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Taumatawhakatangihangakoauaotamateaurehaeaturi

pukapihimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuaakitanarahu

means ‘The brow of the hill where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, who slid, climbed and ate mountains, the great traveller, sat and played on the flute to his beloved.’

Compass comparisons

The sun features strongly in how other cultures have described the compass points. The Mingo of the USA describe north as te’kææhkwææhkö, the sun isn’t there; and west as hekææhkwë’s, the sun habitually drops down over there. The Bambara people of Mali have more complicated associations:

EAST is the colour white; the land of the dead and of wild and domestic animals.

WEST is the land of the ‘sunset people’ and of birds; the source of custom and of all goodness and loveliness.

NORTH is identified with the seventh heaven, a far distant country, the dwelling of the great god Faro, who created the world in all its present form; the north is the home of all water creatures – fish, crocodiles and frogs.

SOUTH is peopled by plants and the evil beings whom Faro was forced to destroy at the beginning of time, because they had stolen speech from him; the home of pollution.

Coucher de soleil

Rain or shine, windy or still, the sun sinks down towards the horizon, and the day winds towards its close:

tainunu (Gilbertese, Oceania) the time when shadows lengthen in the late afternoon

pakupaku (Rapanui, Easter Island) to come down in a straight line like the rays of the sun

sig (Sumerian, Mesopotamia) the colour of the low setting sun (reddish-yellow or gold)

iltarusko (Finnish) sunset glow

ahiahi-ata (Rapanui, Easter Island) the last moments of light before nightfall

Silver goddess

Darkness falls, and the night-sun reappears, bringing with it mystery and magic:

jyótsnā (Sanskrit) a moonlight night

yakmoez (Turkish) the effect of moonlight sparkling on water

kuunsilta (Finnish) the long reflection of the moon when it is low in the sky and shining on the calm surface of a lake (literally, moon bridge)

hasi istitta-ammi (Alabama, USA) to bathe one’s face in the moon, wash the face four times in moonlight

IDIOMS OF THE WORLD

It’s raining cats and dogs

ou vrouens met knopkieries reen (Afrikaans) it’s raining old women with clubs

padají trakaře (Czech) it’s raining wheelbarrows

det regner skomagerdrenge (Danish) it’s raining shoemakers’ apprentices

het regent pijpenstelen (Dutch) it’s raining pipestems

baron mesleh dobeh asb mirized (Persian) it’s raining like the tail of the horse

brékhei kareklopódara (Greek) it’s raining chair legs

il pleut comme vache qui pisse (French) it’s raining like a pissing cow

es regnet Schusterbuben (German) it’s raining young cobblers

estan lloviendo hasta maridos (Spanish) it’s even raining husbands

20.

The Root of All Evil

ahjar habib fis-suq minn mitt skud fis-senduq (Maltese)

a friend in the market is better than one hundred gold coins in the chest

A frog’s armpit

‘Don’t offer me advice, give me money,’ say the Spanish – and who would disagree, certainly if they’re in a tight spot financially:

mas limpio que sobaco de rana (Venezuelan Spanish) broke (literally, cleaner than a frog’s armpit)

auf den Hund kommen (German) to be broke (literally, to get to the dog; in medieval times, a dog was painted on the bottom of money chests – if you could see the dog, you had run out of money)

n’avoir plus un radis (French) to be stone broke (literally, to be without a single radish)

kukla (Russian) a roll of bills in which the inner bills have been replaced by worthless paper (literally, a doll)

Cutting gold

Most of us would be more than happy with an easy escape from such an unfortunate predicament:

gaji buta (Malay) getting paid without having to work

att skära guld med täljkniv (Swedish) to make money with very little effort (literally, to cut gold with a pocket knife)

dawo (Yoruba, Nigeria, Benin and Togo) to produce money by magic