German Autumn

proper noun

A set of events in late 1977, revolving around the kidnapping and murder of industrialist Hanns-Martin Schleyer, by the Red Army Faction (RAF), and the hijacking of the Lufthansa aeroplane Landshut by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

Meanings

proper noun
  1. historicalA set of events in late 1977, revolving around the kidnapping and murder of industrialist Hanns-Martin Schleyer, by the Red Army Faction (RAF), and the hijacking of the Lufthansa aeroplane Landshut by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

Origin

Derived from the 1978 film "Deutschland im Herbst" (Germany in Autumn).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

German Deutscher Herbst
  • Deutscher Herbstset of events in late 1977
Japanese ドイツの秋
  • ドイツの秋 (Doitsu no aki)set of events in late 1977
Norwegian Den tyske høsten
  • Den tyske høstenset of events in late 1977
Vietnamese Mùa thu Đức
  • Mùa thu Đứcset of events in late 1977
Cite this entry
APA

German Autumn. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/German%20Autumn

MLA

“German Autumn.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/German%20Autumn. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “German Autumn,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/German%20Autumn.

Source: German Autumn on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.