Von Sirenen und anderen Signalen

Eine kleine Kulturgeschichte des Alarmsignals

Abstract

This text is a brief cultural history of the signal. Starting from the concept of the signal itself, the question is pursued, how and with which aids in former times on dangers of the most different kind was made attentive and/or to which purposes signal givers were used otherwise. It quickly becomes apparent that both acoustic and visual signals were mainly used in a military context. Here, audio-visual communication was used, for example, to summon troops to battle or, in the case of shipping, to communicate in code with allies. Against this background, the history of today's sirens will be briefly outlined - from their development, through their use in the Second World War as air-raid sirens, to the models in use today.  The siren is nowadays known in our circles mainly as an alarm signal in case of fire, or a general danger, such as flood. In their function as a fire signal, bells can be seen as their predecessors. Comparable to today's practice, in which different siren signals indicate the beginning and end of danger, the inhabitants knew by the number of chimes in which part of the city the fire had just broken out.

The article concludes with a brief outline of the history of the origin of the word "siren" and a look at its mythical origins.