German Abbreviations N-Q
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, VHS, VW, etc.), 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:
• Countries & Nationalities
• 'MfG' Abbreviations
• Political Party Abbreviations
• Real Estate Ad Abbreviations
• Das Alphabet
A-C | D-F | G-J | K-M | N-Q | R-T | U-Z
| Abkürzung | German | English |
| N | ||
| N | Nord(en) | north |
| näml. | nämlich | namely, viz., i.e. |
| n.Chr. | nach Christus | AD, anno domini |
| NN | das Normalnull | sea level |
| NNO | Nordnordost | north northeast |
| NNW | Nordnordwest | north northwest |
| NO | Nordosten | northeast |
| NOK | Nationales Olympisches Komitee | National Olympic Committee |
| NPD | Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands | National Democratic Party of Germany |
| Note: The NPD is a German far-right, neo-Nazi party. See Political Party Abbreviations for more. | ||
| Nr. | Nummer | No., number |
| NRW | Nordrhein-Westfalen | North Rhine-Westphalia |
| NS | Nachschrift | PS, postscript |
| n.u.Z. | nach unserer Zeitrechnung | modern era |
| O | ||
| O | Osten | east |
| o. | oben | above |
| o.A.* | ohne Altersbeschränkung | approved for all ages, no age limit |
| OB | Oberbürgermeister | mayor, Lord Mayor |
| o.B. | ohne Befund | negative results |
| Obb. | Oberbayern | Upper Bavaria |
| ÖBB | Österreichische Bundesbahnen | Austrian Federal Railways |
| od. | oder | or |
| OF* | Originalfassung | orig. version (movie) |
| o.g. | oben genannt | above mentioned |
| OHG | offene Handelsgesellschaft | general partnership |
| OmU* | Originalfassung mit Untertiteln | orig. version with subtitles |
| ÖPNV | öffentlicher Personennahverkehr | public (commuter) transportation |
| ORF | Oesterreichischer Rundfunk | Austrian Broadcasting (radio & TV) |
| österr. | österreichisch | Austrian |
| OSO | Ostsüdost | east southeast |
| O-Ton* | Originalton | original soundtrack |
| *Im Kino (At the movies) See the special section below for more German movie abbreviations. | ||
| Note: die O-Töne = "in their own words" (recorded sound bites, voice recordings) | ||
| ÖVP | Österreichische Volkspartei | Austrian People's Party |
| P | ||
| p.Adr. | per Adresse | c/o, care of |
| PDS | die Partei des Demokratischen Sozialismus | Party of Democratic Socialism |
| Note: The PDS is an offshoot of the former East German SED party. It draws most of its membership from eastern Germany. See Political Party Abbreviations for more. | ||
| Pfd. | Pfund | lb., pound (weight) |
| Pkw/PKW | Personenkraftwagen | automobile, car |
| PH | pädagogische Hochschule | teacher's college |
| Pl. | Platz | square, plaza |
| PLZ | Postleitzahl | postal code, ZIP |
| PS | Pferdestärke | horsepower |
| Q | ||
| qkm | Quadratkilometer | square km |
| qm | Quadratmeter | square meter(s) |
| Note: The abbreviations km2 or m2 are more modern and preferred. | ||
| QWERTZ | QWERTZ-Tastatur | (Ger.) QWERTZ keyboard |
| *Im Kino (At the movies) - The following abbreviations are commonly found in German movie listings. Hollywood movies shown in Germany and Austria usually have a dubbed German soundtrack. In German-speaking Switzerland subtitles are the norm. In larger cities and university towns it is easy to find OmU or OF films shown in the original language, with or without German subtitles. dF, dtF deutsche Fassung = German dubbed version k.A. keine Angabe = not rated, unrated, no information FSF Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle Fernsehen = German TV rating board FSK Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle der Filmwirtschaft = German film rating board FSK 6, FSK ab 6 rated age 6 and up (More at the FSK site - in German.) o.A. ohne Altersbeschränkung = approved for all ages, no age limit OF Originalfassung = original-language version OmU Originalfassung mit Untertiteln = orig. lang. with subtitles SW, s/w schwarz/weiß = black & white See the CinemaxX.de Web site for actual movie listings in many German cities. |
||
More German Abbreviations
K-M < ZURÜCK - WEITER > R-T
Related Pages
Countries & Nationalities
An annotated glossary with the international abbreviation for each country.
Political Party Abbreviations
In Austria, Germany, and Switzerland.
Real Estate Ad Abbreviations
An annotated German-English glossary of abbreviations found in ads for housing.
German for Beginners - Contents
English-German Glossaries
All of the annotated glossaries on this site - from aerospace to travel.
German Grammar
All of the grammar resources on this site.
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