Brüderschaft Explained

The German: brüderschaft (in German) or German: brüderschafttrinken is a drinking ritual, or a rite of passage, to consolidate friendship. Two people simultaneously drink a glass of the same alcoholic beverage each, with their arms intertwined at the elbows. A "brotherly kiss" is customary after emptying the glasses, which then seals the ritual. Thence they are considered good friends and address each other informally.^[1]

A symbolic act that establishes a closer bond between two—usually male—individuals, it has been associated with an end of formality between them and addressing each other (the informal you in German) at least since Jus Potandi oder ZechRecht, a legal-parodic text published in 1616.^[2] In the 17th and 18th centuries, the expression German: auf den Dutz trinken was also common, allegedly based on the assumption that "drinking together would bind and oblige".^[3]

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Notes and References

1. Book: Meyers Konversationslexikon . Brüderschaft . Retrobibliothek.de . 13 April 2023 . de . Leipzig and Vienna . 24 September 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210924160643/https://www.retrobibliothek.de/retrobib/seite.html?id=102819#Br%C3%BCderschaft . 1885–1892 . Verlag des Bibliographischen Instituts . live . German: '''Brüderschaft,''' zunächst die Übereinkunft von zwei Personen, sich als Brüder anzusehen, oft nur um einander mit "Du" anzureden (...) Die Sitte, B. zu trinken, beruht wohl darauf, daß der Genuß des gleichen Trankes als Symbol fester Vereinigung angesehen wurde.|italic=no. Brotherhood, first the agreement of two people to regard each other as brothers, often to address each other only with "Du" (...) The custom of the B. drinking is probably based on the fact that consumption of the same drink was considered a symbol of a firm union..
2. Book: Objartel, Georg . Sprache und Lebensform deutscher Studenten im 18. und 19. Jahrhundert: Aufsätze und Dokumente . Language and Patterns of Life Exhibited by 18th and 19th-Century German Students: Essays and Documentation . de . . 2023-04-13 . 5.4 Die Praktik des Brüderschaft- und Freundschafttrinkens . 5.4 The Practice of Brotherhood- and Friendship-drinking . 97 . . 22 February 2016 . 9783110456578 . 10.1515/9783110456578 . Studia Linguistica Germanica.
3. Book: Trink, Brüderlein, trink: Illustrierte Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte deutscher Trinkgewohnheiten . Drink, Little Brother, drink: Illustrated Cultural and Social History of German Drinking Customs . Regina . Hübner . Manfred . Hübner . 96 . de . So war üblich, daß man auff Brüderschafft oder auff den Dutz trincket, weil man von alters her annahm, gemeinsames Trinken würde verbinden und verpflichten. . Thus it was customary to drink to Brotherhood or to the Duzen, because it was assumed from time immemorial that drinking together would bind and oblige. . 9783361005754 . 2004 . . Edition Leipzig . 2023-04-13 .