Warum Kinder in der Natur mehr lernen als im Zoo

What does “mein Revier” mean in German?

The speaker argues that zoo animals teach children less than wild ones. He pictures a rhino marking the edges of its space, as if to say “das hier ist mein Revier” — this is my territory. A Revier is the patch of ground a creature moves through and defends. Pen an animal up, he says, and children watching it never see that behaviour at all.

Spoken in the clip: “das hier ist mein Revier” — “this here is my territory.” A Revier is the patch of ground a creature treats as its own. Some everyday uses: - “Der Wolf verteidigt sein Revier.” — The wolf defends its territory. - “Das ist nicht dein Revier.” — This isn’t your turf. (also said about people, half-joking) - “Ich rufe das Polizeirevier an.” — I’ll call the police station. Two things worth knowing. First, “Revier” stretches past animals: a Polizeirevier is a police district, and for hunters a Revier is the area they hunt. Second, the “-ier” ending sounds like “eer,” so the word ends roughly “re-VEER.” The “mein” simply means “my.”