I Never Knew There Was a Word for It - Adam Jacot De Boinod [16]
In the slough of despond
There are various ways to deal with feelings of despair. Either you can take a philosophical view and try to avoid the Persian concept of sanud, that is, the exercise of the mind upon an unprofitable subject; or you can adopt the defeatist attitude inherent in the Indonesian word jera, which means ‘so scared by a past experience that one will never want to do it again’. Or you can take refuge in Kummerspeck, a German word that describes the excess weight you will gain from emotion-related overeating (literally, grief bacon).
Seeing red
Therapists would suggest it’s better out than in:
mukamuka (Japanese) feeling so angry one feels like throwing up
geragas (Malay) to comb one’s hair in anger
feau (Samoan) to recall good deeds done when one is angry
On reflection
Survival instincts
Even though some languages are vanishing, in a world less hospitable to aboriginal peoples and more swamped by English, this does not mean it’s impossible to keep endangered languages alive. Mohawk, for instance, spoken by indigenous groups in Quebec, was in retreat until the 1970s, when it was first codified and then taught to children in schools. Welsh and Maori have both made a comeback with concerted official help; and Navajo (USA), Hawaiian and several languages spoken in remote parts of Botswana have been artifically revived.
Iceland has managed to keep alive its native tongue, even though it is spoken by no more than 275,000 people; and the ancient Nordic language of Faroese, thought to have been once spoken by the Vikings, was preserved from extinction by the Danish government, who even went as far as putting grammar hints and verb declensions on the sides of milk cartons.
A powerful political purpose is another force for reviving an old language. Resurgent nationalism helped bring Irish back from the Celtic twilight; while the establishment of the nation of Israel has turned Hebrew from a written language into a proudly spoken national tongue.
Falling in Love
nam gawa the wei woe lu yoe; phung dang si yang they nang yoe (Dzongkha, Bhutan)
fun and pleasure are located below the navel; dispute and trouble are also found there
The language of love
In English the language of love is, metaphorically speaking, a violent and disorientating one: we fall in love, are love struck and struggle to avoid heartbreak. It seems things are the same throughout the world:
harawata o tatsu (Japanese) to break one’s heart (literally, to sever one’s intestines)
coup de foudre (French) love at first sight (literally, a flash of lightning)
mune o kogasu (Japanese) to pine away (literally, to scorch one’s chest)
tragado como media de cartero (Colombian Spanish) being hopelessly in love (literally, swallowed like a postman’s sock)
The rules of attraction …
Physical beauty is often the starting point for love:
pichón (Caribbean Spanish) a handsome young man (literally, young pigeon)
qiubo (Chinese) the bright and clear eyes of a beautiful woman
mahj (Persian) looking beautiful after a disease
avoir la frite (French) to be in great shape (literally, to have the French fry)
magandang hinaharap (Tagalog, Philippines) nice breasts (literally, nice future)
dayadrsti (Hindi) compassionate eyes
kemayu (Indonesian) to act like a beauty
Sometimes the basic materials need a little assistance:
slampadato (Italian) a person who gets tanned with an infrared lamp
zhengrong (Chinese) to tidy oneself up or to improve one’s looks by plastic surgery
… and of repulsion
The Japanese have a particular word for a situation in which attraction is all too brief. Bakku-shan is a girl who appears pretty when seen from behind but not from the front.
Would like to meet
English is somewhat deficient in