ewig dauernd

[close call]

I looked up "Bahlsen" on German Wikipedia and found this:

Im Jahr 1903 wurde das seit 1896 als Markenzeichen eingetragene springende Pferd durch das TET-Zeichen ersetzt, das der Grafiker Heinrich Mittag entworfen hatte. Die altägyptische Hieroglyphe ḏt

(von Bahlsen „tet“ geschrieben) bedeutet „ewig dauernd“, wobei es sich um einen Hinweis auf das Dauergebäck handelte.

What does "ewig dauernd" mean?

 

[Demiurg]

It means everlasting.

 

[close call]

But my dictionary says that "ewig dauern" means "to take ages", so shouldn't "ewig dauernd" mean "taking ages"?

 

[Demiurg]

"dauern" is ambiguous. It could mean to take (up) time but also to last. "ewig" literally means eternally.

 

[close call]

Thanks.

 

[berndf]

But my dictionary says that "ewig dauern" means "to take ages", so shouldn't "ewig dauernd" mean "taking ages"?

Those are all colloquialisms. Ewig is used here like in the English colloquialism taking forever which also doesn't mean it really takes forever.

 

[close call]

Oh, I see.