Learn German: Es ist nämlich eine alte Sitte in Deutschland. - It is an old custom in Germany, you see.

nämlich usually sits in the middle of the sentence, often right after the conjugated verb (like ist here) or after pronouns. Unlike the English word "because," you cannot put nämlich at the very beginning of a clause. It acts as an explanatory particle that smoothly attaches a reason to whatever was just said in the previous sentence.

How does nämlich translate to "you see" here, rather than "namely"?

While nämlich can mean "namely" when giving specific names or examples, it is frequently used in everyday German as an explanatory particle. In this context, it translates best to "you see," "you know," or simply "because." It signals to the listener that you are letting them in on the underlying reason for a previous statement.

Why does the adjective alt get the ending -e in eine alte Sitte?

Sitte (custom or tradition) is a feminine noun (die Sitte). Because this sentence uses the verb sein (to be), the phrase eine alte Sitte is in the nominative case. Following the indefinite article eine, a feminine adjective in the nominative case always takes the ending -e.

Is there a difference between eine Sitte and ein Brauch?