What is Knigge?
I often notice that there are some etiquette rules that seem obvious to Germans, but quite banal to me as an expat. For example, when eating, I’ve observed that there is a specific way in which certain foods should be eaten, cake of course may only be consumed with a cake fork. To other little things such as eye contact, where one sits at the table and who has the better view (the guest should always have the better view). I finally found the word that embodies all of what I was lacking, Knigge.
Turns out Der Knigge or etiquette is a whole thing! It has a long running history (as most things here) and a can be seen in daily interactions. The word dates back to Adolph Freiherr’s 1778 book, Ãœber den Umgang mit Menschen or On Human Relations and discusses exactly what the title suggests, how we Human Relations look. In English, we call this form of a rulebook – etiquette.
Even companies come out with their own Knigge rules, such as: Ãœber den Umgang mit E-Mails or On E-Mail Etiquette and Ãœber den Umgang mit dem Virus or On How to Deal with the Virus.
If you are interested in learning more about Knigge, here are a few helpful links:
Have you ever fallen into a Fettnäppchen due to lack of Knigge? Feel free to share your #deutschaf moments!
Liebe Grüße
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