Intermediate
How English Became Global
Posted on: 06 Jan, 2010 11:44 PM
In past blog posts I've written about the flexibility of the English language. Historically, English has always adopted words from other foreign languages. In fact, this could be one of the main reasons for spelling difficulties in English. In this blog post, a few words from a number of languages are presented in context. I'd be interested to know if these words are used in a similar context, or a completely different context than the original foreign usage. If you speak one of these languages as your native language, please leave a comment on the similarities or differences between English usage and the original. I've added short definitions to the words I think might be a bit difficult to understand.
African
mumbo jumbo = crazy talk
zombie = dead person
I'm sick and tired of all his mumbo jumbo.
Don't sit there like a zombie. Get up and do something!
Arabic
magazine
sofa
Mike sat down on the sofa and read through his favorite magazine.
Chinese
gung ho = excited about doing something
china = porcelain, dishes
I'm gung ho to get there. Let's leave now!
Did you wash all of the china?
Dutch
maelstrom = storm
sketch
Let's hope that the country manages to get out of the current political maelstrom.
Have you seen that sketch by Rembrandt?
East Indian
khaki = type of material, trousers
shampoo
Tom went to the Gap and bought three pairs of khakis.
Could you pick up some extra shampoo at the store?
French
caprice = impulsive behavior
entourage = group of loyal friends
I'm afraid I don't find your caprice very funny.
Martha took her entourage along with her to the countryside.
German
spiel = way of doing things
wanderlust = desire to get up and go out
What's your spiel?
I'm getting wanderlust just sitting around. Let's go!
Italian
incognito = unrecognizable
vista = view
The movie star is traveling incognito tonight.
The vista from the ridge is quite impressive.
Japanese
honcho = important person
tycoon = rich business person
Peter thinks he's the big honcho in this office.
The tycoon tried to take over their business.
Portuguese
commando = group of military, police
peon = insignificant person
The police sent a commando out to control the area.
He's just a peon in their game.
Russian
mammoth = (as adjective) huge
czar = person in charge
That's a mammoth house over there!
The drug czar doesn't seem to be very effective.
Sanskrit
karma
mantra
It's karma that you and I are together.
Just keep repeating that mantra: I'm a winner, I'm a winner!
Spanish
avocado
rodeo
Have you ever tried avocado on bread for breakfast?
We went to the rodeo over this past weekend.
Turkish
sherbet
yogurt
There's nothing like some orange sherbet on a hot day.
I'm going on a diet and eating yogurt for lunch every day.
Of course, there are many, many more words than these. I've used The Reading Teacher's Book of Lists Fourth Edition as reference for these examples. I apologize if I've left your language out from these examples. Please leave a comment citing some examples from your own language!
Submitted by Dreswise on 15 Jan, 2010 01:50 AM
I was surprised when I realized that kowtow is also originally from Chinese.
Chinese: kowtow = positive. to show deep respect by bowing low,
so low that your forehead might touch the ground
English: kowtow = negative. to be too obedient to an authority
Maybe it will appear in the Chinese characters as I copied them
from Wikipedia:
(simplified Chinese: 叩头; traditional Chinese: 叩頭; pinyin: kòu tóu;
Cantonese: kau tàuh, Vietnamese: khấu đầu)
Yeah..you are right !!! We do have this word in Chinese, but I don't know it also finds its place in English until you told me ;))) I don't know why this word has changed from a positive meaning to a negative one. That may have figured out how people view this action differently ;))
We usually use this phrase as a positive meaning nowadays ;))) Maybe what you have mentioned existed in the ancient dynasties ;)) I would like to introduce a type of Kowtow here in Tibet, which is called the long Kowtow. What it really means is that the man need to kowtow all the way to the temple ;)) It will take days to reach the destination using this type of action !!!
(Unique Perspectives Involved)
Drewise@_@
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Submitted by Jessicadold on 14 Jan, 2010 10:51 PM
Kenneth, this topic is quite interesting and meaningful ;)) I think it is useful to figure out the origin of words, which will help us understand other languages better !!! Actually, I have noticed the development of words, whether it is the Chinese character or the English words.
Since I come from China, I am happy to share what I think you
meant above ;))
I was surprised when I realized that kowtow is also originally from Chinese.
Chinese: kowtow = positive. to show deep respect by bowing low,
so low that your forehead might touch the ground
English: kowtow = negative. to be too obedient to an authority
Maybe it will appear in the Chinese characters as I copied them
from Wikipedia:
(simplified Chinese: 叩头; traditional Chinese: 叩頭; pinyin: kòu tóu;
Cantonese: kau tàuh, Vietnamese: khấu đầu)
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Submitted by Maru on 08 Jan, 2010 08:07 PM
We use
sofa= same meaning and spelling
shampoo = same meaning; different spelling shampu
caprice = same meaning ,different spelling capricho
incognito= same meaning and spelling
vista= same meaning and spelling
peon= labourer, and pawn
karma= same meaning and spelling
yogurt= same meaning &spelling
"Mind Openness with a Pinch of Skepticism"
Maru
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Submitted by Alenoosh on 07 Jan, 2010 05:46 PM
Hello Kenneth,
The word sherbet is used by Persian people with the same
meaning as the Turkish people use! Sherbet=syrup( either in medical
case or as a cool drinking)
Another word is slipper which is used by Iranian- Armenian people, with slightly different pronunciation, but the same meaning.
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Submitted by Kenneth on 07 Jan, 2010 04:25 PM
Kenneth, this topic is quite interesting and meaningful ;)) I think it is useful to figure out the origin of words, which will help us understand other languages better !!! Actually, I have noticed the development of words, whether it is the Chinese character or the English words.
Since I come from China, I am happy to share what I think you meant above ;))
The word "China "did mean porcelain in the past, but that was the way foreign people think of. So this word has nothing to do with Chinese. Actually, I can hardly find any relation between English and Chinese!!
But as to the second word --" gung ho ", I guess you probably mean " gao xing=高兴“,which means excited and happy about something ;))) What interests me is that how did you get the word or its pronunciation ???;)))
(Unique Perspectives Involved)
Drewise@_@
You might find the Online Etymology Dictionary useful in researching the origins and how these words were adopted into English. Here's the explanation for gung ho.
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Submitted by Ravisha on 07 Jan, 2010 10:08 AM
Hi Kenneth, good research.
The words mantra, karma used perfectly, but I am not sure about
shampoo and khaki
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Submitted by Dreswise on 07 Jan, 2010 07:57 AM
Kenneth, this topic is quite interesting and meaningful ;)) I think it is useful to figure out the origin of words, which will help us understand other languages better !!! Actually, I have noticed the development of words, whether it is the Chinese character or the English words.
Since I come from China, I am happy to share what I think you meant above ;))
The word "China "did mean porcelain in the past, but that was the way foreign people think of. So this word has nothing to do with Chinese. Actually, I can hardly find any relation between English and Chinese!!
But as to the second word --" gung ho ", I guess you probably mean " gao xing=高兴“,which means excited and happy about something ;))) What interests me is that how did you get the word or its pronunciation ???;)))
(Unique Perspectives Involved)
Drewise@_@
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