This next one is called Istanbul 2 Istanbul. This one also begins and finishes in Istabul. It has a website of its own. It is under construction at the moment. I will add the link when it’s up and running.

Exciting!

Hugs and kisses with best wishes for the 2009!

Here’s a little list of the phrase “Happy New Year” in a few languages. This list from Freelang is the best I have found on the net, I changed or checked the languages I speak or know how to say “happy new year” in. Please feel free to include corrections in your comments.

I have put it in a table in Word but when I copy paste it I can’t seem to add the whole table, the lines disappear and only text show. And since I can’t tab, the columns aren’t lined up properly. Any suggestions welcome to fix this and actually put into a table.

AFRIKAANS             gelukkige nuwejaar
ALBANIAN               gëzuar vitin e ri
ALSATIAN                e glëckliches nëies / güets nëies johr
ARABIC                    عام سعيد  (aam saiid) / sana saiida
ARMENIAN             shnorhavor nor tari
AZERI                       yeni iliniz mubarek
BAMBARA               bonne année
BASQUE                   urte berri on
BELARUSIAN         З новым годам (Z novym hodam)
BENGALI                 subho nababarsho
BERBER                   asgwas amegas
BETI                          mbembe mbu
BOBO                        bonne année
BOSNIAN                 sretna nova godina
BRETON                   bloavezh mat / bloavez mad
BULGARIAN           честита нова година (chestita nova godina)
BURMESE               hnit thit ku mingalar pa
CANTONESE          sun lin fi lok / kung hé fat tsoi
CATALAN                bon any nou
CHINESE                xin nian kuai le / xin nian hao
CORSICAN             pace e salute
CROATIAN             sretna nova godina
CZECH                     šťastný nový rok
DANISH                  godt nytår
DARI                        sale naw tabrik
DUTCH                    gelukkig Nieuwjaar
ENGLISH                happy new year
ESPERANTO          felicxan novan jaron
feliæan novan jaron (Times SudEuro font)
ESTONIAN             head uut aastat
FAROESE                gott nýggjár
FINNISH                 onnellista uutta vuotta
FLEMISH                gelukkig Nieuwjaar
FRENCH                 bonne année
FRISIAN                  lokkich neijier
FRIULAN                bon an
GALICIAN               feliz aninovo
GEORGIAN             gilocavt akhal tsels
GERMAN                 ein gutes neues Jahr / prost Neujahr
GREEK                      kali chronia / kali xronia eutichismenos o kainourgios chronos (we wish you a happy new year)
GUJARATI               sal mubarak / nootan varshabhinandan
GUARANÍ                rogüerohory año nuévo-re
HAITIAN CREOLE    bònn ané
HAWAIIAN              hauoli makahiki hou
HEBREW                  שנה טובה  (shana tova)
HINDI                       nav varsh ki subhkamna
HMONG                   nyob zoo xyoo tshiab
HUNGARIAN         boldog új évet
ICELANDIC            farsælt komandi ár
INDONESIAN        selamat tahun baru
IRISH GAELIC       ath bhliain faoi mhaise
ITALIAN                  felice anno nuovo / buon anno
JAVANESE             sugeng warsa enggal
JAPANESE             akemashite omedetô
KABYLIAN             asseguèsse-ameguèsse
KANNADA              hosa varshada shubhaashayagalu
KAZAKH                 zhana zhiliniz kutti bolsin
KHMER                  sur sdei chhnam thmei
KINYARWANDA  umwaka mwiza
KIRUNDI               umwaka mwiza
KOREAN 새해 복 많이 받으세요 sae hae bok mani badeu seyo
KURDE                   sala we ya nû pîroz be
LAO                         sabai di pi mai
LATIN                     felix sit annus novus
LATVIAN                laimīgu Jauno gadu
LIGURIAN             feliçe annu nœvu / feliçe anno nêuvo
LINGALA                bonana / mbula ya sika elamu na tonbeli yo
LITHUANIAN       laimingų Naujųjų Metų
LOW SAXON         gelükkig nyjaar
LUXEMBOURGEOIS     e gudd neit Joër
MACEDONIAN     Среќна Нова Година (srekna nova godina)
MALAGASY            arahaba tratry ny taona
MALAY                    selamat tahun baru
MALAYALAM        nava varsha ashamshagal
MALTESE               is-sena t-tajba
MAORI                    kia hari te tau hou
MARATHI              navin varshaachya hardik shubbheccha
MONGOLIAN        shine jiliin bayariin mend hurgeye (Шинэ жилийн баярын мэнд хvргэе)
MORÉ                     wênd na kô-d yuum-songo
NDEBELE              umyaka omucha omuhle
NORWEGIAN       godt nyttår
OCCITAN               bon annada
PASHTO                 nawe kaalmo mobarak sha
PERSIAN               سال نو مبارک   (sâle no mobârak)
POLISH                  szczęśliwego nowego roku
PORTUGUESE     feliz ano novo
ROMANCHE         bun di bun onn
ROMANI                baxtalo nevo bersh
ROMANIAN          un an nou fericit / la mulţi ani
RUSSIAN               С Новым Годом (S novim godom)
SAMOAN                ia manuia le tausaga fou
SANGO                   nzoni fini ngou
SARDINIAN          bonu annu nou
SCOTTISH GAELIC     bliadhna mhath ur
SERBIAN               srećna nova godina / Срећна нова година
SHIMAORE           mwaha mwema
SHONA                  goredzwa rakanaka
SINDHI                  nain saal joon wadhayoon
SINHALA               suba aluth avuruddak vewa
SLOVAK                 stastlivy novy rok
SLOVENIAN         srečno novo leto
SOBOTA                dobir leto
SOMALI                 sanad wanagsan
SPANISH               feliz año nuevo
SRANAN                wan bun nyun yari
SWAHILI               mwaka mzuri / heri ya mwaka mpya
SWEDISH              gott nytt år
SWISS-GERMAN es guets Nöis
TAGALOG              manigong bagong taon
TAHITIAN             ia orana i te matahiti api
TAMIL                    iniya puthandu nalVazhthukkal
TATAR                    yaña yıl belän
TELUGU                nuthana samvathsara subhakankshalu
THAI                       สวัสดีปีใหม่ (sawatdii pimaï)
TIBETAN               tashi delek / losar tashi delek
TURKISH              yeni yiliniz kutlu olsun / mutlu yillar
UDMURT              Vyľ Aren
UKRAINIAN         Z novym rokom
URDU                     naya saal mubarik
UZBEK                   yangi yilingiz qutlug’ bo’lsin
VIETNAMESE      Chúc Mừng Nǎm Mới / Cung Chúc Tân Niên / Cung Chúc Tân Xuân
WALOON               (“betchfessîs” spelling)     bone annéye / bone annéye èt bone santéye
WELSH                   blwyddyn newydd dda
WEST INDIAN CREOLE     bon lanné
WOLOF                  dewenati
YIDDISH                a gut yohr

A

Afghanistan: – De Christmas akhtar de bakhtawar au newai kal de mubarak sha
Albania: – Gézuar Krishlindjet
Algeria: – Mboni Chrismen
American: – Samoa – La Maunia Le Kilisimasi
Andorra: – Bon Nadal
Angola: – Boas Festas
Antarctica: – Merry Christmas, Felices Pasquas, Hristos Razdajetsja
Antigua and Barbuda: – Merry Christmas
Argentina: – Feliz Navidad!
Armenia: – Shnorhavor Sourp Dzunount
Aruba: – Bon Pasco, Bon Anja
Australia: – Happy Christmas
Austria: – Frohe Weihnachten
Azerbaijan: – Tezze Iliniz Yahsi Olsun

B

Bahamas: – Happy Christmas
Bahrain: – Mboni Chrismen
Bangladesh: – Shuvo Baro Din
Barbados: – Merry Christmas
Belarus: – Winshuyu sa Svyatkami
Belgium: – Zalig Kerstfeest
Belize: – Merry Christmas
Benin: – Joyeux Noel
Bermuda: – Merry Christmas
Bhutan: – krist Yesu Ko Shuva Janma Utsav Ko Upalaxhma Hardik Shuva
Bolivia: – Feliz Navidad
Bosnia and Herzegowina: – Sretam Bozic, Hristos se rodi
Botswana: – Merry Christmas
Brazil: – Feliz Natal
British Indian Ocean Territory: – Happy Christmas
Brunei Darussalam: – Selamat Hari Natal
Bulgaria: – Vessela Koleda
Burkina Faso: – Joyeux Noel
Burundi: – Noeli Nziza, Joyeux Noel

C

Cameroon: – Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noel
Canada: – Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noel, Merry Christmas, Selamat Hari Natal
Cape Verde: – Boas Festas
Cayman Islands: – Merry Christmas
Central African Republic: – Joyeux Noel
Chad: – Joyeux Noel, Mboni Chrismen
Chile: – Feliz Navidad China Sheng Tan Kuai Loh
Christmas Island: – Merry Christmas
Colombia: – Feliz Navidad para todos
Comoros: – Joyeux Noel, Mboni Chrismen
Congo: – Joyeux Noel
Cook Islands: – Merry Christmas, Kia orana e kia manuia rava i teia Kiritime
Costa Rica: – Feliz Navidad
Cote D’ivoire: – Joyeux Noel
Croatia: – Sretan Bozic
Cuba: – Feliz Navidad
Cyprus: – Eftihismena Christougenna, Noeliniz kutlu olsun ve yeni yili
Czech Republic: – Vesele Vanoce

D

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea: – Sung Tan Chuk Ha
Denmark: – Glaedelig Jul
Djibouti: – Joyeux Noel, Mboni Chrismen
Dominica: – Merry Christmas
Dominican Republic: – Feliz Navidad

E

Ecuador: – Feliz Navidad
Egypt: – Mboni Chrismen
El Salvador: – Feliz Navidad
Equatorial Guinea: – Joyeux Noel, Feliz Navidad
Eritrea: – Melkam Yelidet Beaal, Poket Kristmet
Estonia: – Haid Joule, Rôômsaid Jôule
Ethiopia: – Melkam Yelidet Beaal, Poket Kristmet, Merry Christmas

F

Falkland Islands (Malvinas): – Merry Christmas
Faroe Islands: – Gledhilig jol
Federated States of Mirconesia: – Merry Christmas
Fiji: – Merry Christmas
Finland: – Hauskaa Joulua
France: – Joyeux Noel
French Guiana: – Joyeux Noel
French Polynesia: – Joyeux Noel, La ora i te Noera
French Southern Territories: – Joyeux Noel

G

Gabon: – Joyeux Noel
Gambia: – Merry Christmas
Georgia: – Gilotsavt Krist’es Shobas
Germany: – Frohliche Weihnachten
Ghana: – Afishapa
Gibraltar: – Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad
Greece: – Eftihismena Christougenna
Greenland: – Glædelig Jul, Juullimi Ukiortaassamilu Pilluarit
Grenada: – Merry Christmas
Guadeloupe: – Joyeux Noel
Guam: – Merry Christmas, Felis Pasgua
Guatemala: – Feliz Navidad
Guinea: – Joyeux Noel
Guinea-bissau: – Boas Festas
Guyana: – Merry Christmas

H

Haiti: – Jwaye Nwel
Honduras: – Feliz Navidad
Hong Kong: – Sing dan fiy loc, Merry Christmas
Hungary: – Boldog Karácsonyt

I

Iceland: – Gleðileg Jól
India: – Shub Naya Baras
Indonesi: – a Salamet Hari Natal
Iraq: – Idah Saidan Wasanah Jadidah
Ireland: – Nollaig shona duit (thank you Mr Sneeze)
Israel: – Mo’adim Lesimkha
Italy: – Buon Natale

J

Jamaica: – Merry Christmas
Japan: – Merii Kurisumasu
Jordan: – Mboni Chrismen, Merry Christmas

K

Kazakhstan: – Hristos Razdajetsja, Rozdjestvom Hristovim
Kenya: – Merry Christmas
Kiribati: – Merry Christmas
Kuwait: – Mboni Chrismen, Merry Christmas
Kyrgyzstan: – Hristos Razdajetsja

L

Latvia: – Priecigus ziemassvetkus!
Lebanon: – Milad Majeed
Lesotho: – Happy Christmas
Liberia: – Happy Christmas
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya: – Mboni Chrismen, Buon Natale, Happy Christmas
Liechtenstein: – Frohliche Weihnachten
Lithuania: – Laimingu Kaledu
Luxembourg: – Schéi Krëschtdeeg

M

Macau: – Boas Festas, Sing dan fiy loc
Madagascar: – Joyeux Noel, Arahaba tratry ny Krismasy
Malawi: – Merry Christmas, Moni Wa Chikondwelero Cha X’mas
Malaysia: – Selamat Hari Krimas
Mali: – Joyeux Noel
Malta: Il-Milied it-Tajjeb
Malta: Il-Festi t-Tajba
Marshall islands: – Monono ilo raaneoan Nejin
Martinique: – Joyeux Noel
Mauritius: – Merry Christmas
Mayotte: – Krismas Njema Na Heri Za Mwaka Mpya, Joyeux Noel
Mexico: – Feliz Navidad
Monaco: – Joyeux Noel
Montserrat: – Merry Christmas
Morocco: – Mboni Chrismen
Mozambique: – Boas Festas

N

Namibia: – Geseende Kersfees
Nepal: – krist Yesu Ko Shuva Janma Utsav Ko Upalaxhma Hardik Shuva
Netherlands: – Prettige Kerstdagen
Netherlands Antilles: – Bon Pasco, Bon Anja
New Caledonia: – Joyeux Noel
New zealand: – Happy Christmas
Nicaragua: – Feliz Navidad
Niger: – Joyeux Noel
Nigeria: – Merry Christmas
Norfolk Island: – Merry Christmas
Northern Mariana Islands: – Filis Pasgua, Merry Christmas
Norway: – Gledelig Jul OR God Jul

O

Oman: – Mboni Chrismen

P

Pakistan: – Bara Din Mubarrak Ho
Palau: – Merry Christmas
Panama: – Feliz Navidad
Papua New Guinea: – Bikpela hamamas blong dispela Krismas
Paraguay: – Feliz Navidad
Peru: – Feliz Navidad
Philippines: – Maligayang Pasko
Pitcairn: – Merry Christmas
Poland: – Boze Narodzenie
Portugal: – Boas Festas
Puerto Rico: – Feliz Navidad, Felices Pascuas, Felicidades

Q

Qatar: – Mboni Chrismen

R

Republic of Korea: – Sungtan Chukha
Republic of Moldova: – Craciun fericit si un An Nou fericit!
Reunion: – Joyeux Noel
Romania: – Sarbatori vesele
Russian Federation: – С Рождеством! S’razhdistvam! OR Счастливого Рождества! Sh’aslivava Razhdistva!
Rwanda: – Noheli Nziza

S

Saint Kitts and Nevis:- Happy Christmas
Saint Lucia: – Happy Christmas
Saint Vincent and The Grenadines: – Happy Christmas
Samoa: – Manuia Le Kirisimasi
San Marino: – Buon Natale
Sao Tome and Principe: – Boas Festas
Saudi Arabia: – Mboni Chrismen
Senegal: – Joyeux Noel
Seychelles: – Happy Christmas, Joyeux Noel
Sierra Leone: – Happy Christmas
Singapore: – Sheng Tan Kuai Loh, Nathar Puthu Varuda Valthukkal, Happy Christmas
Slovakia (Slovak Republic): – Vesele Vianoce
Slovenia: – Srecen Bozic
South Africa: – Geseënde Kersfees, Happy Christmas
South Georgia and The South Sandwich Islands: – Happy Christmas
Spain: – Feliz Navidad
Sri Lanka: – Subha nath thalak Vewa, Nathar Puthu Varuda Valthukkal
St. Helena: – Happy Christmas
St. Pierre and Miquelon: – Joyeux Noel
Sudan: – Wilujeng Natal
Suriname: – Zalig Kersfeest, Wang swietie Kresnetie
Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands: – Hristos Razdajetsja, Gledelig Jul
Swaziland: – Happy Christmas
Sweden: – God Jul
Switzerland: – Fröhlichi Wiehnacht, Joyeux Noel
Syrian Arab Republic: – Mboni Chrismen

T

Taiwan: – Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan
Thailand: – Ewadee Pe-e Mai
The Democratic Republic of The Congo: – Joyeux Noel
The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: – Streken Bozhik
Togo: – Joyeux Noel
Tokelau: – Merry Christmas
Tonga: – Kilisimasi Fiefia
Trinidad and Tobago: – Happy Christmas
Tunisia: – Mboni Chrismen
Turkey: – Mutlu Noeller
Turks and Caicos Islands: – Happy Christmas

U

Uganda: – Webale Krismasi
Ukraine: – Veseloho Vam Rizdva
United Arab Emirates: – I’d miilad said oua sana saida
United Kingdom: – Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas, Nadolig Llawen
United Republic of Tanzania: – Krismas Njema Na Heri Za Mwaka Mpya, Happy Christmas
United States: – Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Season’s Greetings
Uruguay: – Feliz Navidad

V

Vanuatu: – Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noel
Venezuela: – Feliz Navidad
Viet Nam: – Chuc mung Giang Sinh
Virgin Islands (British): – Merry Christmas
Virgin Islands (U.S.): – Merry Christmas

W

Wallis and Futuna Islands: – Joyeux Noel

Y

Yemen: – Mboni Chrismen
Yugoslavia: – Cestitamo Bozic

Z

Zambia: – Happy Christmas
Zimbabwe: – Happy Christmas

Words… words, everywhere (said in a Hermionic accent)

~~~ The End ~~~

Me, proofreading

If I haven’t already said so, I hate proofreading with a passion. It’s so much better if I just translate it myself, as no one can do it better than I do anyways. It’s just worse if I have to re-translate every second sentence as opposed to just tweaking it here and there, correcting typos and spelling errors with an occasional paraphrasing to make sure it does not sound inside out and upside down to the intended Turkish reader.

The thing is proofreading doesn’t pay half as much as translating because it is not considered real work… After all, the document is already translated right? I personally think proofreading is underrated and the quasi-translators get away with doing bugger-all when proofreaders get to do the real hard work.

I always hope for a decent translation when I am proofing, but nooooo, I should be so lucky to get a good translation and spend less time re-translating than proofreading.

/rant off.

vote |vōt|
noun
a formal indication of a choice between two or more candidates or courses of action, expressed typically through a ballot or a show of hands or by voice.

~~~~~~~~~~~

How would the rest of the world plead to the US in their own languages:

Turkish: Lütfen Obama’ya oy verin

Russian: Пожалуйста проголосуйте для Obama

German: Wählen Sie bitte für Obama

Irish: Vótáil Obama (Thank you Primal!)

Italian: Voti per Obama per favore (Thank you Nick!)

Spanish: Voti prego per Obama

Korean: Obama를 위해 투표하십시오

Chinese: 请投票支持Obama

French: Votez svp pour Obama

Greek: Παρακαλώ ψηφίστε για Obama

Dutch: Gelieve stemmen voor Obama   (Thank you Conor)

Afrikaans: Stem asseblief vir Obama (Thank you Vanilla)

Well, there are so many other languages and people who speak those languages who’d like a certain Mr. Obama to be elected.

Please feel free to let me know how to say this in languages that aren’t included here and I will add more.

Happy Voting America!

Proofreading becomes a painful affair, when one has to correct the same mistake in different sentences, over and over again. It’s feels exactly like it did when I was getting a tattoo on my back. I asked the tattoo artist, is it going to hurt much? He shrugged, no, not really. Then he flashed a trust-me-I-know-what-I-am-doing kind of smile and asked, have you ever been scratched by a cat? Now it was my turn to shrug, of course. Ok then, he dragged me to the chair where I had to sit backwards and hug the back of the chair, nothing to worry about. I quickly found out, however, that while he was right about the cat scratch analogy, he forgot to add that it would feel as if the cat is scratching the same spot over and over again for hours. Deleting and/or inserting thousands of the‘s and a‘s as I proofread, I go back in time and find myself sitting on that chair, hugging the back of it real tight. I want to just close my eyes and scream, scream until it is all over.

I remember, the night of completing a relatively large proofreading project, I had a nightmare. It was raining a’s and the’s and my umbrella was made of paper. A’s were snowflakes, not in the traditional star-like snow flake shape but a variety of capital and small a’s, in script or print form. They were pretty and they didn’t hurt me as they landed softly on the ground, like feathers. The‘s on the other hand were very scary, made of thick cut glass in gigantic bold type fonts. I was dodging them successfully but as they crashed onto the pavement to my left and right, I was not able to escape the little sharp shards breaking off the tails of e’s or the tops of the T’s. Blood trickling down my arms and legs, I woke up with a scream. Following the nightmare I took a break from proofreading for a while.

I personally find that, especially when I am tired, the first thing that goes is the correct use of the. Most of the time I say something and notice the mistake as soon as the words leave my mouth, even before they reach the ears of my intended audience, but a moment too late.

To put flesh on the bones of the the problem, here are a few very simple examples of common mistakes I have been talking about:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Obama went to the school in Hawai from 1971 to 79.

Shouldn’t we be doing something about green house effect.

I made the mistake. (meaning, I made a mistake)

I made mistake. (meaning, I made a mistake)

She is most sexy woman in the world. (the phrase ‘in the world’ is almost always correct. Yippie!)

Turkish Social Democrat Party has won 30 seats in Parliament. (trick question: two mistakes here – can you spot them both?)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don’t mind at all if it is a tourist with a little dictionary in one hand and a phrasebook (perhaps a hand-held electronic translator gadget) in the other making such mistakes. I find it rather cute and charming when I see someone who is trying to communicate with another in that another’s language in that another’s country.

Learning a new language is tough, regardless of which language it is. Unless of course you are fortunate enough to be the toddler of a very international family.

I find the best way to learn a language, is to live and breathe it; immerse oneself in it for as long as possible, i.e. visit and stay in the country of that very language.

If residential learning is not an option, then make sure to listen to a lot of songs while reading the lyrics – Russian pop songs are just as bad as Turkish pop songs. Watch movies with subtitles; make new friends (perhaps on-line even) who are fluent in the target language. Read books simultaneously in both languages. I have books in English and Russian: War and Peace, The Brothers Karamazov, even a copy of Harry Potter: The Philosopher’s Stone.

Theory of language can easily be put into practice by simply using some of the methods I wrote above; we are only limited by our own imagination.

For over 20 years now, the has not been a big problem of mine. My problem is with my vocabulary. It is an enormous issue, as I usually hide behind the words I am familiar with or have used for a long  time, instead of letting myself rush off and adventure into the new ones I read in books or come across in other media. Some say I shouldn’t really worry about it.

I hope I won’t have another nightmare involving the assault of THE‘s, or worse, BIG WORDS tonight.

The End…

The next few weeks I will figure out how to incorporate multi-lingual posts into the blog. I still have another post due, which I have planned in September.

Stay tuned ~ that is if you are still out there dropping by.

In this first instalment of my “Where did the translation go wrong?” series, I present to you signs and notices from different countries. I am sure some will make you cringe, some laugh perhaps with a whoa here and there. Many of these have been circulating all over the net bouncing back and forth amongst us, the translators. The ones down below are my personal favourites and they are quite popular on the net.

Uhm… ok…

Bangkok ~ In a dry cleaner’s:
Drop your trousers here for best results.

Bangkok ~ In a temple:
It is forbidden to enter a woman even a foreigner if dressed as a man.

France ~ In a Paris hotel elevator:
Please leave your values at the front desk.

Greece ~ In Athens:
Visitors are expected to complain at the office between the hours of 9 and 11 a.m. daily.

Hong Kong ~ Outside a tailor shop:
Ladies may have a fit upstairs.

Hong Kong ~ In an advertisement by a dentist:
Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists.

Hungary ~ In a Budapest zoo:
Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty.

Italy ~ In a laundry in Rome:
Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time.

Japan ~ in a Tokyo hotel:
Is forbidden to steal hotel towels please. If you are not a person to do such thing is please not to read notis.

Japan ~ In a Tokyo bar:
Special cocktails for the ladies with nuts.

Japan ~ In an information booklet about using a hotel air conditioner:
Cooles and Heates: If you want just condition of warm in your room, please control yourself.

Japan ~ In a brochure of a car rental firm in Tokyo:
When passenger of foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage then tootle him with vigor.

Mexico ~ In an Acapulco hotel:
The manager has personally passed all the water served here.

Norway ~ In a Norwegian cocktail lounge:
Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar.

Poland ~ On the menu of a hotel:
Salad a firm’s own make; limpid red beet soup with cheesy dumplings in the form of a finger; roasted duck let loose; beef rashers beaten up in the country people’s fashion.

Rhodes ~ In a tailor shop:
Order your summers suit. Because is big rush we will execute customers in strict rotation.

Romania ~ in a Bucharest hotel lobby:
The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable.

Russia ~ From the Soviet Weekly:
There will be a Moscow Exhibition of Arts by 15,000 Soviet Republic painters and sculptors. These were executed over the past two years.

Russia ~ In the lobby of a Moscow hotel across from a Russian Orthodox monastery:
You are welcome to visit the cemetery where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists, and writers are buried daily except Thursday.

Serbia ~ In a Belgrade hotel elevator:
To move the cabin, push button for wishing floor. If the cabin should enter more persons, each one should press a number of wishing floor. Driving is then going alphabetically by national order.

Switzerland ~ On a menu:
Our wines leave you nothing to hope for.

Switzerland ~ In a Zurich hotel:
Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested that the lobby be used for this purpose.

Yugoslavia ~ In a hotel:
The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the chambermaid.

AND, one that shows us how some products should never make it to another country promoted with the same name:

Australia To Spain ~ The Mitsubishi four wheel drive marketed in Australia as the “Pajero” was the cause of great embarrassment in Spain where “Pajero” means “masturbator”.

Naturally, when the cars didn’t sell they changed the name to Montero…

I say Pajero you say Montero…

On a box;

Thanks for the warning…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next instalment: The most common mistakes – I have observed – Turkish people make when they speak or write in English language. It mostly points to the differences in the sentence structures and the parts of speech between the two languages. Stay tuned!

I found this table on the website of Warsaw School of Economics. It lists a whole bunch of languages and how to say Happy Birthday – or something to that effect – in quite a few languages.

Afrikaans	Gelukkige Verjaarsdag
Albanian	Gëzuar Ditëlindjen
Amharic	Melkam lidet
Arabic	Aid milad saeed
Armenian	Ierchanik Daretarts
Aymara	Urupa muñasiñani
Azeri	Ad Gunun Mubarek
Bahasa	Selamat Ulang Tahun
Bambara	Ala ka san o san ké i kéné gnina
Basque	Zorionak
Belarussian
Bengali	Janmadivas mater Shubhkamona
Bhojpuri	Tohara janam din par bahut bahut mubarak ho
Brasilian Portugese	Feliz Aniversário
Bulgarian	Chestit Rojden Den
Catalan	Per molts anys
Chobacano	Compleanyo
Chinese	Shēng rì kuaì lè
Croatian	Srećan rođendan
Czech	Všechno nejlepši k narozeninám
Danish	Tillykke med fødselsdagen
Dhuo	Cham anyuola maber
Dhivehi	ufaaveri ufandhuvaheh
Dolfin	Mayin bharatig
Dutch	Hartelijk Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag Prettige verjaardag Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag
English	Happy Birthday!
Estonian	Palju õnne! Palju õnne sünnipäevaks
Filipino	Maligayang Kaarawan
Finnish	Hyvää Syntymäpäivää
French	Bon anniversaire Joyeux anniversaire
Galician	Feliz Cumpreanos
Georgian	gilotsav dabadebis dges
German	Alles Gute zum Geburtstag Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag
Greek
Greenlandic	Inuuissiorninni pilluarit
Gujurathi	Vadhdeevasanimate shubetsha
Hawaiian	Hauoli la hanau
Hebrew	Yom Hooledet Samea’ach
Hindi	Varshaghat ki shubhakamana Janam Din Ki Subhkamana
Hungarian	Boldog születésnapot
Icelandic	Til hamingju með afmælið
Indonesian	Selamat ulang tahun (Thank you Yuliana)
Irish	Lá breithe shona dhuit (as corrected by Conan)
Italian	Buon compleanno
Japanese	Otanjoubi omedetou
Kalenjin	Baibaitu eng’ betut ne kikisigin
Kannada	janma dinada subhashayagalu
Kashmiri	Voharvod Mubarak Chuy
Kazak	Tugan kunumen kuttiktaem
Kikuyu	muthenya waguciaruo muega
Kiswahili	Heri ya siku yako ya kuzaliwa
Korean	Saeng il Chuk ha hae
Latin	Boenos Anos
Latvian
Lithuanian	Su Gimimo diena
in Luxemburg
Macedonian	Среќен роденден
Malay	Selamat Hari Jadi
Maltese	Il festa it tajba L-isbaħ xewqat f-għeluq sninek
Malyalam
Marathi	Vadhdeevasachya shubetchha
Mongolian	Tursun udriin mend hurgey
Nepalese	janma din ko subhakamana
Norwegian	Gratulerer med dagen
Oriya	Shubah Janma Dina
Papiamento	Masha Pabien
Persian	Tavalodat Mobarak
Polish	Wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji urodzin
Portugese	Parabéns
Punjabi	Sode janamdin diya lakh lakh badhaiya
Quechua	cusicuy causayquimanta diayquipaj
Romanian	La multi ani
Russian
Samoan	manuia le aso fanau
Sanskrit
Schweizerdeutsch	schönä Geburtstag
Serbian	Sretan rođendan
Sesotho	Mahlohonolo a letsatsi la matswalo
Setswana	letsatsi la matsalo le le boitumelo
Shona	makorokoto makore akoawande
Sinhalese	Suba oopan dinayak vayva
Sindhi	Thuhinji zindagi mein hamesha khush-haali rahe
Slovak	Vsetko najlepsie k Tvojim narodeninam
Slovenian	Vse najboljse za rojstni dan Vse najboljše
Spanish	Feliz cumpleaños
in Swaziland	Lusuku Lwekutalwa Loluhle
Swedish	Grattis på fodelsedagen
in Taiwan
Tamil	Pirandhanaal Vaazhththukal
Tagalog	Maligayang Bati sa iyong Kaarawan
Telugu	Janma dhina shubhakankshalu
Thai	Suk Son one Gurt
in Togo	dzigbe za be dzogbe nyuie na wo
Turkish	1) Doğum günün kutlu olsun / 2) Nice yaşlara
in Uganda	kulikka okutukka kumazalibwa
Ukrainian
Urdu	Saalgirah Mubarak
Valencian	Feliç aniversari
Vicaya	Malipayan Katawhan
Vietnamese	Chuc Sinh Nhat Vui Ve
Warlpiri	Yimi nguvrju
Welsh	Penblwydd Hapus
Xhosa	Ube nemini yokuzalwa emnandi
Yiddish	freylekhn geburtstog
Yoruba	E ku ajoyo ojo ibi
Zulu	Usuku lokuzalwa olumnandi