Kennedy did not say "I am a donut". Period.
Before you decide to post anything about the urban legend that Kennedy made an error resulting in saying "I am a donut", please consider the following:
- The phrase "Ich bin ein Berliner" is grammatically correct and extremely unlikely (although not completely impossible) to have been misunderstood as meaning "I am a donut".
- In all of Germany, "Berliner" primarily means a "person from or citizen of Berlin". In some areas, "Berliner" may also mean donut; however, this is not the case in or around Berlin.
- The kernel of truth is, had Kennedy said "Ich bin Berliner", the interpretation as "I am a donut" would have been impossible. As he said "Ich bin ein Berliner", it was not quite impossible, but extremely unlikely.
- While the urban legend is well-known in the English-speaking world, in Germany it is not — more evidence that it has no basis in fact.
- Please see Jelly doughnut urban legend section for more reasons why Kennedy did not cause any misunderstanding.
- This topic has been thoroughly discussed on this page. Please read those discussions first (including the archived ones); do not post unless you have something original to say that hasn't been covered yet.
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