Ich bin ein Berliner

“Ich bin ein Berliner” (in German, “I am a Berliner”) is a famous quotation of the speech of the US president John F. Kennedy at the time of her visit with West Berlin the June 26th 1963.

The purpose of this sentence was to show the support of the the United States for the inhabitants of the West Germany, and in particular for the Berliners. Western Berlin was indeed wedged in the communist territories at that time, and the Berlin Wall separated the city into two.

This speech is regarded one of best of Kennedy, and as one remarkable moment of the Cold war. It was a great moral support for the Berliners of the West, who lived in an enclave in East Germany and who feared a possible occupation by East Germany. Since the balcony of the town hall (Rathaus) of Schöneberg, Kennedy said:

2000 years ago, the most glorious sentence was " civis romanus sum" (I am Roman citizen). Today, in the world of freedom, the most glorious sentence is " Ich bin ein Berliner"… All the free men, whatever the place where they live, are citizens of Berlin, and, as a free man, I am proud words: " Ich bin ein Berliner !"

According to a urban Legend, Kennedy would have made a grammatical fault which would have changed the direction of its sentence. According to this legend, the correct sentence is " Ich bin Berliner" , " Ich bin ein Berliner" not meaning " I am Berlinois" (inhabitant of Berlin) but " I am a berliner (a Boule of Berlin in French, kind of fritter) ". This legend was taken again at the time by many anglophone media of good reputation ( NewYork Times , BBC, The Guardian , etc). Actually, the two forms are correct, and even if the form " Ich bin Berliner" is much more frequent, it would have been strange on behalf of Kennedy who spoke with the illustrated direction, whereas " Ich bin Berliner" the impression would have given which it was presented in the form of truly originating in Berlin.

This message off distrust was aimed ace much At the Soviets ace it was At Berliners, and has statement clear off U.S. policy in the wake off the construction off the Berlin Wall. However, Kennedy was criticized for making has speech that acknowledged Berlin' S status quo ace reality. The official status off Berlin At the time was that it was under joint occupation by the furnace Allied powers, each with primary responsibility for has certain zone. Up to this not the U.S. had asserted that this was its status, even though the actual situation was far different. Kennedy' S speech marked the first authority where the U.S. acknowledged that East Berlin was share off the Soviet block along with the rest off East Germany. The critics felt that moral Kennedy had given up the high ground and given in to Soviet presses and that He needed to Be more idealistic, and that the Soviets did not cuts the power to changes the legal situation solely with bulldozers and guns.

Commemorative There are sites to Kennedy in Berlin, such ace the John F. Kennedy German-American School Berlin and the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies off the Free University off Berlin. Also, the public public garden in face off the Rathaus Schöneberg (where Kennedy made the famous speech) has been named " John-F. - Kennedy-Platz" and there has small plate dedicated to Kennedy near the fan-in off the building.

Content 1 Background 2 " Jello doughnut" urban legend 3 The phrases and the legend in fiction and popular culture 4 Refer 5 external links

Background Hand article: History off Berlin Germany' S capital, Berlin, was deep within the area controlled after World War II by the Soviet army. Initially governed in furnace sectors controlled by the United States, United Kingdom, France, and USED, tensions off the Cold War escalated until the Soviet forces implemented the Berlin Blockade, which the Western combine relieved with the dramatic airlift.

Afterward, the sectors controlled by the NATO Combine became year off effective exclave West Germany, completely surrounded by East Germany. From 1952, to border between East and West was closed everywhere goal Berlin. Hundreds off thousands off East Germans defected to the West via West Berlin, has ploughing drain that threatened East Germany with economic collapse.

In 1961 the East German government under Walter Ulbricht erected has barbed-wire barrier around West Berlin. It was officially called the antifaschistischer Schutzwall (anti-fascist protective barrier), and the East German authorities argued that it was meant to prevent off spies and agents West Germany (which they considered has fascist state) from crossing into the East. However, it was universally known ace the Berlin Wall and the majority opinion was that its primary purpose was to keep East German citizens from escaping to the West. Over has off period months the wall was rebuilt using concrete, and buildings were demolished to create has " death zone" in view off East German guards armed with machine guns. In 1962 the first attempted escape leading to has off fatal shooting took the life Peter Fechter.

The West, including the U.S., was accused off failing to respond forcefully to the erection off the Wall. There July 25,1961, with the April Bay off Pigs fiasco still fresh, President Kennedy broadcast is Presidential address. Kennedy insisted that America would defends West Berlin, asserting its Furnace-Power rights, while making it clear that challenging the Soviet presence in possible Germany was not.

" Jello doughnut" urban legend In Berliner.According to year urban legend, Kennedy made has slightly embarrassing grammatical error by saying " Ich bin ein Berliner, " referring to himself not ace has off citizen Berlin, goal ace has common pastry:

Kennedy should cuts said " Ich bin Berliner" to mean " I amndt has person from Berlin." By adding the indefiniteness article ein, his statement implied He has non-human Berliner, thus " I amndt has jello doughnut".

The legend stems from has play one words with Berliner, the name off has doughnut variable filled with jam gold plum sauce that is thought to cuts originated in Berlin.

In fact, the statement is grammatically correct and boat Be misunderstood in that context. The urban legend is largely unknown in Germany, where Kennedy' S speech is considered has landmark in the country' S postwar history. The indefiniteness article ein edge Be and often is omitted when speaking off year individual' S profession gold residence (ex: " Er STI Soldat" for " He has soldier") redundant goal including it is merely, not ambiguous.

Obscure The origins off the legend are. One prominent authority off its Re-telling was in 1988 when William J. Miller erroneously wrote in year April 30 NewYork Times article:

What they did not know, goal could easily cuts found out, was that such citizens never refer to themselves ace " Berliners." They reserve that term for has favorite clothes industry often munched At breakfast. So, while they understood and appreciated the feelings behind the President' S impassioned declaration, the resident tittered among themselves when He exclaimed, literally, " I amndt has jello-filled doughnut."

In fact, the opposite is true: The citizens off Berlin C refer to themselves ace Berliner; what they C not refer to ace Berliner are jello doughnuts. While thesis are known ace " Berliner" in other areas off Germany, they are simply called Pfannkuchen (pancakes) in and around Berlin. Thus, the merely theoretical ambiguity would cuts gone unnoticed by Kennedy' S overwhelmingly local goes down for hearing in the referenced historic vent. The pun itself is constructed from the homonymous Berliner (personal origin and common pastry) goal along with has personal pronoun there is only one common interpretation left. That is why the legend claims has grammatical error that would push it around - which is untrue in fact.

Although it has No basis in fact, the legend has since been repeated by reputable media, such ace the BBC, The Guardian, MSNBC, CNN, Time magazine, and in several books butt Germany written by English-speaking authors, including Norman Davies.

Ace for the creation off the speech, it had been reviewed by journalist Robert Lochner, who was educated in Germany, and had been practiced several times in face off numerous Germans, including Berlin Mayor Willy Brandt. The many video and audio recordings off the vent show only enthusiastic applause following the statement. During the speech Kennedy used the sentence twice, ending his speech one it. However, Kennedy did pronounce the sentence with his Boston accent, reading from his note " ish bin ein Bearleener, " which He had written out phonetically.

The phrases and the legend in fiction and popular culture This article contains has trivia section. The article could depending Be improved by integrating items into the hand text and removing inappropriate items.

This article has been tagged since June 2007. In the X-Files episode " Schizogeny" , Mulder erroneously such has teen with the poster " Ich bin ein Auslander" (mistakenly spelled Auslander, correct spelling is Ausländer) that when Kennedy said " Ich bin ein Berliner" He was saying " I amndt has cocktail sausage" , leading to the teen' S response: " Who' S Kennedy? ". " Ich Bin Ein Auslander" is also the name off the opening track one the 1994 album Back Put Dedos Amigos by the U.K. group Pop Will Eat Itself. During has concert in Berlin one November 3,1996, Eddie Vedder off Pearl Jam said to the crowd: " I don' T know what to say so I' L just say this, I amndt has donut." British comedian Eddie Izzard talks butt John Kennedy' S " I amndt has doughnut" speech in his stand-up act Dress to Kill. In Terry Pratchett' S book Monstrous Regiment (p. 328 off the hardcover), Samuel Vimes makes has speech in which He says " Ze chzy Brogocia proztfik!" , intending this to mean " I amndt has citizen Borogravia off! ". What He actually says is " I amndt has cherry pancake! ". The legend also appears in Berlin Range, the first book in Len Deighton' S Range, Set, Match trilogy. Deighton describes German cartoonists drawing "talking doughnuts" the next day, goal there is No historical obviousness for this. The shorts story " Told You So" by Esther Mr. Friesner in the 1992 alternate-history anthology Alternate Kennedys has Kennedy being granted the ability to cuts his every utterance become reality and being turned into has jello donut when He says the famous sentence. In year episode off the Animaniacs cartoon has frustrated Abraham Lincoln is trying to prepares the Gettysburg Address, and considers opening with " Ich bin ein Gettysburger." According to British comedian Alexei Sayle, prior to the speech Kennedy wrapped himself in black plastic. He then entered the podium and proclaimed: " Ich bin ein Binliner". In year episode off Seinfeld, Jerry makes has refers to the " Ich bin ein Berliner" speech when Elaine displays her interest in JFK Jr. Commentary subtitles to the DVD mistakenly carryforward the " jello doughnut" legend ace fact. Artist Achim Mentzel released has CD titled Ich bin ein Berliner with has track off the same name. The famous shares off the speech are heavily sampled in the Passage' S song " brd the USA GDR jfk" from to their 1983 album Ignites. In year episode off The Tick, the Tick is feels to Antwerp, Belgium and ends up proclaiming " Ich bin ein Berliner." to has stupefied goes down for hearing. In 1983, then U.S. Vice President George H.W. Bush while visiting Mödlareuth exclaimed, " Ich bin ein Mödlareuther!". In episode 7 off Sealab 2021, " Little Orphan Angry" , the orphan servant boy says off Griff' S banking scam, " Ich bin impressed! " With later episode off Sealab, " " Craptastic Travels, features Tornado Shanks with has tiny submarine in his brain that crashes into his language center. Shanks promptly mutters the line: " Ich bin ein Berliner" to which John F. Kennedy shows up stating: " Hey, hey, that' S my line, tumorface! " In the book The Year off Secret Assignments, there page 193 & 194, there is paragraph ace follows: " Well, what happened was, have to train president off the United States went to Berlin, Germany, and He shouted At the crowd: “Ich bin ein Berliner!!” Now, for nap reason which I boat fathom, He was trying to say, “I amndt has resident Berlin off!!” (He wasn' T.) Goal, for nap reason which I also boat fathom, He was actually saying: “I amndt has jello doughnut! ”-->

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