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Off topic: It's all Greek/Dutch/Chinese to me - which one? Thread poster: Veronica Lupascu
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Tom Tyson 
Local time: 23:00
Member
German to English
| Fachchinesisch | May 14, 2010 |
is a pejorative term used in German to denote overly-technical jargon. I politely translated it as gobbeldygook recently.
So, the next question is: what other onamatopoeic or made up words are there to describe language that's incomprehensible?
Btw, from Wikipedia:
The term gobbledygook was coined by former U. S. Representative Maury Maverick, then working for the Smaller War Plants Corporation, in a March 30, 1944 memo banning "gobbledygook language". It... See more is a pejorative term used in German to denote overly-technical jargon. I politely translated it as gobbeldygook recently.
So, the next question is: what other onamatopoeic or made up words are there to describe language that's incomprehensible?
Btw, from Wikipedia:
The term gobbledygook was coined by former U. S. Representative Maury Maverick, then working for the Smaller War Plants Corporation, in a March 30, 1944 memo banning "gobbledygook language". It was a reaction to his frustration with the "convoluted language of bureaucrats." He made up the word as an onomatopoeic imitation of a turkey's gobble. ▲ Collapse
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| Mexico > Chinese | May 14, 2010 |
In Mexico we say "Está en chino" (It´s in Chinese).
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| In Denmark it's Volapük... | May 14, 2010 |
Just to be different, the Danes say it is pure Volapük!
And ironically, Volapük was intended as a universal language that everyone could understand, though many Danes think it simply means gibberish or gobbledygook.
That is Danish humour for you!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volapük
As a child I remember hearing ´Double Dutch´ or occasionally ´It´... See more
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it's all Greek to me. And Double Dutch is a jump rope game!
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Nesrin
United Kingdom
Local time: 23:00
English to Arabic
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| And what do the Chinese say | May 14, 2010 |
... I wonder
In Arabic by the way, we also say "Chinese", in Egypt at least.
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Veronica Lupascu wrote: Stanislav Pokorny wrote:
In Czech, "it's a Spanish village to me" (Je to pro mě španělská vesnice). It seems that Czech People mixed 2 German expressions efreitag wrote
Das kommt mir spanisch vor!" ("Sounds like Spanish to me!"), or "Das sind bömische Dörfer!" ("That's all Bohemian villages to me!")
You're quite right, Veronica. That has crossed my mind too.
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| In Italy, it's Arabic | May 14, 2010 |
"Per me è arabo"
Mirella
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When my kids are frustrated with each other, they say (in Arabic):
What language do you think I am speaking? Sanskrit?
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Yes, in Italian it's Arabic ("Do I speak Arabic?" = "Parlo arabo?"), but sometimes Chinese too: "Do I have to explain it in Chinese?" ("Te lo spiego in cinese?" = Can't you understand yet?)
We also have an idiom, "Piangere in cinese" (= to cry in Chinese): when you really want something from somebody, you beg them in every possible way, and if none of them work, you start crying in Chinese .
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| well in my part of england | May 14, 2010 |
it's all greek to me
or it's double dutch
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ATIL KAYHAN
Türkiye
Local time: 01:00
Member (2007)
Turkish to English
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In Turkey, we say it is all French to me.
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In Polish we say: "Siedzę jak na tureckim kazaniu" - literally translated, I am sitting here as if at a Turkish sermon.
Wonder why... But I remember a great moment when I was with my kid in an Italian church. Everybody spoke Italian of course and we could hardly understand anything. Then my kid said: mom, sorry but I feel like it is a Turkish sermon!
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David Russi
United States
Local time: 16:00
English to Spanish
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| Chinese: It's like heavenly script | May 14, 2010 |
I don't know whether it is accurate or not, since it is clearly Chinese to me, but according to this site the Chinese say something on the order of "It's like heavenly script".
http://www.omniglot.com/language/idioms/incomprehensible.php
I guess they know what hard to decypher really means... ... See more I don't know whether it is accurate or not, since it is clearly Chinese to me, but according to this site the Chinese say something on the order of "It's like heavenly script".
http://www.omniglot.com/language/idioms/incomprehensible.php
I guess they know what hard to decypher really means...
[Edited at 2010-05-14 22:12 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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Veronica Lupascu
Netherlands
Local time: 00:00
Dutch to Romanian
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TOPIC STARTER
David Russi wrote: I don't know whether it is accurate or not, since it is clearly Chinese to me, but according to this site the Chinese say something on the order of "It's like heavenly script". http://www.omniglot.com/language/idioms/incomprehensible.php I guess they know what hard to decypher really means... [Edited at 2010-05-14 22:12 GMT]
Thank you for it. It seems that Chinese and Greek are in top!
But "heavenly script" is weird. Why this expression? is there something in their religion(s) saying that? or do Chinese people talk to their divinities in another language or something? very interesting... I am curious...
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Veronica Lupascu
Netherlands
Local time: 00:00
Dutch to Romanian
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TOPIC STARTER
Valeria Sciarrillo wrote: We also have an idiom, "Piangere in cinese" (= to cry in Chinese): when you really want something from somebody, you beg them in every possible way, and if none of them work, you start crying in Chinese .
Thank you Valeria!!! Crying in Chinese is the best! I actually started imagining how it would sound and it was funny.
When Italian people "cry in Chinese", do they still have that melodious, irresistible Italian accent?
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