Degerundisation in Furrin

In Spanish etc., campsite > camping, carpark > parking, etc., but then in German happy ending > happy End. Who cares? End is a genital euphemism in English, so a happy ending in a London massage parlour loses nothing in translation. The Happy End of Georg Anton Benda’s version of Romeo and Juliet is more…

Untranslatability

To the extent that she is not merely chucking us clickbait, Elena Horrillo’s piece on supposedly untranslatable Spanish expressions suggests she hasn’t read the English Wikipedia article, some of which has been translated into Spanish. Translating difficult expressions, sayings and proverbs like those cited was already a minor industry in the late Middle Ages (anyone…

Saxon revolt?

Many old-style hardware shops in London have a reputation for poor customer service (an example). I wonder if they have struggled because the DIY-ers had no idea what they were looking for, and because the Slav professionals who have replaced them since 2004 have no idea what it is called. But they are usually fine…