German Israeli – cultural difference #1 – having a conversation

After spending a few weeks in Berlin, I found some interesting cultural differences between Israelis and German and I thought it’s worthwhile sharing some. The first major difference I see is that Israelis Interrupt in conversations… In Israel, while having a conversation, you would usually comment, add new ideas and thoughts while the other person is speaking, it’s common and if you don’t do it, the other party might think you are not involved in the conversation. When German speak to each other, they hardly interrupt each other and let the other finish the sentence. There are surly cultural differences involved but there is also a technical explanation I found: In order to understand a sentence in German, you need to hear all of it. For example, if you say something in a negative form, the word ‘nicht’ comes almost at the end. In Hebrew it will probably be the first or second language. In general, Hebrew requires less words to convey an idea, but German takes it’s time and really tries to find super precise words. And on that note – I am still looking for a job here in Berlin, So feel free to PM me if you hear of any interesting opportunities.