Society for German-Soviet Friendship
Encyclopedia
The Society for German-Soviet Friendship (in German
, Gesellschaft für Deutsch-Sowjetische Freundschaft/DSF) was an East German organisation set up to encourage closer co-operation between the German Democratic Republic and the Soviet Union
.
It was originally founded as the Society for the Studies of Soviet Culture to teach about Russian culture to Germans unfamiliar with it. However, it quickly turned into a propaganda
tool and eventually changed its name.
However, due to the immense popularity of Mikhail Gorbachev
with ordinary East Germans disillusioned with their own hardline Communist leaders, the DSF's membership grew massively in the last years of the regime which many interpret as a sign of support of Gorbachev's glasnost
and perestroika
by the East German people.
Following the abolition of the German Democratic Republic, the organization was dissolved.
The name of the German band Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft
, which means German-American Friendship, is a play on the name of the DSF.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Gesellschaft für Deutsch-Sowjetische Freundschaft/DSF) was an East German organisation set up to encourage closer co-operation between the German Democratic Republic and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
It was originally founded as the Society for the Studies of Soviet Culture to teach about Russian culture to Germans unfamiliar with it. However, it quickly turned into a propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
tool and eventually changed its name.
However, due to the immense popularity of Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
with ordinary East Germans disillusioned with their own hardline Communist leaders, the DSF's membership grew massively in the last years of the regime which many interpret as a sign of support of Gorbachev's glasnost
Glasnost
Glasnost was the policy of maximal publicity, openness, and transparency in the activities of all government institutions in the Soviet Union, together with freedom of information, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the second half of the 1980s...
and perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
by the East German people.
Following the abolition of the German Democratic Republic, the organization was dissolved.
The name of the German band Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft
Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft or D.A.F. is an influential German electropunk/NDW band from Düsseldorf, formed in 1978 featuring Gabriel "Gabi" Delgado-López , Robert Görl , Kurt "Pyrolator" Dahlke , Michael Kemner and Wolfgang Spelmans...
, which means German-American Friendship, is a play on the name of the DSF.
Literature
- Matthias Klingenberg: "Culture as vehicle : the history of the German-Soviet Friendship-Society (1947-1953)", Heidelberg 2001.