Question: I have read/heard the following sentence:

> 
> Einen Zauberer muss man wiedererkennen.
> 
> 
> 

Context: A child is wearing a skeleton costume to go to the school and his mother asks him to take the costume off and wear normal clothes. Then the boy says the sentence above.

According to Word Reference, one of the meanings of "[erkennen](https://www.wordreference.com/deen/erkennen)" is "to recognize" and that's also the meaning of "[wiedererkennen](https://www.wordreference.com/deen/wiedererkennen)". Supposedly the "wieder" prefix should add a meaning of "again", but "recognize again" does not make sense in the sentence above. Is there any difference between "erkennen" and "wiedererkennen" in this context?

Source: Dark series, 1st season, 1st episode, 10:32 minutes

Answer: 
As to my knowledge there is no separate english word for "wiedererkennen". It means specifically to recognize something you remember having recognized before already. "Erkennen" means to understand who or what a person is. i.e.:

> 
> Ich erkenne, daß du Englisch als Muttersprache sprichst.  
> 
> I recognize (notice, understand) you are an english native speaker.
> 
> 
> 

Whereas:

> 
> Du hast dich so verändert, ich hätte dich kaum wiedererkannt.  
> 
> You changed so much i barely recognized you.
> 
> 
>
***erkennen*** – to understand the true nature of something that you see for the first time

Example

The policeman has never see the thief before, but when he sees the man running away carrying a purse, he recognizes the thief by his behavior and the stolen goods. The policeman might say: *Ich erkenne den Dieb!*, meaning: I have never seen this person before, but I understand that this person is the thief we are looking for.

***wiedererkennen*** – to recognize something you have seen before

Example

The policeman, when he apprehends the thief, realizes that he has seen the man before in other circumstances. He might say: *Ich erkenne Sie wieder!* meaning: At first I thought I had never seen you before, but now I realize that I already know you.

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In your example, the boy probably used the wrong word. When he says "Einen Zauberer muss man wiedererkennen können", this means that he wants to be recognized as the sorcerer by those who have seen him in that role before. If on the other hand he wants to express his desire to be recognized as a sorcerer even by those who haven't yet met him, then "Einen Zauberer muss man erkennen können" would be correct.

As you see, I have added *können* (to be able to) to the end of both phrases. Without *können* the phrases don't make much sense.

* *Einen Zauberer muss man erkennen können.* "A sorcerer must be recognizable", literally "One must be able to recognize a sorcerer."
* *Einen Zauberer muss man wiedererkennen können.* "A sorcerer must always be recognizable", literally "One must be able to recognize a sorcerer that one already knows."
* *Einen Zauberer muss man erkennen.* "You have to recognize a sorcerer", meaning even if the sorcerer does not carry any outward signs of his profession