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For the Irish soccer-player, see Wes Hoolahan. For the Australian informal demonym, see Westie (person).
Ossi and Wessi (German pronunciation:[ˈɔsiː] – "easterner"; German pronunciation:[ˈvɛsiː] – "westerner") are the informal names that people in Germany call former citizens of East Germany and West Germany before re-unification (1945–1990).[1][2] These names represent the lingering differences between the two pre-reunification cultures, and Germany's popular culture includes many Ossi-Wessi-jokes and clichés.[3] While some people in Germany may consider these names insulting, others regard them as part of the German culture.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]
There is also the name Besserwessi (besser meaning "better") which is a pun on Besserwisser ("know-it-all") and thus indicates a Wessi who feels superior to Ossis. Some former East Germans feel that former West Germans do not respect their culture and that East Germans were assimilated into West German culture, rather than the two cultures being united as equals.[13] These people are sometimes called Jammerossis (jammer meaning complaining).This term was named German Word of the Year in 1991.[14] Politically speaking, in the German Reunification East Germany was indeed incorporated into West Germany under existing West German law. This solution was taken in order to legally avoid the necessity of creating a new constitution as demanded by the West German "Grundgesetz".[citation needed]
^"Inside Track: Why Germany's Ossis and Wessis are still divided 25 years on". Heraldscotland.com. 6 October 2015. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
^"The World from Berlin: 'Ossis Aren't Indians'". Spiegel.de. April 16, 2010.
^"Typically Ossi – Typically Wessi | DW | 05.01.2009". DW.COM.
^Rennefanz, Sabine (2010-09-30). "East-Germans are still different". Guardian. London. Retrieved 2010-10-02.
^"OSSIS, WESSIS WALLS". Washingtonpost.com. August 2, 1992.
^"Ossi and Wessi test the German water". The Independent. September 10, 1994. Archived from the original on 2022-05-24.
^Caldwell, Peter C.; Hanshew, Karrin (August 23, 2018). Germany Since 1945: Politics, Culture, and Society. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781474262439 – via Google Books.
^[1] [dead link]
^"Unity loses its lustre". The Irish Times.
^Sporing, Marion (June 2, 2003). "German adult education in East-Germany after unification: picking up the pieces". Leeds.ac.uk.
^"Opinion: How eastern and western Germany still differ from each other". The Local Germany. February 7, 2019.
^Twark, Jill E. (August 21, 2007). Humor, Satire, and Identity: Eastern German Literature in the 1990s. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 9783110195996 – via Google Books.
^"Reunification Controversy: Was East-Germany Really 'Annexed?'". Spiegel.de. August 31, 2010. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
^Gunkel, Christoph (October 31, 2011). "Deutsche Sprachpreise: Ein Jahr, ein (Un-)Wort!". Spiegel.de. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
OssiandWessi (German pronunciation: [ˈɔsiː] – "easterner"; German pronunciation: [ˈvɛsiː] – "westerner") are the informal names that people in Germany...
Germany portal Germany portal East German jokes Old states of Germany OssiandWessi Ostalgie "Der Zug nach Westen – Jahrzehntelange Abwanderung, die allmählich...
stereotypical Ossi had little ambition or poor work ethic and was chronically bitter, while a stereotypical Wessi was arrogant, selfish, impatient and pushy....
terms OssiandWessi. Enzensberger was the older brother of the author Christian Enzensberger. He was married three times, including Masha, and had two...
1177/1750698008097393. ISSN 1750-6980. S2CID 144579488. Mary Fulbrook, OssisandWessis: the creation of two German societies, German History since 1800 (p...
were born in the area of the former German Democratic Republic. The term Wessi, derived from the German word Westen which means west, is used in Germany...
in the 1999 movie Sonnenallee and the 2019 TV series Deutschland 86. Aktuelle Kamera OssiandWessi Eastern Bloc media and propaganda Hancock, Dafydd (2001-01-01)...
citizens of West Germany is Wessi. It is said to imply a lack of sophistication, assets, or both. Ozzy : (UK, Commonwealth and US) an Australian. Pikey (Ireland...
to devote herself to her family and her two children and to write books. She first wrote "Typisch Ossi – Typisch Wessi", then "Kreuzweise deutsch", as...
East Berliners and West Berliners (OssisandWessis according to the well-known slang terms), is still very much in evidence in the city and elsewhere in...
where OssiandWessi police officers got teamed up in the wake of the Peaceful Revolution. Against their wills, Verena Berthold, a self-confident and seasoned...
and allowing people through with little or no identity checking. As the Ossis swarmed through, they were greeted by Wessis waiting with flowers and champagne...
head" (Mauer im Kopf). Ossis (Easterners) are stereotyped as racist, poor, and largely influenced by Russian culture, while Wessis (Westerners) are usually...
checkpoints and letting people through with little or no identity-checking. As the Ossis swarmed through, they were greeted by Wessis waiting with flowers and champagne...
as if they had "won" and East Germans had "lost" in unification, leading many East Germans (Ossis) to resent West Germans (Wessis). In 2004, Deborah Ascher...
Daryush Shokof. Alles auf Zucker! (Go for Zucker), 2004 – comedy with Ossi-Wessiand secular-orthodox Jewish themes. Director Dani Levy. Berliner Maifestspiele...
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