überraschung

Überraschung is a German noun meaning the act or state of being surprised. It denotes both the experience of astonishment and the event or disclosure that causes it. The word is formed from the verb überraschen (to surprise), with über- meaning over or beyond and raschen (to rush), conveying the sense of catching someone off guard.

In psychology, surprise is an emotion triggered by information that is unexpected relative to an individual’s current expectations. It is typically brief and may be positive, neutral, or negative depending on the context and valence of the new information. Physiological responses can include increased heart rate, pupil dilation, and heightened attention. Surprise is distinct from the startle reflex, which is a rapid defensive reaction to a sudden, potentially threatening stimulus.

Surprise is common in everyday language and culture. In German, compound forms such as Überraschungsparty (surprise party), Überraschungsgast (surprise guest), or Überraschungsei (Kinder Surprise egg) illustrate how the concept participates in social rituals and products. In storytelling and media, surprise or plot twists rely on violating expectations to engage the audience.

Beyond everyday use, the concept has analogues in information theory and cognitive science, where “surprisal” or information content measures how unexpected an event is relative to a probability distribution. In education, unexpectedness can affect attention and memory formation, influencing learning outcomes.