German Abbreviations
Deutsche Abkürzungen
German Abbreviations from AA to z.Z.
GENERAL ABBREVIATIONS
German-English
The following abbreviations are commonly found in German reading (books, letters, periodicals, business documents, etc.) and sometimes in conversation. In most cases, this glossary does not include German abbreviations that are identical or similar to English abbreviations (e.g., BMW, BSE, VW, etc. - but see Brand Names & Abbreviations), although the German pronunciation may be different. (Audio files of some of these can be found on our Abc-Quiz page.) For other types of abbreviations and acronyms in German, also see the other pages and links below.
ALSO SEE:
• Brand Names & Abbreviations
• Countries & Nationalities
• 'MfG' Abbreviations
• Political Party Abbreviations
• Real Estate Ad Abbreviations
• Das Alphabet - German ABCs
German Abbreviations
A-C | D-F | G-J | K-M | N-Q | R-T | U-Z
| Abkürzung | German | English |
| A | ||
| AA | Auswärtiges Amt | (German) Foreign Office (FO, Brit.), State Dept. (U.S.) |
| a.a.O. | am angegebenen Ort | in the place cited, loc. cit. (loco citato) |
| Abb. | Abbildung | illustration |
| Abf. | Abfahrt | departure |
| Abk. | Abkürzung | abbreviation |
| Abo | Abonnement | subscription |
| Abs. | Absender | sender, return address |
| Abt. | Abteilung | department |
| abzgl. | abzüglich | less, minus |
| a.D. | an der Donau | on the Danube |
| a.D. | außer Dienst | retired, ret. (after name/title) |
| ADAC | Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil Club | General German Automobile Club |
| Adr. | Adresse | address |
| AG | Aktiengesellschaft | incorporated (stock company) |
| Example: Volkswagen AG (Volkswagen, Inc.) | ||
| AGB | die Allgemeinen Geschäftsbedingungen (pl.) | Terms and Conditions (of Use) |
| AKW | Atomkraftwerk | atomic power plant (also see KKW) |
| a.M. | am Main | on the Main (river) |
| Example: Frankfurt a.M. (Frankfurt/Main, Frankfurt on the Main) | ||
| am. | amerikanisch | American |
| amtl. | amtlich | official |
| Anh. | Anhang | appendix |
| Ank. | Ankunft | arrival |
| Anl. | Anlage | encl., enclosure |
| Anm. | Anmerkung | note |
| AOK | Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse | public health insurance |
| ARD | Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland | Working Group of the Public Broadcasting Organizations of the Federal Republic of Germany |
| Note: The ARD is a conglomerate of each of Germany's state and regional broadcasters. It also runs the national Erstes Deutsches Fernsehen TV network. Also see ZDF. | ||
| a.Rh. | am Rhein | on the Rhine |
| ASW | außersinnliche Wahrnehmung | ESP, extrasensory perception |
| A.T. | Altes Testament | Old Testament |
| Aufl. | Auflage | edition (book) |
| AW | Antwort | Re: (email), in reply |
| B | ||
| b. | bei | at, with, near, c/o |
| Bd. | Band | volume (book) |
| beil. | beiliegend | enclosed |
| bes. | besonders | especially |
| Best.-Nr. | Bestellnummer | order number |
| Betr. | Betreff | Re:, regarding |
| Bez. | Bezeichnung Bezirk |
term, designation district |
| BGB | Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch | civil code |
| BGH | Bundesgerichtshof | German supreme court |
| BH | Büstenhalter | bra, brassiere |
| Bhf. | Bahnhof | train station |
| BIP | Bruttoinlandsprodukt | GDP, gross domestic product |
| BKA | Bundeskriminalamt | Germany's "FBI" |
| BLZ | Bankleitzahl | bank code number |
| BND | Bundesnachrichtendienst | German intelligence service Germany's "CIA" |
| BRD | Bundesrepublik Deutschland | FRG, Federal Republic of Germany |
| b.w. | bitte wenden | please turn over |
| bzgl. | bezüglich | with reference to |
| bzw. | beziehungsweise | respectively |
| C | ||
| ca. | circa, zirka | circa, approximately |
| C&A | Clemens & August | popular clothing chain |
| CDU | Christlich-Demokratische Union | Christian Democratic Union |
| Chr. | Christus | Christ |
| CJK | Creutzfeld-Jakob-Krankheit | CJD, Creutzfeld-Jakob Disease |
| CSU | Christlich-Soziale Union | Christian Socialist Union |
| Note: In addition to the conservative CDU and CSU (Bavaria) political parties, there are the socialist SPD, the environmental Greens (die Grünen), and the liberal FDP. See Political Party Abbreviations for more. | ||
| CVJF | Christlicher Verein Junger Frauen | YWCA (Cevi Switzerland) |
| CVJM | Christlicher Verein Junger Menschen | YMCA |
| Note: When it was founded in Berlin in 1883, the abbreviation CVJM stood for Christlicher Verein Junger Männer ("young men"). In 1985, the name was changed to Christlicher Verein Junger Menschen ("young people") to reflect the fact that women as well as men could be CVJM members. In German Switzerland, the YWCA and YMCA combined in 1973 to form what is now known as "Cevi Schweiz." The first YMCA was founded in London in 1844. | ||
| NEXT > Abbreviations D-F - A-C | D-F | G-J | K-M | N-Q | R-T | U-Z | ||
More German Abbreviations
A-C < ZURÜCK - WEITER > D-F
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