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FormatJournal Article
Author, AnalyticCoignard, Tristan
Title, AnalyticGegen den Bedeutungsverlust einer Kultur: John Eiselmeier (1861/1862-1947) und der Status der deutschsprachigen Minderheit in den Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika zu Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts
Journal TitleLinguistica
Date of Publication2020
Volume ID60
Issue ID2
Location in Work361–375
View OnlinePDF
AbstractJohn Eiselmeier, who was born near Linz and who settled with his family in the southern part of Illinois in the 1870s, has so far received little scholarly attention. He trained as a teacher and gained teaching experience at various schools in Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin. He was later able to pass this experience on to prospective teachers as a trainer within the National German-American Teachers’ Seminary. He became a campaigner for the preservation of the German language and the German-American school system.

Eiselmeier witnessed the increasing loss of importance of German culture and the tensions which the German community was exposed to. Through self-reflection he became aware of the changes in the American perception of German-speaking immigrants. He addressed the decline in the language, the hostility towards Germans in the context of the First World War, and the increasing disinterest in German culture. These events provide the opportunity to discuss the following hypothesis: did the first decades of the 20th century represent a stage which led to a transition from open integration to assimilation?
NotesIn German
Call NumberDigital file
MKI TermsAssimilation/ Ethnic identity/ Language, German/ Language loss/ Language maintenance/ Language, German (US)/ Education/ Teaching of German/ World War, 1914-1918/ World War, 1939-1945/ Eiselmeier, John, 1862-1938