Published: 2025-10-10

Compound Formation in the Language of Concentration Camps: A German-Polish Systematization Attempt from a Contrastive Linguistic Perspective

Marcin Ulmanek
Germanistische Werkstatt
Section: Linguistics
DOI https://doi.org/10.25167/pg.6038

Abstract

The article presents an attempt to systematize compounds in concentration camp language, using a contrastive approach based on the German and Polish word-formation systems. The theoretical section discusses the specificity of camp language in the context of the Third Reich, its ambiguous classification (between dialect, jargon, and an individual linguistic variety), as well as morphological features of German compounds and selected Polish equivalents. The empirical part analyzes 50 lagersprache compounds drawn
from accessible sources. Each lexical item is categorized according to its word-formation type, its structure is described, and a Polish equivalent is proposed along with a morphosyntactic commentary. The analysis reveals typical patterns of compound formation in German and highlights the challenges involved in rendering them
equivalently in Polish.

Keywords:

concentration camp language, compounds, word formation, contrastive analysis, sociolinguistics

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Citation rules

Ulmanek, M. (2025). Compound Formation in the Language of Concentration Camps: A German-Polish Systematization Attempt from a Contrastive Linguistic Perspective. Germanistische Werkstatt, (14), 205–218. https://doi.org/10.25167/pg.6038

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