Wiener Schmäh (Viennese ''Schmäh'') refers to a colloquial expression that describes a characteristic aspect of Viennese humor. It does not refer to a singular invective, but rather a style of communication.
Etymology and Use
The German dictionary
Duden traces the word ''Schmäh'' back to the middle high German ''smæhe,'' which means "insult" or "contumely treatment." In
Austrian German slang ''Schmäh'' means "gimmick," "trick," "swindle" or "falsehood" as well as "compulsory friendliness," "saying" or "joke." According to Peter Wehle, ''Schmäh'' is derived from the
Yiddish
Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
''schemá (story, something overheard)'' whereas Robert Sedlacek suggests an origin in
Rotwelsch, in which ''Schmee'' means something to the extent of ''
Thieves' cant'', ''lie'' or ''
joke
A joke is a display of humour in which words are used within a specific and well-defined narrative structure to make people laugh and is usually not meant to be interpreted literally. It usually takes the form of a story, often with dialogue, ...
''.
The
Variantenwörterbuch des Deutschen (a German dictionary that documents geographical and dialectic differences in the German language) defines ''Viennese Schmäh'' as a typically Austrian - often perceived as superficially friendly - charm that is ascribed, especially in Western Austria, to the Viennese. The Term is derived from
Viennese German and has been carried over into the
Standard German
Standard High German (SHG), less precisely Standard German or High German (not to be confused with High German dialects, more precisely Upper German dialects) (german: Standardhochdeutsch, , or, in Switzerland, ), is the standardized variety ...
and even in Germany is sometimes used in the form ''Wiener Schmäh.''
Wiener Schmäh is strongly associated with Austrian Cabaret and stand-up comedy. In an article concerning Austrian humor, the German-language newspaper
Kurier offered the following anecdote as an example of Schmäh: "A woman died. In front of her open grave stood her husband next to his wife's lover. The lover was completely broken and cried bitterly. The woman's husband laid his arm consolingly across the lover's shoulders and said: 'Don't take it so hard. I'll definitely marry again!'"
Reception
Often Wiener Schmäh is treated as synonymous with
Viennese German. It is considered to be subtle, indirect and full of hidden innuendo, sometimes analogous to
black humor. The cabaret artist
Reinhard Nowak defined Schmäh as a combination of crass and endearing and as an often not earnest form of togetherness. Likewise, cabaret artist
Josef Hader Josef may refer to
* Josef (given name)
* Josef (surname)
* ''Josef'' (film), a 2011 Croatian war film
* Musik Josef, a Japanese manufacturer of musical instruments
{{disambiguation ...
suggests that Schmäh unites charm and a certain kind of unfriendliness that are normally incompatible.
[Irene Binal: ]DeutschlandRadio Berlin
Deutschlandfunk Kultur (; abbreviated to ''DLF Kultur'' or ''DKultur'') is a culture-oriented radio station and part of Deutschlandradio, a set of national radio stations in Germany. Initially named ''DeutschlandRadio Berlin'', the station was ren ...
vom 28. Januar 2005, retrieved, 27 Märch 2013 The American linguistic anthropologist Michael Agar discusses Schmäh in his 1996 book ''Language Shock'', in which he uses it to illustrate his concept of
languaculture.
See also
*
Black Comedy
*
Cabaret
*
Kabarett
*
Wienerlied
Literature
* Irene Suchy,
Hubert Christian Ehalt (Hrsg.): ''Schmäh als
ästhetische Strategie der
Wiener Avantgarden'' (= ''Enzyklopädie des Wiener Wissens.'' Band XXII). Edition Seidengasse,
Bibliothek der Provinz, Weitra 2015, .
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiener Schmah
Culture in Vienna