[78-L] Longest title

goldenbough at arcor.de goldenbough at arcor.de
Fri Nov 13 03:46:49 PST 2009


. 
This is a 'fun' title, even for native German speakers. The word 
'Donaudampfschiffartsgesellschaftskapitän' refers to the ship operating 
company based in Vienna, called 'Erste Donau-Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft' - 
'First Society for Steam Shipping on the Danube'.  This company, founded in 1829, 
is still in operation today and runs many tourist and river cruise ships. Of course, 
it is better known as DDGS. 

During the 19th century it sort of controlled most of the ship traffic on the Danube 
and in the Black Sea. Even if you travelled from, say, Constantinople to the Crimea, 
you most likely took one of their ships. While Genoa with its ships had control over 
the Western Mediterranean, Austria had the Black Sea/Western Mediterranean quasi 
monopoly, (Alexandria, Athens, Beyrouth, Tunis, Constantinople)

'Ship language' in Austria-Hugary, as a matter of interest,  was German on the Danube and 
in the Black Sea, Croatian in the (military) Navy, and Italian on passenger and cargo 
ships in the Adriatic Sea and Mediterranean (because most ships were based in Venice and 
were manned with Italian sailors). 

The longest PUBLISHED word in German language, according to the Guinness Book of Records, is: Donaudampfschiffahrtselektrizitätenhauptbetriebswerkbauunterbeamtengesellschaft. 
However, no company of that name has yet been found. 

Yet, there is a law, published by the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern: 
Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz 
(Law concerning the assignment of duties for the control of the labelling of beef meat) 

Oh, almost forgot, the song title on the Telefunken disc means: 
'Captain of the Company for Steam Shipping on the Danube'. I'm sure he sports a cap, which would be his  
Donaudampfschiffahrtsgesellschaftskapitänsmütze. 

Benno 
 






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