BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 » Languages

Molly Hooper · August 19, 2012 4:52 pm

I'm currently learning Norwegian! So far I can say...
Excuse me.
Are you American?
No, I don't understand English.
Yes, I understand a little Norwegian.

Considering I know precisely zero people who speak Norwegian, I don't know how useful a life skill it will be...

Davina · August 19, 2012 5:31 pm

If you get a job with Royal Caribbean it will be very useful!

Mattlocked · August 19, 2012 5:44 pm

Molly Hooper wrote:
I'm currently learning Norwegian! So far I can say...
Excuse me.
Are you American?
No, I don't understand English.
Yes, I understand a little Norwegian.

Considering I know precisely zero people who speak Norwegian, I don't know how useful a life skill it will be...

I have almost the same amount of vocabularies in Swedish. And I know it's quite similar to Norwegian - at least they understand each other.

Last edited by Mattlocked (August 19, 2012 5:44 pm)

veecee · September 9, 2012 5:35 pm

Irene Adler wrote:
Today has been a terribly hot, tiring day. I think I have only survived thanks to Federico García Lorca and his "Romancero gitano". And now I want to share my favourite Spanish poem with all of you.
It's impossible for me to translate it, but anyway... this thread was about languages, wasn't it? So here you have one of the most beautiful things ever written in my language. There might be a good translation out there (I can find it, apparently)

Romance sonámbulo

Verde que te quiero verde.
Verde viento. Verdes ramas.
El barco sobre la mar
y el caballo en la montaña.
Con la sombra en la cintura
ella sueña en su baranda,
verde carne, pelo verde,
con ojos de fría plata.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Bajo la luna gitana,
las cosas le están mirando
y ella no puede mirarlas.

Verde que te quiero verde.
Grandes estrellas de escarcha,
vienen con el pez de sombra
que abre el camino del alba.
La higuera frota su viento
con la lija de sus ramas,
y el monte, gato garduño,
eriza sus pitas agrias.
¿Pero quién vendrá? ¿Y por dónde...?
Ella sigue en su baranda,
verde carne, pelo verde,
soñando en la mar amarga.

Compadre, quiero cambiar
mi caballo por su casa,
mi montura por su espejo,
mi cuchillo por su manta.
Compadre, vengo sangrando,
desde los montes de Cabra.
Si yo pudiera, mocito,
ese trato se cerraba.
Pero yo ya no soy yo,
ni mi casa es ya mi casa.
Compadre, quiero morir
decentemente en mi cama.
De acero, si puede ser,
con las sábanas de holanda.
¿No ves la herida que tengo
desde el pecho a la garganta?
Trescientas rosas morenas
lleva tu pechera blanca.
Tu sangre rezuma y huele
alrededor de tu faja.
Pero yo ya no soy yo,
ni mi casa es ya mi casa.
Dejadme subir al menos
hasta las altas barandas,
dejadme subir, dejadme,
hasta las verdes barandas.
Barandales de la luna
por donde retumba el agua.

Ya suben los dos compadres
hacia las altas barandas.
Dejando un rastro de sangre.
Dejando un rastro de lágrimas.
Temblaban en los tejados
farolillos de hojalata.
Mil panderos de cristal,
herían la madrugada.

Verde que te quiero verde,
verde viento, verdes ramas.
Los dos compadres subieron.
El largo viento, dejaba
en la boca un raro gusto
de hiel, de menta y de albahaca.
¡Compadre! ¿Dónde está, dime?
¿Dónde está mi niña amarga?
¡Cuántas veces te esperó!
¡Cuántas veces te esperara,
cara fresca, negro pelo,
en esta verde baranda!

Sobre el rostro del aljibe
se mecía la gitana.
Verde carne, pelo verde,
con ojos de fría plata.
Un carámbano de luna
la sostiene sobre el agua.
La noche su puso íntima
como una pequeña plaza.
Guardias civiles borrachos,
en la puerta golpeaban.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Verde viento. Verdes ramas.
El barco sobre la mar.
Y el caballo en la montaña.

Muy bonito, Irene. Gracias.

veecee · September 9, 2012 5:46 pm

I'm trying to find the thread where we talked about the use of "y'all"and "you guys" in the US. Anyway, there was a nice little story about it on NPR's That's What They Say today.
In the South they frequently use "y'all" for a plural "you," whereas in the North we use the much less attractive "you guys," for both men and women. You might even hear "youse guys" in a few places. In Texas is where they say "all y'all," which I didn't have exactly right before.

Although this particular episode isn't up yet, here's a link to the program: http://michiganradio.org/topic/thats-what-they-say. It's entertaining and interesting.

For those that don't know, NPR is National Public Radio, a cousin to TV's Public Broadcasting System (PBS), which broadcasts Sherlock.

sherlockedkt · September 13, 2012 9:54 pm

I'm from Alabama and I say "y'all," and I HATE it when people put the apostrophe in the wrong place... We have a native New Yorker at work who says "yous" but not "yous guys."

Et pour ma part je suis americaine, ma langue natale est l'anglais, mais je parle francais (malheureusement mon clavier n'a pas d'accents). J'etais en France en 2006 et 2007, j'habitais a Rouen en Normandie. La France me manque beaucoup, surtout les baguettes!

Davina · September 14, 2012 6:05 am

Et les pains au chocolat, moules et frites et les crepes! Bon Appetit!

SusiGo · September 14, 2012 6:11 am

Il y a aussi des plats francais moins délicieux. Une amie habitait avec une famille en France. Un jour elle entrait dans la cuisine et il y avait une grande casserole sur la cuisinière. Elle regardait dedans et découvrait une tête de veau. Elle était horrifiée!

veecee · September 15, 2012 4:12 am

Well, better than a human head in the refrigerator!

(Poor John.)

sherlockedkt · September 15, 2012 10:09 pm

veecee wrote:
Well, better than a human head in the refrigerator!

(Poor John.)

LOL!

Moi j'ai jamais essaye la tete de veau... mais j'adore les fromages francais, surtout le camembert... mmm!

veecee · September 16, 2012 3:29 am

I'm with you there.

September 16, 2012 7:08 am

SusiGo wrote:
Il y a aussi des plats francais moins délicieux. Une amie habitait avec une famille en France. Un jour elle entrait dans la cuisine et il y avait une grande casserole sur la cuisinière. Elle regardait dedans et découvrait une tête de veau. Elle était horrifiée!

Il y a la langue de boeuf aussi qui est sympa dans le genre... miam, miam !

Plus sérieusement je suis française et je n'ai jamais mangée ni l'un ni l'autre de ces plats, beurk...

Et petite on a essayé de me faire manger des Tripes, impossible l'odeur est immonde, j'ai failli vomir... lol

Mais il y des tas d'autres plats délicieux !

Last edited by TicTacToe (September 16, 2012 7:24 am)

SusiGo · September 20, 2012 7:39 am

I need help: What's jam gravy, please? Just came up in the book I'm translating.

Davina · September 20, 2012 7:43 am

Never heard of it. What country is the book written in? Sure it isn't ham gravy?

SusiGo · September 20, 2012 8:33 am

It is set in Australia, the author is Australian as well. The character who mentions the gravy is English and it is mentioned in connection with Yorkshire pudding. I thought it might be a sort of fruity sauce.

Davina · September 20, 2012 12:01 pm

All I can think is that it is referring to the thick pan gravy made from the drippings from the roast beef. Traditionally, in Yorkshire, the Yorkshire pudding is served BEFORE the main course with this thick gravy. Then the meat and vegetables are served with a white or parsley sauce. I can find no reference to 'jam gravy' and have never heard of it in my life although the thick gravy I have mentioned would be a bit like jam in consistency. Hope that helps.

SusiGo · September 20, 2012 12:16 pm

Thanks very much, Davina, I'll find an appropriate translation. Always good to have some background information.

veecee · September 20, 2012 6:24 pm

TicTacToe wrote:
SusiGo wrote:
Il y a aussi des plats francais moins délicieux. Une amie habitait avec une famille en France. Un jour elle entrait dans la cuisine et il y avait une grande casserole sur la cuisinière. Elle regardait dedans et découvrait une tête de veau. Elle était horrifiée!
Il y a la langue de boeuf aussi qui est sympa dans le genre... miam, miam !

Plus sérieusement je suis française et je n'ai jamais mangée ni l'un ni l'autre de ces plats, beurk...

Et petite on a essayé de me faire manger des Tripes, impossible l'odeur est immonde, j'ai failli vomir... lol

Mais il y des tas d'autres plats délicieux !

I once ate tripe by accident in Mexico. Also brains. I don't know what the zombies see in them.

Braaaiiins....

Anyway, in France I could just live on the cheese.

SusiGo · September 20, 2012 6:27 pm

In Germany some people eat tongue, kidney or liver which is the most popular innard. And there's a regional recipe preferred by the former chancellor Helmut Kohl consisting of stuffed pig's stomach. He used to serve it to foreign guests as a speciality.

Davina · September 20, 2012 7:40 pm

Offal (what we call innards when they are for food) used to be very popular here but is less popular now. My grandad used to love eating pigs' trotters (feet). Steak and kidney pie is still eaten a lot here. Liver and bacon or casseroled liver is eaten. As a child I loved, just loved eating stuffed lambs' hearts. Tongue was often cooked at Christmas and was served sliced with the turkey or goose. Tripe and onions and calves foot jelly was often cooked 'up North' i.e. Northern England where my mother-in-law originates from.

Generally a majority of people are funny about eating offal here now. I don't really know why as it is relatively cheap and is nutritious.

Last edited by Davina (September 20, 2012 7:42 pm)