Tired of going back and forth: Should the European Union remain forever in summer's daylight saving time? A survey across the bloc on the question has received a record number of responses.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Hitji
Advertisement
The dream of year-round summertime come true for the European Union. Amid this very hot summer, the European Commission is asking citizens to weigh in on whether to abolish the practice of changing clocks and, if so, to stick to summer's daylight saving or winter's standard time.
Roughly 2 million people have responded to the online public survey, which began on July 4 and runs until August 16. The results could be a turning point for EU timekeeping.
Help us, Brussels!
German MP Michael Theurer is thoroughly convinced. "I am confident that changing clocks will be abolished," he said. "I just don't know when!" He was a proponent of doing away with the practice while serving in the European Parliament from 2009 until 2017.
Experts say daylight saving provides only minimal energy conservationImage: DW/A. M. Pedziwol
Indeed, ending biannual time changes could be a long way off, and it may be even longer until daylight saving time becomes the new normal. The European Commission's representative in Berlin said it will take time to review the results of the EU-wide survey, adding that experts also have to weigh in with their opinions before the body can make a recommendation and draw up new guidelines.
The myth of energy savings
Changing clocks does not seem do what's promised. Energy savings are minimal, the European Commission has found. Meanwhile, many citizens in the bloc report disruptions to their biorhythm, including difficulty sleeping, irritation and lack of concentration.
So let's do away with it! And then what: Daylight saving or standard time? This is hardly an easy question to answer given good arguments for both across EU member states.
Daylight saving would mean an extra hour of evening light, allowing for more work to be done in the fields, students and office workers the chance to get back home during the winter while it is still light, and sports and other events more time in the evening.
Standard time gives non-morning people a bit less darkness to deal with in the early hours of the day. A similar argument has long been made in the agricultural industry due to adverse affects the time change has on animals, but artificial lighting and automation makes that point moot; the European Commission did not have to take it into consideration.
Back and forth
It's high time for a change in the times, 38 years on since Germany implemented its current clock policy. The twice-a-year spring forward and fall back — 76 times in all — has left people exhausted.
Brussels: Have mercy! Grant us new guidelines on daylight saving. Let's be free of the back and forth.
8 German words about time
Daylight saving may or may not come to an end in the EU, but until that really happens, here are some interesting German words dedicated to time.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Zeitumstellung
This is what happens every year in October and March: Zeitumstellung, or time change. Many people hate it, but others see Zeitumstellung as a reminder that even if we are all bound by time, twice a year we act like we can change it. In Europe, it could all disappear in the future, following an EU vote on eliminating it. But let's wait and see... Negotiations on the topic have apparently stalled.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Zeitschrift
Many other German expressions integrate "Zeit," the word for time. A "Zeitschrift" — literally, time writing, is simply a magazine. Whether it includes political discourse or scantily clad women (now with nipples covered), theoretically a magazine should keep up with the times.
Image: Getty Images/J. Kempin
Zeitgeist
While Zeitgeist can also be used in English, its direct translation — time spirit — conjures up images of Charles Dickens' Ghosts of Christmas Past and Present. Referring to the philosophical idea that each era is characterized by particular ways of thinking, the concept of Zeitgeist dates back to 18th-century philosophers and is often associated with Johann Gottfried Herder.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Jens Wolf
Mahlzeit
Like time itself, food is elementary to the human existence. A "Mahlzeit" simply means "meal time," and can refer to breakfast, lunch or dinner. But it's also used to wish someone else the maximum amount of pleasure while eating. Next time you see a friend chomping down on a sandwich, you can say, "Mahlzeit!"
Image: Fotolia/Gennadiy Poznyakov
Hochzeit
It's often referred to as the happiest day of your life. In German, it's also a "high time" — a "Hochzeit." Who isn't high on adrenaline and emotion on that day of all days, on which your credit card debt reaches an all-time high? And for some impatient mothers-in-law, it certainly may be "high time" for that son to finally get hitched.
Image: Fotolia/tramp51
Sauregurkenzeit
It's "pickle time!" I'll have a BLT and some chips with that pickle, please... Actually the term "Sauregurkenzeit" originally, in the 18th century, referred to periods when little food was available. Now, it's used during the summer when everyone's on vacation, politics comes to a standstill, the streets are empty, and things get quiet. Pickle anyone?
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Patrick Pleul
Zeitgenosse
While "Genosse" means "comrade" and has a communist after-taste, a "Zeitgenosse" is anyone who lives at the same time you do: a contemporary. Just think: You are a "Zeitgenosse" of Angela Merkel, Heidi Klum and Cristiano Ronaldo. Your co-worker may not cheer, though, if you tell him he's your "time comrade."
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/K. Nietfeld
Zeitgefühl
German often has a single word for a concept English needs a phrase to express. "Zeitgefühl" is your sense of time — something that suffers when you're concentrating on an important project, staring into the eyes of your sweetheart, or changing the clocks back for daylight savings. Your Zeitgefühl may say it's 8:00 am, but it's really only 7:00. So go back to sleep already!
