Should the language of an answer match the language used in the question?

Question

In the past I usually answered questions in the language they were asked. I had understood this to be a general recommendation/consensus from what I read at my occasional browsings at Meta.

Triggered by a discussion in the comments here I checked various past posts regarding the language recommended for answers – German or English. There are many regarding the language of a question (as of today: “use whatever you are comfortable with”), but I found only one discussing answers to a question in German and one that could be read as German answer to a question in English (“both languages allowed”).

So to put this as a question:
What language should we use when answering a question – the one the question was asked in or are we free to choose between German and English?

(I would be happy to see my question closed as duplicate, provided the comunity feels all cases are covered and agreed upon by the two questions linked above. The heated discussion at the linked answer suggests this issue still isn’t resolved yet.)

Answer 1

The language of an answer should match the language of the question.

This is primarily based on the Principle of Least Astonishment. If a user who is only proficient in one language searches for a certain problem and finds a matching question on deSE, the whole transaction is invalidated if the solution to the problem he was looking for deviates from the language context he used while searching. However, it's ok to voluntarily include a translation to the "other" language, when posting answers.

From this line of reasoning, it also follows that

If a user requests that his question is to be answered in the "other" language, the answer should still (in addition) contain the gist of the solution in the "matching" language.

Answer 2

When ever possible try to give an answer in the same language as the question was asked.

Some reasons why you might use the other language:

German answer to an English question

• Your English is way worse than your German and you think, that the question's topic deals with something that is more interesting for people with high skills in German language (for example: Questions on regional aspects of German language or questions on language styles in old poems)

English answer to a German question

• Your German is way worse than your English, but good enough to understand the question. So it's much easier to write your answer in English.

Answer 3

This may best be answered by considering the various audiences who use the site:

1) Novice students of German, from many countries, who might only share basic German or English as a lingua franca.

2) Intermediate/Advanced non-native speakers of German seeking to improve their proficiency.

3) Native German speakers who are younger or still in school themselves(?)

4) Advanced native speakers more likely to answer than to ask questions.

People in all 4 groups:

• benefit from responses in German
• benefit from responses they can fully understand

People in Group 1 are most likely to:

• ask questions in English (even if it's not their 1st language)
• misunderstand German-only responses & need additional English explanations

People at the "Intermediate" end of Category 2 might:

• not fully/properly understand responses given only in German & may require English clarification

So, in a perfect world, every response would be auf Deutsch

Warum nicht? Even if the person who asked in English doesn't currently understand it all, it helps them improve and adds to the repository of German text available to people at a similar proficiency level, or those seeking related answers.

This also ensures that more answers remain accessible to German speakers of all levels who do not read English (whether Chinese, Russian, Turkish, Arab, or even younger Germans).

BUT, questions asked in English should ALSO be answered in English.

These are the people least likely to understand a German-only response. If they can't understand your answer, what's the point? You've just generated more questions. Answering English w/English (in addition to German) also assists other novice German learners who may be more familiar w/English than German, even if it's not their native tongue.

What about questions asked in German?

For novice German learners, if they don't understand the question itself the response language is irrelevant. If they get part of it, the responses help improve their reading & vocab. The other 3 audiences likely prefer German responses anyway.

For "Intermediate" German speakers, perhaps it's best to place the burden on the person asking to request clarification in English if necessary? I've often run into questions/responses that I have a hard time fully understanding, and would benefit from English/bilingual explanation ... At the same time, I appreciate the challenge of having to first try German & then fill in the gaps, rather than have a tantalizing English translation handy to enable my lazy tendencies.

Can/will everyone who answers questions be perfectly bilingual & take the time to write everything twice? Probably not, so this is kind of moot ... People are going to write in whichever language they're most comfortable with.

Answer 4

Answer in German!

Since this is a place for learning German, you'll do the asker a favor, answering in German. Most learning concepts today teach a language in that language. People, not able to read an answer, are probably unable to formulate questions of public interest.

Answers aren't just meant to be a service for the person, who asked, but a general, searchable reference for everyone.

We're reducing the possible audience of the site from people, learning German or with questions about the language, to such, which are also fluent in English, without necessity. I guess most people, asking questions here, are capable to ask in German but do, what the majority does. Of course this is segregating against many learners without a wider English experience, such as many refugees.