Breakdown of Da, wo der Wasserfall ist, fängt der Dschungel an.
sein
to be
wo
where
anfangen
to start
da
there
der Dschungel
the jungle
der Wasserfall
the waterfall
Questions & Answers about Da, wo der Wasserfall ist, fängt der Dschungel an.
Why do we use wo here instead of a normal relative pronoun?
Normal relative pronouns refer back to a specific noun. Here, wo refers back to the word Da (there), which is an adverb of place. When referring back to spatial adverbs like da, dort, or überall, we use the indefinite relative pronoun wo.
Why does the verb fängt come immediately after the relative clause?
The core main clause is Da fängt der Dschungel an. The word Da takes the first position. The relative clause wo der Wasserfall ist is simply inserted to give more information about Da. Because Da (along with its descriptive relative clause) occupies the first position block, the main verb fängt must follow directly in the second position.
Where does the word an at the end of the sentence come from?
It is the prefix of the separable verb anfangen (to begin). Because fängt is the conjugated verb in a main clause, the separable prefix an is sent all the way to the end of the sentence.
The spelling of Dschungel looks unusual. How is the Dsch pronounced?
It is pronounced just like the English letter J in jungle. German uses the letter combination Dsch to recreate this sound in loanwords, since a regular German J is pronounced like the English Y.
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