Ossi (East Germans)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (March 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

For other uses of the word, see Ossi.

Ossi is an informal name for citizens of the (former) German Democratic Republic (East Germany), especially since reunification. It is derived from the German word ost, which means east. The equivalent for (former) West Germans is Wessi, which is derived from the word west. Both terms are considered disparaging by some, their existence has been interpreted as being a reflection of the differences in the cultures and mentality of the old East Germany and old West Germany. Most Germans consider them to be just an adjective/informal way to quickly differentiate between the two entities that form Germany today and came from reunification, when the terms were first used.

Though the distinction is still made by many adult Germans, it has become almost meaningless to younger Germans born after or shortly before reunification, because many families from East Germany emigrated into the western states, where their children grew up with those of West German families and are identical to them in culture.

The term came especially soon out of use in the northern parts of Germany, where people came from the same cultural group before 1945, so it was difficult to identify them by their accent, something that gives away persons from southern Germany. With a fast rise in people commuting to work in West Germany, the term was soon no longer used in these areas in public.