faktische, geradezu gewohnheitsrechtliche Anerkennung

English translation: de facto recognition closely resembling customary law

10:18 May 14, 2017
German to English translations [PRO]
Law/Patents - Religion / archdioceses
German term or phrase: faktische, geradezu gewohnheitsrechtliche Anerkennung
My last question from the Archdiocese of Poznań essay, I promise!

This is about whether Poznań fell within the Archdiocese of Magdeburg's jurisdiction. The previous paragraph states that there is uncertainty within German and Polish academic circles as to whether Poznań belonged to Magdeburg's affiliation of metropolinates, casting doubt on the actual date of the Archdiocese of Poznań's founding.

In the following paragraph, I'm having particular trouble finding a suitable translation for "gewohnheitsrechtlich".

Dietrich Claude meinte, es habe eine faktische, geradezu „gewohnheitsrechtliche“ Anerkennung der Zugehörigkeit Posens gegeben, weil sich „Jordan und Unger … bei der Beschaffung von Büchern, liturgischen Gewändern und vielleicht auch zur Heranziehung von Priestern an den Erzbischof von Magdeburg gewandt haben“ dürften.

This is my attempt:

Dietrich Claude stated that there was de facto recognition of Poznań’s affiliation “by customary law”, since “Jordan and Unger must have appealed to the Archbishop of Magdeburg … to procure books, vestments and perhaps also to enlist priests”.

Thank you for your help!
Daniel Gray
Germany
Local time: 06:54
English translation:de facto recognition closely resembling customary law
Explanation:
Dietrich Claude suggested that Posen enjoyed a de facto recognition of its affiliation closely resembling customary law
Selected response from:

Michael Martin, MA
United States
Local time: 01:54
Grading comment
I opted for a solution based on several of the suggestions here. Thanks everyone!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4de facto recognition according to customary law
Gordon Matthews
3de facto and more so, acceptance by established practice
gangels (X)
3de facto recognition closely resembling customary law
Michael Martin, MA


Discussion entries: 7





  

Answers


5 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
de facto and more so, acceptance by established practice


Explanation:
for "dürften" I'd say "most likely turned to"

gangels (X)
Local time: 23:54
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in GermanGerman
PRO pts in category: 12
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17 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
de facto recognition closely resembling customary law


Explanation:
Dietrich Claude suggested that Posen enjoyed a de facto recognition of its affiliation closely resembling customary law

Michael Martin, MA
United States
Local time: 01:54
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 20
Grading comment
I opted for a solution based on several of the suggestions here. Thanks everyone!
Notes to answerer
Asker: Yes, 'suggested' is certainly the best way to go about 'meinen'. Thank you, Michael.

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23 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
de facto recognition according to customary law


Explanation:
Here, in this case, I understand "geradezu" to mean something like "indeed" or "exactly", so I think "according to" is preferable to "closely resembling".
"gewohnheitsrechtlich" could be translated in three ways: "according to consuetudinary law", "... common law", "... customary law". I would use "consuetudinary" only if the translated text is intended for an academic or legal readership. Your average church-goer or tourist won't know the word and probably won't be able to guess what it might mean. In a British, USA or British Commonwealth context I would use "common law". But we're dealing with Poland and Germany in this case, so I would be inclined to use "customary law" in order to make a distinction from common law as it applies in the UK, USA and in the British Commonwealth.
Sorry if these comments are getting too long, but one more point: "Dietrich Claude suggested ..." is better than "D..C...stated", because it needs to be clear that it is his opinion rather than established fact - as indicated by the use of the word "meinen" in the German text.



    https://www.britannica.com/topic/common-law
Gordon Matthews
Germany
Local time: 06:54
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you very much for your comments. The text is intended for an academic readership, so 'consuetudinary' is probably the best fit. Agreed on your point regarding 'suggested'.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Michael Martin, MA: Thanks for picking up on my suggestion 'suggested'. However, I quite disagree with your notion that 'according to' is an accurate rendering of ‘geradezu’.
3 hrs
  -> See Oxford/Duden German-English dictionary re "geradezu": 1 Adv. A really; perfectly; (beinahe) almost: das ist geradezu lächerlich that is downright ridiculous; ein geradezu ideales Beispiel an absolutely perfect example; ...
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