XIV Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2022

The vocabulary of all European languages shows that the Corona pandemic has had a major impact on them over the past 2 years.

It would be interesting to analyze the language change during the Corona period. It is important to go into the points of what Corona is doing to the German language and how language change is affecting people.

It has often happened that major historical events, such as war or the current Corona crisis, have an impact on language and vocabulary. In order to report or talk about these events, people need certain words that accurately describe the situation that occurred.

Depending on the topic we deal with, a word network is created that people use every day. The word web is constantly changing and consists of words that already existed or words that have only developed over the past few weeks.

This creates a new vocabulary. In relation to the Covid-19 pandemic, 300 new words have already been added and explained in the glossary at this point in time. All word groups are represented, from new Anglicisms, neologisms and reinterpretations - all these words accompany people through the special events.

New words mostly come into their own through the media, such as the word social distancing. When the first wave came, many media had this word on their lips. It means staying away from other people to avoid getting infected like this.

But not only the media, but also politicians and famous people contribute to the spread of words. But social media, such as Instagram or Facebook, are also becoming a portal for the creation of new words. That's where words like Quarantäneblase or Seuchensheriff come from.

New words and phrases are exploding.

The German language has a large vocabulary and is very versatile. With the corona virus came new words such as Herdenimmunität, Geisterspiel, Ellenbogengruß and Distanzschlange. So-called „Kofferwörter“ are also very popular. This is a word made up of two words: e.g. Coronoia= Corona+Paranoia.

In addition to the suitcase words, there are also numerous new idioms. When we hear the phrase „italienische Verhältnisse“ we think of a collapsing, overwhelmed healthcare system with numerous fatalities. But there are also positive phrases, such as a new farewell greeting: „Bleiben sie gesund!“.

Appeals marked with hashtags belong in the new idiom section: #WirbleibenZuhause, #stayathome.

Since the Corona period, there have been more and more words that come from other national languages. These are mostly terms from English. These Anglicisms serve as a stopgap because the German language lacks the appropriate vocabulary.

In order to describe the situation without lengthy sentences that people should keep their distance, they looked at the English words that could best describe this situation and used the word social distancing. But since there are no German words, it can happen that you understand something completely different under this thing. When it comes to social distancing, many people think that it is about isolating people from social contact.

In reality, however, it is about keeping distance between people to prevent transmission of the virus.

Or let's take the widespread English word Lockdown. In the US, one speaks of a Lockdown when buildings and territories are cordoned off in the event of an attack or killing spree. In the corona crisis, it is used in German to describe the closure of numerous facilities and the standstill of public life. Why is the word Lockdown used in this case? Because it sounds softer than the German word Ausgangssperre.

Due to the pandemic, technical language is spreading into everyday language. The technical terms that are often repeated in the media, such as Übersterblichkeit, Tröpfcheninfektion, Reproduktionsrate or Triage, are burned into people's memories. After a short time, many people begin to incorporate these technical terms into their everyday language.

The whole world has been living in the Corona crisis for 2 years, where it is reported daily. There were many school closures and reopenings, mask requirements and protests by lateral thinkers in several cities. In the long run, all this can become very exhausting and annoying for the population.

For example, she ignores the distance rules or organizes illegal Corona-Partys. Don't underestimate the power of words! Most new words in the Corona period are scary, have negative effects or underline the seriousness of the situation.

But there are also positive words. Almost everyone can report „Coronafrisuren“ or „Coronakilos“. Even a „Schnutenpulli“ (mouth and nose protection in Low German) makes you laugh.

A language change during the Corona period has been observed for 2 years. Countless new neologisms, anglicisms, idioms and technical terms have been added. Many words need to be explained and included in the new dictionaries and glossaries. Many words are burned into the mind and affect the human mood.

Some new words have become indispensable (e.g. Homeschooling). But the others will probably disappear after the pandemic (e.g. Coronafrisuren).

There are currently around 300 new „corona words” that are used every day. It will be exciting to see which other new words or phrases appear and which are no longer used.