“Brat Girl Summer”, “very demure, very mindful”, Talahons and pink jerseys, penisgate at the Olympics and a lack of staff everywhere: these were the themes of the summer. An attempt at a lexical summary.
Every year, summer seems to pass far too quickly. Heavy topics such as war and terrorism have been very present in recent weeks (Ukraine, Gaza, Israel, Sudan, Mannheim, Solingen, cancellation of Taylor Swift’s Vienna concerts). The election campaigns also seem exhausting to many (USA, Thuringia, Saxony…).
Time for lighter topics and small talk? A lexicon of the attitude to life from June to August 2024:
A for tied caps on bottles
In order to reduce plastic waste in the environment, loose caps on certain drinks have been banned in Germany since the beginning of July. The reason for the now mandatory introduction of “tethered caps” is an EU directive. It is based on a study that shows that plastic caps are the most common plastic waste on beaches.
B for “belly legs butt”
“Go to the gym, get skinny”: Shirin David’s hit is irritating with its seemingly unbroken glorification of a trained, slim body. Whatever that means, David is the most successful singer in Germany when it comes to number one hits. No solo singer has had more songs at number one than her.
C for “Cash only” or “Card only”
When going out or in a beer garden in Germany, you are increasingly confronted with a polarized world: sometimes ONLY cash is accepted, sometimes ONLY card payments are accepted. Extremes.
D for “demure”
The old-fashioned word means something like reserved. Suddenly, thanks to the Tiktok trend and creator Jools Lebron, it was on everyone’s lips. The trans woman spoke about her make-up in a video. The phrase “very demure, very mindful” is now booming and also shows a lot of irony, because the word is often used in the opposite way, when something is not at all reserved, shy, cute, cuddly and so on.
E for opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris
The world watched as Paris opened its Olympic Games on July 26th with an extraordinary show on the Seine, somewhat rainy. There was excitement over allegedly too many drag queens and a suspected mockery of Christianity; but in the end love triumphed and the seriously ill singer Celine Dion sang “L’hymne à l’amour” on the Eiffel Tower.
F for Festival
The star of the legendary “Jedermann” in Salzburg this year was the celebrated actor Philipp Hochmair (“The Vienna Crime: Blind Investigated”) – a triumph. The old, exhausting play was skilfully brought into the present day.
G for Green and Brat
2024 was the “Brat Girl Summer” – and it has a color: bright green, the color of the album cover “Brat” by British singer Charli XCX. In her song “360” she says: “If you love it, if you hate it, I don’t fucking care what you think.” Doing what you want, no matter what others think – that’s the idea behind the proclaimed “Brat Summer”. A kind of counter-trend to the top-styled, never exaggerated “clean girl aesthetic” of recent years.
H for “Hot Rodent Man”
Generation Z has apparently discovered men who look like rodents as sex symbols this summer. They are supposed to be an antidote to toxic masculinity: distinctive facial features, a pointed nose, and striking teeth. The role models: Mike Faist, Josh O’Connor, Jeremy Allen White, Timothée Chalamet, Barry Keoghan, Harry Styles, and so on.
I like internationally ruined reputation
The Germans as world champions in organization and thoroughness? Their reputation is gone. During the European Football Championship, international media portrayed Germany as a country with a chaotic track and little customer friendliness, as well as often poor internet and inadequate network development. A reporter from the “New York Times” wrote of the supposed German efficiency: “Forget everything you thought you knew.” Embarrassing.
J like Joints
It was Germany’s first summer with the new cannabis law (since April 1, possession and cultivation of cannabis are permitted for adults with some requirements for personal consumption). In many bars and restaurants, there were now signs saying “Smoking cannabis is prohibited”.
K for cat ladies
Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance once called his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris and her party colleagues “a bunch of childless cat ladies.” Though meant to be derogatory for a strange person, this way of thinking may backfire, because today many people see love of animals as animal welfare and humanity – and more modern than Vance’s worldview.
L like bar torn
A video of French pole vaulter Anthony Ammirati went viral during the Olympics because it looked as if he had broken the bar with his large penis during the pole vault. A case of worldwide penis envy.
M for Munich
Germany’s third largest city with the clear Isar river and the English Garden was a kind of “place to be” this summer with the mega concerts by Taylor Swift and Coldplay and of course the special concert series by Adele.
N for Nutella ice cream
Hard to get hold of for weeks, the “Nutella ice cream” in a cup for those with a sweet tooth, launched by Ferrero to mark the 60th anniversary of the hazelnut nougat cream, was probably the summer product of the year.
O for outdoor clothing
Reinhold Messner (79) is surprised that people in the city center are wearing outdoor clothing. “The people in the pedestrian zone are dressed as if they were going to climb Everest the next day,” the mountaineering legend told the German Press Agency. He himself wears a lot of functional clothing – but for practical reasons, not for fashion reasons.
P for staff shortage
How ruined is Germany? The excuse that this or that is not possible due to a lack of staff was read very, very often this summer – even in restaurants that have not yet succumbed to the restaurant death.
Q like Queer
Ralf Schumacher’s coming out – or even just the announcement on July 14 that he is dating a man – degenerated into a media mudslinging match with his ex-wife Cora.
R for pink-purple jerseys
The German team’s pink away jersey at the European Football Championship became a best-seller for Adidas.
S for sunglasses and socks and shirt
Fashion in summer 2024, for example, meant: white socks pulled up instead of sneaker socks or ankle socks, and then also in Birkenstocks; in addition, shorts are now allowed everywhere, so to speak, and the simple white T-shirt (not too tight) is a must-have. And: cool people wear their sunglasses on the back of their neck or head instead of in their hair if they are not on their nose.
T like Talahon
The term (from the Arabic Tahal lahon (come here)) has been nominated as youth word of the year. It describes young men with a migrant background who wear sweatpants and chains, fake designer clothes and fanny packs and who like to roll around in a macho manner. A phenomenon that is a mixture of racism, resentment and self-irony. “Verknallt in einen Talahon” by Butterbro is also considered the first AI-generated song in the German charts.
U for holiday weariness
In Spain, there were sensational protests against mass tourism. Many locals are outraged by higher housing costs, environmental pollution, traffic jams and general overcrowding. Other annoyances include a lack of water and the fact that the garbage collection service is overloaded.
V for “Far too complicated?”
“The rainbow flag was originally intended to include everyone, but now there is so much diverse symbolism that sometimes you can hardly see the rainbow anymore,” said comic artist and gay icon Ralf König in an interview with “NOZ”. “Then it gets complicated, and flags shouldn’t be complicated.”
W for watermelon
Grilled, as a sandwich, as a salad with feta, as a flavor in toothpaste, as a perfume scent and very controversially as a sign of solidarity with Palestinians (because of its colors): watermelon is a trendy fruit.
XY chromosomes
Discussions about higher testosterone levels in women often lead to anti-trans or anti-intersex statements – this was seen at the Olympics around boxing star Imane Khelif. In Germany, transgender, intersex and non-binary people have been able to register at the registry office since August 1st that they want to change their gender entry and first name in accordance with the new Self-Determination Act (in force from November 1st). They then have to wait three months until they can submit their declaration. That is then sufficient. Until now, a court decision and two expert reports were necessary.
Z for “Too much of a good thing”
Berlin’s star restaurateur The Duc Ngo no longer wants guests in his restaurants who smell offensive. “I like nice scents too, but sometimes it’s just too much of a good thing,” he announced online. “That’s why I ask you to be considerate of us chefs and the other guests and reduce your perfume when you come to us. Thank you.” Do we need a perfume ban more often or at least a fragrance dress code in this country?
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
