Word Story

 There's an independent language group.....out of the Marburg area (where the big university is located) that evaluates words added to the language each year.  So the number one (voted by them, not journalists).....was the word 'Klima-Terroristen'.

What it loosely means?  If you were a journalist or politician and wanted to discredit the Greta-kids or the Fridays-For-The-Future kids....you'd use this 'discredit' (criticize) the protesters/activists.  In simple terms....suggesting they were criminal-like.  

Some journalists are defensive....if the term gets raised....that kids can't be terrorists.  The counter argument is that you can't protest in public places without a permission slip by the police, and gluing yourself to a road or autobahn is a chargeable offense. 

In second place for new phrases invented?  'Social tourism'.

What it meant?  It was a phrase used by Fredrich Merz (boss of the CDU Party....to describe refugees who pass through a state or two in Europe....to reach Germany and ask for asylum.  I should note that the phrase has been around for several years but got dragged out by various folks when the Ukraine - Russia war started.  So it didn't really relate to Merz that much.....as it did with AfD Party folks who used it a good bit.

So we come to an odd phrase....for 3rd place.  The term?  "Defensive Architektur".

It meant something that was always misleading in nature.  It was construction ideas where you'd build something that prevented homeless people from camping out or staying in a park/public place....for an extended period of time.

Personally, I probably only heard the phrase used once in the past year or two.....around the Frankfurt train station where they started playing music throughout the daylight hours.  The idea was that homeless folks or druggies....didn't appreciate or like the music.....so they would move on.  Choice of music?  Classical.  I doubt if it was a big deal, but some viewed results suggest people don't linger around for hours in a area where music is at voice level.  

These words being a big deal?  I would suggest that it's a group who read/view the news a good bit and catch on to new trends.  As much as people go and suggest German is concrete and never changing.....there's new phrases invented every year....into the hundreds....it's just that we rarely recognize it.