BJ - Sports; Recreation

2006

BJ — Sports; Recreation

Fußball als Kulturgut: geschichtliche, soziologische, ökonomische, rechtliche, politische sowie theologische und philosophische Aspekte; eine kommentierte Bibliografie [Soccer as a Cultural Asset: Historical, Sociological, Economic, Legal, Political, as well as Theological and Philosophical Aspects. An Annotated Bibliography]. Jürgen Schiffer. Köln: Sport und Buch Strauss. 21 cm. (Wissenschaftliche Berichte und Materialien. Bundesinstitut für Sportwissenschaft, …). [06-1-074]

Part. 2. 2006. 705 p. (…, 2006,07). ISBN 3-939390-86-0: EUR 34.50

Following only two years on the heels of vol. 1 (see RREA 11:142), this extensive second volume of Jürgen Schiffer’s soccer dictionary appears coinciding with the arrival of the World Cup competition in Germany. As Schiffer predicted in vol. 1, the run-up to this great event has produced a further proliferation in soccer related publications, so that the number of extensively annotated entries presented in the new volume is nearly to the number in the initial one, comprising almost a thousand entries for both German and English language books, essays and review articles, dating from spring 2004, as well as a series of additional titles published earlier.

The arrangement here is nearly identical to that of the previous volume, with only two additional chapters. This leads the reviewer to repeat a caveat from his review of vol. 1: it is understandable that a bibliography striving for this level of comprehensiveness and useful annotation cannot afford to provide multiple entries under all of the categories that might apply to a given title, but this makes the absence of cross references or, even more important, a detailed index regrettable. Thus, it may be reasonable that an entry for the title Women’s Football in Brazil appear in the chapter “Frauen im Fußball” [Women in Soccer], but a reader might equally expect to find this title in chapters covering soccer in specific countries, or foreign (that is to say, non-German) soccer clubs. In the same vein, the entries in the chapters “Personen im Fußball” [People in Soccer], and “Meisterschaftsturniere” (World Cup Tournaments) might have been more usefully organized respectively under the names of the individuals covered and places the tournaments were held than alphabetically by author, or chronologically. Also, in light of the overlapping chronological coverage of both volumes, it might have been clearer to divide entries into those for titles published up to 1999 and those from 2000 forward. As it is, it is necessary to consult both volumes to find publications of a known date.

Yet a third volume of the bibliography is planned for 2007, which will supplement the existing 2,300 plus entries and include, no doubt, entries for the extensive literature generated by the 2006 World Cup competition. [mk/kst]

Langenscheidt, Fußball-Deutsch, Deutsch-Fußball: für Fans und solche, die es werden wollen [Langenscheidt, Soccer-German, German-Soccer: for Fans and Would-be Fans]. Gerhard Delling. Berlin [et al.]: Langenscheidt, 2006. 128 p.: ill.; 16 cm. ISBN 978-3-68-73113-6, ISBN 3-468-73113-2: EUR 9.96 [8861] [06-1-079]

The title appears to promise a dictionary of soccer terminology, but in reality this work only presents about 77 entries under the heading of Fußballdeutsch, scattered among various other sections and “articles”. Moreover, among these relatively few entries there are some of that are not strictly soccer terms at all, but everyday words that may be applied to the sport in an idiosyncratic way. The “articles,” written by Delling, deal with various soccer-related themes, ranging from the reasonable (e.g., Soccer and politics) to the trivial. Included are sections on miscellaneous soccer facts, soccer-related aphorisms and sayings, and mixed throughout are soccer jokes of often-questionable humor, as well as cartoons. Thus, Fußball-Deutsch, Deutsch-Fußball is not in any way a soccer dictionary as one might expect under the Langenscheidt rubric, but rather—as self-described in the preliminaries—‘a colorful mix of fact, humor and folklore’. Its usefulness as a reference work for the general public is hopelessly compromised by the un-systematic arrangement of entries throughout the book, and it may be seen, at best, as an entertainment for fans of soccer. [js/kst]

Pons, Fußballwörterbuch: Deutsch, Englisch, Französisch, Italienisch, Portugiesisch, Spanisch [Pons Soccer Dictionary: German, English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish]. Ed. Roberta Colombo. Reprint. Barcelona; Stuttgart: Klett, 2006. 196 p. 12 cm. ISBN 978-3-12-517665-2; ISBN 3-12-517665-4: EUR 4.95 [06-1-080]

Pons, Überlebenswortschatz Fußball: Deutsch, Englisch, Französisch, Italienisch, Niederländisch, Portugiesisch, Spanisch. [Pons Soccer Survival Terms: German, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish]. Stuttgart: Klett, 2006. 10 p. 6x9 cm. (folded). ISBN 978-3-12-517739-0; ISBN 3-12-517739-1: EUR 2.50 [06-1-081]

In response to the 2006 World Cup held in Germany, a number of colloquial soccer dictionaries have been published which provide readers general information about the sport. Pons Fußballwörterbuch is intended for German-speakers and counts among these layman’s dictionaries. Besides German, it includes translations of soccer vocabulary in five languages: English, Dutch, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish. The first of five main sections of the dictionary is a glossary of 415 entries for soccer terms, which are divided in sub-categories, such as “International Competition” and “The Game”. However, when compared with Football dictionary = Dicionnaire du football (Zürich, 1998), which includes over 4,200 entries, the shortcoming of such a low number of terms becomes plainly evident. The absence of terms, such as Torschuss [goal kick], and Pfostenschuss [a shot hitting the goal post], makes this weakness even more noticeable. The lack of an index for entries burdens the reader and makes the dictionary somewhat impractical to use.

The largest section of the dictionary has phrases and idiomatic expressions for greetings, terms of politeness, feelings, compliments, and small talk, which although not directly related to soccer, could be useful in making contacts. A 30-page lexicon on the World Cup includes short articles related to soccer and players. The selection of players included does appear to be random. For example, Fritz Beckenbauer, Fritz Walter and Zinedine Zidane are present, whereas David Beckham, Uwe Seeler, and Helmut Rahn are missing. A useful section on World Cup statistics is also provided.

For most basic conversational needs Pons, Überlebenswortschatz Fußball [Pons, Soccer Survival Terms] will suffice. Sixty-one soccer terms in German, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish are arranged alphabetically in tables and printed on plastic material which can be folded up to credit-card size. [js,sh/bwv]

Wörterbuch der Fußballsprache [Dictionary of Soccer Language]. Armin Burkhardt. Göttingen: Verlag Die Werkstatt, 2006. 360 p. 21 cm. ISBN 978-3-89533-530-4: EUR 14.90 [06-1-082]

With his Wörterbuch der Fußballsprache Armin Burckhardt illustrates how an ideal monolingual German sport dictionary should look. The impetus for the dictionary was the realization of how difficult most soccer reporting is to understand in newspapers or on the Internet—not to mention much of the soccer commentary on television— since so many words and phrases are not explained in school, in textbooks, or in general dictionaries. The result is a specialized dictionary that offers etymologies and relevant examples in context. A seemingly jocular feature that is actually quite useful: explanations are given about what a word does not mean. This dictionary contains about 2,200 headwords, and the author makes it clear that not all possible terms are covered. Besides actual soccer concepts, words and phrases are given that may apply to other sports as well (“counter-attack,” “top team,” etc.). Of particular note is that Burckhardt’s dictionary goes beyond formal soccer language to include a large number of idiomatic expressions, such as the German equivalents of “egg,” “cherry,” or “pill” for “soccer ball;” “booth” or “cabin” for “goal;” and “light switch” for “goal-scorer.” The value of the dictionary is heightened by its introductory chapter on the language of German soccer. Here, different sectors represent rules, tactical systems, positions, and the various levels and idiosyncrasies of soccer language between players, reporters, and fans. This dictionary is highly recommended for those interested in soccer or language; for libraries that deal with German soccer, it is a must. [js/rdh]

Literatur zur Geschichte des Arbeitersports in Deutschland von 1892 bis 2005: eine Bibliographie [Literature on the History of Sports for Laborers in Germany from 1892 to 2005: A Bibliography]. Ed. Eike Stiller. Berlin: Trafo-Verlag Weist, 2006. 335 p. ill. 24 cm. (Beiträge zur Arbeitersportgeschichte, 2). ISBN 3-89626-419-2: EUR 39.80 [06-2-288]

The “Arbeiter-Turnbund” (Workers’ Gymnastics Society), later renamed “Arbeiter-Turn-und Sportbund” (Workers’ Gymnastics and Sport Society) was organized in 1893 as a proletarian protest movement against the Wilhelmine state and the strict nationalism of the “Deutsche Turnerschaft” (German Gymnasts’ Club). Sports for the laboring classes in Germany developed into a powerful movement, peaking at around

1.2 million employees by the end of the 1920s. It was to serve as a physical—but also intellectual—training ground for class struggle. Competitive sports were rejected. After years of Nazi ban on worker sports, there was a reanimation of the movement after 1945. East Germany saw itself as the legitimate heir of proletarian sport, while workers joined bourgeois clubs and societies in West Germany. Thus, research was different in both parts of Germany. East German sports historians published heavily and often, including many academic works, while a revivification of research in West Germany only came after 1970. The compiler of this bibliography of primary and secondary literature on the topic has been a prolific sports historian himself.

The first chapter offers 29 categories of publications from the above-named society, including such comprehensive primary output as agitation pamphlets, rules, song books, lists of tips for beginners, films, and even series of slides and postcards. The second chapter presents various proletarian sports newspapers of national, regional or local significance. Secondary literature of the past 100 years is the subject of the third chapter, while the fourth introduces archives, collections, libraries and international organizations related to the worker’s sport movement. There is an appendix with color photographs as well as indexes for abbreviations and for place names. An index of personal names would seem highly desirable. While this is a commendable attempt at gathering documentation on German workers’ sports, the conception of the bibliography is abnormal, as it often lacks data (author and journal names, title information, differentiation of theses and dissertations) that would be available with the use of library research tools. Stiller does offer historians of the labor movement and of sports some rare documents, many of them found in the “Karl-Bühren Research Archive on the History of the International Proletarian Sport Movement” which the compiler co-founded in Paderborn.

A systematic search of the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek’s holdings, especially its Leipzig section—as well as two other specialized libraries for sports in Cologne and Leipzig—would have yielded many additional and relevant entries; it would also have made more precise description possible. The material suffers considerably from the bibliographic inexperience of its compiler. [mk/rdh]

Biographisches Handbuch zur Geschichte der deutschen Leichtathletik: 18982005 [Biographical Manual of German Track and Field History: 18982005]. Klaus Amrhein. Darmstadt: Deutsche Leichtathletik Promotion- und Projektgesellschaft, 2005. 1388 p. 21 cm. EUR 25.95 (Deutsche Leichtathletik…, Alsfelder Str. 27, D-64289 Darmstadt) [06-2-289]

Without a doubt, track and field is the “Crown of Olympus,” the central sport class in the Olympic Games. Though its resonance with spectators doesn’t approach that of soccer, it still holds great interest for the media and certainly for athletes—armchair and otherwise. This third edition of the biography describes over 11,000 participants active in German track and field from 1898 through 2005 (an almost 50 percent increase over the editions of 1998 and 1999). The data extend from top athletes with victories at the international and Olympic levels to include such competition as youth, university and police teams. Coaches, functionaries, sports researchers and others with a close connection to the sport are included as well. There is scarcely an important personality missing from the volumes. Other lexica boast of famous athletes, but only among Amrhein’s entries do we find the lesser-known track and field performers that are still important in the German realm. Statistics largely shape the articles: we learn championship results, record-breaking performances, and—in over 4,000 cases—the chronological development of athletes’ best times and distances. The life stories of famous runners and field stars are, obviously, better known and therefore more thoroughly treated than those of the less prominent.

In the face of the enormous increase of size in this edition, it might make sense to limit the space-robbing statistics to only the more prominent track and field stars, relegating the rest to the CD-ROM. Future editions will probably be limited to less costly and less cumbersome electronic publications, in any case, toward which the included CD-ROM is a first step. Despite a few small defects, this exceedingly rich biographical reference work is a solid compilation of track and field protagonists and will undoubtedly find wide distribution among athletes and fans. Other sports will be envious. [mk/rdh]

Previous Section
Next Section
Table of Contents