- Thread starter Chirimoya
- Start date
Unintentionally funny translations
Indie, dix points!
Crassan = croissant. I will never be able to say it again without visualising that phonetic rendition of the spelling.
While we are on the subject, yesterday's trip up the autopista was a quick visit to meet Samana's finest, karate champion Rusbel Salomon, who won gold in the Pan Am Games earlier this year. I had not heard of him so when his name was mentioned I guessed it to be Ruben. When we got there and saw all his medals, trophies and plaques I was confused. His name was variously spelt as "Rubel", "Rusbel", and on two unfortunate occasions as "Rubber" Salomon. Oooh err!
It emerged that the actual spelling of his name, as written on his birth certificate, is Rusbel, and that's the spelling you usually find in newspaper articles about him. But I have another question for the eagle eyed amongst you:
Have you guessed what his name is really supposed to be?
Chiri
Crassan = croissant. I will never be able to say it again without visualising that phonetic rendition of the spelling.
While we are on the subject, yesterday's trip up the autopista was a quick visit to meet Samana's finest, karate champion Rusbel Salomon, who won gold in the Pan Am Games earlier this year. I had not heard of him so when his name was mentioned I guessed it to be Ruben. When we got there and saw all his medals, trophies and plaques I was confused. His name was variously spelt as "Rubel", "Rusbel", and on two unfortunate occasions as "Rubber" Salomon. Oooh err!
It emerged that the actual spelling of his name, as written on his birth certificate, is Rusbel, and that's the spelling you usually find in newspaper articles about him. But I have another question for the eagle eyed amongst you:
Have you guessed what his name is really supposed to be?
Chiri
Of course i do
Roosevelt!
There are a lot of those...
Dr. Blas Santos is really named BLACK Santos
The Bar?, Baret, and Barrett families are all the same! As are the Cury, Khouri, Kuri, and all the other variations...
Names are especially vulnerable to distortions.
HB
Roosevelt!
There are a lot of those...
Dr. Blas Santos is really named BLACK Santos
The Bar?, Baret, and Barrett families are all the same! As are the Cury, Khouri, Kuri, and all the other variations...
Names are especially vulnerable to distortions.
HB
Re: Of course i do
Regards,
Ken/Kit/Keth/Keith/Kin/Ket/Kef
Re-play
Yeah, tell me about it! Over the course of 4 years I heard/read more variations on my very anglo given name and surname -- even when it was written before them and patiently and slowly pronounced....Hillbilly said:
Regards,
Ken/Kit/Keth/Keith/Kin/Ket/Kef
Re-play
About names:
Mr. Pib, who probably has the simplest name on the planet has been renamed ten zillion times here. When we got married the judge couldn't pronounce it right even once, and I couldn't keep a straight face. I really don't know who I am married to. Last name-change came in an bill we received some weeks back in the name of "Bob Carpenter". Those who know his name will know.
And although not in the DR... in St. Peter's Plaza I saw a sign that read "Siga la linea rubia" right under "Follow the red line" and "Suivez la ligne rouge".
Mr. Pib, who probably has the simplest name on the planet has been renamed ten zillion times here. When we got married the judge couldn't pronounce it right even once, and I couldn't keep a straight face. I really don't know who I am married to. Last name-change came in an bill we received some weeks back in the name of "Bob Carpenter". Those who know his name will know.
And although not in the DR... in St. Peter's Plaza I saw a sign that read "Siga la linea rubia" right under "Follow the red line" and "Suivez la ligne rouge".
Where exactly is...
Spelling is one thing that gets me. It is cool how no one really has too much care - more about the content than the presentation of directions. But when you're first getting used to this and that you wonder a bit. For example, from El Nueve in SD, try taking a guagua to any of the following:
Los Alcarrisos
Los Alcarissos
Los Alcarissoz
Loz Alcarizzoz
Los Alcarrissoz
Trust me - you can visit them all, and they're all quite similar. Whatever though. There may be some funny signs and tshirts in this country, but they pale in comparison to the stupidity that is advertised and knowingly worn in Canada and the United States.
In solidarity,
Shaney from da block
Spelling is one thing that gets me. It is cool how no one really has too much care - more about the content than the presentation of directions. But when you're first getting used to this and that you wonder a bit. For example, from El Nueve in SD, try taking a guagua to any of the following:
Los Alcarrisos
Los Alcarissos
Los Alcarissoz
Loz Alcarizzoz
Los Alcarrissoz
Trust me - you can visit them all, and they're all quite similar. Whatever though. There may be some funny signs and tshirts in this country, but they pale in comparison to the stupidity that is advertised and knowingly worn in Canada and the United States.
In solidarity,
Shaney from da block
I'm certainly not making fun of anyone's spelling. I live in a glass house when it comes to that but I was looking for funny translations. Didn't see any but I did get a business card at the beach for a "discount gift shop" among the many items are :
T-shert, skirt raps ( must be a musical skirt), sneils, wind chain ( that must hurt if you get too close),
At the front of the card it says
We have everything you need and mush more.
The funniest sign was in Santiago. Huge sign that read
"Hippolito es un bueno hombre" . That brought a smile to my face.
T-shert, skirt raps ( must be a musical skirt), sneils, wind chain ( that must hurt if you get too close),
At the front of the card it says
We have everything you need and mush more.
The funniest sign was in Santiago. Huge sign that read
"Hippolito es un bueno hombre" . That brought a smile to my face.
Sosua sign on the beach ? shor calin 150 Pesos
Or have you been to Athletes Foot to buy runners?
Or have you been to Athletes Foot to buy runners?
once i was going from cabarete to the metro bus station in puerto plata and i saw this sign on the front door of what it seems to be some sort of "pensi?n":
ABIERTO - ENTRE
OPEN - BETWEEN
haha!
i don't know if these apply too:
1) i'm learning swedish and most of the people have said to me that i can 95% of the times translate word by word from english and i'd get a good result, so i saw this word "barnkammare" and i thought "hmmm barn means child, kammare must come from the verb kamma that means comb (hair)" so i asked my guy if a "barnkammare" was a person who combs child(ren)'s hair and he's still laughing at that. barnkammare means child(ren)'s chamber.
2) during a class i was asked about one of my classmates, and i meant to say "in the bathroom" and what came up was "in the toilet".
3) during another class we were practicing with words that have different spelling but sound the same (damn swedish!) so i wanted to say "rovdjur" (predator) and what came up was "r?vdjur" (sort of = animal who lives in the butthole).
4) in the same class as #3, we were asked what "tungbr?stad" means, and i, without thinking too much and following what i was told in #1, said "oh it means heavy chested", and the teacher said "no, it means that a person has problems breathing". then she joked and said "you guys are always thinking about boobs".
i'm being more careful nowadays hihi.
ABIERTO - ENTRE
OPEN - BETWEEN
haha!
i don't know if these apply too:
1) i'm learning swedish and most of the people have said to me that i can 95% of the times translate word by word from english and i'd get a good result, so i saw this word "barnkammare" and i thought "hmmm barn means child, kammare must come from the verb kamma that means comb (hair)" so i asked my guy if a "barnkammare" was a person who combs child(ren)'s hair and he's still laughing at that. barnkammare means child(ren)'s chamber.
2) during a class i was asked about one of my classmates, and i meant to say "in the bathroom" and what came up was "in the toilet".
3) during another class we were practicing with words that have different spelling but sound the same (damn swedish!) so i wanted to say "rovdjur" (predator) and what came up was "r?vdjur" (sort of = animal who lives in the butthole).
4) in the same class as #3, we were asked what "tungbr?stad" means, and i, without thinking too much and following what i was told in #1, said "oh it means heavy chested", and the teacher said "no, it means that a person has problems breathing". then she joked and said "you guys are always thinking about boobs".
i'm being more careful nowadays hihi.
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Tungbr?stad
Don't worry if Swedish difficult sometimes. My mother tongue is Swedish, but I just discovered i learnt a new word that I haven't heard before, "tungbr?stad". If you hadn't written the correct explanation to that word I also would have thougt it means "heavy chested". Personally I would use the word "andningsproblem" instead of "tungbr?stad", which sounds funny.
mariel said:
Don't worry if Swedish difficult sometimes. My mother tongue is Swedish, but I just discovered i learnt a new word that I haven't heard before, "tungbr?stad". If you hadn't written the correct explanation to that word I also would have thougt it means "heavy chested". Personally I would use the word "andningsproblem" instead of "tungbr?stad", which sounds funny.