Spargeltarzan

Spargeltarzen ("asparagus Tarzan"): That‘s how Germans refer to an extremely skinny man

literally: “asparagus tarzan” / meaning: a very skinny man

It might be true that skinny shaming is just as bad as fat shaming. But still, you can’t deny that men who don’t have an ounce of fat on their ribs always look a bit dorky.

I’m not talking about well-toned athletes with their narrow hips. I mean the type of guy you can see through when you hold him up to the light. A guy who can hula hoop with an onion ring. I’m talking about a real Spargeltarzan. The word became popular in the mid-70s when the German national soccer player Hannes Bongartz was often called this name. Bayern München star Thomas Müller, Tokio Hotel singer Bill Kaulitz and actor Kevin Bacon have also had this label put on them by German media. 

Spargeltarzan is obviously a reference to the long, thin form of the Germans’ favorite vegetable. At the same time, it’s a deliberately ironic term, because a real Tarzan is probably more likely to be played by Vin Diesel than Kevin Bacon.

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