Changes

'''"Ich bin ein Berliner"''' was [[John F. Kennedy]]'s famous statement on June 26, 1963, to the beleagured citizens of West [[Berlin]] during the height of the [[Cold War]].

'''"Ich bin ein Berliner"''' was [[John F. Kennedy]]'s famous statement on June 26, 1963, to the beleagured citizens of West [[Berlin]] during the height of the [[Cold War]].

There is an urban legend stating that "Ich bin ein Berliner" can be wilfully mistaken to mean "I am a [[Berliner|donut]]", and that this mistake caused some ridicule among his audience. This is incorrect, since a Berliner is not known as such in Berlin, but as a ''Pfannkuchen''. It is also quite clear from recordings that the audience responded with cheering rather than laughhter.

There is an urban legend stating that "Ich bin ein Berliner" can be wilfully mistaken to mean "I am a [[Berliner|donut]]", and that this mistake caused some ridicule among his audience. This is incorrect, since a Berliner is not known as such in Berlin, but as a ''Pfannkuchen''. It is also quite clear from recordings that the audience responded with cheering rather than laughter.

It is also said that the grammatically correct thing for Kennedy to have said would actually have been "Ich bin Berliner" meaning "I am a person from Berlin". This is also incorrect, since "Ich bin Berliner" indicates specifically that the person is from or living in Berlin.  By adding the indefinite article ''ein'', the speaker instead indicates a figurative relationship or that he only shares some characteristics with the group indicated. It is clear that this was in fact Kennedy's intended meaning at the time.<ref>Eichhoff, Jürgen: '"Ich bin ein Berliner": a History and a Linguistic Clarification', ''Monatshefte'' 85 (1993), 71-80</ref>

It is also said that the grammatically correct thing for Kennedy to have said would actually have been "Ich bin Berliner" meaning "I am a person from Berlin". This is also incorrect, since "Ich bin Berliner" indicates specifically that the person is from or living in Berlin.  By adding the indefinite article ''ein'', the speaker instead indicates a figurative relationship or that he only shares some characteristics with the group indicated. It is clear that this was in fact Kennedy's intended meaning at the time.<ref>Eichhoff, Jürgen: '"Ich bin ein Berliner": a History and a Linguistic Clarification', ''Monatshefte'' 85 (1993), 71-80</ref>