'Remigration' named Germany's ugliest word of the year
Every year in January a jury of linguists picks the 'Un-word' of the year, or a discriminatory term which does a disservice to the German language. The selection of this year's 'Unwort' was announced Monday in Marburg by a jury of linguists. And the top sport went to 'remigration'.
"For right-wing parties and other far-right groups in the Identitarian movement, the word has become a euphemism for the demand for forced expulsion and even mass deportations of people with a migration background," said the jury, explaining its decision.
READ ALSO: German word of the day: Unwort
They criticised the use of the word because it has been used in the past year as a "right-wing fighting term, euphemism and an expression that obscures the actual intentions".
According to the jury, terms and phrases that violate the principles of human dignity or democracy, discriminate against social groups or are euphemistic, obfuscatory or misleading are eligible for the "Un-word of the Year" award.
For 2022, the “Klimaterroristen”, or "climate terrorists", was selection, while 2021's ugliest word was "Corona-Diktator".
How was the Un-word chosen?
With its selection, the jury, the majority of whom are linguists, are casting attention on a recent controversy.
Last Wednesday, the media organisation Correctiv published research findings on a meeting in a Potsdam villa in November, which was also attended by individual AfD officials as well as a few members of the centre-right CDU and the arch-conservative Werteunion.
The former head of the far-right Identitarian movement in Austria, Martin Sellner, confirmed to DPA that he had spoken there about "remigration".
READ ALSO: Germany's far-right AfD denies plan to expel 'non-assimilated foreigners'
When right-wing extremists use the term "remigration", they usually mean that a large number of people of foreign origin should leave the country.
The Identitarian movement subscribes to the "great replacement" conspiracy theory claiming a plot by non-white migrants to replace Europe's "native" white population, something that the nationalist extremists want to stop.
But linguist and jury spokesperson Constanze Spieß reported in December that "remigration" was among the entries for the "Unwort" shortlist - even before the current controversy.
What were the runner-up words?
The jury placed the term "Sozialklimbim" in second place: the word degrades a group of people with low incomes and assets and stigmatises those who are affected by poverty or at risk of poverty.
Third place went to the term (“Heizungs-Stasi") "heating Stasi". The jury criticised the term, used in reference to German politicians who wanted to implement the costly Building Energy Act, as "populist propaganda against climate protection measures".
READ ALSO: Far-right AfD at new high as climate issues split Germany
The ugliest word of the year was selected based on suggestions submitted by people around Germany on December 31st, 2023.
There were a total of 2,301 submissions this time, which was significantly more than in the previous year. They contained 710 different terms, of which just under 110 met the jury's criteria.
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The selection of this year's 'Unwort' was announced Monday in Marburg by a jury of linguists. And the top sport went to 'remigration'.
"For right-wing parties and other far-right groups in the Identitarian movement, the word has become a euphemism for the demand for forced expulsion and even mass deportations of people with a migration background," said the jury, explaining its decision.
READ ALSO: German word of the day: Unwort
They criticised the use of the word because it has been used in the past year as a "right-wing fighting term, euphemism and an expression that obscures the actual intentions".
According to the jury, terms and phrases that violate the principles of human dignity or democracy, discriminate against social groups or are euphemistic, obfuscatory or misleading are eligible for the "Un-word of the Year" award.
For 2022, the “Klimaterroristen”, or "climate terrorists", was selection, while 2021's ugliest word was "Corona-Diktator".
How was the Un-word chosen?
With its selection, the jury, the majority of whom are linguists, are casting attention on a recent controversy.
Last Wednesday, the media organisation Correctiv published research findings on a meeting in a Potsdam villa in November, which was also attended by individual AfD officials as well as a few members of the centre-right CDU and the arch-conservative Werteunion.
The former head of the far-right Identitarian movement in Austria, Martin Sellner, confirmed to DPA that he had spoken there about "remigration".
READ ALSO: Germany's far-right AfD denies plan to expel 'non-assimilated foreigners'
When right-wing extremists use the term "remigration", they usually mean that a large number of people of foreign origin should leave the country.
The Identitarian movement subscribes to the "great replacement" conspiracy theory claiming a plot by non-white migrants to replace Europe's "native" white population, something that the nationalist extremists want to stop.
But linguist and jury spokesperson Constanze Spieß reported in December that "remigration" was among the entries for the "Unwort" shortlist - even before the current controversy.
What were the runner-up words?
The jury placed the term "Sozialklimbim" in second place: the word degrades a group of people with low incomes and assets and stigmatises those who are affected by poverty or at risk of poverty.
Third place went to the term (“Heizungs-Stasi") "heating Stasi". The jury criticised the term, used in reference to German politicians who wanted to implement the costly Building Energy Act, as "populist propaganda against climate protection measures".
READ ALSO: Far-right AfD at new high as climate issues split Germany
The ugliest word of the year was selected based on suggestions submitted by people around Germany on December 31st, 2023.
There were a total of 2,301 submissions this time, which was significantly more than in the previous year. They contained 710 different terms, of which just under 110 met the jury's criteria.
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