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Museum director warns of Syrian cultural losses

Syria’s cultural heritage is seriously under threat from plundering and damage resulting from the current conflict, according to the director of the Berlin Museum of Islamic Art.

Published: 29 July 2012 14:51 CEST

Museum director warns of Syrian cultural losses

Photo: DPA

Syria’s rich cultural heritage, which Germany has been heavily involved in researching and restoring, is under serious threat from the war, said Stefan Weber, director of the Berlin Museum of Islamic Art speaking on the Deutschlandradio radio station on Friday.

“Of course we’re not just scared for the people, but also for these fantastic cultural treasures, which will not be spared in this war,” he said.

Cultural treasures particularly in Aleppo, which on Sunday was the site of fierce fighting – with reports of rocket launchers, helicopters and fighter jets being deployed by the Syrian regime against its opponents – are in danger of being lost forever.

There are already many reports of plundering from the open archaeological sites dating back up to 3,000 years. “Digging is going on there and then the things are smuggled over the border,” said Weber.

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Nine hip-hop tracks that will help you learn German

In fact, it’s a truth universally acknowledged that listening to hip-hop in German will boost your German language abilities tenfold.

Ok, so while that might not technically be entirely (read: at all) true, we reckon Jane Austen would have appreciated many German rappers’ way with words.

And with most clearly enunciating their words, and the rhythmic delivery helping with phrasing, the genre is a gift for language learners: it can help you get to grips with new words, sentence patterns and pronunciation, as well as gain an understanding of current phenomena.

We’ve chosen a selection of German hip-hop tracks – including some old-school gems – that are reasonable easy to understand, as well as a couple for more advanced learners who want to get to grips with the finer nuances of the language and word play.

Here are some songs to get you started.

Die Fantastischen Vier – Die Da

You can’t have an article about German hip hop without mentioning Die Fantastischen Vier (The Fantastic Four, often known as Die Fanta’ 4). Germany’s answer to the Beastie Boys, this Stuttgart band basically kicked off the German hip-hop scene in the late 80s and they’re still going today.

The catchy Die Da!? (Her over there!?) was a tongue-in-cheek hit in 1992 and we love it because the band’s clear articulation makes it easy to understand. Yes, it’s a bit silly – it’s about women the band are interested in, but spoiler: it ends up being the same woman – but it’s packed full of useful German slang.

Want to test your knowledge of German abbreviations? Check out their mfg (Mit freundlichen Grüssen, With best wishes)

Fettes Brot – Jein

Still on an old-school hip-hop vibe, Fettes Brot were a big part of the Hamburg scene.

‘Jein’ – a pleasing amalgamation of Ja and Nein was a big hit in the early 90s. Again, the delivery is clear, they rap slowly and the text is pretty straightforward. Here’s the chorus, for example:

Soll ich’s wirklich machen oder lass ich’s lieber sein / Jein / Ja, ja, oder nein /
Shall I really do it or would it be better to leave it / Jein / Yes, yes, or no

Perfect for the indecisive.

And for a taster of Hamburg dialect, have a listen to Nordisch by Nature.

One of the founder members Der Tobi later got together with another big name on the Hamburg scene – das Bo – and together with marcnesium and DJ Coolmann, they formed cheeky band Fünf Sterne Deluxe. Check out ‘Willst du mit mir geh’n‘ (Do you want to be my boyfriend/girlfriend?)

Mudi – Kind sein

The German rapper with Turkish and Lebanese roots is known for his storytelling that touches on key cultural issues. There’s less wordplay here and he raps slowly and clearly so, even for less confident German learners, the text is quite easy to understand (although some of his songs have a bit of Arabic, Turkish and Kurdish in them).

In 2016’s ‘Kind sein’ (being a child), he raps about feeling nostalgic for his childhood and the context makes it a breeze to put any new vocab into context.

He raps about missing the days when he was klein und so sorgenlos (small and so carefree) in contrast to now where heute sind die Sorgen gross / Krieg, der in den Herzen tobt (today the worries are great / war that rages in our hearts).

Cro – Ein Teil

Arguably more pop than rap (Cro himself calls the mixture raop), Cro is a pretty big deal in Germany.

‘Ein Teil’ is a great starter song as the lyrics are straightforward and it’s quite repetitive, helping with understanding and pronunciation. And while Cro mumbles a bit on some of his other tracks (he tends to eat some of his word endings), he’s quite clear on this track.

(And if you see him live, his penchant for wearing a panda mask on stage doesn’t necessarily help matters). Here’s a section of the refrain that’s repeated throughout:

Du bist und bleibst für immer ein Teil von mir

You are and will always be a part of me

Freundeskreis – A-N-N-A

More known for their socially conscious lyrics, the 90s/00s Stuttgart group had a hit with this slightly soppy but very catchy track.

Immer wenn es regnet / muss ich an dich denken / wie wir uns begegnet sind / und kann mich nicht ablenken

Whenever it rains / I have to think of you / How we met / I can’t stop thinking about it

Group member Max Herre also went on to have success as a solo artist and that’s also worth a listen. Try 1ste Liebe.

S. Castro – Krieger

For something with a more aggressive flow, try S. Castro.

His strong rhythmic delivery in this 2012 battle rap (Krieger means warrior) makes the lyrics fairly easy to understand.

The politically conscious rapper with Kurdish roots uses his raps to expose oppressive aspects of society and the system so there’s plenty of cultural insights to be gained too.

Deichkind – Leider Geil

This one – which translates as ‘unfortunately cool’ – really took off in the noughties with people describing everything as ‘leider geil’ for a while. It’s a really easy one to understand, too as it’s all in the present tense and the Hamburg group rap slowly and clearly.

Here’s a sample:

Es tut mir leid, doch ich muss leider gestehen / Es gibt Dinge auf der Welt, die sind (leider geil) / Autos machen Dreck, Umwelt geht kaputt / Doch ‘ne fette neue Karre ist (leider geil)

I’m sorry, but I’ve got to admit it, unfortunately / There are things in the world that are (unfortunately cool) / Cars are dirty, the environment’s going to hell / But getting an awesome new ride is (unfortunately cool)

Sabrina Setlur – Du liebst mich nicht

Setlur started out in the 90s and was one of the first German female rappers to achieve commercial success – this song went to number one.

Combining hard rap with a sung chorus, ‘You don’t love me’ is a heartfelt attack against a partner who doesn’t love her any more. Perfect for anyone who wants to improve their heartbreak vocab in German.

For a time her rap success was overshadowed by her then-relationship with Boris Becker, but her songs stand the test of time.

This one has since been covered by Ado Kojo featuring Hamburg-based rapper Shirin David.

Bodo Wartke – Barbaras Rhabarberbar

And we couldn’t not include this one. Rapper and cabaret performer Bodo Wartke achieved viral TikTok fame with this tongue-twister that tells the increasingly ludicrous tale of Barbara and her rhubarb bar.

As well as inspiring a dance, the catchy rap also sparked a huge interest in learning German which can never be a bad thing.

Wartke and friend and rapper Matti Fischer both have super-clear pronunciation. Plus it’s a great track for learning how easy it is to make compound nouns in German.

This is obviously just a selection, there are plenty more great hip-hop songs to help you with your German. Have we missed any of your favourites – let us know in the comments!

And if you want to see the lyrics while you listen to the songs, most texts are available on Genius.com and Songtexte.com.

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