# How to say "I am Christian" in german **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 12, 2014, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093 "2014-10-12T05:47:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![henker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/46a35a/32.png) [@henker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/henker)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/1 "2014-10-12T05:47:46Z")
I have heard it as “Ich bin Christ”, is that right? How does one differentiate between that and “I am Christ”? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/2 "2014-10-12T05:52:35Z")
> [@henker](#): > > I have heard it as “Ich bin Christ”, is that right? How does one differentiate between that and “I am Christ”? I think that is correct. Jesus Christ, in German, is Jesus Christus. ETA: I am not German. I learned the language in high school and college, and that was a very long time ago. . ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/3 "2014-10-12T07:41:13Z")
Ich bin (ein) **Christ**. (I am a Christian) Ich bin **Christus**. (I am Christ) ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/4 "2014-10-12T07:54:52Z")
> [@Donnerwetter](#): > > Ich bin (ein) **Christ**. (I am a Christian) > Ich bin **Christus**. (I am Christ) Correct, yes. Personally, I would say the first sentence without the article “ein”, but that may be a regional thing (I’m from the southern part of Germany). ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/5 "2014-10-12T07:59:44Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > Correct, yes. Personally, I would say the first sentence without the article “ein”, but that may be a regional thing (I’m from the southern part of Germany). There probably also is a theological distinction between “_Ich bin ein Christ_” and “_Ich bin Christ_”, but that is too deep for me. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/6 "2014-10-12T08:35:56Z")
> [@Donnerwetter](#): > > There probably also is a theological distinction between “_Ich bin ein Christ_” and “_Ich bin Christ_”, but that is too deep for me. 😉 And then there’s always the rather mundane issue of people being named Christian, who would say “Ich bin Christian”, to complicate things further. ---
**Author:** ![kellner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c2a13f/32.png) [@kellner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellner)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/7 "2014-10-12T09:18:33Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > Correct, yes. Personally, I would say the first sentence without the article “ein”, but that may be a regional thing (I’m from the southern part of Germany). I’d say that “Ich bin Christ.” is the neutral version and “Ich bin ein Christ.” is slightly emphatic (cf. Kennedy and his donut.) ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/8 "2014-10-12T09:51:29Z")
Compare Matthew 24:5 > [@](#): > > Denn es werden viele kommen unter meinem Namen, und sagen: “Ich bin **Christus** ” und werden viele verführen. (Luther Bible 1912) > [@](#): > > Denn viele werden unter meinem Namen kommen und sagen: Ich bin **der Christus**! Und sie werden viele verführen. (Schlachter Bible 2000) > [@](#): > > For many shall come in my name, saying, I am **Christ** ; and shall deceive many. (King James Version) > [@](#): > > For many shall come in my name, saying, I am **the Christ** ; and shall lead many astray. (American Standard Version 1901) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/9 "2014-10-12T16:21:44Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > And then there’s always the rather mundane issue of people being named Christian, who would say “Ich bin Christian”, to complicate things further. Wouldn’t they say ‘Ich heiße Christian’? ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/10 "2014-10-12T19:28:56Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Wouldn’t they say ‘Ich heiße Christian’? There’s a slight difference: “Ich heiße Christian” = “My name is Christian” “Ich bin Christian” = “I am Christian” ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/11 "2014-10-12T20:45:38Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Wouldn’t they say ‘Ich heiße Christian’? You could go either way when introducing yourself, I would guess. Of course EinsteinsHund’s translations are correct, but in everyday usage the two wordings can be used interchangeably. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/12 "2014-10-12T20:49:52Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > There’s a slight difference: > > “Ich heiße Christian” = “My name is Christian” > > “Ich bin Christian” = “I am Christian” > [@Schnitte](#): > > You could go either way when introducing yourself, I would guess. Of course EinsteinsHund’s translations are correct, but in everyday usage the two wordings can be used interchangeably. In high school we were taught not to say _Ich bin [Name]_. There’s a difference between school and real life! ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/13 "2014-10-12T21:10:17Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > In high school we were taught not to say _Ich bin [Name]_. There’s a difference between school and real life! Interesting. I would agree that “Ich bin” is probably more informal, and may be regarded as less polite, than “Ich heiße”; intuitively, I would rather use it with first names than family names. But it’s definitely used in everyday speech. Seems to be one of the cases where people who learn a language as a foreign language are taught rules which native speakers routinely disobey. My favourite example for that in English is the use of “would” in the “If…” clause of a conditional sentence, which to my knowledge is considered ungrammatical but certainly widespread. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/14 "2014-10-12T22:14:22Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > You could go either way when introducing yourself, I would guess. Of course EinsteinsHund’s translations are correct, but in everyday usage the two wordings can be used interchangeably. And there’s another expression which I prefer when introducing myself in a formal situation: “Mein Name ist EinsteinsHund”. Then of course there’s the colloquial form which is ungrammatical, but often used: “Ich bin _der_ Christian”. The rule is that you don’t use the article with proper names, but it’s regularly ignored in everyday speech. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/15 "2014-10-12T23:11:28Z")
Man, German mental hospitals must be full of sane non-Germans. How do you say “I am a Bonapartist”? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2014, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/16 "2014-10-12T23:35:17Z")
**Schnitte** , perhaps I’m just being thick, but I can’t figure out what you mean by the would/if thing. Could you please give an example? > [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > And there’s another expression which I prefer when introducing myself in a formal situation: “Mein Name ist EinsteinsHund”. > > Then of course there’s the colloquial form which is ungrammatical, but often used: “Ich bin _der_ Christian”. The rule is that you don’t use the article with proper names, but it’s regularly ignored in everyday speech. Brazilians do this in Portuguese, and I still haven’t figured out if it’s proper language. They might say “I heard from the Daniel today” or “I visited the Sara.” It really sounds odd to me, and I never risk speaking like this because I am afraid there are subtle rules to it that I will never be privy to. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2014, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/17 "2014-10-13T05:42:25Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > And then there’s always the rather mundane issue of people being named Christian, who would say “Ich bin Christian”, to complicate things further. Isn’t Christ also a man’s name in Germany? ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2014, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/18 "2014-10-13T05:53:24Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > Isn’t Christ also a man’s name in Germany? Actually yes. But very, very unusual. I had to look it up. ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2014, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/19 "2014-10-13T06:06:54Z")
Originally, saying: > [@](#): > > Ich bin der Christian instead of (correctly) > [@](#): > > Ich bin Christian would have been a speech pattern employed by young, cool, free-spirited individuals, maybe hippies. The kind of people who use the word _dude_ a lot (in American English). Today, it has become kind of ubiquitous, but it still is considered informal. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2014, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093/20 "2014-10-13T06:35:19Z")
> [@Donnerwetter](#): > > Originally, saying: > > instead of (correctly) > > would have been a speech pattern employed by young, cool, free-spirited individuals, maybe hippies. The kind of people who use the word _dude_ a lot (in American English). Today, it has become kind of ubiquitous, but it still is considered informal. My impression is rather that it varies by region. In the south, such as Bavaria, it’s quite common even among old people to use the article with proper names, whereas in the north it’s frowned upon. I vaguely recall reading somewhere that the line that divides regions where this is common from those where it isn’t is one of the usual [isoglosses](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isogloss) used in German linguistics to differentiate southern from northern dialects, but I couldn’t google it up right now. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-say-i-am-christian-in-german/701093.md?page=2)