Influences on language, fashion, play and music
There are more connections between civilian life and the military sphere than many people realize. This section of the themed tour highlights the ways in which military elements continue to shape everyday life.
Gassenhauer, Kraftprotz and Zapfenstreich are all terms in the German language that originated in a military context. However, they are by no means the only words that have found their way from soldiers’ jargon into everyday speech. In this section, visitors learn about the diverse influence of the military on the everyday language.
Many fashionable classics were originally borrowed from the military. Examples include the T-shirt and the trench coat. In some cases, this is because army clothing, materials or colours have proved particularly practical or stylish. In other cases, the repurposing of military equipment has served as a form of protest. Well-known designers, too, continue to draw inspiration from military influences for the catwalk.
There are few children’s bedrooms without some form of mock combat, and even outdoors a seemingly random stick can quickly become a weapon with which children play games like cops and robbers. In the past, society often consciously encouraged such behaviour by providing children with suitable toys, thereby shaping future ideas of roles and behaviour. In other cases, toys were deliberately used as instruments of propaganda, conveying messages to children from an early age.
Music has always accompanied military service. Signals regulated everyday routines, from reveille to tattoo. Music encouraged soldiers, coordinated operations and served as a means of military self-representation. There has long been a reciprocal relationship between military and civilian musical culture.
