Interview with Eva Hertz [EH]

Conducted by Allen Spiker [AS]
1979, Bismarck, North Dakota

Transcription by Matthew Miller
Edited by Rev. Marvin Hartmann

EH: Eva Hertz.

AS: And you’re from…

EH: From Glen Ullin.

AS: And you’ve been in Bismarck where…for a number of years.

EH: I’d say fifty, say fifty-seven years. Fifty, fifty-six years.

AS: Okay. Then, and if…

EH: Yeah.

AS: If anything feels, doesn’t seem quite consistent with what they say in Glen Ullin…

EH: No. What.

AS: Just go ahead and speak up.

EH: How do you say fifty-six? I don’t know no more how to say fifty-six in German. How would you say that?

Woman: I don’t know.

AS: Sechs und funfzig

EH: Yeah, that’s right. Sechs und funfzug.

Woman: See, when you’re, when you’re put on the spot like that, it becomes harder.

EH: You can’t, you can’t think.

Woman: You just don’t think.

EH: Yeah, yeah.

AS: Okay I’ll just start with these words, how do you say, I like that.

EH: Ich gleich des.

AS: And I used to like that last year.

EH: Ich hab das letzt yohr gegliecha.

AS: I was there.

EH: Ich bin dort gewest.

AS: What’s wrong?

EH: Vas ish loes?

AS: Do you say loes or letz?

EH: Letz.

Woman: Loes.

AS: You say loes?

EH: Loes! We always said loes, vas ish loes? Yeah.

AS: Is that the colonisten, if I’d say letz?

EH: No, no, no.

AS: Ish letz?

EH: Colonisten would say that, ya. Vas ish letz? Ya.

AS: How would you say, hey look.

Woman: Gookamal.

EH: Gookamal. Ya, that’ right. Did you just get that?

AS: And if I were standing on the road out here, on the street, and a speeding car came around the corner, and I didn’t see it, and you were warning me and said, look out. What would you say?

EH: Pas uff!

AS: How would you say, he walks now, he walked yesterday.

EH: Der laeft heit un ish geshter geloafa.

AS: Okay. That’s the easiest way to tell where you’re from. Der laeft. Laeft.

EH and Woman: [Laughter].

AS: She runs now, she ran yesterday.

EH: Heit springza, und geshter isht g’sprunga.

AS: And I jumped now and I jumped yesterday.

EH: Ich bin heit g’hupst un ich hups morigha.

AS: Okay.

EH: Okay.

AS: And he sold the plow.

EH: Der hat der plook verkaift.

AS: And how do you say, one plow, two plows.

EH: Ae pflook, zwai pliek.

AS: And he always smokes a pipe.

EH: Der raecht piepf.

AS: How do you say God and how do you say devil?

EH: Gott, deifel.

AS: Is that a…when you say tievel, are you saying a t or a d?

EH: A d.

AS: A d?

EH: A d, a d.

AS: How do you say, I hear something.

EH: Ich hear ebers.

AS: No, I don’t know him.

EH: Ich kenn der nicht.

AS: And how do you say no?

EH: Nai, naye. Or nein is high German.

AS: No, I want low German.

EH: Naye.

Woman: Nai.

EH: Naye, naye.

AS: How would you say, I know that he doesn’t have any money.

EH: Ich vases das er kaen geld hat.

AS: Summer, winter, spring, and fall.

EH: Sommer, vinter…How do you say fall? Sprutyohr.

AS: And spring?

Woman: Freeyohr.

EH: Freeyohr.

AS: Okay, although we didn’t have them the same.

EH: So far we haven’t had one.

AS: This is just the sound parts. How would you say, that’s a pretty girl.

EH: Desh ah schaenes maedl.

AS: Now when you were a child and you spoke to your grandparents, would you say du to them?

EH: No.

Woman: Heaven forbid.

EH: Heaven forbid, no. You had to say aehr.

AS: Aehr.

EH: Aehr.

AS: How do you say, one day, two days.

EH: Ae dogh, zwai dogh.

AS: Same word for one or more?

EH: No, ae dogh, zwai dogh. See that’s different. One day, two days.

AS: Okay, but it’s not like floog, flieg. Meaning that difference, ba, bay.

EH: No, hmm umm. No.

AS: All right, all the same.

EH: Hmm umm, no.

AS: How do you say…what do you call a wagon?

EH: A vogha.

AS: And then two would be?

EH: Zwai vaega.

AS: What do you call the, a road, like out here?

EH: Vaegh.

AS: And then two would be?

EH: Zwai vaegh.

AS: And how do you say, one saw, two saws.

EH: What do you call a saw? [Pause].

AS: Zaeg, is that it

EH: No, hmm umm. Oh dear, what do you call that. Saegh.

AS: Saegh?

EH: Yeah.

AS: And then two would be?

EH: Zwai saegh. Zwai saegha.

AS: How would you say…

EH: Ae saegh, zwai saegha.

Woman: Yeah.

AS: And how would you say, I saw wood now and I sawed wood yesterday.

EH: Ich hab heit hultz g’sehne un hab geshter hultz g’sehne.

AS: And how about tomorrow?

EH: Morigha.

AS: Morigha, I’ll saw wood.

EH: Ya, morigha sehne ich vieder hultz.

Woman: She’s saying sehne now, seeing.

EH: See is…

Woman: Not saw.

EH: Not saw, see. Ich sehne.

Woman: She misunderstood.

AS: Yeah. No, I sawed with a saw.

EH: Oh, I sawed with a saw. Ich habs g’saeglt mit a saegh. That’s the way that is.

Woman: Yeah.

AS: And how do you say, one frog, two frogs.

EH: Ae froesch, zwai frish.

AS: Okay. What do you call a toad?

EH: A…

Woman: A toad.

EH: A toad? To me they were all groat. There you go.

AS: And two would be, zwei?

EH: Zwai grutte.

AS: It’s interesting, in different parts of the state, some areas have groat as a frog or a toad. And others a frog is a froesch, well in Beulah, for example, a groat is either one. And it varies in areas like that, but out there in that area, I noticed a groat is one or the other.

Woman: I guess I’ll tell you this, this area of people now are, were quite educated. And they were specific. When grandma said one certain thing, it meant only that thing.

EH: Grandma, yeah.

Woman: It didn’t apply to a whole bunch.

AS: Yeah, it is, I’m getting a pattern on that though. Froesch, some people never use froesch, a groat is anything that jumps, whether it’s a frog or toad. Where as others specify. How do you say, one horse, two horses.

EH: Ae gaeld, zwei gaild.

AS: What do you call cattle or livestock?

Woman: Rindsfiech.

EH: Rindsfiech, yeah. Would it be? How did you, how did you ask that question?

AS: Livestock.

EH: Livestock is rindfiech, yeah.

AS: How do you say rindfiech?

EH: Feich.

AS: Feich?

EH: Feich, rindsfeich..

AS: How do you say, one egg, two eggs.

EH: Ai ei, zwai aiea.

AS: And one tomato, two tomatoes.

EH: What do you call tomatoes, in German?

Woman: Paeradeisa.

EH: Huh?

Woman: Paeradeisa. Or something like that.

EH: Come again.

AS: Do you say baradeisa, bahadeisa?

Woman: Baradeis. Mom said badeis.

AS: Do you say a b or a p?

EH: I never, I never did know what to call tomatoes in German.

Woman: I think she says with a b.

AS: That’s what a p sounds like…

EH: We always called it…baradeisik.

Woman: Yeah.

EH: There we go.

AS: Now that’s two or more, right. What would you call one?

EH: Baradeisik, that’s the same thing.

AS: Okay. And then what do you call, one potato, two potatoes.

EH: Ae grumbaer, zwaigrumbaerna.

AS: Oats?

Woman: Hoaber.

EH: Hoaber. Ya.

Woman: She used to say cukoaber as well.

EH: That’s why we always, ya…hoaber.

AS: Then a cucumber.

Woman: Gakumera.

EH: Gakumera, yeah.

AS: That’s more than one, right?

EH: That’s more than one, gakumer is one.

AS: And what about a pickle?

EH: And gakumera, that’s more than one.

AS: Okay, and what’s a pickle?

EH: Hmm, I don’t know. What’s a pickle, what’s a pickle?

Woman: A pickle?

EH: Wait a minute, it’ll come to me. Gakumera!

AS: Would you say sauer, saure?

EH: Sauer, sauera gakumera.

AS: It’d be a pickle then?

EH: Yeah.

Woman: I’m sure that there was more.

EH: Sauera gakumera. Oh yeah, well, you know my parents used to say, ich hab gakumera eigemacht.

Woman: Yeah.

EH: You know, that’s what it is, sauera gakumera.

AS: And how would you say, one beet, two beets.

EH: Roatreba. Ae roatrieb, zwai roatriebe.

AS: Okay. And one carrot, two carrots.

Woman: How do you say carrots?

EH: Gaehlrieba.

AS: Okay, and then what’s one?

EH: Ein gaehlrieb, zwai ish, ish zwai gaehlrieba.

AS: When you say rieb, are you saying a b or a p at the end of that?

EH: Gaehlrieb, rieb. That’s a b.

AS: B. And how do you say, one apple, two apples.

EH: Ae opple, zwai aepple. See if you say two, you have to say aepple.

AS: Okay. And how do you say, one tree, two trees.

EH: Ae baehm, zwai baehm.

AS: It’s the same word for one or more?

EH: Same word, yeah. That’ right.

AS: And one garden, two gardens.

EH: Ae guarda, zwai guarda. Gaerda.

AS: Gaerda.

EH: Gaerde is for the second. Ae guarda, zwai gaerda.

AS: Okay. And what, what would you call the part of the garden where you’d have your vine plants, your cucumbers, watermelons. Is there any special word for that?

EH: Wait a minute now. I’ve got it on the tip of my tongue.

Woman: It’s been so many years now.

EH: Ya, ya, ya. It’ll come to me, just give me a little time.

AS: Anything like a…

EH: It’s something like…it starts with b.

AS: A bashton?

EH: Ba…there you go. See, he knows better than I do.

AS: Well, how would you say it though?

EH: In German? In aehr bashtun, du kadohr. I’m not certain, but it’s something like that.

AS: Okay. I don’t pronounce all these things correctly, so that’s why those people, so. I try to let people…

EH: It’s been a long time since I have…

Woman: All I could think of was the west side of the garden was the bashtun.

EH: But what I was thinking of, we always had ours away from the garden.

Woman: Yeah.

EH: You know, in a different part. And you know my mother used to say geh naup in the bashuon and hol rotrieb or the wassermeloen or some such thing.

AS: Yeah, I usually don’t try to give the word because sometimes I could give someone a word which they normally wouldn’t use.

EH: Ohh, I see.

AS: So, but like bashton it’s no danger.

EH: Yeah, bashtun is the right pronunciation, the way we talk.

Woman: Tun, right.

AS: Okay. And how would you say, one shirt, two shirts.

EH: Ae hemb, zwai hemba.

AS: And one candle, two candles.

EH: What about candles now?

AS: Anything like a katz, a ketz.

EH: Ka…ya, ae kahtz, zwai kahtza. See I had, I’ve got a little, a lot of stuff, I knew it. I just can’t…if I have a little time than I can think of it.

Woman: I knew what it is, but I wanted mom to take the holster.

AS: It’s all right, because with some people, you do have to worry about that if you say a word they’ll say it, but it just depends on the individual. And I’m not worried about that with you, so. You pronounce it without any considerations.

EH: Just like, I you know, I burn candles a lot and you would say, ich hab kahtza gebrennt. That’s the way you’d pronounce it.

Woman: See if you generally, if you think of it in a different term…

EH: Ya.

Woman: …and you’re using it in a sentence rather than just the word alone, you just draw a blank, you know.

EH: Ya.

AS: Can you count from one to twenty, please.

EH: Can I count to one to…

AS: One to twenty.

EH: One to twenty. Wait a minute now. Ains, zwai, drei, vier, finfe, sechse, siebene, ochte, neune, zehne, elfe, zwolfe, dreizehne, vierzehne, funfzehne, sechszehne, siebenzehen, ochtzehne, neunzehne, zwanzig.

AS: You should be glad I didn’t say count to a hundred, or something like that.

EH: Yeah, well I can count to a hundred.

AS: Well yeah, but I have to sit down and write that all down. So I’m lazy too.

EH: And I can count. You know, my grandfather never taught, or never done any other work but taught school in German and I learned a lot from him. But of course my dad was a schoolteacher too.

AS: At Glen Ullin?

EH: At Glen Ullin.

Woman: Her dad was a schoolteacher in Russia.

EH: And he taught school over here a few years.

AS: I should, I’d like to ask you some more about that when we’re done.

EH: Okay.

AS: You remind me because I haven’t run into many teachers, you know, who had teachers in the family. How would you say, one stone, two stones.

EH: Ae schtaea, zwai schtaea.

AS: Same word for one or…

EH: Same word, yeah.

AS: How do you say, the hill is high.

EH: Desh ah grossa bukkel.

AS: And then two would be?

EH: Dis sind grossa buekkel.

AS: And what do you call a mountain?

EH: What do you call a mountain?

Woman: We didn’t have any of that.

EH: We didn’t have any of that, you know. What would you call a mountain now? God, I can’t think of that.

AS: Grossa bukkel or something like that.

EH: No, it would be, it’s got to have a different word than grossa bukkel, ya. Faelsa.

Woman: That would be like…

AS: That’s a cliff.

EH: Yeah, that’s a cliff, yeah. But mountain, yeah they used the same word for mountains I’m sure.

AS: Bukkel.

EH: Bukkel, grossa bukkel, you know or, or ae kleinna faels.

Woman: That would be a faels now is definitely a cliff.

EH: Yeah. Yeah.

Woman: There sure were many of those around up there.

EH: But my dad used to explain, you know, or tell us about the things out in Russia, and had these big cliffs, you know, and rivers and whatever, you know.

Woman: I don’t think I know a word for mountain.

EH: Mountain…

AS: High German is barrick. Den barrick..

Woman: A barrick.

EH: Yeah, grossa barri…grossa barick.

Woman: Barick,ya.

EH: Barick, ya. That’s what I said before, grossa barick.

AS: And how would you say, the cemetery is behind the church.

EH: How do you say cemetery?

AS: What would you say for church?

EH: Karigh.

AS: Okay, and the cemetery has something to do with karigh.

EH: Wait a minute now. I can’t think of a thing.

AS: Karighhoaf or anything like that?

EH: A what?

AS: Karighhoaf.

EH: Yeah, there you go. Karighhoaf, see I’ve been away from that stuff for a long time. Karighhoaf ish heener der karigh.

AS: Okay.

EH: There you go.

AS: And how do you say, one ladder, two ladders.

EH: Ladders. What do you call a step-ladder? Would that refer to a step-ladder?

AS: Any kind of ladder.

EH: Any kind of ladder?

AS: Just what you call something with rungs on it.

EH: God, I don’t know. Laytr.

AS: And two would be.

EH: Zwai laytra.

AS: And what would you call the cradle, that you rock a baby in.

Woman: [Undecipherable.]

EH: Is that what you do, I have to think of that now.

Woman: A vaegee.

EH: Huh?

Woman: A vaegee.

EH: A vawgh.

AS: A vawgh?

Woman: A vaegee.

EH: A vawgh, not a vaegee. A vawgh.

AS: And then two would be.

EH: Zwai vawgha.

AS: And one…

Woman: I think mine is a bit different.

EH: How did she say that?

Woman: Vaegee.

EH: Vaegee, no. Vawgh, is the real pronunciation.

AS: And how would you say, one fly, two flies.

EH: Aen meek, zwai meeka. Meeka then, for the second.

AS: Okay. And one coffin, two coffins.

EH: Lo…ae loat, zwai loata.

AS: And what do you call the funeral service?

EH: Liecht.

AS: And the burial.

EH: Fagroava, or baerdicht, either one.

AS: Okay. What would you call one chair, two chairs of this kind?

EH: The same thing, ae schtul, zwei schteel.

AS: How would you say, Phyllis is sitting next to the table.

EH: Yeah, Phyllis sitzte uf der andera site am disch.

AS: So you’d say sitzt?

EH: Huh?

AS: You’d say sitzt.

EH: Sitzt, yeah.

AS: Do you ever say hoeken, if its hoekta?.

EH: We never.

AS: We say houkt when you sit down.

EH: Houkja, but that…

Woman: When you want somebody to sit down, you say houk dich.

EH: Yeah, yeah. But the right pronunciation is sitz dich. Houk, is just…

Woman: It’s kind of slang…

EH: A slang yeah.

Woman: …and it was used, but not…

EH: We never used…

Woman: You know,if grandma was reprimanding us. She would say houk dich.

EH: Ya, she would say houk dich, ya. But the right…

Woman: And then you better sit down, right now.

EH: Yeah, but the right pronunciation is sitz dich.

AS: And how would you say, I want to drink a cup of coffee with cream and sugar.

EH: Ich vill kaffee mit raem, mit raem und zukker.

AS: And how do you say, a cup of coffee.

EH: Kueppl.

AS: Okay.

EH: Kueppl. Ich vill ae kueppl kaffee, ya, mit raem und zukker.

AS: How would you say, one haystack, two haystacks.

EH: How do you say haystacks? Haischtuk.

AS: And then zwei…

EH: Zwai haischteeka.

AS: And how do you say, one house, two houses.

EH: What now? We used to say house.

AS: And then two would be?

EH: Two…zwai haisa.

AS: See, that name is a German word not, even though it sounds like it could be…

Woman: Housa, ya, housa.

EH: Housa.

Woman: That’s German word.

EH: Yeah.

AS: It’s just, it is identical to the English. And how do you say, a small house.

EH: Kleines house.

AS: Is there any other way of saying it, it’s a really small house.

EH: Ah kleines haisel.

AS: Okay. And how would you say, we eat meat every day.

EH: We meet every day?

AS: We eat meat.

EH: Oh, we eat meat, there we go. Mir esse flaesch alle dogh.

AS: And that smells good.

EH: Es schmuck gut.

AS: That tastes good.

EH: What do you call taste? Es schmuck gut.

AS: You say the same word for both things?

EH: Yeah. Schmuck gut.

Woman: Schmeckt?

EH: Schmeckt gut is, is high German.

AS: High German.

EH: Yeah. But es schmuck gut, there’s another word for that.

Woman: There’s another word for that.

AS: That smells good.

Woman: No.

EH: Schmuck is smell.

Woman: Is smell, but for taste there is another word. I don’t know, I just can’t think of it.

EH: For taste there is another word, yeah.

AS: Kos, kosten or?

EH: Das ish schure gut, or something like that. That’s, that’s what it is.

Woman: But there’s a different word for taste.

EH: I know. I know there is a different word for that, but I can’t think of that right now.

AS: How about fog?

EH: What?

AS: Fog.

EH: Fog? Dufft.

AS: You’d say dufft?

EH: Dufft.

EH: Would you ever say naebl or naeblich?

EH: Naebl, yeah. Naebl. Dufftich or naeblich.

AS: Is there any difference between dufft and naebl?

Woman: There is a difference

EH: No. That’s the same, the same word. A lot of people would say, desh dufftich gevest. And then another person would say, desh so naeblich gevest, or something like that.

Woman: Yeah, but wasn’t naeblich when there was pre…was a little bit of moisture coming down, when it was wet?

EH: Well, dew is the same thing. Dufftich is the same thing. When it’s real foggy you feel a little moisture.

Woman: But I guess I got the impression, always from Grandma, that dufftich was just the fog.

EH: That’s the same thing.

Woman: Naeblich was…

EH: Naeblich that’s the same thing.

Woman: Naeblich was wet.

EH: Yep. I know, that’s the same thing.

Woman: I never really bothered to think about it before though. I didn’t even think about it.

AS: How would you say, I wash clothes.

EH: Ich hab klaeder gewescha.

AS: And she sweeps the floor with a broom.

EH: Die hat aus die keert mit em baesa. No, I’m real like that. [Laughter].

Woman: No, nice German.

AS: No, that’s perfectly good German. That’s perfectly good for that. And how would you say, I’m going home now.

EH: Ich gehe haem jetzt.

AS: Now the next pages are just a few words, so.

EH: Okay.

AS: It’s not that much. How do you say, one foot, two feet.

EH: Ae foos, zwai feas.

AS: And if I called you on the telephone and say, ich hab mein foos gebroka, where could that be? Is it only here, or could it be up to the knee, or could it be up to the hip?

EH: No, no. Foos is your foot and your knee would be…the hip is hift, but the knee is skneeya. There we go.

AS: But does foos go all the way up to here?

EH: No, no, no. Foos is just up to the ankle.

AS: Okay. And how do you say heel of your foot.

EH: Faerst.

AS: And what do you call your ankle.

EH: God, I don’t know. Ankle, ankle, ankle. God, I can’t think of that. Let’s skip that, maybe it’ll come to me after a while.

AS: How do you say, one hand, two hands.

EH: Ae hond, zwai haent.

AS: How do you say wrist?

EH: Wrist?

Woman: Just say wrist.

EH: Exactly I can’t think of that either. Oh dear me. I don’t think they ever had a word, or pronunciation for that. Or maybe it’s been so long that you just can’t…

Woman: Yeah.

EH: Just…I remember years ago you know they broke an ankle or something like that, it was the foos gebroka. And everything was fooss way up, you know, until it got to the hip. And then it was…

AS: Yeah, so foos used to mean up to the hip?

EH: Yeah, way up the hip. But the hip was actually hift.

Woman: Well, the leg, the leg was, what…

AS: Baem.

Woman: Schenkle.

EH: No, no.

AS: Not schenkle. Schenkle would be a sore.

EH: No. Spaea. My parents…spaea.

Woman: Oh yeah.

EH: Hat spaea gebroka.

AS: But foos could also be up to there?

EH: Be up to, up to there, yeah.

AS: And how do you say mouth?

EH: Mouth? Mau.

AS: And what would you say for an animal? It’s mouth.

EH: Wait a minute now. Animal, animal. I thought about it the other day.

Woman: Evelyn used to say origmau?

EH: Evelyn who?

Woman: Goosh.

EH: No. Goash is mouth.

AS: Yeah, yeah.

Woman: I know, that’s what he wanted.

AS: Yeah, that’s what I meant for an animal’s mouth, would be...

EH: Oh, an animal’s mouth. Oh, I thought…

AS: I’m sorry.

EH: No. You just said, what’s an animal, in German.

AS: Oh no, I meant for mouth. I’m sorry.

EH: Yeah, goash. It’s now, no…goash is…you know I used to say it to the kids, you know. Just, that’s a slang word. Mach goasch zua. And of course, Evelyn always got that expression, you know. Susan…

AS: How do you say, one lip, two lips.

EH: Oh, lips now. Lippe.

AS: Lippel?

EH: Lippe. Ai lippe, zwai lippe.

AS: Is that a b or a p?

EH: Lip, lip, lip. That’s an l.

AS: No, I want what’s in the middle.

EH: In the middle, lip. That’s a p.

AS: And how do you say, chin.

EH: Chin?

Woman: That’s a hard one.

EH: Yeah. They’re doing a very good job on people, aren’t they?

Woman: Well, if I can think of a rhyme, I’d know what it is.

EH: Oh, what do you call it now? Boart.

AS: Okay. And what do you call your forehead.

EH: Forehead, forehead.

Woman: Bauhane.

EH: Huh? Forehead, forehead.

Woman: Schtahn?

EH: Schtahne. Schtahn. It’s a schtahn.

AS: Okay. And then what do you call, one star.

EH: Star?

AS: One star.

EH: One star. What do you call it? Schterna.

AS: Is that one or more?

EH: That’s, schterna is more than one.

AS: And one would be a…

EH: One would be…[pause]. My folks used to say, schterna shining. What is it?

Woman: What kliche do? Schtarn un Christmas trees.

EH: Yeah, yeah, yeah, something like that. Schterna, yeah.

Woman: What was einmacht? What Grandma sang from that song, but then that song was kind of short.

EH: Yeah.

Woman: Schterlan.

EH: Yeah, but in low German, you call it schterna. Like when we would put up the Christmas tree, you know, somebody always had to put up the star. And my dad usually put up the star and my mother would say, “Fatther, du doost die schterna nuff.” Schterna.

AS: What do you call someone who’s bald?

EH: Blootkoepf.

AS: Okay. How about a moustache?

EH: Schnauza.

AS: And a beard.

EH: Beard is…boart.

AS: Same word as, for chin.

EH: Yeah.

AS: And then hopefully a woman doesn’t have one on her. And how do you say…

EH: I have seen women that have.

AS: Not too many though.

EH: Not too many. I read in the paper here, oh about a year ago, something like that. And this couple was traveling and she had a beard just like a man and they were both going in the barber shop and I guess this barber was just flabbergasted when she came in, and dressed like a woman, you know, and she had a shave, same as a man. There are women like that.

AS: Not too many at that.

EH: Not too many, yeah, is right.

AS: How about, I drink.

EH: Ich, ya, hab gedrunka.

AS: Okay. And then how about someone who sits in the bar and drinks all the time?

EH: Er sitz der ganze doag in…how do you call that, bar, bar, in saloon, un drinkt. Der sitzt der ganze doag ins saloon and then for…for a slang word they would say, un sauft. Yeah.

AS: And then how about, I eat.

EH: Ich ess.

AS: How about the guy who sits at the table and slops down his food.

EH: How do you call that?

Woman: Fressa.

EH: Fressa, ya. That’s right. Der esst mitta fresst. Yeah, that’s the way. That’s the expression.

AS: How would you say, in-laws.

EH: In-laws? I thought about it a little while ago. Schwegesleit.

AS: How do you say it?

EH: Schwegesleit.

AS: Schwegersleid?

EH: Schwegesleit.

AS: What’s schwege mean?

EH: Schweg…in-laws. These are my in-laws. Schwegesleit.

AS: And how about father-in-law, mother-in-law.

EH: Desh mei schweegevatter un mei schweegemutter.

AS: And son-in-law.

EH: Son-in-law. Mei taechtermann.

AS: And then two would be, zwei…

EH: Zwai teechtermaenner. Oder mei teechtemaenner, or something like that.

AS: And then, daughter-in-law, two daughter-in-laws.

EH: Daughter-in-law. How do you call a daughter-in-law? [Pause]. Daughter-in-law, how do you call a daughter-in-law again? I can’t think of it.

AS: Sonnsfrau, or anything like that.

EH: Sonns, sonnschwer. Or you know, he knows a sonnschwer.

AS: Two would be.

EH: Two would be, sonnschweiba.

AS: Okay. Is that a weiber, like a b.

EH: Weiba?

Woman: It’s like a b.

EH: Yeah, it’s like a b.

AS: Weiber.

Woman: Weiba.

EH: Weiba, yeah.

AS: And brother-in-law.

Woman: Schwoaga.

EH: Schwoaga, yeah.

AS: And two would be?

EH: Two would be? Schwaega.

Woman: Schwaega.

AS: Okay, and a sister-in-law.

EH: Sister-in-law…schwie.

AS: Okay. And two would be?

EH: Two would be mei schweia.

AS: And one uncle, two uncles.

EH: Mei veeta, zwai veeta.

AS: And then one aunt, two aunts.

EH: Would be the same, my…

Woman: Boas.

EH: Boas.

AS: Zwei is?

EH: Und zweia boasa.

AS: Boasa?

EH: Or baesa, or something like that.

AS: Did you say bahsa, or beesa?

EH: Boas, boas, boas, we always said.

AS: And two would be zwei…

EH: Zwai boasa.

AS: Zwei boasa. Okay, and did you ever use boas or vetter, as a child, for other adults, who weren’t your real aunt and uncle.

EH: And what?

Woman: All the time.

EH: All the time. We used that.

Woman: Everybody was…

EH: Everybody was boas or, or vetter. You didn’t say, like they say now, dua. Oh, you didn’t dare do that.