Timeline for A server in a restaurant got offended when we addressed him as "Uncle"
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
11 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Sep 18, 2017 at 9:45 | comment | added | glglgl | @HagenvonEitzen But some might be offended by "Herr Wachtmeister", if they don't recognize its old-fashionedness as irony. | |
| Sep 16, 2017 at 14:59 | comment | added | leftaroundabout | Yes. For a male waiter, the standard German address would be “Herr Ober” (which translates more or less to Maître d' in English; it is applied to any waiter regardless of hierarchy). It's definitely preferred though to just use an expecting smile to attract a waiter's attention, perhaps a hand sign, and only if that doesn't help, throw in a short “Entschuldigen Sie, ...” | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 12:45 | comment | added | Hagen von Eitzen | @Layna A policeman might be addressed as "Herr Wachtmeister", but certainly only once (i.e., much less often than you'd use "sir" or "officer" in English during a single conversation) | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 11:55 | history | edited | NVZ | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
added 7 characters in body
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| Sep 15, 2017 at 10:58 | comment | added | Frank Hopkins | @Layna Right, I'd also say the most common way is to avoid a title at all. But one scenario where I find it used more often is when you want to be extra polite, e.g. in cases you want people to behave differently, like remove their baggage from a seat in a train. It balances the implied "scolding" that follows. | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 10:56 | comment | added | Frank Hopkins | @Trilarion I would not use it among young folks, like in a student environment and not in most private setups, but I often see it applied in professional setups. Like when you browse a shop and an employee spots you and offers help. Of course, it depends on the general context (what type of shop) and it is even more common to just avoid a title and go with "Sie/Ihnen", but I still see it used fairly often (agreed it's more often the "Mein Herr" or "der Herr" etc variants. Anyway, IF you want to use a title, e.g. to be extra polite, then that's the option you can use. | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 10:48 | comment | added | NoDataDumpNoContribution | @Darkwing "Werter Herr"/"Werte Frau/Dame"/"Mein Herr"/"Meine Dame" I only hear those in very posh circumstances, so maybe in a five star restaurant. Anywhere else people might still look strangely at you, however most probably not feel offended by it (unless they mistake it for irony). | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 10:46 | comment | added | Layna | "Werter Herr" works indeed but it sounds SO old-fashioned. But yes, you are right. Better be old-fashioned than rude ^^. | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 10:42 | comment | added | Frank Hopkins | @Layna well, for totally random people you can always go with a variation (depending on context and politeness you'd like to display) of "Werter Herr"/"Werte Frau/Dame"/"Mein Herr"/"Meine Dame",... - as long as you are certain enough of the gender and speaking to an adult. But indeed, for waiters, policemen, bus drivers, etc it's not common to address them with a generic job specific title. | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 9:50 | comment | added | Layna | A side-note from Germany: The German language lacks the feature of a neutral name for unknown persons. That's why you end up with "I am sorry, could you..." and similar. I once read an article from someone who was asked how to address a policeman to get his attention. Most solutions are in the field of "excuse me" without any further address, just calling "POLICE!!!" in case it is urgent, or using some construct that sounds WEIRD to German speaker AND the policeman. | |
| Sep 15, 2017 at 8:55 | history | answered | NoDataDumpNoContribution | CC BY-SA 3.0 |