German spelling and punctuation are markedly more consistent than English, but some of the rules are quite different, and the most important differences are explained in this chapter. An important distinction from English is that spelling and punctuation are set down officially for the German-speaking countries on the basis of agreements between the countries involved, and not simply left to the compilers of dictionaries and guides to style, and these official rulings (including those for the placement of commas) are taught systematically in schools, with considerable attention paid to correctness in all respects.

A uniform official spelling for German was only finally established just over a hundred years ago, and many people came to feel that the rulings made then still left some unnecessary inconsistencies and anomalies. For this reason, the countries where German is used as an official language agreed in 1994/95 on a set of reforms which began to be introduced in 1996. For a transitional period the old and the new spellings are permitted, but from 2005 only the new spellings will be regarded as correct. This spelling reform has been immensely controversial and generated much vociferous opposition. Although most books and newspapers now published have gone over to the new rules, not all are using them fully and consistently, and it is by no means certain whether the target date of 2005 for the abandonment of the old rules will be held to.