Old swede (idiom)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Alter Schwede is a colloquial expression , a so-called "Schnack" from Low German .

  • Without referring to a specific person, "Old Swede" is used as an expression of astonishment. A similar expression would be, for example, "Donnerlittchen".
  • In relation to a specific person, “Old Swede” expresses a not very serious outrage, comparable to “ my dear swan ” or “little friend” or “ my dear Scholli ”.
  • The phrase “old Swede” is also used among friends in the sense of “buddy” or “comrade”: “Well, you old Swede!”.

Word origin

After the end of the Thirty Years' War , Elector Friedrich Wilhelm von Brandenburg had tried and tested Swedish soldiers recruited as trainers for his army. Because they got along particularly well with the drill , they were mostly used as NCOs . In the language of the soldiers these corporals were then called simply "the old Swedes".

literature