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opalescent@lemmy.zip to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world · 2 years ago

Why words like 'okay' and 'taxi' are universally understood across the world but survival related ones like 'help', 'water', 'food' remained nation specific?

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Why words like 'okay' and 'taxi' are universally understood across the world but survival related ones like 'help', 'water', 'food' remained nation specific?

opalescent@lemmy.zip to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world · 2 years ago
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  • jetA
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    2 years ago

    Populations and Languages probably already had a pre-existing word for help, water, food, before English became the trade language. When a new concept is introduced via English there is a chance the (simple) English word will be borrowed for that thing.

    • R0cket_M00se@lemmy.world
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      2 years ago

      It’s why every European language just slaps an accent mark on the word “airplane” because we invented the tech and created the name, so they just adapted it to fit the pronunciation of the phonetics in their own vocabulary.

      • 𝔄 𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔭𝔦𝔢𝔠𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔠𝔥𝔢𝔢𝔰𝔢@lemmy.world
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        2 years ago

        𝕱𝖑𝖚𝖌𝖟𝖊𝖚𝖌 would like a word

        • TanakaAsuka@sh.itjust.works
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          2 years ago

          Honestly I can’t think of a single European language where it is the case. German, Dutch, French, Spanish, Italian, Basque… none of them sound like airplane.

          • 𝔄 𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔭𝔦𝔢𝔠𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔠𝔥𝔢𝔢𝔰𝔢@lemmy.world
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            2 years ago

            I mean, Spanish uses el avión and el aeroplane and Italian is l’ aero which is just short for l’ aeroplano. Gotta give him that.

            • WhoRoger@lemmy.world
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              2 years ago

              Well because the words for air are aire and aria in Spanish and Italian respectively, and you know, aircraft fly through the air.

              Other languages base the word on the word fly. It would be weird naming the concept without using the words air of fly.

              Helicopter is a better example, while we’re on the topic of flying machines.

              • UlfKirsten@feddit.de
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                2 years ago

                Hubschrauber

                • spizzat2@lemm.ee
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                  2 years ago

                  I always like to think of that as Hübsch Räuber.

          • DrQuint@lemm.ee
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            2 years ago

            I’m wondering why they didn’t choose a word like Television for this.

            • spizzat2@lemm.ee
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              2 years ago

              Have Germans given up “Fernseher” in favor of “Television”?

              • asudox@lemmy.world
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                2 years ago

                No, I don’t think anyone here says Television instead of Fernseher.

                • ℍ𝕖𝕝𝕝𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕞𝕪@lemmy.world
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                  2 years ago

                  Some say TV but with german pronunciation of the letters (te-faou)

              • Tywèle [she|her]@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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                2 years ago

                No they haven’t.

        • R0cket_M00se@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          Germany is the red headed step child lol

          • JizzmasterD@lemmy.ca
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            2 years ago

            The Deutsch and their « zeugs  and Dings »

            I love that a culture so associated with attention to detail and precision engineering is just like « flugzeug, fuerzeug, schlagzeug, schreibzeug… »

          • Mmagnusson@programming.dev
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            2 years ago

            Icelandic would like a red-headed word.

      • Magister@lemmy.world
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        2 years ago

        Clément Ader did it in 1890

      • Number358@lemmy.worldBanned
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        Removed by mod

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