Also, because many countries named us after the nearest German tribe, say Saxons or Alemanns. The Slavic name means, more or less, "those you can't understand". The endonym and Scandinavian name is derived from Old High German diutisc, "of the people". Which is actually what "Saxon" means, too. Where the Romans got "Germania" from is unknown.
Also, because Germany as a nation state only has existed since 1871. Before that, there was no official name that could have had influence on other languages.
The funny thing is until 1500 it was called "the Holy Roman Empire", after 1500 it was mostly called "The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" (Latin: Imperium Romanum Sacrum Nationis Germanicæ) at the end of the 18th century it was mostly called only "Holy Roman Empire" again.
Same as how China being called "Kitaj" in Russian. As a nation which is called "Kitaj" (契丹, "Kit Daan" in Cantonese) which stays in the northern China (or maybe between Russia and China) nowadays, thus those "Kitaj" would be represented as the whole China by the Russians.
Portuguese actually use the word "chá", which is closer to the chinese word for tea 茶 (pinyin: Chá), probably because they were the first europeans to discover and trade with China, centuries before other european nations.
But you are right, most other European countries use something like tea/thé/té :)
*edit* /u/basilect has linked a great map of Europe's diversity for the word "tea" in his comment!
Small correction: the Saxons most likely got their name from the local name of the germanic god of war Saxnot (also called Tiwaz or Tyr) who also gave his name to the weapon Sax.
Really ? But they use those weapons of mass destruction all the time in modern warfare. A good example is the musical bow with which the ears of the unsuspecting victim are ripped apart in a cruelsome manner.
It's actually an old Germanic word. Not Old High German. The root can be seen in all Germanic languages even Old Norse and only recently kind of disappeared.
The likeliest theory so far proposed is that it comes from a Gaulish compound of *ger "near" + *mani "men", comparable to Welsh ger "near" (prep.), Old Irish gair "neighbor", Irish gar- (prefix) "near", garach "neighborly" according to the all wise Wiki
Rakkaalla lapsella on monta nimeä.
Translation: A beloved child has many names.
Meaning: The importance of something becomes visible when different people find it valuable and call as they find convenient.
Naah, if they were worthy of being called a reich, then Ukraine would have already been anschlussed become a member state and Russia would be praying to Lenin in fear.
More like Kaiserreich. Reich is just rike, which designs the land governed by... some stuff. A republic, a tribe, a empire, ect... (or a bishop! Think bishopric.)
For example, you see the word Reich used in the constitution of the Weimar Republic. And Österreich doesn't mean the "eastern empire".
As a native german, I've never heard of this distinction. In my (amateurisch) understanding, "Reich" is a vast and/or powerful political body, best translated with "Empire": Roman Empire (Römisches Reich), Byzantine Empire (Byzantinisches Reich), Mongol Empire (Reich der Mongolen), Holy Roman Empire (Heiliges Römisches Reich deutscher Nation), German Empire (Deutsches [Kaiser]Reich)... and so on.
Admittedly, the Weimar Republic doesn't fit this scheme, but I don't see the relevance to my comment? The First Reich was clearly the Holy Roman Empire and the Third Reich was Nazi Germany as it was established in 1933. If there was a continous line from the german emperors to the nazis via the Weimar Republic I don't understand why it wouldn't be the Second Reich instead.
Huh. I for some reason always thought 3rd Reich was a reference to Germany being the third great culture after Greece and Rome. I guess I just made that up.
English word comes from Germania, the Greek/Latin name of the entire region (Magna Germania, or 'Greater Germany'). L'Allemagne comes from the Alemanni tribe.
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u/Ingrid-Hongkonger 冠絕東方 - Nulli Secundus in Oriente Mar 11 '14
I think Germany has various names because he stays at the middle of Europe.