Visiting the “women’s church”?

Whether you have guests visiting Dresden during tourist season or at other times of the year, keep in mind that the names of the sights in and around the city don’t always need to be translated.

The Frauenkirche is a good example. In the English section of its website, the Frauenkirche doesn’t offer a translation, but it simply uses “Frauenkirche” in its English texts. The translation of the term “Frauenkirche” is generally “the Church of Our Lady” (not the “Women’s Church”, which would be a direct translation of the words into English).

The easiest solution when advising guests or tourists: give the name in German and explain what it is.

For example: “A popular place for people to visit while in Dresden is the Frauenkirche. It’s a Lutheran church originally built in the 1700s. It was destroyed during World War II. Reconstruction was completed in 2005.”

For more ideas on how to explain or talk about famous sights, see the tourism section of the city of Dresden’s website.

Mindy Ehrhart Krull
About the author

Originally from the US, Mindy Ehrhart Krull holds a master's degree in journalism and has been teaching English and working as an author, editor and proofreader in Germany since 2008.

At DELS, she leads a team of several English trainers and language professionals.

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