Breakdown of Die Piraten sollen sehr reich gewesen sein.
sein
to be
sehr
very
reich
rich
sollen
should / ought to
Questions & Answers about Die Piraten sollen sehr reich gewesen sein.
Why does sollen translate to "are said to" here instead of its usual meaning "should"?
This is the subjective use of sollen. When used this way, it expresses hearsay or a claim made by others, meaning "is said to" or "is supposed to." It is a handy way to report a rumor without guaranteeing it is true.
Why do we use gewesen sein instead of a normal past tense like waren?
Because sollen is a modal verb, it must be followed by an infinitive. To talk about a state in the past using a modal, we have to use the Perfekt Infinitive (past infinitive). For the verb sein, this is formed with its past participle gewesen plus the auxiliary infinitive sein.
Why is the word order gewesen sein at the end, and not sein gewesen?
The conjugated modal verb sollen takes the second position in the sentence, pushing the remaining verbs to the end. In a Perfekt Infinitive construction at the end of a main clause, the past participle (gewesen) always comes right before the auxiliary infinitive (sein).
How could I express the exact same meaning without using the subjective sollen?
You could use a phrase like Man sagt, dass... (One says that...). For example: Man sagt, dass die Piraten sehr reich waren. Using subjective sollen is simply a more concise and elegant way to express this hearsay at a B2 level.