Salonfähig

A person who is salonfähig is suitable for presentation to, and participation in, polite society such as you would find in a formal reception or drawing room, or in eighteenth century French high society’s literary discussion groups.

The term is also conversely used in a disparaging way to say someone is “not salonfähig,” meaning not suitable for polite society, or not educated or mannered enough to be acceptable to the speaker.  The term could also describe improper, profane, or taboo language or someone who uses such speech, or even taboo ideas. A lengthy English language article in the New European on possible repairs to the reputation of  German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche discussed whether Nietzsche’s actual ideas really were precursors of twentieth century fascism and racism, then asked whether Nietzsche can be made salonfähig again.

Salon as used in German is the formal reception room, sitting room or drawing room of a large house. Fähig means capable, and used as a suffix means capable of.  Someone or something that is salonfähig is suitable for a salon or able to function there. The term Salon was taken into German from the French usage of the term, taken in turn from Italian salone, a larger version of the Italian sala, or room, itself taken from the German Saal, or room. So Salon is in a sense a very capable word that has come full circle.

You may also at times find an accepted anglicised spelling of salonfähig as salonfaehig, largely due to QWERTY keyboard limitations.