Austria can do that: Austria ships like no other country
Ms. Havryliv, you have been researching the Austrian abuse culture since 1994. Finally, they analyzed the language in everyday life shaped by the pandemic. Which swear words are used most often?
OKSANA HAVRYLIV: ‘Oaschloch’, ‘Trottl’, ‘Idiot’, that’s interestingly for 15 years.
Are we at the front in an international comparison?
That’s hard to compare. It is often said that only the Parisians are even more unfriendly than the Viennese. I don’t believe in stereotypes, but at the same time every stereotype corresponds to some degree of truth.
How does it look within Austria, who scolds the most?
The Viennese want to live up to their image and grant it. From Vorarlberg to Burgenland, however, people complain equally often.
How is scolded in Austria?
Basically, a distinction is made between four types of abuse culture. The fecal-anal, the sacral and the sexual abuse. Insulting relatives is predominant in the Middle East – especially insulting women. In Austria, mainly the fecal-anal and sacred is practiced.
What does that mean?
‘Scheiße’, ‘Oaschloch’, ‘Kruzifix’, ‘Himmelherrgott’ falls under it. It is important to understand that scolding is a kind of breaking a rule, breaking a taboo. For example, the more important cleanliness and order are in a country or society, the more people scold about it. In Slavic languages, sexual abuse is partly because the subject of sex is often taboo.
Do Slavic, Arabic languages in the immigration country Austria have an influence on the local culture of swearing?
We actually notice the influence of Slavic languages in the word ‘Oida’, which IS often used as a ‘pause-filling’ swear word. That wasn’t the case 20 years ago. Comparable in usage to the B/K/S word ‘jebote’. But the meaning is completely different. For example, in Ukrainian it is the word ‘kurva’. Due to the Arabic language, the mother insult (‘your mother’), especially among young people, has been established in this country.
Is ranting becoming a habit?
Yes, that is noticeable. I know people who say: ’40 years ago I would have gotten a watch for ‘shit’.’ It is worrying that the desire for expressiveness, i.e. for expressive words, ergo swear words, has increased so much. A bad language culture is always related to a bad mood in the country.
Does scolding degenerate our language?
The fact is that scolding in children is often related to insufficient language development. Social media amplifies this phenomenon. For example, if children only use emojis, they forget the correct language expressions.
Is swearing bad in general?
No, scolding doesn’t always have to be negative. In total, it fulfills up to 20 functions. This can be the joking insult in friendships, which signals how strong the bond between them is, or the comforting function when the best friend is going through a breakup and ‘the motherfucker’ didn’t deserve it anyway. Substitute words can also be used to reduce the number of swear words in your own language: ‘You goldfish’, for example.