German-Dutch relations

Barely noticeable border on the motorway (A12 / BAB3), 2007

Dutch signs, German police and German petrol station prices at the petrol station and service area "Bunderneuland" on the A7, which is still Dutch

The German-Dutch relations connect two neighboring countries, which are linked by history, economics, political partnership and cultural exchanges closely together. There are great similarities between them, but also differences. The difference in size is important, so that the Netherlands often perceive Germany from the point of view of a larger neighbor, who can possibly assert its interests more strongly.

Until 1866 parts of the Netherlands were federal members in the German Confederation; the same was true of Luxembourg, whose grand duke was also the king of the Netherlands. This relationship ended with the German Confederation. The Netherlands then established bilateral relations with the North German Confederation in 1867. During the First World War, the German army refrained from attacking the neutral Netherlands , which is why relations were not destroyed during this time. At the end of the war in 1918, the former German Kaiser Wilhelm II fled to the Netherlands, where he lived until his death in 1941.

The Second World War largely shattered relations between the two countries: after the German invasion in May 1940, the country was exploited, many young men were obliged to do forced labor, almost three quarters of the Jewish population were abducted and murdered, and many buildings and streets were destroyed. During the time of the German occupation , national stereotypes were reinforced, which continued to have an effect for a long time. After the war, German prisoners of war were obliged to clean up, collaborators were sometimes punished in a "special" case law and some small German areas were annexed.

In the post-war period, relations slowly resumed. Contacts between Germans and Dutch were initially limited by travel restrictions for Germans. For the Netherlands, however, relations with Germany were of the greatest economic importance, so that both countries contributed to European unification.

After German reunification in 1990, there were signals for various reasons that anti-German opinions were widespread, especially among young Dutch people. The governments of both countries therefore endeavored to intensify dialogue and research into the phenomenon. Studies have shown that the sometimes very suspicious to hostile attitudes in the Netherlands have clearly subsided. This also has to do with the fact that around the year 2000 there was increased criticism of one's own self-image as a tolerant, morally superior nation.

Conversely, there is generally less interest in the Netherlands in Germany, as the Netherlands is only one of several important neighboring countries. The stereotypes were more positive or less pronounced.

history

Wilhelm der Schweiger (around 1555), ancestor of the former Queen of the Netherlands Beatrix of Orange-Nassau ; the line "I am of German blood " in the Dutch national anthem refers to him

Rotterdam 1940, after the German bombing raid

Bakker Schut Plan

In 1975 an agreement was signed in Bonn that regulated the consolidation of border clearance.

The Netherlands are as Germany for Germanic settlement area in Central Europe. The majority of its inhabitants were and are speakers of West Germanic languages . The area of what is now the Netherlands was initially part of the Franconian Empire and later the Holy Roman Empire . In the course of the early modern period , a self-confidence slowly developed, which became the basis for the later development towards a separate Dutch state. The economic upswing in the areas concerned and the increasing political influence of the Habsburgs were important for this . Under their Spanish line, the Netherlands came under Spanish rule. The Dutch struggle for freedom against the Spanish Habsburgs since 1568 resulted in the official independence of the (northern) Netherlands from the empire in 1648 ( Peace of Westphalia ).

When looking at history, Germans and Dutch often fail to take into account the fact that they have shared a long political history. During the Middle Ages, for example, the Dutch were mainly concerned with the areas that are now part of the Netherlands. A Holy Roman Emperor is not considered a person belonging to Dutch history. An exception is someone like Charles V , who was born in Ghent (now Belgium).

After the Napoleonic period , the Kingdom of the Netherlands was neutral (since 1815) and also survived the First World War . During the Second World War, the Netherlands was occupied by National Socialist Germany after a short battle (May 10-15 , 1940, meidagen , May days) . The war and the occupation meant destruction in the country, collaboration between large parts of the population, the murder of 114,000 Jews from the Netherlands, forced labor for young Dutch men, and the " Hongerwinter " of 1944/1945 for the northern part of the country .

After the war, the Dutch government tried to annex large parts of Germany (the so-called Bakker-Schut-Plan), which was rejected by the Allies. In 1947, the Netherlands claimed even smaller territories, which at that time were about 160,000 people. In fact, only very small stretches of land were annexed in 1949, including areas near Sittard with 5665 and Elten with 3235 inhabitants. Most of the areas were returned in 1963, a road link in 2002. The Wylerberg remained with the Netherlands .

The Dutch image of Germany after 1949 was divided into three phases by the historian Friso Wielenga :

“In the first phase (1949–1955), distrust and vigilance clearly dominated […]. With the accession of the Federal Republic to NATO in 1955, the process from enemy to partner was formally completed, and a phase entered (1955–1969) in which […] the Federal Republic was gradually perceived as a reliable Western ally. This was confirmed in the third phase (1969–1989) by the positive formation of opinion on the social-liberal Ostpolitik [...]. "

In general, according to Wielenga, one should speak less of “anti-German” and more of “ambivalence and sensitivity”. A “low pain threshold” should not be confused with “a general anti-German mood”. According to Dik Linthout, World War II was "rediscovered" in the 1960s when the topic was addressed on television. The younger generation learned how the war generation actually behaved. The younger generation replaced the myth of resistance with the myth that they themselves naturally resisted. Instead of their parents

“They subsequently took up the anti-fascist resistance. The anti-German reflex was also clearly noticeable in the media until the mid-1990s, which liked to view Germany from the narrow perspective of (resurgent) National Socialism. "

The reunification in 1990 revived fears of a new dominance of Germany. In addition, there was a series of xenophobic attacks in the early 1990s. After the Solingen assassination attempt , 1.2 million Dutch people sent preprinted protest postcards with the title “Ik ben woedend” (I'm angry). In the end, the cards were collected and given a great deal of media attention to the Chancellery Minister Friedrich Bohl in Bonn. The historian Christoph Driessen writes: "The map collection was so successful because it allowed the Dutch to emphasize their supposed superiority over the Germans and at the same time - with minimal effort - to pretend to take a stand against racism." Bernd Müller commented : The postcards had

"At times the character of a national survey with the tenor: 'Now let's show the Germans where to go!' And after all, the Dutch lion bared its teeth a million times. However, he only did it to lick a postage stamp that sealed subsequent entry into the Dutch anti-fascist resistance for just sixty pfennigs. It's just a shame that angry tongues later claimed that the whole action was only planned as a publicity stunt to establish the two moderators in charge of a music program for young people in the 'serious' political afternoon program. "

The postcard campaign and the Clingersael study of 1993 (see below) mark a turning point in the German-Dutch relationship in so far as the social-liberal government of Prime Minister Wim Kok officially declared the improvement of German-Dutch relations as its goal. In 1995, Chancellor Helmut Kohl made an official visit to the Netherlands and spoke in clear terms about German atrocities during the war, such as the bombing of Rotterdam : “This attack was criminal, it was the occupation of the Netherlands, it was the entire war unleashed by Hitler. […] I know that there is still some reluctance towards German neighbors in the Netherlands, and I understand the reasons very well. ”However, he appealed to young people in the Netherlands to see for themselves how much Germany has changed .

Since then, the German-Dutch relationship has continuously improved. After the explosion of the Enschede fireworks factory in the spring of 2000 , fire brigades from the neighboring country were of course also on duty. Harry Mulisch , who wrote the most famous novel Das Assentat about the Dutch and their influence by the Second World War, said in an interview for the book History of the Netherlands in 2008 : "The boys live in a completely different world." The war is only another “shadow of the past” that no longer affected relations between the two countries.

people

Historical personalities

A number of historical personalities spent their lives in areas of the Old Kingdom that today belong to different states (Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland). This includes the theologian Erasmus von Rotterdam , who was born either in Gouda or Rotterdam , years in what are now Belgian cities and in Freiburg i.Br. lived and died in Basel. The parents of the geographer Gerhard Mercator (Gerard De Kremer) came from the Duchy of Jülich, Mercator himself was born in Rupelmonde (Flanders), lived in Herzogenbusch and Leuven , among others, and died in Duisburg. The Dutch constitutional lawyer Johan Rudolf Thorbecke had German ancestors.

monarchy

Queen widow and regent Emma and with her daughter Wilhelmina , 1897

Bernhard zur Lippe-Biesterfeld , 1942

The royal houses of Orange (Netherlands) and Hohenzollern ( Prussia and Germany) are related to one another. Since 1890 the German-born Queen Emma , née zu Waldeck and Pyrmont, ruled for her daughter, who later became Queen Wilhelmina. Wilhelmina and her daughter Juliana as well as her granddaughter Beatrix married Germans: Wilhelmina the Mecklenburg-Strelitz prince Heinrich zu Mecklenburg , Juliana the nobleman Bernhard zur Lippe-Biesterfeld from Lippe and Beatrix the noble nobleman Claus von Amsberg from Wendland .

Friso Wielenga investigated the question of how Beatrix's fiancé and later husband Claus von Amsberg was received in the Netherlands. When the romance became known in 1965, the youth protest movement " Provo Movement " distributed a negative leaflet and the Prime Minister wrote in his diary: "Very worried about the past: German [...]." The leftist magazine De Groene Amsterdammer found the prospect of one German prince consort "unbearable". Critically it was pointed out that Claus was a member of the Hitler Youth and in March 1945 briefly served as a soldier in northern Italy. Foreign Minister Joseph Luns (a former member of the Dutch National Socialist movement ) suggested in the cabinet that Claus at least be renamed, for example "George". In June 1965 a TV interviewer greeted the couple and especially Claus with the words: “You can answer in your mother tongue. We can still understand them. ”60,000 Dutch people signed in a campaign against parliamentary approval of the marriage.

Later, Claus became very popular. At his death he was commended for his services. Wielenga: “The unfriendly reception he received in 1965/66 was also recalled. What was embarrassing here, however, was that only a few combined this memory with self-critical reflections on the behavior of many Dutch people at the time. "

Culture and media

Some Dutch artists managed to gain a professional foothold in Germany. These included, for example, the show master Lou van Burg , the actor Johannes Heesters , the chansonnier Herman van Veen , the child star Heintje , the music cabaret artist Hans Liberg and the television entertainer Rudi Carrell ; the latter received the Federal Cross of Merit for German-Dutch understanding. Conversely, fewer Germans have managed to do this in the Netherlands, such as the singer Dennie Christian . Nevertheless, many German-speaking singers (chansons, hits, folk music) also have audiences in the Netherlands.

Dutch literature has experienced an increased reception in Germany since the Frankfurt Book Fair in 1993, when the Netherlands was the country's focus. Authors such as Cees Nooteboom , Harry Mulisch , Leon de Winter and Margriet de Moor have since had a firm place in the German book market. According to the Nederlands Literair Productie- en Vertalingenfonds (NLPV), which is responsible for the distribution of Dutch literature abroad, the Netherlands occupies third place in the number of books translated in Germany, along with Spain and Italy translated.

In 2007 crime writers Thomas Hoeps (Krefeld) and Jac. Toes (Arnheim) for the first time the language barriers in their artistic collaboration. Her book “After all the rules of art” (Dutch: Kunst zonder genade ) was nominated for the Dutch crime prize “Gouden Strop” (golden rope) in 2008, so that for the first time in the history of the award a German author appeared on the nomination list .

religion

Germany and the Netherlands may only have in common with Switzerland and the USA that they are essentially a mixed denominational country with Protestants and Catholics. But since the Habsburgs had prevented the spread of his teachings in the Netherlands during Luther's lifetime, Calvinism later penetrated these areas. It was the dominant religion, including that of the (later) royal family, and was a kind of state religion until the 19th century . Nevertheless, as in Germany, there was always a Catholic minority of 30 to 40 percent of the total population.

It is difficult to say to what extent the different Protestant denominations have influenced the “national characters”. If this is the case, points of friction are to be expected for this reason. Similar to the way Germans reject “German” peculiarities being explained with National Socialism or later coming to terms with the past, many Dutch people reject “Calvinist” peculiarities being ascribed to them. Even most of the members of the Protestantse Kerk Nederland do not believe in the Calvinist doctrine of predestination .

Church services of the Nederlandse Kerk in Duitsland take place in various locations .

language

The Netherlands is a related with the German language. West Frisian , which is also spoken in the Netherlands, is very closely related to Dutch and, in East Frisian form, is also spoken in Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein.

Dutch in Germany

Dutch lessons as a school subject are only offered at some secondary schools in the border area, where it can be taken as an elective in the middle and upper grades, as a second foreign language on an equal footing with French or Latin. However, the language is offered at many adult education centers. Dutch Studies can be studied at over twenty universities in German-speaking countries, either for the state examination or as a master's or BA / MA subject. Of the roughly one thousand Dutch students in Germany, many have only taken one Dutch language course, with which German studies students may be able to replace the study requirements of the older department ( e.g. Old High German ).

German in the Netherlands

German is a subject in the Dutch school system . The students of the lower educational levels have to learn a second foreign language (after English) at the age of 13 and can usually choose between German and French.

In 2007, all students at the highest level of education (VWO) had German in their final exams, but 78 percent only as a “partial subject” with lower requirements. At the second-highest level (HAVO), 26 percent had German as a full subject and 44 percent as a sub-subject, and 27 percent of the students at the lowest level (VMBO, e.g. Real and Hauptschule students) took German (only full subjects). French followed at a considerable distance; only eight percent of VMBO students had it in their final exams. Spanish was taken by less than two percent of all students.

These numbers for German in the Netherlands are high in principle and in an international comparison. But they don't mean that you can have a fluent conversation in German with all Dutch people. Despite their knowledge of German, many prefer English in conversations with Germans today. German and French are only spoken fluently by lovers, says Linthout.

In the 1970s, several thousand Dutch people were still studying German at universities; in 2006 there were only 800, albeit after even greater slumps in earlier years. In Nijmegen there were only 18 first-year students studying German language and culture. One consequence is that there is a great shortage of German teachers in the Netherlands, which is increasingly being met with the recruitment of German teachers.

International cooperation

Both Germany and the Netherlands are represented in numerous international organizations, such as the EU and NATO . There are four Euregios for cooperation close to the border, which are associations of around 130 municipalities and other regional authorities. The oldest of these is the EUREGIO from 1958. 3.37 million people live in the adjoining areas of around 13,000 square kilometers. The other German-Dutch Euregios are the Euregio Rhine-Waal , the Euregio Rhine-Maas-North and the Euregio Maas-Rhine .

economy

Rotterdam "Europoort"

Play media file

Dutch cinema news about the expansion of the E36 from Zevenaar, 1962

Economic relations are favored by the large number of similarities between the two countries; both have a comparable economic order and do not pursue a protectionist economic policy. Even before the introduction of the euro , the Dutch guilder was de facto linked to the development of the D-mark , so there was no exchange rate risk.

Germany is by far the Netherlands' largest trading partner. Bilateral trade accounts for between 20 and 30 percent of the Dutch gross national product . Imports (mainly industrial products) and exports (half industrial products, otherwise mainly energy and agricultural products) from and to Germany account for 19 and 24 percent respectively. Here, North Rhine-Westphalia for the Netherlands's main export market.

Conversely, the Netherlands naturally play a less important role for German foreign trade, which is spread over a large number of countries. After all, the small neighbor has a share in German trade with 6 percent of German exports and 8.5 percent of imports and is the most important trading partner for the Federal Republic after France.

These numbers declined from about 1993 to 2005, among other things due to increased trade with China and the outsourcing of production due to wage developments. Both countries continue to be an important transit country for the other, the Netherlands through its port of Rotterdam , Germany due to its good land connections to Southern and Eastern Europe.

Germany maintains the German-Dutch Chamber of Commerce in The Hague as a chamber of commerce abroad .

tourism

The characteristic pier of Scheveningen near The Hague . While Germans particularly appreciate the coast of the Netherlands ...

... the Dutch in Germany especially like the high and low mountain ranges. Here the Hirschberg in Bavaria.

German tourists mainly visit the Dutch coast ( Zeeland , Noord- and Zuid-Holland ), including the IJsselmeer . Cities close to the border, such as Venlo , Maastricht and Nijmegen, are experiencing strong shopping tourism. The Netherlands is a paradise for bike tours. As a transit country for tourism, in addition to Schiphol Airport, the ferry connections to Great Britain are interesting.

The Germans are important customers for Dutch tourism: they make up 45 percent of the overnight guests. However, the numbers fell from the 1990s to the noughties. When the weather is good, there are more guests, as coastlines and lakes are the most popular destinations for Germans. NetherlandsNet: “The Germans spend the longest holidays in the Netherlands with an average of four nights, even longer than the Dutch themselves. The reason for this is that Germans in the Netherlands like to stay in holiday homes or on campsites where they stay longer than in hotels. "

The Dutch prefer the German low mountain ranges Eifel and Sauerland , also for skiing, with Germany competing strongly with Austria. The north German lowlands are largely ignored. City trips to metropolises such as Berlin , Hamburg and the closer Cologne are also popular . Apart from Aachen there are rather few larger German cities in the immediate vicinity of the border. The German road network also connects the Netherlands with large parts of Europe.

The cliché of Dutch holidaymakers with caravans or caravans is only partially true, writes “NiederlandeNet” with reference to figures from 2001 to 2006. 41 percent of holidaymakers in Germany from the Netherlands prefer hotels, followed by 24 percent holiday homes, followed by camping with 22 percent. This can also be explained by the increasing average age. The vast majority come from middle and upper social classes. Half of the trips are short trips with a maximum of three nights. The most popular are the federal states of Bavaria, Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia. Overall, the Dutch are very important for tourism in Germany, they accounted for 16.6 percent of all overnight stays (in 2006) and thus more than any other country.

Military and police

The 1st Corps of the German Army and the First Legerkorps of the Koninklijke Landmacht were merged in 1995 to form the 1st German-Dutch Corps . It is a high readiness corps command (High Readiness Headquarters) of NATO . German, Dutch and binational associations report to him. The troop strength can be increased from 1,100 regular soldiers to up to 80,000 soldiers depending on the deployment. The headquarters of the German-Dutch Corps is in Münster.

In the German-Dutch border area, the Koninklijke Marechaussee (Dutch Gendarmerie), Nationale Politie , the German Federal Police and the Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia State Police maintain a Cross-Border Police Team (GPT). A German and a Dutch officer always go on patrol together. When crossing the border, the police officer in whose country you are in takes the lead. The GPT is located in Bad Bentheim .

Mutual awareness

Stereotypes about the other country and people are not necessarily strongly represented in every person in Germany or the Netherlands . Nevertheless, it can be assumed that the stereotypes are known and also have a subliminal effect, especially among those who have little to do with the other country.

From a German perspective, the Netherlands is one of several small neighboring countries that is neither perceived as threatening nor exotic. You know the country from your vacation (beaches) and the advertising of the Dutch dairy industry (“ Ms. Antje brings cheese from Holland”). Politically and socially, the Netherlands were seen as left and tolerant, also because of the liberal drug policy, which in Germany is viewed positively or negatively depending on one's own political standpoint. (In some cases, the metropolis of Amsterdam is generally equated with the rest of the country.) Since 2002 right-wing populists such as Pim Fortuyn and Geert Wilders have had major electoral successes; as a result, the German image of the neighboring country, which is multicultural, has expanded.

From the Dutch perspective, Germany is by far the larger of only two neighboring countries (the other is Belgium) and the most important economic partner. Learning German continues to be seen as important. Traditionally, Germany and the Germans were perceived as big, powerful, retrograde, conservative, conceited, aggressive and dangerous. This is also strongly recognizable in Dutch literature and pop culture. More recent studies, however, show a significantly better picture of Germany. According to a survey in 2007, 80% of the respondents perceived Germans as somewhat or very sympathetic. Another positive change was that the majority of the people surveyed mentioned the cultural similarities.

The Second World War - the German invasion of 1940 and the occupation - is not the decisive basis for negative stereotypes about Germany in the Netherlands. The German-Dutch relationship is older and determined by two basic conditions of their own. England, Spain and France have also occupied the Netherlands or waged wars with the Netherlands, but the stereotypes in this regard are weaker.

Size ratio

The size ratio is fundamental to the relationship between the two countries: Germany has 82, the Netherlands 16 million inhabitants. When Germans and Dutch come together, the common language is English or German, but almost never Dutch.

In the Netherlands there is the term Calimero effect . The little chick Calimero sings in the Dutch version of this Italian cartoon series: Because I'm small and you are big, and that's not fair.

The Netherlands feel similarly as a small country and are dissatisfied with it. To compensate for this, the comparison between Germany and the Netherlands is shifted to “soft” fields: In terms of size, power and influence, the Netherlands are inferior, but are more “tolerant”, “more sober”, “more sympathetic”. This is difficult to measure and easier to interpret. Ton Nijhuis writes that, in contrast to Germany, terms like consensus, compromise and overleg (negotiation, deliberation) have positive connotations in the Netherlands : “The tendency in the German public with Manichaean traits to run from conflict to conflict is absent in the Netherlands perfect. "

Another term is gidsland , the leading country: In this view, the small Netherlands are progressive and eager to experiment and can therefore show the other countries (including Germany) how to do better. Wielenga quotes a self-critical article from the liberal newspaper NRC Handelsblad (1970):

"We, the Dutch, so often, whether we are asked or not, appear as schoolmasters to foreign countries when it does not meet the high standards that we prescribe, if not for ourselves, then for others ..."

This is the reason why the murders of Pim Fortuyn and Theo van Gogh (2002/2004) were so shocking for the Netherlands: It was said that something like this couldn't happen “with us”. In addition, it became clear that the Dutch integration of (Islamic) immigrants had been much less successful than one - and the other country - had successfully led them to believe. More precisely, a debate on this topic had already started in the late 1990s ( het multiculturele drama ).

relationship

Germany and the Netherlands are also linked by a common history. As a result, there is a strong tendency among Dutch people to emphasize their own individuality and being different from Germany, which Linthout calls "narcissism of small differences" according to Freud. This was made worse by the Second World War and the negative view of Germany.

A common intercultural strategy is to point out similarities. That may work well in the German-French relationship, but not always in the German-Dutch one. Germany is very important for the Netherlands in order to be able to differentiate itself, to be able to define itself through a negative detour. The aim is to show that Dutch does not mean German , that the Netherlands is not the (French) boches du nord . For similar reasons, it is considered grossly offensive when Germans (seriously or in jest) refer to “Dutch” as “German dialect”.

Clingersael Study 1993

A widely acclaimed study by the Dutch Clingersael Institute from 1992/1993 came to the conclusion after a survey of Dutch 15 to 19 year olds:

Compared to other EU countries, the attitude of Dutch youth towards Germany and Germans is very negative. More than half of the respondents have a negative attitude towards Germany, only 15% have a positive one. […] There is no other EU country where Dutch young people have a clearer attitude than Germany. […] [Germany] is still very often associated with the Second World War […]. In addition, the current violence against foreigners in Germany plays a major role. […] As far as (objective) knowledge about Germany is concerned, it can be stated that the majority of Dutch young people have only minimal knowledge. It is particularly noticeable that only a few young people have any idea of the size of the German population. A striking number, however, know the name of the German Chancellor.

There is not much interest in Germany. There is just as much interest in Germany as in Belgium, but much less than in Great Britain and especially France.

After all, attitudes are closely related to the direct contact young people have with Germans. Both young people with German relatives or friends and young people who have often been to Germany have a significantly more positive attitude towards Germany and the Germans than the other young people. Boys generally think a little more of Germany than girls. The higher the level of education, the larger the category without a particularly positive or negative attitude. Young people who live near the German border are somewhat more positive about their neighboring country and its population than others.

... The vast majority see the Germans as dominant (71%) and arrogant (60%). Furthermore, almost half of young people see Germany as warmongering (46%) and a country that wants to rule the world (47%). Only 19% rate Germany as a peace-loving country.

For interpretation, it should be taken into account that young people are less cautious in their judgments than adults and that the series of attacks on foreigners in Germany (Rostock-Lichtenhagen, Mölln, Hünxe) was very present in the media at the time. German unification also made some Dutch people uncomfortable. In addition, DASA had bought up a national technology symbol with Fokker . Back then, in the early or mid-1990s, the reputation of Germans in the Netherlands seems to have been particularly bad. Some time later, the polls returned to normal.

Wielenga suspects that the Clingersael study produced a purifying effect among Dutch people. It was bon ton , especially in left-wing circles , to speak flatly about Germany. After the study, these leftists asked themselves to what extent they were to blame for the youth's image of Germany. According to Wielenga's feeling, people realized at the time that the picture did not correspond to German reality.

Wielenga's colleague Henk Dekker expressed himself more sharply in 1999. In his introductory speech as associate professor for German-Dutch relations, he said that the negative image of Germany was offered to Dutch children from an early age. The commemoration of the dead contributes to this, as do stories from grandparents and anti-German jokes. Dekker cited a large number of examples, such as the sports host casually mentioning the "pleasant" news that Germany has lost. A cabaret artist said that Germans would of course not get AIDS because they had no friends.

As a reaction to the Clingersael study, one can rate a title topic in the Spiegel magazine from February 1994: “Ms. Antje in the menopause”. The reporter Erich Wiedemann worked off his frustrations in it, so Linthout. Cocaine and heroin trafficking is tolerated, euthanasia is a routine practice, and Dutch fruit and vegetables are harmful to health. From his experience with the Dutch courses at the Goethe Institute , Linthout reports that the participants have adopted the negative views on this title topic. Later that subsided again. Knowledge about the Netherlands is too low a priority for a single article to stick around longer.

2007 survey

On the occasion of the commemoration of the dead ( Dodenherdenking , May 4th) in 2007, a Dutch newspaper group commissioned a survey about Germans. On a scale from 1 to 10 (corresponding to the school grades), Germany received a 6.8. Respondents gave themselves and the Belgians a 7.2. However, this value has improved over the past ten years and so at the time of publication one in three Dutch people thought more positively about Germany. Above all, Germans are friendly, proud and hardworking workers.

Ton Nijhuis from the Germany Institute Amsterdam commented that the Duitsland taboe was over. When, towards the end of the 1990s, the Netherlands overtook Germany in terms of economic power and wealth, that began to change. “In addition, there was a lot of attention in Germany for the Netherlands: for our polder model , literature, architecture, ethical issues, drug policy, integration. That flatters you. When your big brother says to you: May we please learn from you how we should solve our problems, can we no longer be angry? ”In times of European enlargement, the old“ war argument ”has given way to the search for common ground. "If you said at a party in the early 1990s that you were going on vacation in Germany, you were looked at crookedly, as if you were ready for a psychiatric facility." Today, however, it is "hip" to go to Germany.

Paul Sars from Nijmegen recommends that students learn German for economic reasons alone. The old clichés also had something to do with history lessons: France was introduced there with the French Revolution, England with women's suffrage and the social issue, Germany, on the other hand, with the Empire and National Socialism.

Belevingsonderzoek Duits

In 2010 and 2017, the Germany Institute Amsterdam commissioned surveys about the image Dutch schoolchildren have of Germany. Compared to 2010, the students in 2017 were more positive about the subject German and the German language; partly because the teachers offer more cultural studies. German is now more interesting, more beautiful, more useful and easier; also. This is related to the otherwise improved attitude towards Germany.

However, the students know very little about Germany. Almost everyone knew Angela Merkel. But half could not name a German-speaking author. The most famous book is "Mein Kampf" by Adolf Hitler.

Although teachers in the class speak more German, the students still hardly speak at all. The researchers see a connection: the more German is spoken in class, the higher the appreciation of the German language. The lack of German teachers is an ongoing problem. The report by the Germany Institute also refers to the recommendation of an education commission that the second foreign language should no longer be compulsory.

Individual topics

Borderline

The German-Dutch border is 567 kilometers long. The German-Dutch border issue has still not been finally resolved, especially with regard to the exact course of the border in the Dollart Bay.

On March 26, 1995, the border controls between Germany and the Netherlands ended in accordance with the Schengen Implementation Agreement , so that an unhindered border crossing has been possible since that day. Since then, both countries have belonged to the Schengen area .

Drug policy

Coffee shop in Amsterdam

The Dutch drug policy is a libertarian drug policy compared to Germany . Contrary to popular belief in Germany, the possession of “ soft drugs ” is punishable there as well, although it is generally not prosecuted for smaller amounts. Similar regulations in Germany are stricter, where the “small amount”, for example, of cannabis as an intoxicant, is only about a fifth and criminal repression is stronger. On the one hand, the libertarian attitude of the Netherlands in Germany is partially criticized by conservative-restrictive politicians, on the other hand, some Dutch people criticize the fact that German tourists visit the Dutch coffee shops where controlled soft drugs are allowed to be sold.

coping with the past

Anne Frank House , Amsterdam

In the Netherlands, discussions in Germany dealing with the subject of the Second World War are followed with interest. This also includes the discourse about German victims.

The often negative attitudes towards Germany among Dutch people could have something to do with suppressing their own past. In the Netherlands, the earlier black-and-white thinking has given way to a more nuanced approach, not least due to the book Grijs verleden ( Graue Past , 2001) by Chris van der Heijden. It attacked the image of the brave, resistant people and referred to the diverse collaboration with the German occupiers. By far most Dutch people would have come to terms with the condition and had no courage to say no.

A so far unresolved question is why the Netherlands has lost many more of its Jewish citizens (74 percent or 114,000 people) than other Western European countries. PhD student Kata Hoppe couldn't find a specific single reason for this. Among other things, the Jews were left in wrong belief about the persecution measures. She was shocked that the Dutch government at the time showed no particular sympathy for this vulnerable population group.

Another aspect is Dutch colonial history . Since around 1995 - with the 50th anniversary of the proclamation of the Indonesian Republic - colonialism, slave trade and the colonial war in Indonesia (“Police Actions”, 1947/1948) have been the subject of increased discussion. Together with the Srebrenica massacre , also in 1995, the colonial discussion shook the self-image of gidsland with it.

Memorial of the dead

On May 4th, the Netherlands will commemorate those who died in World War II, with two minutes of silence before 8 p.m. The trains also stop then. On May 5th, the end of the German occupation, more precisely the surrender of the German armed forces , will be celebrated on Bevrijdingsdag .

It was discussed again and again whether German representatives were "allowed" to the corresponding events. These invitations have only been increasing since about 2001. The German ambassador then usually speaks English.

According to a survey (2007), 73 percent of the Dutch welcome Germans to the commemorations. 70 percent also include members of German soldiers or veterans' associations. However, this attitude decreases with the age of the respondents. A total of 15 percent are against German participation. 80 percent think that the commemorations should also be held in the future. 7 percent want to abolish it, 13 percent consider it sufficient once in five years.

Soccer

The soccer game , which is popular in both countries , sometimes causes emotional outbursts that can be seen as chauvinistic. “Victories against Germany” are apparently experienced as particularly uplifting and defeats as particularly saddening in the Netherlands.

In the 1974 FIFA World Cup in Germany, the Netherlands had the first time a big success: They were World Cup runners after they had mostly not even qualify in previous years. Nevertheless, the defeat against Germany in the final meant that the joy about the success was limited.

In 1988 at the European Championships in Germany , the Dutch selection won the final against the Soviet Union. However, the victory against Germany in the semi-finals was seen as much more important. Friso Wielenga saw an "outbreak of chauvinism" go through the country, according to some observers "the greatest national euphoria since the liberation of 1945". National coach Rinus Michels issued the much-quoted slogan: "Football is war". Just as the continued existence of the nation is at stake in a real war, it seemed that this international match was about national intrinsic value. "The subsequent exuberance was much more than just the joy of the 'deserved' revenge after the 'humiliation' of 1974, when the Netherlands were defeated in the final of the World Cup of the Federal Republic."

Ronald Koeman

After the semifinal game in question in 1988, while swapping shirts on the pitch, Ronald Koeman wiped his bum with the shirt he received from Olaf Thon . Koeman apologized much later, but was not reprimanded by the Dutch Football Association.

In 2006 a Dutch company brought so-called "Oranje helmets" onto the market for the World Cup in Germany . They combined the Dutch national color orange with a plastic helmet that resembled the German Wehrmacht helmets from World War II. The amusingly meant fan article was sharply criticized on both sides of the border.

Study of cultures

Several universities in the Netherlands offer courses designed to convey the German language and culture. The universities in Nijmegen , Leiden , Utrecht and Amsterdam offer the Duitse taal en cultuur course .

On the German side, Dutch language and culture can be studied at the University of Duisburg-Essen . In addition , the Netherlands-Germany Studies course is offered at the House of the Netherlands , more precisely at the Center for Dutch Studies at the Westphalian Wilhelms University in Münster . The Master's is offered in collaboration with Radboud University Nijmegen .

Etiquette

The differences between Dutch and German manners are not to be exaggerated, but they are noticeable. Generalizations like “In country X you are more formal” don't always get to the heart of the matter. The Dutch duo culture does not necessarily mean that every Dutch person likes to be used in every situation, and the duo at many workplaces must not be interpreted as a lack of hierarchy. Germans do not always understand the Dutch looseness, writes Ute Schürings on NetherlandsNet. But: "The level of co-determination ultimately remains a matter for the superior."

According to Ute Schürings, the Duzen depends on the industry, the working atmosphere and the age. Duzen does not mean that you are friends with each other, rather it is perceived as practical in the Netherlands. However, the Siezen is customary on official occasions, and until the 1960s, the Dutch had spoken to their parents. God is also approved, because the Calvinist God is not a “dear” God like the German. Conversely, according to Schürings, in the Netherlands the German Siezen is not understood as a sign of respect, but of rigidity and hierarchical awareness.

The different curse cultures are very noticeable. While fecal language is used more in Germany , swearing in the Netherlands is very genitally colored. The most common Dutch swear word kut (as an expression of displeasure, such as “crap!”) Refers to the female genitalia. A "jerk" or "idiot" is in Dutch a lul (the male genital), lull is also a verb for "dumb chatter". Illnesses are also part of the general curse vocabulary , such as in the curse krijg de tering (you are supposed to get consumptive) or in the curse kankerwijf (literally " cancer woman ").

There is a bond tegen het vloeken (union against swearing), which combats swearing on billboards. This religious bond is primarily directed against curses with reference to God, such as godverdomme ("damned", literally: "God damn"). Even if most Dutch people smile at Bond , they consider godverdomme to be a much worse curse than kut, for example .

literature

Annette Birschel : Thu is the train station - Nederland door Duitse ogen , Amsterdam: Bakker, 2008.
Christoph Driessen : History of the Netherlands, From sea power to trend land , Regensburg 2009.
Alexander Thomas / Boris U. Schlizio (ed.): Living and working in the Netherlands. What you should know about the country and its people , Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Rupprecht, 2007.
Friso Wielenga : From enemy to partner. The Netherlands and Germany since 1945 , Münster 2000.
Friso Wielenga, Ilona Taute (ed.): Country report Netherlands. History - Economy - Society , Bonn 2004.

Web links

Commons : German-Dutch relations - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Germany and the Netherlands: Bilateral Relations . Federal Foreign Office website, January 10, 2020 (with further useful links )
German Embassy The Hague
INTERREG program Germany-Netherlands
Federal community for German-Dutch cooperation

Individual evidence

^ Friso Wielenga: The ugly Germans? In: Friso Wielenga, Bernd Müller (Ed.): Kannitverstan? Pictures of Germany from the Netherlands . Agenda Verlag, Münster 1995, pp. 103–153, here p. 146.

↑ Dik Linthout: Antje and Mr. Doe: Netherlands for German . Ch. Links Verlag , Berlin 2002, pp. 18/19.

↑ Christoph Driessen: With your back to the neighbor. The difficult relationship with Germany. In: Christoph Driessen: History of the Netherlands. Regensburg 2009, p. 250.

↑ Bernd Müller: Silent days in the cliché: Stinn, nonsense and the development of Dutch images of Germany. In Bernd Müller, Friso Wielenga (Ed. :): Kannitverstan? Pictures of Germany from the Netherlands. agenda Verlag, Münster 1995, pp. 15-29, here p. 25.

↑ Zit.n .: Christoph Driessen: History of the Netherlands. From sea power to trend land. Regensburg 2009, p. 252.

↑ Zit.n .: Christoph Driessen: History of the Netherlands. From sea power to trend land. Regensburg 2009, p. 253.

↑ According to Friso Wielenga: Consensus in the polder? Politics and political culture in the Netherlands after 1945. In: Friso Wielenga / Ilona Taute (eds.): Country report Netherlands. History - Economy - Society , Bonn 2004, pp. 13–129, here pp. 72–74.

↑ Wereldomroep ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , last seen on June 27, 2009.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / static.rnw.nl

↑ http://nederlandse-kerk.de/wie-zijn-wij/wer-sind-wir/

↑ Figures from the Ministry of Education ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 188 kB)@1@ 2

↑ Dik Linthout: Antje and Mr. Doe: Netherlands for German . Ch.links Verlag , Berlin 2002, p. 158.

↑ http://www.kennislink.nl/web/show?id=156623

↑ Archive link ( Memento from September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive )

↑ NetherlandsNet: Germans in the Netherlands , accessed July 3, 2010.

^ NetherlandsNet: Dutch people in Germany , Abrif on July 3, 2010.

↑ Cross-border police team 2015+ , Interreg Deutschland-Nederland, accessed on August 16, 2018.

↑ Rapport Belevingsonderzoek Duits 2010 ( Memento from July 30, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF file; 2.42 MB), published by the Duitsland Instituut Amsterdam (DIA), accessed on February 8, 2013, page 9

↑ Alexander Thomas / Boris U. Schlizio: German-Dutch cultural standards: Intercultural understanding in German-Dutch relations. In this. (Ed.): Living and working in the Netherlands. What you should know about the country and its people. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht , 2007, p. 51. See also Dik Linthout: Ms. Antje and Mr. Mustermann: Netherlands for Germans. Chr. Links Verlag, Berlin 2002, pp. 33/34.

^ Ton Nijhuis: The political culture in the Netherlands compared to Germany. In: Alexander Thomas / Boris U. Schlizio (ed.): Living and working in the Netherlands. What you should know about the country and its people. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2007, pp. 182–199, here p. 191.

↑ November 14, 1970, quoted from: Friso Wielenga: The ugly Germans? In: Friso Wielenga, Bernd Müller (ed.): Kannitverstan? Pictures of Germany from the Netherlands. Agenda Verlag, Münster 1995, pp. 103–153, here p. 147.

↑ See also: Bernd Müller: No more fun - migration and integration in the Netherlands. In: Alexander Thomas / Boris U. Schlizio (Ed.): Living and working in the Netherlands. What you should know about the country and its people. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2007, pp. 200–222, here pp. 202–204.

↑ Dik Linthout: Antje and Mr. Doe: Netherlands for German. Chr. Links Verlag, Berlin 2002, pp. 33/34.

↑ Lutsen B. Jansen: Well-known and unpopular. The Clingersael Study. The image of Germany and the Germans among Dutch youth. In: Friso Wielenga, Bernd Müller (ed.): Kannitverstan? Pictures of Germany from the Netherlands. Agenda Verlag, Münster 1995, pp. 165-200, here pp. 180/181.

↑ Lutsen B. Jansen: Well-known and unpopular. The Clingersael Study. The image of Germany and the Germans among Dutch youth. In: Friso Wielenga, Bernd Müller (ed.): Kannitverstan? Pictures of Germany from the Netherlands. Agenda Verlag, Münster 1995, pp. 165–200, here pp. 196–198.

↑ Archived copy ( Memento from January 3, 2016 in the Internet Archive )

↑ Archived copy ( Memento of March 13, 2014 in the Internet Archive )

↑ Dik Linthout: Antje and Mr. Doe: Netherlands for German. Ch.links Verlag, Berlin 2002, pp. 46, 49.

↑ http://www.trouw.nl/laatstenieuws/laatstenieuws/article706987.ece/Nederland_ziet_Duitsland_als_goede_buurman , last seen on May 4, 2007.

↑ Nijhuis and Sars quoted from: http://www.gelderlander.nl/dgbinnenland/article1378120.ece , last seen on May 4, 2007.

↑ Belevingsonderzoek Duits. In: Duitsland Instituut. Retrieved May 6, 2018 (Dutch).

↑ Archive link ( Memento of July 3, 2007 in the Internet Archive )

↑ Review: http://www.historischhuis.nl/recensies/recensie144.html . See also Dik Linthout: Ms. Antje and Mr. Mustermann: Netherlands for Germans . Chr. Links Verlag, Berlin 2002, pp. 24–26.

↑ Rick Tatzelaar: Katja Happe: Many false hopes. Review. In: Sehepunkte , Edition 18 (2018), No. 4, accessed on June 24, 2019.

↑ Dik Linthout: Antje and Mr. Doe: Netherlands for German . Chr. Links Verlag, Berlin 2002, pp. 17/18.

↑ See http://www.gelderlander.nl/dgbinnenland/article1378120.ece , last seen on May 4, 2007.

↑ http://www.uni-muenster.de/NiederlandeNet/nl-wissen/kultur/vertiefung/dnlbild/fussballeuropamemeisterschaft.html (last seen on August 24, 2010)

^ WL Brugman, foreword to: Friso Wielenga: West-Duitsland: partner uit noodzaak , Utrecht 1989, p. IX.

^ "Bundesliga Dutch criticize Oranje-Helm", Netzeitung ( Memento from January 14, 2006 in the Internet Archive ).

↑ Alexander Thomas and Boris U. Schlizio: German-Dutch cultural standards: Intercultural understanding in German-Dutch relations. In this. (Ed.): Living and working in the Netherlands. What you should know about the country and its people , Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2007, pp. 40–78, here pp. 42, 51, 54.

↑ NetherlandsNet: Informal Handling , accessed on July 3, 2010.

↑ NetherlandsNet: Duzen und Siezen , accessed on July 3, 2010.

↑ For the different curse cultures see Dik Linthout: Mrs. Antje and Mr. Mustermann: Netherlands for Germans . Chr. Links Verlag, Berlin 2002, pp. 139/140.

↑ See also: Brief Sprachkunde (PDF file; 832 kB), p. 69. Accessed on June 12, 2012.

[1] Friso Wielenga: The ugly Germans? In: Friso Wielenga, Bernd Müller (Ed.): Kannitverstan? Pictures of Germany from the Netherlands . Agenda Verlag, Münster 1995, pp. 103–153, here p. 146.

[2] Dik Linthout: Antje and Mr. Doe: Netherlands for German . Ch. Links Verlag , Berlin 2002, pp. 18/19.