 Joined: 21/05/2004(UTC) Posts: 1,768 Location: Brisbane, Queensland
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Hi all,
I am wanting to understand the origins of the term 'Pleitegeier' used to describe the Reichsadler logo used from 1938 because the translation in english is 'bankruptcy vulture' but there seems no correlation with the symbol.
Is it only a term used specifically for that symbol of the state railway during the Nazi period or some sort of more recent German colloquialism for the period in general, not just railways? |
modelling era IIIa (1951-1955) Germany |
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 Joined: 01/03/2016(UTC) Posts: 275 Location: Colorado
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Hello Applor
I wasn’t aware of that term being used for referring to the Reichs Adler in that way. I learned about that saying (grew up in Germany and went to school there and fluent in German) is that it is related to, a vulture is circling a dead carcass and you can see “ the Pleite Geier circling” over a company that is about to go bankrupt or go out of business. Hope this helps.
Robert
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 4 users liked this useful post by DB Fan
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Joined: 16/02/2004(UTC)
Posts: 15,446
Location: DE-NW
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"Pleite" not just means bankruptcy, it can also mean something like "epic fail". And the Third Reich was a colossal failure in the end.
The term Pleitegeier is not restricted to railway.
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Regards Tom --- "In all of the gauges, we particularly emphasize a high level of quality, the best possible fidelity to the prototype, and absolute precision. You will see that in all of our products." (from Märklin New Items Brochure 2015, page 1) ROFLBTCUTS  |
5 users liked this useful post by H0
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Joined: 21/05/2004(UTC) Posts: 1,768 Location: Brisbane, Queensland
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Thanks for the replies. I've actually found an explanation to the term from the stummi forum: https://www.stummiforum....-an-Loks.html#msg2036546referencing this wiki page: https://www.heraldik-wik...undeswappen_DeutschlandsUnder the heading " Federal Republic of Germany" After the re-establishment of German statehood on a democratic basis after the Second World War, it was a matter of course for the Federal Republic of Germany to once again honor the eagle of the German Republic as the federal coat of arms. On January 20, 1950, Federal President Theodor Heuss established the German coat of arms unchanged as it had been in the Weimar period of the German Reich and since German unity in 1990 has again been the coat of arms for all of Germany. In addition to the official representations of the federal eagle as in the federal coat of arms, in the federal service flagor in the standard of the Federal President, its stylistic design for other representative purposes, for example on coins or on the front wall of the German Bundestag , is at the discretion of the federal authorities and reflects a wide range of modern artistic sensibilities. [6] In the course of the increasingly distressed public budgets since the 1970s, the eagle of the federal coat of arms, presumably also due to its rather lean and ragged appearance compared to the so-called "Fette Henne" (see below), has been called the " bankrupt vulture " Popularity. |
modelling era IIIa (1951-1955) Germany |
4 users liked this useful post by applor
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 Joined: 16/11/2011(UTC) Posts: 5,854 Location: Hybrid Home
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I don't know the Heraldik-Wiki source and credentials, but I never heard of this nickname being used for the "Bundesadler" (federal eagle). 1) The German "Duden", a dictionary of the Standard High German language, states as origin: Actually a joking term for the bailiff's cuckoo (ironic term for the heraldic eagle formerly printed on the seal), probably reinterpreted from the Yiddish pronunciation "geier" for "geher" and "Pleite" (bankruptcy). https://www.duden.de/rec...itegeier#google_vignette2) The Academic Office ("wissenschaftlicher Dienst") of the German Bundestag reports that the first republican eagle, thanks to its restrained and less defensible form, received the disparaging nickname "Pleitegier" as early as 1919. However, the "Bundesadler" in the German parliament is nicknamed "fetter Henne" (fat hen) instead. https://www.bundestag.de...Der-Bundesadler-data.pdfEdited by user 02 September 2023 09:04:44(UTC)
| Reason: Corrected minor KI translation error for the sake of clarity. |
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1 user liked this useful post by Alsterstreek
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Joined: 21/05/2004(UTC) Posts: 1,768 Location: Brisbane, Queensland
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Well I received a message from a German with the following explanation, translation below that:
"Pleitegeier" ist ein mehrdeutiges, abwertendes Wortspiel... "Pleite" steht hier für "epic fail" Weil Das tausendjährige Reich gerade mal ein paar Jahre existierte und den Kontinent und die Welt ins Verderben zog... Und "Geier" ist abwertend für verschiedene große Vögel - auch Adler... Mit der "fetten Henne" hat das allerdings nichts zu tun.
"Pleitegeier" is an ambiguous, derogatory word game... "Broke" here stands for "epic fail" Because the thousand-year Reich only existed for a few years and brought the continent and the world to ruin... And "vulture" is derogatory for various large birds - including eagles... However, that has nothing to do with the "fat hen". |
modelling era IIIa (1951-1955) Germany |
1 user liked this useful post by applor
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Joined: 16/11/2011(UTC) Posts: 5,854 Location: Hybrid Home
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Originally Posted by: applor  Well I received a message from a German with the following explanation [...] And ? |
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