I was listening to "Man out of Time" by Elvis Costello and got to the part:
But for his private wife and kids somehow
Real life becomes a rumor
Days of Dutch courage
Just three French letters and a German sense of humor
"Dutch Courage" is bravery that comes from alcohol. "French letters" are condoms. (A German sense of humor is a play on the idea that the German's have no sense of humor; just like the cliche "A German joke is no laughing matter.")
I thought it was interesting that our language has little idiomatic put downs like that, mostly aimed at the French ("French leave," for instance, is AWOL) or the Dutch ("Double Dutch" is gibberish.)
I'm curious if other languages have similar idioms aimed at other countries.
Türkenkoffer (Turkish suitcase) for plastic bags. Additionally the verb "türken" means to fake something, like paperwork, or an accident.
Ok, in Polish:
"to listen as if to a German/Turkish sermon" - to listen to something but not understanding a word;
"once in a Russian year" - once in a blue moon;
"a Czech mistake" - a stupid, basic mistake;
"a Russian month" - a very long time;
"to leave like an Englishman" - to leave without saying goodbye;
"a French doggie" - someone very effete, choosy, delicate;
"an Italian strike" - a protest involving doing your job very slowly/deliberately;
"to be like a Swiss clock/like in a Swiss bank" - being very precise, well-organised (I guess this one is not an insult :P);
"a free American" - a free-for-all, battle royale, no holds barred;
Oh, "böhmische Dörfer" (Bohemian villages) is equivalent to "it's all Greek to me."
"Wir sind nicht bei den Hottentotten!" (We're not with the Hottentots) Usually an (outdated) complaint about lack of order.
Don't forget "Polnische Wirtschaft". :P
"Canadians"
An Indian giver is someone who gives you something then demands it back or takes it back. (Feather, not dot.)
Quote from: Savonarola on October 10, 2014, 01:27:25 PM
I was listening to "Man out of Time" by Elvis Costello and got to the part:
But for his private wife and kids somehow
Real life becomes a rumor
Days of Dutch courage
Just three French letters and a German sense of humor
"Dutch Courage" is bravery that comes from alcohol. "French letters" are condoms. (A German sense of humor is a play on the idea that the German's have no sense of humor; just like the cliche "A German joke is no laughing matter.")
I thought it was interesting that our language has little idiomatic put downs like that, mostly aimed at the French ("French leave," for instance, is AWOL) or the Dutch ("Double Dutch" is gibberish.)
I'm curious if other languages have similar idioms aimed at other countries.
How frequently are any of these actually used? I've hear Irish exit a bit a bit but I don't know about these. I use double dutch in reference to a jump rope game. :unsure:
Quote from: garbon on October 10, 2014, 01:52:29 PM
How frequently are any of these actually used? I've hear Irish exit a bit a bit but I don't know about these. I use double dutch in reference to a jump rope game. :unsure:
I hear Dutch courage once in a Brazilian fortnight.
And of course to welch or welsh is not pay off a bet you lose.
To gyp (from gypsy) someone is to overcharge them.
To Jew someone is to overcharge or to underpay.
Irish twins
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 01:57:41 PM
And of course to welch or welsh is not pay off a bet you lose.
To gyp (from gypsy) someone is to overcharge them.
To Jew someone is to overcharge or to underpay.
To Jew someone more means to talk them up or down in price. You make it sound like it means the same as to gyp someone, which is used for actually cheating someone.
For some reason "englisch einkaufen" (shopping the English way) was a term for shoplifting. Also exists as "polnisch einkaufen."
And obviously: "Drunk like x Russians!" (with x being a number of up to 1,000).
"Noch ist Polen nicht verloren!" (Poland isn't lost yet) - when a situation looks bad but isn't completely hopeless.
Conversely, "Holland in Not" (Holland in danger) when under pressure.
I hear the Dutch ones quiet often. :bowler:
Svensker (Swede) can be applied as a prefix to many words to signify that the action is done when very drunk.
"hinter schwedischen Gardinen" (behind Swedish curtains) = in jail
"Alter Schwede!" (Old Swede!) = "Whoa!"/"Wow!"
Quote from: Barrister on October 10, 2014, 01:59:24 PM
To Jew someone more means to talk them up or down in price. You make it sound like it means the same as to gyp someone, which is used for actually cheating someone.
Not sure I agree with you counselor. Remember that black and white movie with George Clooney in 1946 Berlin? Spider Man says to the no legs dude "don't Jew me on the price." He's not talking about the negotiation, of which no legs doesn't offer any, but the price that no legs will propose.
Quote from: Syt on October 10, 2014, 02:00:40 PM
For some reason "englisch einkaufen" (shopping the English way) was a term for shoplifting. Also exists as "polnisch einkaufen."
I made one up on my own for a Mexican friend. Every time she buys something nice, I ask her if she got the "Mexican discount" (shoplifting) on it. She calls me a gringo cabron and we both laugh :)
For the Maltese it's always the Turks. "Haqq-it Torok" being a key one. "Goddamn Turks"
Quote from: garbon on October 10, 2014, 01:52:29 PM
I use double dutch in reference to a jump rope game. :unsure:
Too ethnicky a reference.
Quote from: Syt on October 10, 2014, 02:03:35 PM
"hinter schwedischen Gardinen" (behind Swedish curtains) = in jail
"Alter Schwede!" (Old Swede!) = "Whoa!"/"Wow!"
Have you ever been called Piefke or Marmeladinger by an Austrian?
"Spanish practices"......essentially when a workplace is organised for the benefit of the workers rather than customers/clients.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_practices
-"Irse a la francesa" - "French goodbye": to leave abruptly and/or impolitely. AFAIK this one is present in other languages so the French must be really adept at it.
-"Coger una turca" - "To catch a Turk" (femenine): to get REALLY drunk.
-"Beber como un cosaco" - "To drink like a Cossack": to drink a LOT.
-"Hacer el indio" - "To act like an Indian": to act like a fool, to fool around (usually used when kids play and make a lot of fuss, for example).
-"Hacerse el sueco" - "To act like a Swede": when you pretend you didn't hear/notice something.
For some reason we have shitloads about China:
-"Naranjas de la China" - "Chinese oranges!": A prudish equivalent of the English "bullshit!".
-"Un cuento chino" - "A Chinese tale": something that's a blatant lie/excuse.
-"Lo saben hasta los chinos" - "Even the Chinese know that": when something you believe was a great insight/info it's actually common knowledge.
-"Esto parece chino" - "This looks like Chinese": when a written text is really complicated (a manual, for example).
-"Trabajo de chinos" - "Chinese work": when you are doing some labor that's actually menial but that needs a lot of time/work to finish.
Quote from: celedhring on October 10, 2014, 03:30:49 PM
"Coger una turca" - "To catch a turk" (femenine): to get REALLY drunk.
Does it *just* mean "catch"? 'Cuz in Argieland that would mean "To fuck a Turk". Which I suppose could also work :D
Quote from: derspiess on October 10, 2014, 03:33:20 PM
Quote from: celedhring on October 10, 2014, 03:30:49 PM
"Coger una turca" - "To catch a turk" (femenine): to get REALLY drunk.
Does it *just* mean "catch"? 'Cuz in Argieland that would mean "To fuck a Turk". Which I suppose could also work :D
"Coger" means two different things on both sides of the pond, something I discovered to my great amusement when talking to a Mexican girl once.
French
Saoul comme un Polonais – Drunk as a Pole (self-explanatory)
Querelle d'Allemand – German quarrel (petty, meaningless quarrel) So many small wars before the German unification ;)
Faire (son) suisse – eat or drink alone, without inviting, or by hiding.
Filer à l'anglaise – To take English leave i.e Leave abruptly and/or impolitely, without telling.
Boire en allemand – drink German-style (old-fashioned) start drinking alcohol at breakfast
Parler français/anglais comme une vache espagnole – Speak French/English like a Spanish cow: to speak extremely bad a language. Might come Basque/Vasque according to some etymologies :lol:
Téléphone arabe – Arab telephone: rumor, gossip
Aller se faire voir chez les Grecs – Why don't you go to the Greeks: basically a very colloquial, but not vulgar anymore "Fuck off" or "Go to hell". In the old days, Greece was renowned for pederasty so sending somebody there was the opposite of wishing him well.
Travailler pour le roi de Prusse – to work for the King of Prussia: work for somebody else to take all the profit and credit (origin Louis XV not helping himself after winning at Fontenoy)
Portuguese
ciganar – "to gypsy/gyp": to beg
judiaria – jewry: infamy, felony, disgrace
Ver-se grego - "to see oneself Greek": to be in real trouble
grego – greek as in "it's Hebrew to me": really difficult to understand if not impossible
salada russa – Russian salad: messy situation
palerma - from Palermo, Sicily no less: an idiot
para Inglês ver – for the English to see: to do something phoney, make believe stuff such as a Potemkine village
tosco – Tuscan: crazy, weird (from Latin probably)
trabalhar como um Mouro – Work like a Moor: work like a slave, an awful lot
espanholada – spanishry (sic): boasting, bravado
To welsh on a deal, or to get off scot free are two that come to mind.
Mon tabarnac jvais te décalisser la yeule, calice, pardon my French.
Double Dutch and Dutch courage. But I can't think of any others :blush:
Quote from: Sheilbh on October 10, 2014, 06:35:03 PM
Double Dutch and Dutch courage. But I can't think of any others :blush:
Dutch treat probably. :(
What does Double Dutch mean?
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 06:54:50 PM
What does Double Dutch mean?
'What did he say?'
'I don't know. It's double Dutch to me.'
Also 'going Dutch'. Basically all of ours are about the Dutch :mellow: :blink:
Canadian is polite Iowan for the n-word
Polack is what you call a moron in the midwest
Quote from: Sheilbh on October 10, 2014, 07:04:20 PM
'I don't know. It's double Dutch to me.'
"It's Greek to me."
"Honky" is negative term for a white guy. Come from "Bohunk" which itself comes from "Bohemian".
Oh and "Tiajuana Bible" is a dirty magazine, typically a cartoon or comic of some kind. Somewhat out of date.
Quote from: Razgovory on October 10, 2014, 07:44:30 PM
"Honky" is negative term for a white guy. Come from "Bohunk" which itself comes from "Bohemian".
Interesting. Where did you pick this up Raz?
And not to doubt you, but how the hell did a black person ever meet a Czech?
Quote from: Sheilbh on October 10, 2014, 07:04:20 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 06:54:50 PM
What does Double Dutch mean?
'What did he say?'
'I don't know. It's double Dutch to me.'
Also 'going Dutch'. Basically all of ours are about the Dutch :mellow: :blink:
Dutch auction - a rigged auction, I think, though it might have had a different meaning in the past or in America now.
Dutch gold - fake precious metal
Dutch comfort - it's not the worst.
edit:Found the dictionary (paper!), there's one or two not mentioned so far, like a Dutch bargain (this seems to fit with the universal meme of not trusting johnny foreigner in negotiations)
OK I might be wrong about dutch gold, in that it might not intentionally be a fake precious metal, but rather a look-alike alternative, say for guilding at church dome or relief work.
edit 2I like this one, 'talk like a Dutch uncle' - to utter a rebuke. I may have heard that one or twice, it's slightly familiar.
A Dutch auction now is one in which everyone who makes a bid has to pay, even though only the highest bidder gets the thing. Only used for charity events.
"Hunk" and "bohunk" were both negative names for eastern european immigrants. I'd never made the connection to "honky" though.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 07:57:26 PM
A Dutch auction now is one in which everyone who makes a bid has to pay, even though only the highest bidder gets the thing. Only used for charity events.
Huh, a Dutch auction to me is an auction where the bid starts high and goes down. The first person to take the bid wins.
Quote from: Maximus on October 10, 2014, 07:59:05 PM
Huh, a Dutch auction to me is an auction where the bid starts high and goes down. The first person to take the bid wins.
I don't know what this means Max.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 07:57:26 PM
A Dutch auction now is one in which everyone who makes a bid has to pay, even though only the highest bidder gets the thing. Only used for charity events.
Yeah, I think it has meant different things on either side of the pond, but now the American use is taking over.
edit:
just had a look on the oed.com and it has this:
Quote
1859 - The sale is conducted on the principle of what is termed a 'Dutch auction', purchasers not being allowed to inspect the fish in the doubles before they bid.
1872 - The old Dutch auction, by which an article was put up at a high price, and, if nobody accepted the offer, then reduced to a lower, the sum first required being gradually decreased until a fair value was attained.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 08:02:21 PM
Quote from: Maximus on October 10, 2014, 07:59:05 PM
Huh, a Dutch auction to me is an auction where the bid starts high and goes down. The first person to take the bid wins.
I don't know what this means Max.
Instead of a price that starts low and goes up as buyers take bids, the price starts high and counts down. There's often a counter or something to show the current price. The first person to bid at the current price buys the item at that price.
The OED has a lot more, like apparently this American originated one,
Slang phrases (orig. U.S.): (a) in Dutch, in disfavour, disgrace, or trouble; (b) to do a (or the) Dutch (act) , to desert, escape, run away; also, to commit suicide.
1904 H. Hapgood Autobiogr. Thief vi. 112 A week later Dal was found dead in his cell, and I believe he did the Dutch act (suicide).
:cool:
Besides "going Dutch" (which is not really an insult), I've never heard any of these Dutch ones.
And I am Dutch, damn you all. :mad: :P
If you've never heard Dutch courage you must be drunk all the time.
Quote from: Tonitrus on October 10, 2014, 08:32:22 PM
Besides "going Dutch" (which is not really an insult), I've never heard any of these Dutch ones.
And I am Dutch, damn you all. :mad: :P
Well they're one of our traditional enemies, so it's no surprise that 17th/18th century English should have acquired these. :bowler:
Quote from: Tonitrus on October 10, 2014, 08:32:22 PM
Besides "going Dutch" (which is not really an insult), I've never heard any of these Dutch ones.
And I am Dutch, damn you all. :mad: :P
My dad worked as for the Federal Government doing background. As I'm sure is still the case today, they had to go through sensitivity training and the like every so often. After one session all the participants went out to dinner; the instructor told them that they had to "Go Dutch." One of the largest immigrant groups of my hometown of Grand Rapids, MI, are the Dutch; so many filed a complaint against the sensitivity trainer.
Other Dutch ones:
Beat the Dutch: Perform an extraordinary feat
Dutch wife: Body pillow
Dutch cap: Diaphragm
I had no idea my language contained so much Dutch hatred.
Quote from: Valmy on October 10, 2014, 09:22:18 PM
I had no idea my language contained so much Dutch hatred.
I must have been sheltered. The only thing said about the Dutch that I knew of, was that we like to stick our fingers in dykes. :(
The Dutch are my favorite Euro nationality,with the Swiss being a close second.
Quote from: derspiess on October 10, 2014, 10:25:52 PM
The Dutch are my favorite Euro nationality,with the Swiss being a close second.
You have a thing for really boring rude people? At least I like interesting rude people :P
The Dutch were nothing but nice to me in my time in the Netherlands. Almost to a fault. The Flemish were equally so in Belgium. The Walloons... well, at least they made good beer.
Quote from: derspiess on October 10, 2014, 11:27:30 PM
The Dutch were nothing but nice to me in my time in the Netherlands. Almost to a fault. The Flemish were equally so in Belgium. The Walloons... well, at least they made good beer.
I just thought it was funny both the countries you like are Calvinist ones :P
Granted I guess France is sorta Calvinist to in its way.
Quote from: derspiess on October 10, 2014, 02:59:18 PM
Quote from: Syt on October 10, 2014, 02:03:35 PM
"hinter schwedischen Gardinen" (behind Swedish curtains) = in jail
"Alter Schwede!" (Old Swede!) = "Whoa!"/"Wow!"
Have you ever been called Piefke or Marmeladinger by an Austrian?
Not seriously, though I will make self-deprecating jokes about it and German cliches. But then again I occasionally get one of the highest praises: "You're not a typical German!"
I have a colleague, though, who is the picture of a Piefke. Strong German accent. Always on the go. Always dissatisfied with something, like employees at a chain store not giving him their full attention and service 2 minutes (literally) before closing time; or people walking too slow; or that some things need a bit in Vienna - and he'll loudly voice his annoyance and explain how things are better in Germany.
Quote from: Syt on October 10, 2014, 11:34:10 PM
he'll loudly voice his annoyance and explain how things are better in Germany.
My parents had a German exchange student who literally spent the whole Academic year telling them how stupid the US was how much better everything was in Germany.
Quote from: Valmy on October 10, 2014, 11:32:35 PM
Quote from: derspiess on October 10, 2014, 11:27:30 PM
The Dutch were nothing but nice to me in my time in the Netherlands. Almost to a fault. The Flemish were equally so in Belgium. The Walloons... well, at least they made good beer.
I just thought it was funny both the countries you like are Calvinist ones :P
Granted I guess France is sorta Calvinist to in its way.
Well admittedly I've never been to Switzerland. Just going on a vibe I've gotten from them over the years.
But I just can't get over how nice the Dutch were. Except for the hooked that yelled at me in Amsterdam.
I think the Swiss are the most anal retentive people in the world. Nothing at all like the Dutch.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 07:53:52 PM
Quote from: Razgovory on October 10, 2014, 07:44:30 PM
"Honky" is negative term for a white guy. Come from "Bohunk" which itself comes from "Bohemian".
Interesting. Where did you pick this up Raz?
And not to doubt you, but how the hell did a black person ever meet a Czech?
I'm like masking tape, I pick up all sorts of shit. White Americans would call Eastern European immigrants "Bohunk", presumably blacks heard them and applied it to all whites. I imagine blacks living in northern cities had a lot of contact with Eastern European immigrants in the early 20th century.
Quote from: Razgovory on October 11, 2014, 12:30:17 AM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 10, 2014, 07:53:52 PM
Quote from: Razgovory on October 10, 2014, 07:44:30 PM
"Honky" is negative term for a white guy. Come from "Bohunk" which itself comes from "Bohemian".
Interesting. Where did you pick this up Raz?
And not to doubt you, but how the hell did a black person ever meet a Czech?
I'm like masking tape, I pick up all sorts of shit. White Americans would call Eastern European immigrants "Bohunk", presumably blacks heard them and applied it to all whites. I imagine blacks living in northern cities had a lot of contact with Eastern European immigrants in the early 20th century.
Raz is right. From my dad, bohunk/honky was definitely the slur you'd use against eastern European immigrants, like Ukrainians. It's only from modern googling that I ever learned the "Czech" connection for that word.
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on October 10, 2014, 06:04:48 PM
Mon tabarnac jvais te décalisser la yeule, calice, pardon my Canadian French.
Fixed! ;)
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 11, 2014, 12:06:36 AM
I think the Swiss are the most anal retentive people in the world. Nothing at all like the Dutch.
I've not gotten that vibe too much.
They strike me as like polite Frenchmen (and women).
Which is odd.
Tyrkertro (Turkish belief [a belief you'll hang on to no matter the evidence against it]).
For dutch
Kolenengels spreken - speaking coalenglish speaking bad english
Werkennmet de franse slag - working in the french way working slowly
Geen geld geen zwitsers - no money no swiss nothing is free comes from french when the swiss were merchant soldiers
Quote from: celedhring on October 10, 2014, 03:30:49 PM
-"Irse a la francesa" - "French goodbye": to leave abruptly and/or impolitely. AFAIK this one is present in other languages so the French must be really adept at it.
-"Coger una turca" - "To catch a Turk" (femenine): to get REALLY drunk.
-"Beber como un cosaco" - "To drink like a Cossack": to drink a LOT.
-"Hacer el indio" - "To act like an Indian": to act like a fool, to fool around (usually used when kids play and make a lot of fuss, for example).
-"Hacerse el sueco" - "To act like a Swede": when you pretend you didn't hear/notice something.
For some reason we have shitloads about China:
-"Naranjas de la China" - "Chinese oranges!": A prudish equivalent of the English "bullshit!".
-"Un cuento chino" - "A Chinese tale": something that's a blatant lie/excuse.
-"Lo saben hasta los chinos" - "Even the Chinese know that": when something you believe was a great insight/info it's actually common knowledge.
-"Esto parece chino" - "This looks like Chinese": when a written text is really complicated (a manual, for example).
-"Trabajo de chinos" - "Chinese work": when you are doing some labor that's actually menial but that needs a lot of time/work to finish.
Not really about nationalities but ethnicities, but don't forget also "Trabajar como un negro" (to work as a black, meaning working very hard or doing backbreaking labour) or "ser muy moro" (to be quite moorish, meaning to be extremely jealous regarding your wife or girlfriend).
It might have to do with our long isolation, but Icelandic neither has national nor regional slurs which have been adopted into the language.
Don't trust a Greek (bearing gifts).
A non-Dutch one! :w00t:
Quote from: Valmy on October 10, 2014, 09:22:18 PM
I had no idea my language contained so much Dutch hatred.
I think it should be remember that for a long time "Dutch" referred to Germans as well or people living in a German state.
Quote from: The Larch on October 11, 2014, 10:47:12 AM
Quote from: celedhring on October 10, 2014, 03:30:49 PM
-"Irse a la francesa" - "French goodbye": to leave abruptly and/or impolitely. AFAIK this one is present in other languages so the French must be really adept at it.
-"Coger una turca" - "To catch a Turk" (femenine): to get REALLY drunk.
-"Beber como un cosaco" - "To drink like a Cossack": to drink a LOT.
-"Hacer el indio" - "To act like an Indian": to act like a fool, to fool around (usually used when kids play and make a lot of fuss, for example).
-"Hacerse el sueco" - "To act like a Swede": when you pretend you didn't hear/notice something.
For some reason we have shitloads about China:
-"Naranjas de la China" - "Chinese oranges!": A prudish equivalent of the English "bullshit!".
-"Un cuento chino" - "A Chinese tale": something that's a blatant lie/excuse.
-"Lo saben hasta los chinos" - "Even the Chinese know that": when something you believe was a great insight/info it's actually common knowledge.
-"Esto parece chino" - "This looks like Chinese": when a written text is really complicated (a manual, for example).
-"Trabajo de chinos" - "Chinese work": when you are doing some labor that's actually menial but that needs a lot of time/work to finish.
Not really about nationalities but ethnicities, but don't forget also "Trabajar como un negro" (to work as a black, meaning working very hard or doing backbreaking labour) or "ser muy moro" (to be quite moorish, meaning to be extremely jealous regarding your wife or girlfriend).
I thought about those, but decided to refrain from the most racist ones :lol:
And another one in dutch
De engelse ziekte the english disease rickets
Een frans compliment a french compliment an unclear compliment if its positive negative
Zo dronken als een zwitser as drunk as a swiss
Quote from: Archy on October 11, 2014, 04:49:43 PM
De engelse ziekte the english disease rickets
Similarly, in Spanish "el mal francés" (the French disease) is syphilis.
Quote from: Sheilbh on October 11, 2014, 11:36:29 AM
Don't trust a Greek (bearing gifts).
A non-Dutch one! :w00t:
I wonder how many languages have something similar; since it's derived from Laocoon's speech in the Aeneid.
Quote from: Savonarola on October 11, 2014, 06:07:34 PM
Quote from: Sheilbh on October 11, 2014, 11:36:29 AM
Don't trust a Greek (bearing gifts).
A non-Dutch one! :w00t:
I wonder how many languages have something similar; since it's derived from Laocoon's speech in the Aeneid.
I like this one:
Quote
Greek factory n.
1856 R. W. Emerson Eng. Traits xii. 205 Oxford is a Greek factory, as Wilton mills weave carpet.
Greek is also a euphemism for anal sex in Germany. French means oral sex, and Spanish means a tit-fuck.
Quote from: Syt on October 11, 2014, 11:56:00 PM
Greek is also a euphemism for anal sex in Germany. French means oral sex, and Spanish means a tit-fuck.
It's the same over here - except tit-fuck is called "Cuban".
Anyone know when oral sex was invented?
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 12, 2014, 02:35:37 AM
Anyone know when oral sex was invented?
Probably older than mankind:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_sex
QuoteOral sex has been observed in the animal kingdom among many species.[45][46][47] It has been suggested that there is an evolutionary advantage due to the tendency of primates, non-primates and humans to have oral sex.[48]
Also, for this thread:
QuoteForced fellatio is often called Egyptian rape or simply Egyptian; this goes back to the time of the Crusades when Mamluks were alleged to force their Christian captives to do this.[51]
Quote from: Syt on October 11, 2014, 11:56:00 PM
Greek is also a euphemism for anal sex in Germany. French means oral sex, and Spanish means a tit-fuck.
And a Parisian (Pariser) is a French letter. :contract:
A bit old-fashioned though.
Quote from: The Larch on October 11, 2014, 10:47:12 AM
"ser muy moro" (to be quite moorish, meaning to be extremely jealous regarding your wife or girlfriend).
Could this one be inspired by Shakespeare?
Quote from: Syt on October 12, 2014, 02:41:56 AM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on October 12, 2014, 02:35:37 AM
Anyone know when oral sex was invented?
Probably older than mankind:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_sex
QuoteOral sex has been observed in the animal kingdom among many species.[45][46][47] It has been suggested that there is an evolutionary advantage due to the tendency of primates, non-primates and humans to have oral sex.[48]
Don't male bonobos use oral sex to resolve disputes over females (with the blowee letting the blower have sex with the female as a result)?
Quote from: celedhring on October 11, 2014, 04:57:23 PM
Quote from: Archy on October 11, 2014, 04:49:43 PM
De engelse ziekte the english disease rickets
Similarly, in Spanish "el mal francés" (the French disease) is syphilis.
Same in Polish - or, alternatively, just called "franca".
Quote from: Martinus on October 12, 2014, 03:28:38 AM
Quote from: The Larch on October 11, 2014, 10:47:12 AM
"ser muy moro" (to be quite moorish, meaning to be extremely jealous regarding your wife or girlfriend).
Could this one be inspired by Shakespeare?
Don't think so, we've had plenty of contact with muslims over the centuries to develop our own biases. :P
Quote from: celedhring on October 11, 2014, 04:57:23 PM
Quote from: Archy on October 11, 2014, 04:49:43 PM
De engelse ziekte the english disease rickets
Similarly, in Spanish "el mal francés" (the French disease) is syphilis.
In French, it used to be called "Mal de Naples" (Naples disease) or even "Mal des Anglais" (English disease). Latter was much less common.
So lovely to see the different European nationalities blaming syphilis on their neighbours, or the French.
It's also the French disease in English :lol:
One day, contempt for the French will unite the world. :)
Quote from: celedhring on October 12, 2014, 10:34:18 AM
One day, contempt for the French will unite the world. :)
Contempt for the French seems like giving them more attention than they deserve. :boring:
A Chinese Fire Drill is pandemonium or confusion.
From Wikipedia I learned that a "Chinese Ace" is an incompetent pilot; deriving from the aeronautic term "One wing low," which sounded to some like a Chinese name.
You think about us much more than we think about you :frog:
Quote from: Zoupa on October 13, 2014, 02:44:23 PM
You think about us much more than we think about you :frog:
Doubt that. I'll bet more French know who the President of the US is then Americans who know who the President of France is.
Quote from: Razgovory on October 13, 2014, 06:25:51 PM
Quote from: Zoupa on October 13, 2014, 02:44:23 PM
You think about us much more than we think about you :frog:
Doubt that. I'll bet more French know who the President of the US is then Americans who know who the President of France is.
On a percentage basis, more French probably know who is President of the US than Americans know who the President of the US is.
Quote from: dps on October 13, 2014, 07:56:07 PM
Quote from: Razgovory on October 13, 2014, 06:25:51 PM
Quote from: Zoupa on October 13, 2014, 02:44:23 PM
You think about us much more than we think about you :frog:
Doubt that. I'll bet more French know who the President of the US is then Americans who know who the President of France is.
On a percentage basis, more French probably know who is President of the US than Americans know who the President of the US is.
French need to know who foreingers are, so they can better snootily look down upon them. :P
Quote from: dps on October 13, 2014, 07:56:07 PM
On a percentage basis, more French probably know who is President of the US than Americans know who the President of the US is.
It's those damned teacher's unions.
Quote from: Martinus on October 12, 2014, 03:31:30 AM
Don't male bonobos use oral sex to resolve disputes over females (with the blowee letting the blower have sex with the female as a result)?
They also sometimes forcefully sodomize their own children.