h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: Worldwide terms for the sneeze sound - A1099721
Author: A Perfectly Normal Beast - U168701

Hello.
I'm writing this entry about the different terms people use to describe the sound of sneezing in different languages. I need people from all around the world to tell me what they call it in their language, so please write to me about it.

p.s. If I'm writing this in the wrong conversation - I'm sorry, please tell me where should I go.

Hello A perfectly notmal beast.


It's not just achoo bit also atisshoo as well.

Perhaps a bit on worldwide responses to sneezing such as bless you and gezundheit?

Hello Kiltedjedi

Thank you for your quick response.
As you can see, I have taken your good advice and added the response bit to the entry and coverted the list to a table. Please tell me - how do you pronounce "atisshoo"?

Where do you think I should post anything so that more people will send me their language's version?

Any other advice will be welcomed.

Hi APNB,

not getting much response here, eh?

In France the sneeze sound is spelt 'Atchoum', and the usual response/reaction is to say 'A vos souhaits'.

voila.

I also thought that the standard Brit English sneeze sound was usually written something like 'Atishoo', but there is no sign of any such word in my usually reliable Chambers dictionary. hmm...

back in a Google...
spiff

well, 'atishoo' got around half as many results as 'atchoo'; and i'd be the first to concur that the latter option is closer to the real thing!

none-the-less, it may be significant that many Brits learned the 'word' in the context of 'Ring-a-ring-a-roses' in which it is clearly spelled out in 3 syllables.

any help? or just muddying the waters?

cya, and best of luck with this
spiff

Wow. This entry is so much fun.

The ancient Greeks believed that sneezing was a sign from the Gods. It can neither be controlled nor initiated at will.

Ebert

Sorry, I meant initiated or prevented at will

Hi Ebert

Thank you for your positive response
If you have something new to add to the list, for example, what you call the sneezing sound in Greek, please share (and enjoy).

Thanks again,
A Pefectly Normal Beast

Ah, the results of research.

‘… there is no equivalent to such forms in many languages, and any remarks which might be made can have a totally different meaning and function… in Mende (Sierra Leone), the word to use is biseh (Thank you); in Bembe (Congo), it is Kuma (be well) and in Malagasy, it is velona (alive). In Tonga … It is quite common for someone to say jokingly, after a sneeze, ‘Ikai ke nofo noa mua!’ – literally. ‘Not to be nothing , alas.’ ’
---From The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Language, by David Crystal



In Japan the sound made while sneezing is ‘Hakuchon’, there is no standard response, however it is common to quote the old saying about sneezing if you hear someone sneeze.

‘sneeze once, someone’s talking about you
sneeze twice, someone’s talking about you and it’s not good
sneeze three times, you’re catching a cold’
-ancient Japanese sneeze saying.


Ebert

There you go Normal, I hope that helps.

Thank you Ebert!

You've earned your place in the future list of credits
If you can, please try to fill in the table entries in which I wrote a question mark. I would also like to know how do you pronounce each of the additions you made and one last thing - where do people speak Tonga?


Thank you again
A Perfectly Normal Beast

Hi ya Normal

Bembe (Congo) - The only thing I could find would be ’Cube,ind.,imitation of a sneeze’ from: http://bantu.berkeley.edu/CBOLDFTP/CBOLD_Data/Bobangi.Whitehead1899/Non-Distributed_files/BobangiDB/Bobangi.JW1899.txt

Malagasy – I can find anything else for this language at the moment.

Mende (Sierra Leone) – or this one

I think Tonga is a Island. I am uncertain as to what language they speak there.


Something else I found that may help:
"My name is Ayisha Yahya. I come from Zanzibar. I am a native Swahili speaker. This lullaby, ‘Kuwa’ is about a parent trying to put her heart in to telling her little baby to grow up.
When you sneeze in Kiswahili we say kuwa which is an equivalent of Gezundtheit in German, but means ‘health, grow up’, because when you sneeze they believe you expand your lungs and that will promote growth. So they say kuwa. This is a lullaby about kuwa. "
source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/world/onyourstreet/chlullaby1.shtml


Ebert - I wonder if this of any help, maybe you can make something of it.

Hi Ebert Thanks again for your rare info! By the way, there is a conversation about this entry going on at http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/F57153?thread=296323 so you can post there with everyone :) A Perfectly Noraml Beast

I think that "Galu" is the elvish reply to a sneeze. It means bless you, anyway.

Hi Tom

Thank you for your help, but I think I'll keep fiction out of this entry, otherwise it will never end...