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Nov 17
2008

Treat us like humans - Egyptian protests against Polish racism

Posted by Enso in Untagged 

Enso

hassan

That guy behind car's windshield is Mr Hassan, Egyptian citizen living in Kalisz, Poland with his Polish wife and three children. Hassan has just ended his 2-week strike, he started earlier to protest racism-driven violence towards foreigners in Poland. He's just a honestly living guy, repairing old computers for much less you would call a decent pay. But still, one day him, his wife and children where violently attacked by a few drunken fellows, who would hit the poor man's car with bottles shattering the right arm window as well as outcrying things like "Go away you Arab scum [freely translated]" . Hassan got so much pissed off and freightened for his family, he decided to go on a 2-week strike in front of Kalisz city hall. 

Interesting, how the whole affair ended. The perpetrators have actually called Hassan's wife and asked if they could meet the man and his family to apologize for what they had done. All of them met in Hassan's house, where the Egyptian solemnly forgave all the misdeeds "for I have been also many times mistaken" - he explained. The video footage of evidence was then sent to the Kalisz mayor Pęcherz (pol. - Bladder) to substantiate the whole matter properly settled. Mr Bladder promised to process Hassan's citizenship request application in a speedy manner.

Nov 06
2008

Polish word among the most intraslatable?

Posted by Enso in Untagged 

Enso

Recently, I came across a list of intranslatable words published by BBC UK. The list goes as follows:

  • 1. Ilunga [Tshiluba word for a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time; to tolerate it a second time; but never a third time. Note: Tshiluba is a Bantu language spoken in south-eastern Congo, and Zaire]
  • 2. Shlimazl [Yiddish for a chronically unlucky person]
  • 3. Radioukacz [Polish for a person who worked as a telegraphist for the resistance movements on the Soviet side of the Iron Curtain]
  • 4. Naa [Japanese word only used in the Kansai area of Japan, to emphasise statements or agree with someone]
  • 5. Altahmam  [Arabic for a kind of deep sadness]
  • 6. Gezellig [Dutch for cosy]
  • 7. Saudade [Portuguese for a certain type of longing]
  • 8. Selathirupavar  [Tamil for a certain type of truancy]
  • 9. Pochemuchka [Russian for a person who asks a lot of questions]
  • 10. Klloshar [Albanian for loser]
Other list I came upon is none the less interesting:
  • Mamihlapinatapei
    From Yagan, the indigenous language of the Tierra del Fuego region of South America. This word has been translated in several ways in English, always implying a wordless yet meaningful look shared by two people who both desire to initiate something but are both reluctant to start.
  • Jayus
    From Indonesian, meaning a joke so poorly told and so unfunny that one cannot help but laugh.
  • Prozvonit
    In both Czech and Slovak language, this word means to call a mobile phone only to have it ring once so that the other person would call back, allowing the caller not to spend money on minutes.
  • Kyoikumama
    In Japanese, this word refers to a mother who relentlessly pushes her children toward academic achievement.
  • Tartle
    A Scottish verb meaning to hesitate while introducing someone due to having forgotten his/her name.
  • Iktsuarpok
    From the Inuit, meaning to go outside to check if anyone is coming.
  • Cafuné
    From Brazilian Portuguese, meaning to tenderly run one’s fingers through someone’s hair.
  • Torschlusspanik
    From German, this word literally means “gate-closing panic” and is used to describe the fear of diminishing opportunities as one ages. This word is most frequently applied to women who race the ‘biological clock’ to wed and bear children.
  • Tingo
  • From the Pascuense language of Easter Island, it is the act of taking objects one desires from the house of a friend by gradually borrowing all of them.
The reason I'm putting this up is the word Radioukacz, listed here, which I personally have never heard of. On googling this, the only links are from english-speaking pages. No word of it in Polish internet. Very interesting. Who made this word up? If this is a typo, then what is the actual word in Polish. Anyone knows?

[source: BBC.co.uk, http://www.altalang.com/beyond-words/]

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