Tuesday 27 January 2015

Thinking about words and what they mean...

               English is one of the most-spoken languages in the world. Many people want to learn it, schools have programs to teach foreign language speakers, and knowing the language will probably help you throughout various countries in the world. The roots of languages have always been fascinating to me, and this visual representation below shows how intertwined they can be:


(larger version here)


               Although the English language is an amalgamation of words from across the globe, we are still missing out on some key untranslate-able words or phrases. Here are some of my favourites:

Kummerspeck (German)- Excess weight gained from emotional overeating. It literally means "grief bacon".

Esprit de l'escalier (French)- Thinking of the perfect retort too late. Literally meaning "staircase wit". We've all been there.

Fernweh (German)- Feeling homesick for a place to which you've never been. I feel this for Scotland, the home of my grandparents.

Age-otori (Japanese)- To look worse after a haircut. It's one of the worst feelings.

Forelsket (Norwegian)- The intoxicatingly euphoric feeling you experience when you're first falling in love. A similar English phrase would be NRE, or New Relationship Energy.

Gigil (Tagalog)- The overwhelming, irrestible urge to grab or pinch something extremely adorable.



               If you want to watch a funny video of Rhett & Link talking about similar words and making their own English translation (trust me, you do), check out the video below:





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19 comments:

  1. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:11

    This is mecha cool

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  2. klrosie 16 March 2015 at 08:11

    Sometimes word can be beautiful and sometimes you get grief bacon. So amazing.

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  3. Ian Saunderson16 March 2015 at 08:12

    Great blog layout. I will definitely be keeping tabs on how it is set up.

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  4. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:12

    mmmmmm grief bacon

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  5. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:12

    This is fantastic!!! I will definitely use this as a reference for an activity! Sooo cool!

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  6. Arielle16 March 2015 at 08:12

    love this! as a language teacher, I will definitely draw on this for inspiration.

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  7. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:12

    This is a great activity idea! Especially liked the creation of "grief bacon".

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  8. Alexandria Taylor16 March 2015 at 08:12

    That's great! Would make a really interesting hook!

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  9. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:12

    your blog is sweet. I like the language tree

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  10. Alexandria Taylor16 March 2015 at 08:12

    That's great! Would make a really interesting hook!

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  11. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:12

    I embrace grief bacon but have reworded it to celebration bacon.

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  12. match_dot_com16 March 2015 at 08:12

    I think anything goes with bacon!

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  13. S.K. 16 March 2015 at 08:12

    This is awesome! Kids love these kinds of activities. :)

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  14. Heavy Josh16 March 2015 at 08:13

    Chutzpah
    Schadenfreude
    Also, love the comic. It's from "Keep Silent, Keep Still" right?

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  15. JoeyBrush16 March 2015 at 08:13

    Thats so awesome! Great way to show the inter-connectedness of language. The gifs throughout your blog are also incredible.

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  16. Katrina16 March 2015 at 08:13

    Great idea to do with a class! The words you chose are certainly amusing!

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  17. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:13

    Wicked resource! Purposeful, practical, and fun!

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  18. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:13

    Wicked idea for an activity, I am definitely going to steal it!

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  19. Unknown16 March 2015 at 08:14

    Wicked idea for an activity, I am definitely going to steal it!

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