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taraadin (Arabic) a compromise; a way of solving a problem without anyone losing face

mochi (Chinese) the rapport or teamwork that enables people to cooperate smoothly (literally, silent contract)

remettre les pendules à l’heure (French) to re-align something, for example, in establishing who is the boss, or how we work (literally, to set the clocks at the right time again)

biritululo (Kiriwani, Papua New Guinea) comparing yams to settle a dispute

War elephants

What a shame that such delightful methods can’t be universally employed. But from the start of time dispute-resolution has often been alarmingly violent:

gazi (Mauritanian dialect) a plundering raid in which at least forty camels are employed

falurombolás (Hungarian) the destruction of villages

Schrecklichkeit (German) a deliberate policy of terrorizing non-combatants

edsabil (Maguindanaon, Philippines) to fight until death for the cause of Allah

nuulone (Anywa, Nilo-Saharan) a victory dance with rifles after a war

Cancer forces

All that’s changed over the years is the deadliness of the weapons used:

dagadaga (Sranan Tongo, Surinam) a machine gun

plofstof (Afrikaans) explosive (literally, puff/bang stuff)

springstof (Dutch) an explosive (literally, jump matter)

rakovye voiska (Russian) strategic missile forces (literally, cancer forces – referring to the numerous cancerous diseases caused by radiation)

Heroes

On the battlefield itself individuals make extraordinary sacrifices …

lwa manyanga (Mambwe, Zambia) to fight one another crawling along on all fours

mamakakaua (Hawaiian) the leading man in battle who bears the brunt of the fighting

ohiampunut (Finnish) one who has survived in battle (literally, shot/fired past)

abhí-vī ra (Sanskrit) surrounded by heroes

Yellow-bellies

… or not, as the case may be:

ngivhe (Venda, South Africa) to hit with the butt-end of a spear (a blow given as a warning to escape)

rafizat (Persian) a body of soldiers who deserted their commander and retreated

imboscarsi (Italian) to lie in ambush, to evade military service, to avoid working, or to retreat to a secluded place to make love (literally, to take to the woods)

palias (Maranao, Philippines) the power or magic which protects its possessor from a bullet in battle

Handschuhschneeballwerfer (German) somebody who wears gloves to throw snowballs – used in general for all cowards

War trophies

There are no limits to cruelty, savagery and treachery:

liput (Manobo, Philippines) to throw someone off guard, through an appearance of goodwill, in order to kill him

usauara (Yamana, Chile) to shout, as a group of men, when ready to make an assault on someone they intend to kill

áhaneoha’ov (Cheyenne, USA) to kill someone by stepping on him

tsantsa (Jivaro, Ecuador) a human head shrunken and dried as a war trophy

tzompantli (Aztec) a rack of skulls

Legacy

But when it’s all over, what are we left with?

aidos (Ancient Greek) the understanding of the need for humility at the point of victory

Gleichgültigkeit (German) the feeling of dreadful moral insensibility and detachment which is a peculiar legacy of wars

Cucumbers and shaving brushes

And, all too often, a large standing army. Who better than the Russians to tell us all about the realities of that sort of organization?

ogourets a soldier in his first six months of service (literally, a cucumber – referring to the colour green, which signifies inexperience)

pomazok a soldier who has served more than one year and is therefore released from certain menial tasks (literally, a shaving brush)

chelovek-amfibiya a soldier on dishwashing duty (literally, an amphibian man)

khoronit’ okourok a punishment for soldiers who drop their cigarette butts on the ground; when even one such butt is found all soldiers are woken up in the middle of the night and forced to spend hours digging deep holes to bury individual butts

lekarstvo ot lyubvi two years of army service (literally, a cure for love, meaning that