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  • xelim
    +12

    Context: European IB Private High School in Istanbul, where I grew up.

    In high school I had this maths teacher, he was Austrian, and the maths class was in German. He gave really good tips about how to approach the problems, how not to rush the calculation steps to avoid simple mistakes. He had an excellent sense of humor. We always had a good time in his classes.

    Then one day I see him walking on a busy street, I say hello, he turns around and answers: "Ich red' mit Kanaken nur wenn Ich dafuer bezahlt bin, geh weg!"

    This translates to "I only talk to Kanaken if I'm paid for it, go away"

    Kanake (Kanaken in plural) is the word Germans and Austrian use for Turkish people who live in Germany. It is about as friendly as "nigger".

    This was my first encounter with real open racism.

    • spammusbi
      +3

      I lived in Germany for 3 years and my girlfriend is German. I'm Hawaiian and a word for a person who is native to Hawaii is Kanaka. My girlfriend told me what that word sounds like and means in German. I was like...well shit. OH WELL.

      But that is pretty messed up with that teacher. Is German pretty common in Turkey? I know of course a lot of Turkish live in Germany.

      • xelim
        +2

        Most popular foreign language in Turkey is English, followed by French.

        But a lot of people have friends and relatives who live in Germany, so their word for us is widely known in Turkey.