ne, nu, nh? Language clash between the Elbe and Insta

(Event in German)

What do nu, nor and nh have in common? They’re tiny words that never fail to spark a smile, an eye roll, or a good old “what on earth was that?”

This evening’s speakers, linguists Simon Oppermann (University of Leipzig) and Simon Meier-Vieracker (TU Dresden), take a slightly more scientific look at the topic.

In Simon Oppermann’s talk, it’s all about the secrets of Saxon dialect: Why do Saxons tack an -e onto everything (machne, Dresdne)? And what’s the story behind their favorite mumbled fillers nu and nor?

Simon Meier-Vieracker turns to the internet, where Gen Z is sparking generational battles with nothing more than a tiny nh and explains what lies behind this young writing phenomenon.  From dialect quirks to TikTok slang, one thing’s for sure: language is constantly evolving—and always stirring things up.