GERMANS Don't GREET STRANGERS - Richtig oder Falsch? 🇩🇪 BUSTING German Stereotypes#shorts

A common German stereotype is that Germans don't greet strangers and say "hallo" when passing strangers on the streets. This IS true in bigger cities, same as most cities around the world. But it isn't true in small towns (Dorfs) or villages. Our followers commented on the full video that in small towns all over Germany, people do greet each other when passing on the streets. #shorts

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[mailyholmertz]

As Swedes we feel at home in Germany, many rules of courtesy are the same. We don’t greet people in towns, that would be impossible, but always when we are in a small neighbourhood or in a forest. Maybe it’s an old way if showing that you have good intentions? We say Morgen or Grüss Gott in Germany when we enter a hotel breakfast room and Bonjour or Bon giorno in France or Italy. When in Rome do as the Romans!

[wolfgangreiss]

I was growing up in a very small village in Baden-Württemberg. At the age of 19 I leave and went out in big region of Stuttgart. The city where I am still living here has about 15, 000 citizen. I remember the first days on street i was greeting everybody like I knew from my home village but nobody greets back. I am still greet everybody when I am visiting home. I think in local areas with small villages the people greets everybody and in areas at big cities like Stuttgart nobody do it because to many unknown people.

[Kordanor]

I think that depends a lot on the region and environment. I am from Germany but lived in a Town between Paris and Versailles for a while, and there people greeted (and I greeted) as soon as I arrived at my building complex. So past the last spot were "people from the city" could be.
Now I am living in a "remote" Town in france. Lots of people are greeting on the like 500m in the one direction to the supermarket (not at the supermarket itself), and in the other direction into the "town center" it basically fizzles out, the closer you get, the less you greet/ get greeted.
(And no, in both locations I knew nobody)
And I think that just makes sense. Imagine you'd want to greet everyone when walking on times square.

[toniderdon]

Hello to strangers is only common in small towns and villages. Not going to happen in big cities :D

[tobyk.]

I think that's not possible to give a general statement about this for all of Germany... probably it's much more common in a village / in rural areas to greet everybody whom you see on the street, while in large cities it's rather unusual of the other person is a stranger (and might be irritating to some, for example if a young woman is greeted by a male stranger).
Also, there are probably regional differences between different regions of Germany.

[wolfgang]

schön,
in diesen Zeiten
in den Deutschen auch etwas Positives finden zu können 👍

[peterwitt]

Die Norddeutsche Variante nicht zu vergessen: Moin

[DerJarl]

It depends, as always, in a village or small town it is customary to say "Hallo" or "Guten Tag". In an anonymous big city, you tend not to do this, or only to your immediate neighbors or familiar faces, for example to waitresses in the usual shops.

[SaraBlu]

I just read the title and immediately thought “OMG why would anyone greet a stranger… it’s completely weird and cringe worthy” LOL. So greetings from a German city kid to the Bavarian paradise you live in 😀

What’s it like in the US? Do Americans in bigger cities just randomly greet strangers?

[kimiisland]

That is actually not very common and really only might happen in small bavarian towns. If you do this somewhere else, you get very strange looks.

[DeKaTef]

Allways greeting in your local area is normal, because you don't know if you need a strangers help in the Alps/mountains.😄

[ErklaerMirDieWelt]

It's a country thing. My Mom is from the founding family of a village with about 800 people. I grew up in the city. Once, I visited the village as a kid and walked around with my cousin. She greeted everyone and when I asked her about it she shrugged and said: "The chances that we're related are higher than the chances that we're not. So I just greet everyone. It will get round to my Mom anyway if I don't and then I'm in trouble for not greeting some great aunt twice removed."

[mhingmhing]

I live in a village. Some greet me and some don't. At first I greet everyone because in my home country it means respect and i would love to do that too. But later on some people don't greet me back and i received drawn faces and others show they don't like it. For me now, it doesn't matter at all. When they greet me then i greet back. But i will never be the first one to do that. They prefer too that way. I love Germany but it's now a question if i like also the people.

[jennyharmony]

Please do a video on how to find a job in Germany!

[Gert-DK]

Remember, Biden is coming to Bayern tomorrow. Maybe he will pop in for a cup of coffee. 😉

[ebbhead]

You're in the countryside. Move to a big city and you won't get that stuff.. 😎

[AltIng]

What is really weird, as a fishead😉, that means Northener, I was used to great strangers in the streets, well Bavarians in rual areas do the same...but Hessians not in general.

[Matthias_Br]

That's a no go in the UK and makes me sick as it's very unpolite as far as I see it. Not even in the company, just your own department, but the rest pfff

[jurgenfichtel]

Ja es kann schon kompliziert sen....
Besonders in Bayern 🤣🤣🤣
München unmöglich, auf dem Land üblich...
Wer einen Gruß nicht ist erwiedert ist ein 'Biffe oder Preiss' 😄