So I’ve seen a book out called “Spanish for the Horseman” that gives translations on common horse terms in both English and Spanish. Is there such a thing in German ? I’m hoping that all you dressage riders who go train in Germany can help me. I have a horse loving 9 yo niece living in Germany ( my brother is a civilian engineer for the Army) who took an evaluation lesson at a fabulous barn and was told her German wasn’t good enough for them to take her on as a student. As an instructor myself I understand this from a safety point of view but she really wants to ride and I’d love to help. Does such a book exist and where can I get a copy ? Thanks in advance for any help.
If she’s going to a DOD school, then that handicaps her because she could be soaking up German at a local private school instead of staying in her English bubble.
I took German in college, and then lived there for a year “on the economy,” so I was almost fluent. Ten years later I went back to visit and got to ride, so I bought a similar book just so I’d know what to call everything. It’s out of print, but you can order it used, just like here. It’s fantastisch!
Here’s another one. Not a picture book like the one above, but it’s for her age group.
One more suggestion is to ask if the place will just let her buddy up with a rider her age and tag along. It’s amazing what she might be able to pick up.
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I have a book that translates horse related terms four ways: english, spanish, german, french
When I started riding in Germany, I just bought myself a Basic “riding” book in German (“So Lerne Ich Reiten”). It was enough to teach me the basic horsemanship terms. I am a native German speaker but did not know all the “Horse terms”. I guess the question is “Is your niece lacking in horsemanship terms or basic conversational German?”
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FN did publish a dictionary for German horse terms.
As for over all skill, there are good CD/DVD programs out to learn as you go.
I bought ‘Instant Immersion’ for my husband (he is a bit advanced for it though), Japanese for myself. I liked the concept.
If her Dad is in the military, he will likely have access to ‘Rosetta stone’ best program bar non.
But do check the FN they did publish the dictionary.
Or she can read German forums, and soak it up by osmosis. Worked for me, it took me only 9 years on COTH and 4 years prior to that on AOL to get it done 
Here is a link to the “official” dictionary: http://www.fnverlag.com/shop/product_info.php/info/p533_Equestrian-Dictionary.html
This is a link to the German “The Principles of Riding”: http://www.fnverlag.com/shop/product_info.php/info/p66_Book-1--The-Principles-of-Riding.html
As the description says: It “is the English translation of the official instruction manual of the German National Equestrian Federation. It provides a complete basic instruction course for horse and rider, using the German training system.”. Your niece is probably still a little bit too young, but if she is really interested, she can learn a lot about the basics of German riding from that book. And she can use it as a reference for exercises she does not understand when she will be able to take lessons. Since it is translated into English, the book helps visualizing and avoids misunderstandings based on translation difficulties. I highly recommend it!
In case you would like to browse further at the German publishing house’s website, this is the link: http://www.fnverlag.com/shop/index.php/language/en/cat/c34_English-titles.html/page/1 - they have wonderful books!!!
A hint for ordering: Maybe it works to log into www.amazon.de with your US user data. You can then use the ISBN numbers, or book titles, of course, and have it shipped within Germany.
[QUOTE=baldfaceboyz;4843539]
So I’ve seen a book out called “Spanish for the Horseman” that gives translations on common horse terms in both English and Spanish. Is there such a thing in German ? I’m hoping that all you dressage riders who go train in Germany can help me. I have a horse loving 9 yo niece living in Germany ( my brother is a civilian engineer for the Army) who took an evaluation lesson at a fabulous barn and was told her German wasn’t good enough for them to take her on as a student. As an instructor myself I understand this from a safety point of view but she really wants to ride and I’d love to help. Does such a book exist and where can I get a copy ? Thanks in advance for any help.[/QUOTE]
just learning some horse terms from a dictionary isn’t going to help her. She needs to learn conversational German (that shouldn’t be too hard if she lives in Germany) by interacting with German kids and taking language instruction. The horse stuff will come naturally once she speaks a little German. Nobody, even native speakers, has all the “horse terms” before they start riding.
A lot of people took english in school anyhow. It might not resemble anything you are used to, but with hand and feet and big smiles, all things are possible! 
One more thing:
Things are a bit different in Germany, though nothing is static, kids usually start riding when they are a bit older. So in the mean time, your niece might enjoy vaulting: It’s tons of fun, the environment is very controlled, language barriers are not that big of a problem, plus plenty of kids to learn from, the good the bad the the words not in the dictionary.
Many riding clubs have a group, search for ‘Voltigieren’
Ditto to everythign said, and would add a 9 year old, will pick up more German in a month just hanging out with german speaking kids than an adult would in a year of intense study.
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IMHO a book with horsey phrases in German won’t help her much if she can’t speak enough German to have a basic conversation. I doubt very much that the riding school/place rejected her just because she didn’t know specific horse related terminology (but could otherwise speak German).
Considering her young age and the fact she lives in Germany, I think it could be worthwhile to encourage her parents to contact the local “reitverein” (riding club) or a private riding school and ask them about the possibility of their daughter joining. They can explain that their daughter doesn’t speak German well yet, but she wants to learn.
Here is a link to many of the reitvereins in Germany: http://www.pferde-und-pferdesport-verzeichnis.de/Reitverein
Google.de could be of help to search for riding clubs/stalls around where your brother lives (An online translator can help translate the main points of the German pages). Keywords would include: “reitverein” (riding club), “reiterhof” (riding park), “ponyreiten” (pony riding), “kinderreiten” (riding for kids), “Reitunterricht für Kinder” (riding instruction for kids). Maybe also use the keyword “englisch” to look for an instructor who can speak English, and use the name of the region or city your brother lives to zero in on places. Asking around at the local tack shops could also help find unadvertised places (many smaller facilities will not be online).
If she really wants to ride, and her parents plan to live in Germany for any amount of time, it will be a big advantage for her to learn to speak German (at least on a conversational level). A low stress situation with a bunch of kids her age would be a great environment to learn in, and then, if it is her burning desire to ride only at “fabulous barn”, she can go back and try out again.
Best of luck!
Had to mention I was 6 when I started riding (In Germany). So I think she is old enough, dressage was always the foundation, then as you got older you branched out.
As far as I can see, the FN dictionary at https://www.horsebooks.com.au/product/4672/75637/equestrian-dictionary-9783885424741/ lists German, English and French terms. I am a professional translator and am currently translating a series of dressage-related texts as well as texts on stallions at stud etc. and can tell you that some of the terminology is not in any of my normal or specialized dictionaries, so this one might be quite useful, but I haven’t seen it yet so I cannot judge. There are many good dressage and other equestrian glossaries online, but most of the ones I have come across so far are purely monolingual, so basically involve, say, German terms with German definitions. I would love to produce a dressage dictionary, but I just don’t know if there is enough demand for it.
