February 25, 2006
on untranslatability
Dan,
I'm writing this to you because it's more than a contribution to the new site. You can use as much of it as you think belongs.
I happen to think that no word is untranslatable into English. You may have to use a phrase or a sentence but a really clever translator like William Weaver or Richard Howard or Alastair Reid can do it. Do it in English, especially now American English, because English is a hybrid language and because our supposed class structure is fluid and because we're living through an age of linguistic change akin to the Elizabethan. The English-writing East Indians are now taking the lead.
A good indication of translatability by takeover is the many Yiddish words now in English dictionaries, like shlep or shmuck--there are tens of others. But other Yiddish words, like yichus or k'velen haven't made it because the feelings behind them are too subtle. Yichus means good blood, well born, but if you don't live up to the promise of your family stature, then you haven't really got it. k'velen means to glow and beam with inexpressible pride and happiness.
(All of these words are transliterations from a Yiddish written in Hebrew characters.)
And that's the real untranslatability of words in other languages, words imbedded into their languages over time. All the other contributions take that into consideration very well. What you can¹t carry from one language into another is the thrill of using it in a context that comes from the word's belonging to its linguistic roots, habits, and family. Also includes facial and bodily gestures.
All to the Good,
Irving
www.irvingweiss.net
After I sent it off I thought of another sense of untranslatability. How do you "translate" funky not just to a foreigner but to an American who never paid attention to jazz or rock, or to an older American who went through the Sixties gritting his teeth?? My 1968 Random House desk dictionary doesn't carry it. The online
http://dictionary.reference.com/
carries it as slang, so its untranslatability would seem to be specialized. Still, the same online dictionary adds the following:
"When asked which words in the English language are the most difficult to define precisely, a lexicographer would surely mention funky."
All to the Good,
Irving
www.irvingweiss.net
February 24, 2006
Lagom
Lagom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lagom is a Swedish word with no direct English equivalent.
The Lexin Swedish-English dictionary defines lagom as "enough, sufficient, adequate, just right." Lagom is also widely translated as "in moderation," "in balance," "optimal," "reasonable," and "average." But whereas words like "sufficient" and "average" suggest some degree of abstinence, scarcity, or failure, lagom decidedly carries the connotation of perfection or appropriateness. The archetypical Swedish proverb "Lagom är bäst," literally "Lagom is best," is translated as "Enough is as good as a feast" in the Lexin dictionary.
According to common folklore, "lagom" is a contraction of "laget om" ("around the team"), a phrase used in Viking times to specify how much mead one should drink from the horn as it was passed around in order for everyone to receive a fair share. This story is recounted widely, including on the website of the Swedish Institute. Both the Swedish Language Council and the Swedish Academy, however, cite the true etymology of lagom as being from the word "lag" ("law"), in this case referring not necessarily to judicial law but common sense law, with the archaic dative plural ending "-om."
Lagom can be used as an adverb, as in the sentence "Han har lagom mycket pengar" (literally "He has lagom much money"). Lagom can also be used as an adjective: "Klänningen var alldeles lagom åt henne" (literally "The dress was entirely lagom for her"). The adjective form is never inflected.
Lagom can be applied to everything from food and drink to copyright law and carbon dioxide emissions. If asked "How much coffee do you want?" one could say "Lagom, please." The Swedish lawyer Mikael Pawlo concluded: "What we need is lagom copyright protection for computer programs" (2002).
The value of "just enough" can be contrasted to the value of "more is better." It is viewed favorably as a sustainable alternative to the hoarding extremes of consumerism: "Why do I need more than two? Det är [It is] lagom" (Atkisson, 2000). It can also be viewed as repressive: "You're not supposed to be too good, or too rich" (Gustavsson, 1995). Lagom has been fingered as a challenge to economic growth and the reason for Sweden's apparent lack of outward patriotism.
In a single word, lagom is said to describe the basis of the Swedish national psyche, one of consensus and equality. In recent times Sweden has developed greater tolerance for risk and failure as a result of severe recession in the early 1990s. Nonetheless, it is still widely considered ideal to be modest, avoid extremes, and seek optimal solutions. "My aunt used to hold out her closed fist and say, 'How much can you get in this hand? It's much easier to get something in this [open] hand" (Silberman, 2001). "It's the idea that for everything there is the perfect amount: The perfect, and best, amount of food, space, laughter and
sadness."
The concept of lagom is similar to that of the Middle Path in Eastern philosophy, and Aristotle's "golden mean" of moderation in Western philosophy.
located and suggested by Richard Spencer
February 23, 2006
no
The word "no" in English does not translate exactly into, for example, Japanese--not in polite conversation, at any rate. Negative responses are considered impolite, and, thus, must be couched in other terms. One of my favorite books about Japan was one called "Sixteen Ways of Saying No," and, wouldn't you know, one of those sixteen ways was "Yes," which, as often in English, means "I'm listening." The aversion to "no" in this sense is common in Latin American Spanish as well, I believe.
Halvard Johnson
February 22, 2006
pinche
from Mexican Spanish to English
pinche
A vulgar term that everyone uses. An intensifier, usually negative, as in, the phrase popular with drivers, "pinche hijo de La Chingada," "lousy son of the archetypal whore." But it's occasionally used in a positive sense, as in "que pinche culota!" "what a piece of ass!"
A Mexican writer who had just come back from Spain told me "I don't understand how they survive without 'pinche'.
Mark Weiss
su
from Spanish to English
Spanish possessive pronoun "su"
His, hers, its, their. And in the polite form, "your."
Mark Weiss
詫び寂び (Wabi-sabi)
詫び寂び (Wabi-sabi)
Japanese noun that does not translate into English
Wabi-sabi is "humble simplicity" in the dictionary. Wabi-sabi is a way of life and a way of art. The sparse and simple Japanese aesthetic of rush matted rooms and white-papered screen doors is based on wabi-sabi. The art of ikebana (flower arranging) is wabi-sabi. The rigor of haiku and simple poetic forms is wabi-sabi. Tea ceremony is wabi-sabi.
Kristen McQuillin
http://www.mediatinker.com/
和 (Wa)
和 (Wa)
Japanese noun that does not translate into English
The dictionary definition of wa is "harmony" but it is more than simply peace and balance. Wa is embraced as the most fundamental Japanese principle. It is the cornerstone for the extensive consensus gathering that takes place in nearly every Japanese activity. Wa is also used as a prefix to describe Japanese things: wafuu is Japanese-style, washoku is Japanese food, wafuku are traditional clothes like kimono, wagyuu is Japanese beef, wa-ei jiten is a Japanese-English dictionary.
Kristen McQuillin
http://www.mediatinker.com/
Halvard Johnson adds:
It might also be noted that "wa" suggests conformity: e.g., if all cars but one in a company parking lot are parked head in, then the one that is parked head out is said to be disturbing the "wa"; which also brings to mind the Japanese saying "The nail that stands out is hammered down."
本音 (Honne) & 建前 (Tatemae)
本音 (Honne) & 建前 (Tatemae)
Japanese nouns that do not translate into English
These are the "face" that is often talked of in the West. Tatemae is a social mask - politeness, tact - your outer facade or public face. Tatemae is what prevents you from saying "no" directly, even if you intend no quite strongly. Honne is your desire and inner intention. It might not match what you show to the outside world. Only you know your honne; even friend and family may not be privy to it.
Kristen McQuillin
http://www.mediatinker.com/
甘える (Amaeru)
甘える (Amaeru)
Japanese verb that does not translate to English.
The dictionary definition is "to presume on the love or kindness of someone." There's an entire book about amaeru, The Anatomy of Dependence by Takeo Doi, which was published in Japan in 1966. According to the author, amaeru is the framework on which family relationships are draped. You can always count on your closest relations and friends to give in to any selfish and childish demands - babying you, indulging you.
Kristen McQuillin
http://www.mediatinker.com/
mpan(y)insɛm
from Twi to English
mpan(y)insɛm
Literally, 'affairs of elders'. This can refer to history, custom,
proverbs, traditional law, or folktales.
Bob Offer-Westort
San Francisco, California, USA
Saudade
from Portuguese to English
It turned to be a cliché, but everybody says "saudade" is untranslatable.
Sometimes in English it turns to a verbal form - to miss (something or
someone). The problem is that to have saudade is to miss someone or
something that can be not lost at all. There is a word reputed to be a fair
translation in German - "sennsucht" - but it involves the meaning field of
search for something whereas "miss" may mean something that was lost. It is
the kind of melancholy you feel when you are far from a place or person you
like. But, eventually, you may come back to him/her/it.
Lucio Agra
www.geocities.com/agraryk
John M. Bennett adds:
Ay, saudade - the important thing about that concept is that it can apply to something that is right in front of you - saudade for the loved one you hold in your arms, for example. saudade for the very day you are experiencing - tenho razao ou nao?
Dr. John M. Bennett
Rare Books & MSS Library
The Ohio State University
"No words are translatable. All words are transductible."
accueil man (glyph)
from Micmaq to English
Reception man appears on earth to spread the word of the Book of
Putrefaction.
Its half real & half my poetic perambulations. I've been slowly
working on a futuristic micmaq epic & the glyph is part of the
sequence, one that fascinates me the most.
Micmaq is spelled about 6 or 7 different ways. Wikipedia has a gloss
here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micmac
The glyph is from the original Micmaq pictographic language (the
first indigenous writing system in north america). the glyph is part
of a series of glyphs discovered from the 1600s. The particular
glyph is usually translated as accueil man, I found it here:
http://www.assomicmac.org/images/accueil_man.gif
The pictographic language was later converted to cold type in the
1800's by Christian Kalder & some italian typographers.
I translate this as reception man. The rest is artistic license.
The Book of Putrefaction, by the way, is a book which Lorca & Dali
started but they never finished & has since disappeared.
mIEKAL aND
Dreamtime Village
perspicacity at xexoxial dot org
February 21, 2006
เกรงใจ (kreeng-cai)
from Thai into English
Independently, the term เกรง means simply 'fear', and ใจ means 'heart', in the (un-?)poetic sense (it needs to be combined with another word in order to refer to the physical organ). Combined, the term เกรงใจ means 'fear of offending another or causing inconvenience'. It's often proffered as an excuse for not doing something. From the other side, people often say 'ไม่ ตัองเกรงใจ' — 'No need to feel เกรงใจ', which indicates that one should not be afraid to put the speaker out — that the activity referred to will cause no inconvenience or offence.
Bob Offer-Westort
San Francisco, California, USA
ديوان (diiwaan)
from Arabic to English
ديوان can mean 'account books' or 'anthology' or 'oeuvre', but one of the more difficult meanings of the term to translate is 'collective poetic or literary tradition of a people'. Nizar Qabbani uses the term in 'A Lesson in Drawing' - 'When you grow up, my son, / and read the diwan of Arabic poetry / you'll discover that the word and the tear are twins / and the Arabic poem / is no more than a tear wept by writing fingers.'
Bob Offer-Westort
San Francisco, California, USA
دين (diin)
from Arabic to English
Usually, دين can be translated as 'religion', but it perhaps corresponds more closely to a phrase like 'ideologically founded way of life'. 'Way of life' is a very common English translation among English-speaking Muslims. The term incorporates custom as well as belief.
Bob Offer-Westort
San Francisco, California, USA
tutear
from Spanish to English
In most varieties of Spanish, there are two singular forms of the second person pronoun: Usted and tú. The former is a formal pronoun, used for social superiors and new acquaintances. The latter is familiar. 'Tutear' is a verb meaning 'to address someone as "tú"'. However, the meaning isn't purely linguistic: It indicates familiarity. Thus, 'Puedes tutearme' ('You can address me as "tú"') is an invitation to familiarity. The connotation is similar to the English phrase 'to be on a first name basis with', but I can't think, off-hand, of an English term or phrase that describes personal relationships through linguistic usage in the same way.
[This also reminds me of the term 'voseo', which means 'the use of the second person singular 'vos' in place of 'tú'. 'Vos' is favoured in a few Latin American countries, including Costa Rica (the source of my familiarity with the term). This strikes me as probably different from what you're looking for.]
Bob Offer-Westort
San Francisco, California, USA
Mark Weiss adds:
re: tutear, the same meanings, social and linguistic, apply to the French "tutoyer" and its opposite, "vousvoyer." One way French people define what makes the very rich not like you and me is that they vousvoient their children and parents.
Schadenfreude
From German to English
the pleasure one feels at another's misfortune
Halvard Johnson
Waldeinsamkeit
From German to English
Waldeinsamkeit
the feeling of being alone in the woods
Halvard Johnson
ziraleet
From Arabic to English
ziraleet
an expression of joy by a group of women in Aleppo, consisting of the words "Lillé, lillé, lillé" repeated as often as possible in one breath. Also used figuratively for any expression of joy
Maria Damon
english.cla.umn.edu/faculty/DAMON/Damon.htm
www.joglars.org
www.spidertangle.net
оскомина
From Russian to English
translating from Russian, I discovered a word called
оскомина
which means, that acid reaction one gets from biting into something very sour, like a green apple.
Philip Metres
http://www.philipmetres.com
ningunear
From Spanish to English
Immediately coming to my mind is the Spanish (Mexican, really) word "ningunear".
In English, this verb means something like
"to render someone into a no one"
The noun form "ninguneo" means something like "a no-bodying of someone"
Approximate terms in English like "to snub" or "to ignore" are nowhere near as strong in their implications.
Dr. John M. Bennett
Rare Books & MSS Library
The Ohio State University
"No words are translatable. All words are transductible."