A Fascinating Explanation Why Germany Has So Many Different Names in Different Languages

Linguist Arika Okrent and illustrator Sean O’Neill verbally and visually explain the fascinating history of why Germany has so many different names in what seems to be just as many different languages.

Why Are There So Many Different Names for Germany? Germany. Allemagne. Tyskland. Saksa. Niemcy. Deutschland. So many names for one country. So many names that are all so different from each other. How did this happen? The first name for the region was Germania and was given by the Romans. They named it after a fierce tribe they fought against near the Rhine river there called the Germani. The Romans managed to eventually conquer most of western Europe, but they never had control over Germania. The Latin language spread through the Empire, but the tribes in Germania kept on speaking in Germanic ways.

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.

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