Königsberg

Here is a list of important philosophical terms in German.  Many of these terms you’ll find regularly when you read philosophical literature. I also recommend the BBC’s free language program to help familiarize yourself with the spoken language.

1. Abfall —a falling away (Goethe)
2. Aktphänomenologie —act-phenomenology, phenomenology of act (Moritz Alfred Geiger).
3. Alltag —the everyday. Eugen Fink’s expression.
4. als ob —as if; used in Forberg’s interpretation of Kantian philosophy, moral duty is to act as if (als ob) a moral order upheld by God existed in the world.
5. Anerkenntnis —acknowledgement, approbation (Goethe)
6. Annäherung, die —the approach.
7. Anschauung —insight
8. Atheismusstreit —controversy over atheism
9. Aufklärung—the Enlightenment
10. Begriffsgeschichte —history of concepts (Gadamer)
11. Beschreibung —description.
12. Besonnenheit , prudence, deliberateness, sobriety
13. das Konkret-Lebendige —the living-concrete (thing): a term used by Romano Guardino to describe the main focus of his philosophy
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