Abstract In 1829, August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, who was later to write “Das Lied der Deutschen,” published one of the first scholarly articles on what known as Gaunersprache (rogues’ language), Rotwelsch. His article included a poem in Rotwelsch he had written himself. Against backdrop Hoffmann's nationalist persuasion and participation project Germanistik , this paper discusses qu...