Deutsche Shaferhund (Deutsche means German, shafer means shepherd, and hund means dog). Deutsche Shaferhund is pronounced DOY-cha SHAY-fer-hoond. For a time starting in 1917 the name 'German Shepherd Dog' was briefly truncated by the American Kennel Club to simply the 'Shepherd Dog,' a reflection of the stigma attached to all things German at the time. The Brits referred to the breed as the 'Alsatian Wolf Dog' for the German-French border area of Alsace-Lorraine. The AKC restored the name German Shepherd Dog in 1931, but the British Kennel Club did not follow suit until 1977.
The highly intelligent, protective, and trainable German Shepherd was developed to herd sheep, hence his name. But he earned a reputation as a superior messenger dog, rescue dog, and sentry during the First World War, and in turn became celebrated the world over as the best breed for guard duties, police and military work, search and rescue work, bomb and narcotics detection, and leading the blind.
The thinking goes, white is too visible to make a shepherd an effective guard dog, and too camouflaged against sheep and snow to make him an effective herding dog. The official clubs and show breeders maintain that white is a disqualifying color for showing and breeding, but you can still register your white GSD with the AKC and show him in obedience and agility competitions. White GSDs tend to have a softer temperament that works well in many families. And there is a club for white German Shepherds, which holds its own confirmation shows.
Yes, they do. But short hair is far more common in the GSD. And there are two types of each coat: a short coat can be very short, or a bit longer and thicker, in which case it is called plush. Either of these includes a coarser outer coat, and a wooly undercoat for insulation. The long coat comes with or without an undercoat, but its absence is generally considered undesirable, as shepherds were made to work outdoors in the cold.