Glossary entry

German term or phrase:

Mit freundlichem kollegialem Gruß

English translation:

With kind regards/Yours sincerely

Added to glossary by Woodstock (X)
Jun 7, 2007 16:38
17 yrs ago
22 viewers *
German term

Mit freundlichem kollegialem Gruß

German to English Law/Patents General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
This is the umpteenth letter in an endless exchange between a British and a German lawyer. Now, all of a sudden, the "Sehr geehrter Herr" in the beginning has changed to "Sehr geehrter Herr Kollege", and the "Mit freundlichen Grüßen" has changed to "Mit freundlichem kollegialem Gruß". How do I express this slight change of tone in English? So far, I have used "Dear Mr." and "Yours sincerely".
Change log

Jun 7, 2007 18:37: Steffen Walter changed "Field" from "Other" to "Law/Patents"

Jun 7, 2007 18:50: Marcus Malabad changed "Level" from "PRO" to "Non-PRO"

Jun 8, 2007 00:00: Cilian O'Tuama changed "Level" from "Non-PRO" to "PRO"

Mar 15, 2013 19:24: Woodstock (X) Created KOG entry

Discussion

Cilian O'Tuama Jun 8, 2007:
(I reclassified this as PRO because of the nuances - Marcus, any objection?)

Proposed translations

+2
1 hr
Selected

With kind regards

Having taught innumerable correspondence courses to German managers and staff, including how to differentiate between formal and informal forms of address and closes, I would recommend changing the close to "With kind regards" if you want to express the change in register, which is the next degree of informality in an all-purpose close in English correspondence. The books I used were all of British origin, and a very common formal British English sign-off still in use is "Yours faithfully". As already stated several times, we don't really use the "collegial" part in an English close that I'm aware of.

Hope this helps. :-)
Peer comment(s):

agree Courtney Sliwinski : I think this sounds less informal than the Sincerely yours, and that is the difference you are looking for
1 hr
Thank you, Courtney.
neutral Textklick : In a letter, "With kind/best/ regards" would be followed by "Yours sincerely". Added: Madam, the neutrality of my comment does not constitute disagreement per se. It was merely tendered as a complement to your suggestion.
2 hrs
In this case I speak with the authority of 10 years of teaching (past and present), using Cornelsen and Oxford textbooks, so I know that this is correct./Lol, Tex! Your wording sounds as if you think yours is the ONLY option. Writing has its drawbacks!
agree Marcus_UKDE
8 hrs
Thanks, Marcus.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Many of you have deserved credit, but I can only select one answer in KudoZ. Following the invaluable input from all of you, I have decided to go with Dear Mr. X ... With best regards, Yours sincerely, XY Steffen: I admit I didn't see the previous coverings of this issue, but now I am glad that I asked anyway. Textklick: Thanks again for your input! With kind regards, Tobias"
+2
5 mins

Yours sincerely

Personally, I think that German people add a lot more variation to correspondence forms that the English do. I think it is perfectly acceptable to stick to plain old "Yours sincerely".
Peer comment(s):

agree Textklick : Dear Dr. Ernst/Yours sincerely becomes Dear Tobias (assuming first name terms)/With kind/best regards, Yours sincerely. Members of the professions prefer to stay a little "stuffy" here, particularly if they are writing something which will be on record.
3 hrs
agree Astrid Elke Witte
7 hrs
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5 mins

Yours sincerely

There's no way you can express the change of tone in English, IMHO; I'd perhaps add a little note, if I'd done all the translation work, telling my English customer of the change in emphasis from the German side, but I can't say whether it's even desirable without knowing the whole story!
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4 mins

Yours sincerely/yours fraternally

We DON'T usually express this nuance in English - yours faithfully and your sincerely are pretty well universal. SOMETIMES (not often) I have seen lawyers & doctors, for example, sign off as "yours fraternally" but it is rare and I don't think you need to translate as anything other than "yours sincerely".

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Note added at 6 mins (2007-06-07 16:44:54 GMT)
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"Dear Colleague" would, I suggest, be acceptable for the commencement of a letter in your context.
Peer comment(s):

neutral Richard Benham : "Yours fraternally" is probably best left for the union movement....
1 hr
OK but surely you aren't neutral on "yours sincerely" which was my 1st suggestion
neutral Textklick : With Richard. Maybe O.K. for writing to the Provincial Grand Master: Added: sure Allegro, I agree with that. Do we vote on a "first past the post" basis, first complete solution, or should we go for proportional representation? ;-)
3 hrs
and what about my first suggestion? Are you neutral on this??
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8 mins

sincerely, your colleague

this might cover it
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13 mins

Cordially yours

or I have observed people using " many cordialement" that did not sound bad either.
Peer comment(s):

neutral Textklick : An interesting observation
3 hrs
Thank you for the comments.
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2 hrs

warmest regards

Just another option. Gives it a more personal touch. I agree with everyone else that the English language does not usually convey such relationships in the saluations or closings of letters.
Peer comment(s):

neutral Textklick : A bit too cute?
1 hr
I think it streeses the colleague aspect
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+1
5 hrs

Dear Colleague ..... With Collegial Greetings, Yours Sincerely,

Why not use the 'German' phrase in the translation ? It is not a letter written in English by an Englishman after all. So why should the translation pretend to be that?
And 'my' version makes it clear that is it a translation and at the same time shows a change in tone. And the expression 'Dear Colleague' is certainly one that is correctly understood in English, I think.
Peer comment(s):

agree Anu Mukharji-Gorski
2654 days
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