Breakdown of Im Februar feiern wir Karneval.
in
in
wir
we
feiern
to celebrate
der Februar
February
der Karneval
the carnival
Questions & Answers about Im Februar feiern wir Karneval.
Why is it feiern wir instead of wir feiern?
In German main clauses, the conjugated verb must always be in the second position. Because the time phrase Im Februar takes up the first position, the verb feiern stays in the second position, which pushes the subject wir right after it into the third position.
Why do we use im before Februar?
In German, months and seasons always take the preposition in combined with the dative case. Since all months are masculine (der Februar), the article becomes dem. The words in and dem contract to form im.
Why is there no article before Karneval?
Just like in English, major holidays and festivals in German usually do not take an article when you talk about them generally. You will see this same rule applied to other holidays like Weihnachten (Christmas) and Ostern (Easter).
Is Karneval the only word Germans use for this celebration?
No, the word depends heavily on the region! In the Rhineland (like Cologne), it is called Karneval. However, in southern Germany and Austria, you will usually hear Fasching, and in southwestern Germany or Switzerland, it is known as Fastnacht.
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