Every year, the Oxford German Network calls all young learners of German to participate in its national German competition, the Oxford German Olympiad. In 2016/2017, they would like to explore German peoples, languages and culture beyond the borders of Germany: their theme being ‘Deutsch(e) jenseits von Deutschland – German(s) beyond Germany’. Taking German and Germany as an example, they would like you to reflect on the way in which peoples have always migrated and taken their languages and stories with them, on how languages and cultures are almost never confined to one geographical area or a single nation.
The tasks and guidelines for the Olympiad’s first round, directed at pupils from year 5 to 13, are now online and can be accessed here:
http://www.ogn.ox.ac.uk/oxford-german-olympiad-2017
http://www.ogn.ox.ac.uk/deutsche-jenseits-von-deutschland
http://www.ogn.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/olympiad_2017_full_task_guidelines.pdf
On their website, you will find plenty of historical and literary material around this topic to inspire you, including subpages on the German diaspora, exile writing, literature composed in various dialects, and contemporary Swiss spoken word poetry, with more material to be added in due course. Please share these links with classmates, friends and teachers who might be interested. Spread the word!
The deadline for this competition is 12 noon, Friday 17 March 2017. If you have any queries in the meantime, please do not hesitate to get in touch by emailing [email protected].