Germany Coat Of Arms

German name-calling

Four weeks ago, my column about relocating to a football diaspora mentioned the North German club Holstein Kiel and noted in passing that their fans and players are known as the 'Storks'. The resourceful Soccernet editors thereupon illustrated the piece with a picture of the club's mascot, a stork called Stolle, which prompted a reader to remark: "I would have guessed Holstein Kiel's mascot to be a cow."

He meant no disrespect, I hasten to explain. Kiel, as noted, is in Schleswig-Holstein, hence the club's official name, and that region is famous for a breed of cattle - the Holstein or Holstein-Friesian cow, if you must know.

While one can indeed spot quite a few storks in this part of the country, it is unlikely that Holstein Kiel's nickname directly stems from the region's indigenous fauna. The origin of the moniker is shrouded in the mists of time, but there are two theories. The first traces the nickname to a local pub; the second says it stems from the red socks and white shorts traditionally worn by the players, as the most common stork in Northern Germany is marked by its red legs and white plumage.

In most walks of life, it wouldn't be particularly flattering to refer to someone as a long-necked wading bird, but in football it's different. Because football, like many other sports, just loves nicknames. In England, the home of the game, we have the 'Owls' (Sheffield Wednesday) and the 'Magpies' (Newcastle and Notts County), the 'Canaries' (Norwich) and the 'Robins' (Bristol City and Swindon Town), the 'Gulls' (Torquay) and the 'Seagulls' (Brighton & Hove Albion). Oh, and the 'Bees' (Barnet FC).

Barnet's nickname leads me to the inspiration for this column: the other day I was sub-editing a piece about Borussia Dortmund and noticed that an esteemed colleague of mine from England was referring to the team as the 'Bees'.

Perhaps it's a mistake that was easy to make, considering the abominable mascot that has been stalking the club's fans and players for the past six years is a bee. Still, Dortmund are not the Bees. In fact, the club doesn't have a real nickname.

Well, you can get away with ' die Schwarz-Gelben '. But that's merely descriptive, as it means the black-and-yellows. And it's by no means used exclusively: you'll often hear the term used for other clubs playing in these colours, for instance Dynamo Dresden or Alemannia Aachen.

Are the German coat of arms from 18891918 affiliated with any nazi ...

Angelikpistol Asked: Are the German coat of arms from 18891918 affiliated with any nazi symbols?

I'm German and think these coat of arms are really beautiful and would like a tattoo of them to symbolize my heritage, however obviously I don't want anything relating to the nazi era or anything affiliated with it. Could someone tell me if this eagle carried down through and is associated with any nazi symbols?

If you are talking about the Eagle the Nazi's carried around on poles, that was copied from Ancient Rome. The Eagle Standard was the symbol of ancient Rome and carried by the Legions.

The Russians used a two headed Eagle as the Coat of Arms, you could be confusing their coat of arms with the German coat of arms.

German Coats of Arms, Coat of Arms of Germany, Wheel of Mainz, Coat of Arms of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Coat of Arms of Prussia

Design Your Own Coat of Arms, An Introduction to Heraldry

Coat of Arms

National Symbols of Germany, Flag of Germany, Deutschlandlied, Eagle, Brandenburg Gate, Auferstanden Aus Ruinen, Coat of Arms of Germany

Frommer's Germany 2011