Since you can't post on "Loanwords from German", post it here. I shall ask you to read Mark Twain's "The Awful German Language", let you find out yourself what I've tried posting on the original thead, and sign off.
Dear jimthedog: Mark Twain made fun of German because it was his business to make fun of just about everything.But language is what people make it.Many gifted people have written marvelous things in German. During WWII many German military terms became English words. I do not recall any recent ones.
Mark Twain made fun of German because it was his business to make fun of just about everything.
I know that was his job, but it was good anyway. I was thinking, when I wrote that, to give out the title in which the quote in the other German comes from.
In reply to:
During WWII many German military terms became English words. I do not recall any recent ones.
I'm suprised we only used blitz, not blitzkrieg, which they used.
"Gezunheit!" came into general use during WWII as soldiers began to return stateside from ETO. I'm sure I spelt it wrong. It's the word used when someone sneezes. wow
Hmm...my CD liner notes list this bit of lyric as "travelling in a fried-out combie." I think your version makes more sense.
Aksherly, mine was a mondegreen, but a semi-intentional one. The van is most often spelled Kombi, and that is the original German spelling. The "Vdub" was my childhood misinterpretation, used here as an homage to international copyright protection laws.
I believe a Kombi is what Us'n aging hippies used to call a Microbus.
Not having been born until 1967 was almost over, I'll have to take your word for what Hippies did. For me, "Kombi" is just a contraction of "Kombinationwagen"
That's appropriate, as far as I am concerned! Kansas is at least ten thousand miles of nothing. Nothing to see except fields of waving grain. Not a hill in sight, to the horizon on ALL sides, and hardly any trees, either. Gave me the heebie-jeebies. Thereafter on my trips out west, I drove hundreds of miles out of my way, specifically to avoid driving through Kansas. Are you listening, CK?
Aksherly, mine was a mondegreen, but a semi-intentional one. The van is most often spelled Kombi, and that is the original German spelling. The "Vdub" was my childhood misinterpretation, used here as an homage to international copyright protection laws. I have never heard of a Kombi--I thought Vdub Kombi was some unknown language! An homage? Quel dommage!
I'm getting older by the second! "those weird VW vanwagons"! they were wonderful-- (and have been reborn as mini vans of today!) My cousin had one set up for camping-- and on one of his early dates with his now wife, her father saw the van, peaked in, and saw a bed-- and asked him if he had an other car... He returned on his motor cycle with an extra helmet.. At which point dad decided a mini van with a bed was better transportation!
Cheap, reliable, and easy to fix, they got great gas milage.. I forgot all about Kombi as name-- and then it was a word i had only heard-- and thought it spelt Combi-- A friend who lived in Uganda had one. when he wrote us, he mentioned getting a VW minibus.. but when he came home, he spoke of his Combi.
An engineer friend was posted to Saudi for a year in the 70s and was given a company car : VW "Bus". No choice. The company had tried many cars and found the air cooled VW engine best for desert regions! Does anyone else remember the imaginative adverts Volkswagon had? I especially recall one that was an entire page, all white space with tiny letters centered "Think small" Real eye catcher in days of overblown, over illustrated, over colored adverts. wow
A Kombi is short for Kombination (e.g. Kombiwagen) and either refers to a so called station wagon or some other utility wagon (not a 'ute' i.e. a pickup, but could certainly be a bussy affair) Strangely enough Germans call anything with a standard sedan format a limousine, even if it's just a normal car.
While we're the subject can anyone explain what makes a coupé a coupé? Is it the 2/3 doors, the motor size or the price?
Ach, nebenbei bemerkt, Ich fand Mark Twains Schreibereien nicht sehr ermutigend!
coupé means cut (from French couper) and in cars refers to the sloping or "cut" rear roof. (I believe).
Ach, nebenbei bemerkt, Ich fand Mark Twains Schreibereien nicht sehr ermutigend! Nor me. While producing a wry smile often enough, Mark Twain was a cynic and his writing is only occasionally encouraging.
Rather than start a whole new thread. I heard a statement in a program on Celts this weekend that because of the social structure of conqueror and conquered, only 10 loan words have passed from Welsh into the English language. Any one got any ideas on what they might be, or where to find out? I guessed "Bard" but that comes from Gaelic apparently. If you think Eisteddford is in English use then that might be one. I have not yet had time to research this yet. (Druid?) Rod
Has anyone else noticed that "mondegreen" is the word of the day at yourdictionary.com [url]http://www.yourdictionary.com/cgi-bin/wotd.cgi[url] today 30th April?? URL will probably give another word on different days. Rod
the 'Druid' name seems to be more a name given to those men and women who study Celtic mysticism, philosophy, etc. rather than one they gave themselves. 'Eisteddfod' is a great word, I now know it's Welsh, it sounded more nordic to me. The only Welsh word that came to mind was 'flummery', which is some kind of pudding, but is used in English to mean nonsensical language or just nonsense in general. for examples see this excellent link: http://www.oreilly.com/people/staff/sierra/flum/
Since visiting Wales, (because I happened to be in Bristol) 'bout 5 years ago I often use one word I picked up there: toiledau = toilet
How did you know I did that? change name from Ron to Rod
I've got my profile set up to send me answers by e-mail. So I got your first post. But not the update incidentally which I saw via the web when I went to reply. It's always the most simple names which are the most troublesome!
" only 10 loan words have passed from welsh into the English language " Dear Rod: I just now encountered the name "Enid" in the di ctionary, which gives its derivation from an old Welsh word meaning "soul".
>Since you can't post on "Loanwords from German"...
my mind returned to this (as a coder's mind will do) in light of the "lost thread" that we had a while back -- so I did a search for "Guten Tag". you won't see much except for a long list of folks who beat their heads against the proverbial wall.
We own a 1923 & a 1926 Model T Ford coupe. In this case it refers to the fact that it is a 2 door and seats 2 people altho the back/trunk is also sloped down.
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For me, "Kombi" is just a contraction of "Kombinationwagen"
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