Difficulties

Germans - not Germanics - love difficulties. I guess that is why they created such a difficult language to learn and use. While people who study German often complain about grammar, structure and word formation, Germans discuss on a different level. In newspapers, magazines, company sites and numerous social networks they get excited about the correct use of words and grammar and compete in doing it more perfectly than perfectly.

These days when large parts of the human society on this planet are talking about the new pope and what to expect from him, the Germans found an additional topic to worry about: How should he be called? It is not about whether he is Francesco I or simply Francesco, it is about how can one properly translate this name into German.

The German Francesco is a Franz. It was a very popular boy's name in the beginning of the last century and though it is no longer in the top lists, it is still common. Famous musicians and writers were named Franz and even emperors. There is no doubt its origins are in the Latin Franziskus - and that is what gave the Germans troublesome thoughts: Is it proper to call a pope Franz? Any smaller and bigger newspaper published at least one article about it during the last days - and the German discussion started. Specialists in German studies, linguists, wise men of the church and many other self-appointed German language specialists shared their opinion. In the end it seems they came to the conclusion, that in the case of "Franz" German is not good enough to address a pope; it has to be "Franziskus" - while his patron saint is still "Franz von Assisi". But the most important thing about this decision seems to be, that one can explain it in further newspaper and magazine entries to provide a basis for further discussions for the readers (who I guess, are often German experts, too). Or perhaps one can even renew the discussion and find another decision one can discuss ...

Then there was the fact that "we are no longer pope". Nevermind that the last pope was Bavarian and that Germans know very well, that Bavarians have no proper language, but only a dialect, and are culturally and socially quite backwards. What made the good man pope, made him German as well and made all the Germans become pope. It is to be doubted, that all the Germans were ready to resign. So maybe in due time Benedictus XVI will be remembered as a Bavarian pope after all. But now: What to do with falling back into the grey mist of being insignificant again?

This started a second linguistical discussion. The language approach is always good if nothing else can help. While neither Spanish nor Italian speaking people will develop any deeper reflections on the name "Bergoglio", for some of the experts it became the center point of a very profound meditation about name origins and their meanings which culminated in the hint that "Berg" means "mountain". In the Piemontese region where they located the origin of that family name are mountains and now - after many discussions about it - it seems pretty clear, that for some ethnological reason people there used a German word and ended it Piemontèisa. So "we are still a bit pope" - which will probably soothe the Germans, and if not they can always discuss it, which seems to be as comforting.