Götterdämmerung

English

Etymology

From German Götterdämmerung (“twilight of the gods”), which see below.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɒtəˈdæməɹʊŋ/ (or as German, below)

Noun

Götterdämmerung (uncountable)

1. (Germanic mythology) The myth of the destruction of the gods in a final battle with the forces of evil; the apocalypse.
2. Any cataclysmic downfall or momentous, apocalyptic event, especially of a regime or an institution.
   • 2005, Martin Torgoff, Can't Find My Way Home, Simon & Schuster 2005, p. 153:

     After so much music, love, and flowers, she felt benumbed, thunder-struck by this psychedelic Götterdämmerung.

   • 2010, PuppetGov, We Stand on the Cusp of one of Humanity’s Most Dangerous Moments:

     We will not, especially in the United States, avoid our Götterdämmerung.

Further reading

• Götterdämmerung on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

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German

Etymology

18th century, from Götter (“gods”) +‎ Dämmerung (“twilight”), a calque of Old Norse ragnarøkkr, an attested reinterpretation of ragnarǫk (literally “fate of the gods”). Popularised by Wagner's opera of 1853.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡœtərˌdɛmərʊŋ/, [ˈɡœ.tɐˌdɛ.mə.ʁʊŋ]

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

Götterdämmerung f (genitive Götterdämmerung, plural Götterdämmerungen)

1. (Germanic, chiefly Norse mythology, also figuratively) downfall of the gods, Götterdämmerung, Ragnarok

Declension

Declension of Götterdämmerung [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Götterdämmerung	die	Götterdämmerungen
genitive	einer	der	Götterdämmerung	der	Götterdämmerungen
dative	einer	der	Götterdämmerung	den	Götterdämmerungen
accusative	eine	die	Götterdämmerung	die	Götterdämmerungen

See also

• Götzendämmerung

Further reading

• “Götterdämmerung” in Duden online
• “Götterdämmerung” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• Götterdämmerung on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^de