2.1 The German Alphabet
The German alphabet consists of 26 standard Latin letters plus four additional characters: ä, ö, ü, and ß.
- A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z
- Special characters: Ä, Ö, Ü, and ß
2.2 Pronunciation Basics
While many German letters are pronounced similarly to English, there are key differences and unique sounds:
| Letter | Pronunciation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| W | like English "V" | Wasser (water) |
| V | often like "F" | Vater (father) |
| J | like English "Y" | Jahr (year) |
| Z | like "ts" | Zeit (time) |
| CH | either soft (after i/e) or hard (after a/o/u) | ich, Buch |
2.3 Umlauts: ä, ö, ü
Umlauts change the sound and meaning of a word. They are not decorative and must be learned and used correctly.
- ä – like the 'e' in "bed" (e.g., Mädchen – girl)
- ö – similar to the 'i' in "bird" (e.g., schön – beautiful)
- ü – like the French "u" (e.g., für – for)
If umlauts are unavailable, they can be written as "ae", "oe", "ue" (e.g., Mueller for Müller).
2.4 The ß Character
Called the Eszett or scharfes S, ß represents a sharp "s" sound. It only appears after long vowels and diphthongs.
- Straße (street) – long vowel before ß
- Mass vs Maß: Mass = mass (weight), Maß = measurement
In Swiss German, ß is replaced entirely with "ss".
2.5 Spelling Rules and Capitalization
German spelling follows fairly consistent phonetic rules. Notable features include:
- Noun Capitalization: All nouns are capitalized: der Hund, das Auto
- Compound Words: Words are combined without spaces: Handschuh (hand + shoe = glove)
- Doubled Letters: Often mark short vowels: Mutter, kommen
2.6 Tips for Pronunciation Practice
- Listen to native speakers via YouTube, podcasts, or music.
- Repeat words aloud and record yourself.
- Use tools like Forvo or Google Translate’s audio feature to check pronunciation.
- Practice minimal pairs: Wasser vs Vase, Buch vs ich
Quick Tip: German is largely phonetic—once you know the rules, you can pronounce almost any word accurately.