer, deur die metaforiese natuur van taal alreeds vanaf beginnersvlak (A1) te ervaar. Om te demonstreer hoe metafoor-bewusmaking met vreemdetaal-onderrig geintegreer kan word deur die gebruik van bestaande handboeke, word twee konseptuele lesse vir volwasse leerders op tersiëre vlak ontwikkel deur twee afdelings in die Menschen A1 handboek aan te pas.

It is not revolutionary to say that repetition and practical experience is a very important aspect in learning about and understanding a topic. This is especially true for languages, particularly from the point of view of vocabulary.Like in many other processes that deal with gaining knowledge, studying foreign words involves a lot of side work: For instance the selection of words, or their presentation for the actual training.The purpose of this thesis is to automate the study of vocabulary. To do so, an intelligent software package was developed. Divided into three parts the project takes into account the aspects from the language point of view, from the studying point of view, and from the computer science point of view.The fundamental idea to accomplish the goal is a relational database system. It is utilized by software programs that solve their tasks in respect to data management, data manipulation, storage and retrieval, in an efficient way.The system is developed for English speaking persons studying German as a foreign language. And with every language having its own nature, it naturally influences all levels and aspects of design and utilization of the database.l: / Department of Computer Science

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Helsinki, 2008. / Includes bibliographies of Finnish, German, and bilingual dictionaries of ecology and environmental protection. Includes bibliographical references (p. [345]-396).

Zugl.: Berlin, Univ., Diss., 2005

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Linguistics / Master / Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics

<p>This essay deals with translation issues arising when translating a German source text – situated within the field of media communication and political science – into Swedish. More specifically, it focuses on translation problems and solutions in regard to extended participial modifiers and metaphorical expressions.From a translation perspective, complex German pre-nominal participial modifiers are known to pose a challenge to Swedish translators. This depends on language-specific restrictions within the nominal domain. In linguistic translation literature, it is commonly held, that complex pre-nominal participial modifiers cause – in Vinay & Darbelnet’s (1977) terminology – 'transpositions', yielding a Swedish relative clause. This widely held assumption again proved to be right. In some cases, however, other structural options were made use of such as abbreviated (participial) clauses. Also, depending on the complexity of the modifier, transpositions were involved which crossed one or more sentence boundaries. In contrast to complex nominal phrases with pre-nominal participial modifiers, metaphors are usually considered to be stylistically inappropriate in academic discourse. However, a closer examination of the metaphorical expressions appearing in the source text showed that they are almost without exception lexicalized or conventionalized and, therefore, not particularly artistic or daring. The analysis of the translation procedures involved when translating metaphorical expressions was limited to metaphors linked to the area of politics and career, mainly stemming from the conceptual domains: POLITICS IS WAR/A GAME and CAREER IS A JOURNEY. The analysis shows that German and Swedish have similar metaphors, building on those exact concepts. Still, literal translation was not applied in each and every case. In some cases, a neutral periphrasis or a formal equivalent was employed which resulted in a loss or change of some of the semantic aspects inherent to the original metaphor.</p><p>Keywords: <em>translation, nominal phrases, extended modifiers, metaphors</em></p>

The North-East of Scotland and Altbayern (Old Bavaria) have long been perceived as the heartland of the respective linguistic varieties. Due to their association with a largely rural lifestyle the associated regional vernaculars, the Doric and Old Bavarian, are often regarded as the “purest” forms of the local variety. Considering that these regions are regarded as prominent, this study investigates what the speakers think of their varieties and how they construct their identity in the light of these perceptions. Using mainly qualitative data, gathered in the small towns of Peterhead and Aichach, the study explores the attitudes towards the varieties and its speakers as perceived by themselves. Issues, such as age-related competence, positive and negative discrimination, are one aspect of the investigation. Another focal point are the strategies employed by the participants to construct their identity as vernacular speakers. Drawing on methods connected to Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), themes, such as character traits and the relationships in the community between locals and incomers, are studied. The status of the standard variety and the vernacular and the relationship between them is investigated; the concepts of Abstand and Ausbau languages and diglossia also inform the assessment.

Even more novel to the English speaker than the fact that foreign words should represent a problem at all are the frequent, often concerted reactions against them in Germany from the seventeenth century on. These reactions - attempts to eliminate borrowed words and replace them with German expressions - have been relatively little studied and the references in histories of language usually apply to the baroque <u>Sprachgesellschaften</u> and one or two individual purists. No detailed general survey of German purism is available, there is no bibliography on the subject, and the contribution of the purists has not been fully assessed. This study is intended as a preliminary step towards meeting these needs and offers a critical, fully documented account of purism in the hundred years between 1789 and 1889. This period begins with J.H. Campe, the most important German purist, who was the first to approach the question systematically and in great detail, and ends with the Berlin Declaration of 1889 objecting to the policies of the newly founded <u>Allgemeiner Deutscher Sprachverein</u>. The <u>Sprachverein</u> has fully documented its own history and achievements, but for the rest only Campe and F.L. Jahn have been studied critically. I have sought to investigate who the purists were, how they approached language, why they considered purism necessary, what foreign words they rejected, how they tried to replace them, and to give an account of their activity.