tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post7909902490341596813..comments2024-03-16T00:21:43.240+00:00Comments on Separated by a Common Language: signs you wouldn't see in Americalynneguisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-58003115093200823182016-10-27T16:01:56.507+01:002016-10-27T16:01:56.507+01:00Well, the relevant question here is where it came ...Well, the relevant question here is where it came into English from. The OED says:<br /><br />Etymology: < Swedish ombudsman legal representative or adviser (early 15th cent. in Old Swedish as wmbitzman ; also in Old Swedish as ömbotzman ) < Old Swedish umboþ commission, order (see umboth n.) + man man n.1 Compare Old Danish (plural) ombytzmen , vmbodsmen legal representatives, plenipotentiaries (both second half of the 15th cent.), Danish ombudsmand (1953, reborrowed < Swedish). Compare umbothman n.lynneguisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-36286445860873500402016-10-27T15:27:09.013+01:002016-10-27T15:27:09.013+01:00Actually, I believe ombudsman comes from DANISH, n...Actually, I believe ombudsman comes from DANISH, not Swedish! (I'm Danish - in case you were wondering)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-23812514044091931682016-10-27T15:22:41.693+01:002016-10-27T15:22:41.693+01:00I am Danish, and I am 100% sure that is, in fact, ...I am Danish, and I am 100% sure that is, in fact, the reason! In Scandinavia and the Netherlands we generally use subtitles, whereas in Germany, France and Italy they generally don't, and that clearly correlates with English skills (seems clear to me, at least! I have no actual data). When I travelled in South East Asia in 1996 I observed the same correlation in Thailand and Indonesia: In Indonesia they used subtitles more than they did in Thailand, and the Indonesians seemed to speak much better English.<br />Unfortunately, Danish TV uses more dubbing now in kids/teen programmes than they used to. When I was a kid in the 1980'es, dubbing was only used in programmes where the target audience was below school age and therefore not expected to be able to read subtitles. (So to us, dubbed programmes were for babies!)But my daughter, now 14, is been hard pressed to find subtitled programmes aimed at a teen audience - nowadays even those are dubbed (so she watches Netflix instead).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-83200980280329147442012-10-18T05:23:20.321+01:002012-10-18T05:23:20.321+01:00Initials BM are not as bad as mine.....MF!
Initials BM are not as bad as mine.....MF!<br />Mindynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-5564144984739559302007-12-04T15:53:00.000+00:002007-12-04T15:53:00.000+00:00With reference to the outsize shops , there was a ...With reference to the outsize shops , there was a chain in England c. 1980-85 (I haven't the faintest idea if it's still around - I'm a bloke !) called Richard Shops . Fine , except (I suppose)for the few chaps called by that name . <BR/>What then happened was that it re-invented itself as just "Richards" ... which caused huge hilarity to anyone with any knowledge of Cockney rhyming slang . There was a very funny Ronnie Barker sketch with him as a vicar giving a sermon in rhyming slang .Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-2682994663858836992007-04-12T20:19:00.000+01:002007-04-12T20:19:00.000+01:00---------This, from a country, where saying 'Fanny...---------<BR/>This, from a country, where saying 'Fanny Bag' loudly does not embarrass anybody?<BR/>---------<BR/><BR/>That's "fanny pack," not "bag." And while the phrase may not be as hilarious in AmE as in BrE, rest assured that we Americans certainly laugh at people wearing the article itself.<BR/><BR/>I've found myself wondering whether or not it's a coincidence that the American pop-rap group that popularized the term "cameltoe" via its song of the same name was called "FannyPack."Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17198310727349521010noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-33815280625816220902007-04-03T15:23:00.000+01:002007-04-03T15:23:00.000+01:00In France a BMW is called a BM. That wouldn't work...In France a BMW is called a BM. That wouldn't work in America, where it's called a Beemer instead. A French friend of mine who speaks English calls her mother-in-law (<I>sa belle-mère</I>) her BM, much to our amusement. We finally explained it to her.Ken Broadhursthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04430899802705818716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-74559565948874820972007-03-31T09:35:00.000+01:002007-03-31T09:35:00.000+01:00It says a lot for its marketing prowess that BMW i...It says a lot for its marketing prowess that BMW is a prestigious brand in the US.Paul Gipsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13564960646170455536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-10423853141567339372007-03-31T01:27:00.000+01:002007-03-31T01:27:00.000+01:00Interesting - I've never ridden in an elevator car...Interesting - I've never ridden in an elevator car. The elevator <I>gondola</I>, sure, but never a car.<BR/><BR/>Of course, I keep things cold in an <I>icebox</I>, carry a <I>pocketbook</I>, and go <I>down cellar</I> to find the fusebox, so perhaps the <I>gondola</I> is anachronistic too?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-22046504530632847282007-03-30T22:44:00.000+01:002007-03-30T22:44:00.000+01:00A CD IS a record, and a DVD IS a video. We just go...A CD IS a record, and a DVD IS a video. We just got used to thinking those words referred specifically to vinyl records and VHS cassettes, but they needn't. Granted it is easier and more specific to refer to a record on CD as "a CD" and a DVD video as "a DVD", but both those things can be used for purposes other than music or video.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-23482625516310142262007-03-30T17:46:00.000+01:002007-03-30T17:46:00.000+01:00Haven't caught on camera?Haven't caught on camera?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-68140332252369399752007-03-30T00:03:00.000+01:002007-03-30T00:03:00.000+01:00--------------------... which I haven't managed to...--------------------<BR/>... which I haven't managed to capture in pixels (One used to say on film... What does one say now?<BR/>--------------------<BR/><BR/>I usually say I've digitized something to say I've taken a digital picture of it, or scanned it.<BR/><BR/>soo.... "Which I haven't managed to digitize..."Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01531868283299825675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-41123891162999267402007-03-29T16:58:00.000+01:002007-03-29T16:58:00.000+01:00Steph: believe it or not, in old Bangalore, they h...Steph: believe it or not, in old Bangalore, they have signs that announce rumbler strips (to get drivers to slow down in residential areas) similarly. Signs say: Humps Ahead.. causing much mirth to outsiders.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-66382558351334722252007-03-29T14:12:00.000+01:002007-03-29T14:12:00.000+01:00My parents taught me and my siblings to use the wo...My parents taught me and my siblings to use the word BM. (They didn't like kiddy-talk like poop, poo-poo, etc.) This was in the late 70s/early 80s.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-65487767997139639982007-03-29T12:50:00.000+01:002007-03-29T12:50:00.000+01:00I have a youthful memory of photographing a "Way O...I have a youthful memory of photographing a "Way Out" sign, and a recent memory of a trip to Wales that said something about "Humps next 50 (?? distance)" (although the first image I found when searching on the net for a humps sign was one in Iowa).stephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16749932791938557725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-47782654543896417682007-03-29T12:44:00.000+01:002007-03-29T12:44:00.000+01:00The signs in Ireland (both the Republic and NI) sa...The signs in Ireland (both the Republic and NI) say 'Yield'. I remember because my friend and I were tickled by the fact we were being told to YIELD! which to me, sounds really odd.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-42312568952726746362007-03-29T08:12:00.000+01:002007-03-29T08:12:00.000+01:00I must say that BM reference was over my head. How...I must say that BM reference was over my head. However after reading the whole thing, my thoughts? <BR/><BR/>This, from a country, where saying 'Fanny Bag' loudly does not embarrass anybody?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-35644960999463543382007-03-29T04:12:00.000+01:002007-03-29T04:12:00.000+01:00Music is still being used when clearly, nothing pr...<I>Music</I> is still being used when clearly, nothing produced in the past 15 years can be called music!<BR/>I'm being facetious of course, there was a song back in '95 that qualifies.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-39105351313607793812007-03-29T03:50:00.000+01:002007-03-29T03:50:00.000+01:00I feel so dumb - I didn't get that a BM was a bowe...I feel so dumb - I didn't get that a BM was a bowel movement at first and was racking my brain to figure out what it meant ("Bad mother?"). My parents knew though, and told me I've led a sheltered life:P<BR/><BR/>Also, few telephones truly "ring" anymore, yet people still call it a ring. It reminds me of a Sunday comic strip ("Frazz" I think) in which a child asks the main character (a school janitor named Frazz) why people say a telephone "rings" when it really makes a "warble" sound.<BR/><BR/>Also, I sometimes hear people refer to DVDs as being "videos" and CDs as being "records." In fact, I find myself still using "record."<BR/><BR/>Also, I betcha that long after tube televisions are long extinct that people will still call it the "tube"/"boob tube," etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-27333333163062326772007-03-29T00:18:00.001+01:002007-03-29T00:18:00.001+01:00"IBM, UBM, we all BM for IBM."--David Gerrold, Whe..."IBM, UBM, we all BM for IBM."<BR/>--David Gerrold, <I>When Harlie Was One</I>.<BR/><BR/>Other techno-anachronisms are <I>icebox</I>, which is dying out, and <I>tinfoil</I>, which I think is holding its own. Certainly <I>tin can</I> is far from extinct. Some such words are so pervasive, especially when they use Latin forms, that they are effectively invisible: who remembers that <I>manufacture</I> once meant 'make by hand'?John Cowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11452247999156925669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-32163491265231548632007-03-29T00:18:00.000+01:002007-03-29T00:18:00.000+01:00When I was at Uni, similar signs would read that s...When I was at Uni, similar signs would read that such and such a meeting would be held in the 'Stud. Ass'. Ah, it was a mighty 'fit' building that Students' Association!Alliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05742655956007529738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-47476137581911713162007-03-29T00:06:00.000+01:002007-03-29T00:06:00.000+01:00Even after reading the sign a couple of times, I n...Even after reading the sign a couple of times, I never thought it meant "association". My best guess was that the fund raiser was in "the rear end" of the building and someone chose poorly in their dictionary.Hodgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02288259527410351909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-39715861658865698782007-03-29T00:05:00.000+01:002007-03-29T00:05:00.000+01:00I am hoping you are still in Svee denn, because it...I am hoping you are still in Svee denn, because it would be nice to see some examples of SwE spellings and use cf. AmE spellings and use. <BR/><BR/>I'm thinking you are a stickler for consistency, and so, if you are out of Britain, the operative focus of your posts would shift away from BrE to the E of whatever country you are in. <BR/><BR/>Besides, it would be interesting to hear about AmE words that started in Sweden and somehow became English. And, uff da, I don't mean Ikea! Leave that one for the ombudsman on a moped.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-47346964403658056092007-03-28T23:33:00.000+01:002007-03-28T23:33:00.000+01:00The BM association is fading, a generational thing...The BM association is fading, a generational thing from a laxative (Dulcolax?) who had the slogan, "For a BM in the AM." BS is much more of a titter trigger, I think.Zhoenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03515663141425057088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-75631158822065620532007-03-28T23:18:00.000+01:002007-03-28T23:18:00.000+01:00I think another anachronistic term still hanging a...I think another anachronistic term still hanging around is the use of 'dial' when phoning someone. One can't precisely dial when one is pushing buttons these days. But we still say that's what we're doing.<BR/><BR/>I agree about the subtitles versus dubbing. We had a family from Holland here for dinner a couple of weeks ago, and talked about this very subject. Apparently the Netherlands tends to subtitle, too, even for lots of children's programmes. <BR/><BR/>I'll admit to not having a clue what was wrong with BM!Alliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05742655956007529738noreply@blogger.com