Gemütlichkeit (pronounced as /de/) is a German-language word used to convey the idea of a state or feeling of warmth, friendliness,[1] and good cheer. Other qualities encompassed by the term include cosiness, peace of mind, and a sense of belonging and well-being springing from social acceptance. The adjective "gemütlich" is translated as "cosy" so "Gemütlichkeit" could be simply translated as "cosiness".
"Gemütlichkeit" derives from gemütlich, the adjective of Gemüt, which means "heart, mind, temper, feeling" expressed by (and cognate with) English mood. The German abstract noun Gemütlichkeit has been adopted into English.[2] The current meaning of the word derives from its use in the Biedermeier period. By the second half of the 19th century, it also became associated with a set of traits supposedly unique to the Austrian culture.
The word can be used in descriptions of holidays.[3] In the 1973 English contract law case Jarvis v Swans Tours Ltd, a holidaymaker sued after not receiving the Gemütlichkeit promised by the promotional literature for a package holiday to the Swiss Alps.
The communal connotations of Gemütlichkeit are also emphasized in some uses of the term. For example, one academic described it as a tradition of "public festivity" (in the form of a "mixture of music, food, and drink"), which "promote[d] community solidarity."[4]
Gemütlichkeit has been appropriated at least once to describe the tenor of an economic era rather than spirit of a social gathering. In analyzing the "inflation dampening effects of globalization" an American professor wrote that certain U.S. economic trends could "spell an end of the Gemütlichkeit — a situation in which cheap labor and money abroad as well as ever-increasing productivity at home had permitted an uninterrupted spell of controlled growth in overall prices".[5]
English has no direct translation for gemütlich or Gemütlichkeit. Cosy captures an element of it but crucially lacks those of friendliness and belonging. Another possible translation could be comfort.
The Swedish-language equivalent is gemytlig, deriving directly from the German word and sharing its meaning. But the word "mysig" has identical connotations to Danish "hygge."
Danish also has gemytlig[6] in Danish pronounced as /ke̝ˈmytli/ but uses hygge in Danish pronounced as /ˈhykə/ (hyggelig as an adjective) instead.[7] In Norwegian the word is rendered "gemyttlig", but words such as "hyggelig" and "koselig" which means cosy, comfortable, nice, or pleasant, are analogues.
The Dutch equivalent gezelligheid, derived from the adjective gezellig, has broader social connotations than the German Gemütlichkeit and can be more accurately compared to the Danish term hygge.
In Bulgarian and Russian, уют (in Macedonian pronounced as /oˈjut/ and pronounced as /ru/, respectively) means cosiness, comfort, contentment, ease, and carries almost identical connotations to the German word.
The Romance languages with Latin roots do not have a single term expressing the many connotations of Gemütlichkeit.