Kapital 1 Anna Schwiebert

Guten Morgen! It was really interesting to read this article. My father's side of the family is very German, as you might be able to tell from my last name. I grew up with going to all sorts of family events with that side of the family. They always had parties that involved various kinds of brats, beer and even polka dancing. There was a large German influence within that side of my family, but when I was young I never how widespread the German influence has been on America. It is one thing to have brats at a family gathering but when you see an entire vehicle shaped like a giant hotdog or the fact that hotdogs and beer are such a common place part of American Culture, that definitely puts things on a different scale. I do remember learning in various history classes about the German immigration in the late 1800's but I was surprised by many of the things that this article brought up.
Besides the obvious influences such as the food and Octoberfest, I thought that it was interesting to read about the various religious ideas that the Germans have spread. From the Freethinkers to the Amish. It was not as thought there was just one religion that has been spread by Germans but there are so many. It was not as though there were only Lutherans that came but Germany passed on many religious tradition. German Jews came to America, Amish came to America. I thought it was interesting that there aren't actually any Amish left in Germany today.
It was also interesting to learn about how even Disney has been influenced. There are so many ways that things that have come from Germany that have changed and become such a part of the American way of life. Even the education system has been very effected by the Germans. I remember my aunts telling me about how kindergarten was really a German word, but I never thought beyond that to the extent that Germans have been an influence. It was great to get more info!