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Off topic: calidad?! another great example of translation in the media
Thread poster: Rose Jenkinson
Rose Jenkinson Local time: 05:20 French to English + ...
May 19, 2008
Dear fellow Prozians,
It's only the local rag, so am not going to get too indignant about it, but I saw this article today which made me cringe and thought it might amuse somebody.
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Narcis Lozano Drago Spain Local time: 06:20 Member (2007) English to Spanish + ...
"Quality me!!"
May 19, 2008
Just go to Babel Fish and type "Goodness Me!". You will find who was the "translator" used by this "journalist"^^.
Narcis
[Editado a las 2008-05-19 18:14]
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Luisa Ramos, CT United States Local time: 00:20 English to Spanish
A good laugh
May 20, 2008
Thanks for the good laugh. I live in Miami; you would not believe the things I see and hear, day in, day out.
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Nesrin United Kingdom Local time: 05:20 English to Arabic + ...
Trying to be funny
May 20, 2008
I think the journalist's just trying to be funny... at least I hope he is.
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Susan Welsh United States Local time: 00:20 Russian to English + ...
What do construction contractors do in their spare time? (German)
May 20, 2008
I found a funny one on the LEO German online dictionary the other day (normally a very useful source.) The definition for "rasche Montage" is given as "fast erection [constr.]." (I called it to their attention, and they'll hopefully fix it when they get a chance.)
[Edited at 2008-05-20 10:54]
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lexical Spain Local time: 06:20 Portuguese to English
Reminds me...
May 20, 2008
...of an English ex-pat living in the Algarve who, at best, spoke proto-Portuguese. When someone spoke rubbish, he would exclaim "Lixo!" which is Portuguese for the rubbish/trash you put out weekly for the collectors, instead of "Que disparate!" (Nonsense!).
It can be surprisingly difficult sometimes to persuade proto-speakers that their logic is wrong.
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Slightly off the subject, but still ... There's a story (possibly apocryphal) that Michael Caine was filming in Spain and, during a break at a café and hearing others calling "Oiga!" to attract a waiter, asked a his table companion "Get me an oiga, would you?" Jenny
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Rose Jenkinson Local time: 05:20 French to English + ...
TOPIC STARTER
babelfish
May 20, 2008
Of course, babelfish - I should have guessed! It's frightening that so many people outside the translation community think of it as a serious translation tool. Miami must be an interesting place to live Luisa, I bet you could write a book about all the strange linguistic mix-ups and misunderstandings!
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