Why were the Germans called Huns in the first World War, and Krauts in the second?

Question

the source for the names, not the propoganda reason, please

Answer 1

Huns was in reference to the "Huns" as in the rampaging hordes. Plus the tribes in Germany during the early period were Vandals. hence the name "vandal" or "vandalisim". Krauts....I don't know other than during WW1 anti-German sentiment was so high that sauerkraut was called "victory cabbage" How's that for nonsense? Sort of like than imbicile senator who wanted to call the French Fries served in the Capitol cafeteria "Victory Fries" because France was (as usual) being wimpy on letting American planes fly over their airspace.
The Germans were also referred to (moreso by the Brits) as "Jerries". hence the "Jerry-can" which was the spare 5 gallon gas canister attached to the back of American jeeps during the war.

Answer 2

This is just a guess on my part, someone may know better than I, but I believe the germans were always known as the huns prior to WWI since the Roman days. Rome had always had a difficult time with the Huns, from the north ie Germania.

Afterward once the Germans were defeated in WW1 they were refered to as krauts because of there food sourKraut.

Answer 3

The term "Hun" has been also used to describe peoples with no historical connection to what scholars consider "Hun".

On July 27, 1901, during the Boxer Rebellion in China, Kaiser Wilhelm II gave the order to "make the name 'German' remembered in China for a thousand years, so that no Chinaman will ever again dare to even squint at a German". This speech, wherein Wilhelm invoked the memory of the 5th-century Huns, coupled with the Pickelhaube or spiked helmet worn by German forces until 1916, that was reminiscent of ancient Hun (and Hungarian) helmets, gave rise to the later derogatory English usage of the latter term for their German enemy during World War I. This usage was reinforced by Allied propaganda throughout the war, prompting hatred of the Germans by invoking the idea that they were brutal savages. The usage resurfaced during World War II.

Since World War II, Kraut has, in the American English language, come to be used as a derogatory term for a German. This is probably based on Sauerkraut, which was very popular in German cuisine at that time. The stereotype of the sauerkraut-eating German dates back to long before this time, though, as can for example be seen in Jules Verne's depiction of the evil German industrialist Schultz as an avid sauerkraut eater in "The Begum's Millions".

Answer 4

Kraut was used in both wars. The more widely used terms in WW1 were terms like Bosch and Hun. Hun comes from the hun people who invaded Rome from Germany.

Answer 5

I think the term Hun was used to portray them as barbarians. The term kraut was probably a derisive description based on food they ate.
ie. Attila the Hun
sauerkraut

Answer 6

in the wiki link below go to the 'historiogrpahy' section. the term hun to describe a german came from kaiser wilhelm out of the boxer rebellion comparing germans to the actual huns (as in atilla) from east asia.
the term kraut is a deragatory term for a german that comes from sauerkraut, a german condiment.

Answer 7

Hun might come from the austro-hungary connection.They weren't
called krauts in the second war.Kraut comes from the food they eat i think.

Answer 8

they were still called Huns in ww2 but generally it was a British term.

Americans called them krauts

Answer 9

german soldiers during the boxer rebellion in china in 1900 were told to "ACT LIKE ATTLIA"during the reprisals against chinese civilians, so in ww1 during reprisals against belgian civilians ,the british propaganda started call the germans huns, in ww2,the word kraut refers to saurekraut, the favorite food item of germans,supposedly. this term was used mostly by americans,the british used the term jerry.

Answer 10

some good answers there but werent they called jerrys in the second world war?