A new survey suggests Germans think manners are slipping across the country – with some regions judged far more harshly than others.
Germany often strikes people as a country with clear and carefully monitored standards of behaviour. But a new survey suggests that many Germans believe these standards are slipping.
The poll, carried out by YouGov for the language‑learning platform Babbel, found that only 42 percent of respondents consider their fellow citizens polite.
At the same time, 59 percent of respondents felt the tone of everyday interactions had become harsher than it was five years ago.
The findings also raise a broader question: What do Germans actually mean by ‘good manners’ – and is that definition changing?
The survey also suggests that city dwellers are seen as particularly brusque, with 57 percent of respondents describing urban environments as more rude than rural ones.
In Berlin, for example, only 39 percent of residents think the people around them behave politely.
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Age also plays a role here. Baby boomers were found to be significantly more likely to believe that manners have deteriorated in recent years. Among older respondents 65 percent reported a witnessing a decline in manners, compared with just 39 percent among younger people.
As for where standards are most likely to slip, Germany’s roads are identified as the country’s top hotspot for rudeness (cited by 61 percent of respondents), followed by train stations (43 percent) and “the hospitality sector” (35 percent).
The workplace, by contrast, is where manners still run strong: only 15 percent of respondents described their colleagues as rude.
Interestingly, the survey revealed sharp regional differences as well, with some states performing relatively well on courtesy while others fall behind.
Hamburg sits at the top of Germany’s politeness ranking. It’s the only federal state where a majority of respondents – 61 percent – rated their fellow residents as polite.
The Hanseatic city is followed by Lower Saxony (45 percent), Bavaria (44 percent) and Thuringia (44 percent).
At the opposite end of the table are Baden‑Württemberg, Rhineland‑Palatinate and Bremen. The three states all hold the lowest score with just 36 percent of respondents rating their follow residents as polite.
Is it possible to agree on good manners?
One of the survey’s most striking findings is that 85 percent of respondents consider themselves polite – a figure that neatly captures just how subjective good manners are.
Digital communication can add to confusion or disagreement on what behaviours are polite or rude. Is it more polite to call or is that intrusive? Is a text efficient or dismissive? Should you follow up a message immediately or give someone space?
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Arguably, the pandemic accelerated this sense of uncertainty. Everyday rituals were disrupted and many unspoken rules quietly shifted or vanished. Physical greetings became optional, personal distance was re‑evaluated and communication increasingly moved online.
The rules everyone still agrees on
For all the uncertainty about where politeness begins and ends, there are still a handful of basic expectations in Germany that provoke very little debate.
If you’re keen to be counted among the well‑mannered minority here, it’s generally worth sticking to the following guidelines.
Punctuality is not optional. Five minutes early is acceptable. Five minutes late requires an apology – and ideally a valid excuse involving public transport.
Keep it down. Loud phone calls on trains, animated conversations across supermarket aisles or music without headphones are still widely regarded as inconsiderate.
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Signal and keep your distance. There’s a reason traffic tops the rudeness charts here. Failing to indicate, tailgating, or blocking the left lane may be common, but they’re still considered unacceptable.
Keep it formal, at least at first. Despite the spread of du in start‑ups and online life, using the formal Sie with strangers remains a basic sign of respect in many settings. Switching too early can feel intrusive rather than friendly.
Finally, follow the rules. While rule‑breaking may be seen as roguish or rebellious in other parts of the world, in Germany it’s still generally seen as simple bad manners. Crossing the road on a red pedestrian light, cycling the wrong way down a bike lane or ignoring ‘quiet hours’ will all see you placed firmly on the hypothetical naughty step.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: thelocal.de
