What does “in die Geschichte eingegangen” mean in German?

Das Königsberger Brückenproblem und die Entstehung der Graphentheorie

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B2 German listening practice · German · Picked for people who know more

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in die Geschichte eingegangen
German phrase for lasting fame
“Went down in history” — something permanently remembered and still talked about.

“In die Geschichte eingehen” means to earn a permanent place in what people remember and retell. The Königsberg bridge puzzle — a “scheinbar triviales Rätsel,” a seemingly trivial riddle — did exactly that: it launched a whole new branch of mathematics. “Geschichte” carries both “history” and “story,” so the phrase quietly says this thing is now part of the record and worth retelling.

Spoken in the clip: “das scheinbar triviale Rätsel … ist in die Geschichte eingegangen” — “the seemingly trivial puzzle … went down in history.” The base form is “in die Geschichte eingehen”: to become permanently remembered. More examples: - “Dieser Tag ist in die Geschichte eingegangen.” — “That day went down in history.” - “Sie ist als große Forscherin in die Geschichte eingegangen.” — “She went down in history as a great researcher.” - “Der Mauerfall geht in die Geschichte ein.” — “The fall of the Wall is going down in history.” Usage notes: the phrase is usually positive or at least weighty — a big, lasting moment. You often add “als …” (“as …”) to say what someone is remembered for. Because “Geschichte” means both “history” and “story,” the phrase hints that the thing is now part of what people retell.

How common are the words?

How common are the words in this B2 German listening practice video?

88.2%
of words are in the top 2,000 most common German words
Most of the words in this video are common German words.

How common in written German

80.4%
Top 1,000
88.2%
Top 2,000
94.3%
Top 5,000

How common in spoken German

89.4%
Top 1,000
96.2%
Top 2,000
100%
Top 5,000
👄 Words for talking
This video uses words people often say in German.

Harder words in this video

These words are harder than B2. Here is what they mean.

eulerpfad
5×
Not in top 5,000
(technical) Euler path
euler
4×
Not in top 5,000
(proper noun) German mathematician Leonhard Euler
landmasse
2×
Not in top 5,000
landmass
landmassen
2×
Not in top 5,000
landmasses (plural)
bombardierungen
1×
Not in top 5,000
bombardments or attacks

Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · SUBTLEX-DE 2011 (spoken). These numbers are close, not perfect.

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