The phrase "
Nuremberg Funnel", which is familiar in German-speaking countries, originates in the title of a 17th-century poetics textbook by
Georg Philipp Harsdörffer (1607–1658), a Nuremberg poet and co-founder of the
Pegnesischer Blumenorden. The word appeared in Nuremberg in 1647 under the title
Poetischer Trichter. Die Teutsche Dicht- und Reimkunst, ohne Behuf der lateinischen Sprache, in VI Stunden einzugießen (Poetic funnel: The art of German poetry and rhyme, without the use of the Latin language, poured in over six hours). Due to the wide distribution of the work, the expression "Nuremberg funnel" eventually became a common idiomatic expression. The idiom "to funnel something in" (meaning "to drum something in') or "to get something funneled in" (meaning "to get something drummed in") is older than the image of the "Nuremberg Funnel". It was first recorded in a collection of proverbs by
Sebastian Franck in 1541, although without reference to the city of Nuremberg. The Nuremberg funnel has been cited as an influence in "
hypnopaedia", or sleep learning. == Literature ==