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ENGRISH: Funny? Politically Insensitive? | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| johntm93 Senior Member United States Joined 5325 days ago 587 posts - 746 votes  2 sounds Speaks: English* Studies: German, Spanish | Message 17 of 25 30 June 2010 at 4:22am | IP Logged | ||
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| cameroncrc Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 6515 days ago 195 posts - 185 votes 2 sounds Speaks: English*, Japanese Studies: Ukrainian | Message 18 of 25 01 July 2010 at 10:50am | IP Logged | ||
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I find it funny. Seeing a sign in a toilet that says "Please stay seated during the entire performance" would be hilarious to anybody. It has nothing to do with being insensitive. While in Japan some of my friends ask me to translate the English written on their shirts, and when they find out what it means they laugh too!
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| Sandman Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 5406 days ago 168 posts - 389 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Japanese | Message 19 of 25 03 July 2010 at 8:59pm | IP Logged | ||
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I've had a song from the anime Bleach stuck in my head the last few days named "Sky Chord".
It's an okay song, but mostly it's been trapped in my head since I seriously have no idea what a sky chord is, and how it makes any sense whatsoever in the context it's used. I think the language-learning part of my brain has been trying to decipher it, and since it's impossible, the wheels in my brain just keep spinning. It's haunting my subconscious. I can't ... get ... it ... out .... 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| socks Triglot Newbie IndiaRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 5263 days ago 26 posts - 28 votes Speaks: English, Telugu, Hindi* Studies: French | Message 20 of 25 04 July 2010 at 10:24pm | IP Logged | ||
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Are you kidding me? Xenophobia? I laugh at people who make hilarious mistakes in English
in my own country! 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| g.polskov Triglot Newbie Canada Joined 5250 days ago 37 posts - 50 votes Speaks: French*, English, Spanish Studies: Portuguese | Message 21 of 25 09 July 2010 at 8:36pm | IP Logged | ||
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I have been to a restaurant that had written "welcome" in many different languages on their door, not a single one without mistakes. I do not remember them all, but included at least English, Spanish, french, Italian and German. They had wellcom, but the funniest I thought was their french attempt... acceil.
Which not only is misspelled, but means welcome only as a noun. Sort of like reception. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Oz_Andy Diglot Newbie Australia Joined 5316 days ago 7 posts - 13 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: French, Russian, German | Message 22 of 25 10 July 2010 at 6:15am | IP Logged | ||
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Personally I don't consider that sort of thing funny.....hilarious, perhaps, but I don't think *funny* does some of the better ones justice. Of course, given the status of English as the major global target language, it's inevitable that we're provided with plenty of great examples from which to choose. Had the Germans conquered the world, they'd now be laughing at all of the mistakes made by foreigners in their language...well, maybe not laughing, but...ok I'll stop.
There may also be a positive, practical side to all of this. Consider, for instance, the classic "Not to perambulate the corridors in the hours of repose in the boots of ascension" posted in an Austrian Ski Lodge. Now, if that had been written in direct, plain English, it would have had a high chance of being ignored. Writing it in mangled, auto-translate English, however, makes the otherwise ordinary, rather unforgettable! Then there are the deliberately eye-catching restaurant inventions Thai Phoon, Thai Tanic, etc... I honestly don't think political insensitivity is an issue here; Engrish is just the inevitable result of attempts at translation for which adequate resources were either unavailable or not consulted. If indeed I do have one fear in all of this, it is as follows: with the increase in both the sophistication of internet translation tools, as well as the general level of English around the world, Engrish will become increasingly endangered, thus decreasing the potential for raucous laughter and with it, life expectancy. Food for thought... 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| johntm93 Senior Member United States Joined 5325 days ago 587 posts - 746 votes 2 sounds Speaks: English* Studies: German, Spanish | Message 23 of 25 10 July 2010 at 6:30am | IP Logged | ||
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| furrykef Senior Member United States furrykef.com/ Joined 6470 days ago 681 posts - 862 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish, Japanese, Latin, Italian | Message 24 of 25 11 July 2010 at 9:06am | IP Logged | ||
What increase? Computers are never going to be decent at translating until they achieve intelligence. That's because language simply requires intelligence to parse correctly. Too much depends on context, and to understand the context, you must... well... understand it. Edited by furrykef on 11 July 2010 at 9:08am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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