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

Just saw your Things that amuse you... section which mentions the Rowlingova thing and thought I'd add my own, from Russia:

Garry Potter.

Now, guess how these are rendered in Russian:

Hamlet.

Hitler.

Excellent - I love it!

May I ask what brought you to my space?

H.

Good, isn't it?

Deary me, confession time... I ocassionally come across you being splendidly acerbic in conversations, and so I occassionally keep an eye on you.

Actually I've been trying to think of a way of luring you into a refreshingly gloves off debate for ages... This post I suspect represents me giving up...

*nosey* and, despite my best intention, hooked! Hi Solnushka, I also find H nicely acidic, and therefore barge into plenty of conversations with his name at the top. I do hope you won't mind! Hi Horatio!

You've got me curious, now - how are those names rendered? H, please let me know if I do jump back on the wagon (Solnushka, I'm trying to give up h2, it was naughty of you to drag me back into a conversation, kicking and screaming!)

x x Fenny (Universal Tolerance)

You're not kidding anyone you know, Fenny...

H.

Ooh you mean things can get to the pointed end of sharp? (watches interestedly)

APSF

Well, Fenchurch, to misquote our beloved leader, I don't see why your should be able to tear yourself away, if the rest of us can't

The rendering would be Gamlet and (my favourite) Gitler.

Actually, I guess the title of this thread should be the Hoovooloo fanclub then...

... but on the other hand I thought of something else about Russian wot's funny, so I shall carry on regardless:

It is possible, if you ignore inconvenient things like grammar, to walk into a shop and say "Die plonker!" (Give [me] a camera film) and even "Die slapper" (give [me] a hat) to the shop assistant...

... though it works both ways as I found out when I kept causing endless amusement by absentmindedly ansering people "yup" until I found out that this is very close to something spectaularly rude in Russian...

... whereupon I couldn't stop saying it.

I'm not sure about the pointed end of sharp, but you might want to hang around with Hoovooloo for a little bit, APSF

I have a fan club?

Just goes to show there's no accounting for taste...

Don't worry, I won't play favourites with my groupies, there's plenty of me to go around (yeah, right).

I'm about to astound you with my knowledge of Russian. My favourite word has got to be "Boiky" (sp?) which I'm told means "quick witted", but always sounds like it describes something that's been in my fridge for too long and has now become too repulsive to pick up with the use of tools ("I'm not touching that, it's gone all boiky").

The other is something pronounced "ya-eech-kee", which I'm told actually means eggs but is slang for b*****ks. I so enjoy being able to say "b*****ks" in Russian. Do please confirm I haven't been sold a linguistic pig in a poke and that it doesn't, in fact mean "tea shop" or something equally mundane.



H.

Groupies?

Hoopy!

B

If we're to follow the typographic conventions for this thread, Ben, that should be "Goopy".

Which makes me "Goovooloo".

Which raises the disturbing possibility of an "Alabastervooloo" and a "Brunelvooloo".

Actually, I quite like that last one...

H/G.

Lurk lurk lurk

Gang gang gang

Group group group

oh bother - can't just sit here. I'm MUCH
too nosey. Shall sit on the side and learn.


sit sit sit

learn ......


AEPSF

I can confirm the eggs thing, H, you'll be pleased to hear. I think the pron is more like 'Yi [like hi] - eets - a'... No wait, that's one egg... gods I can't do declining... probably 'ee' instead of the final 'a'. Anyway, definitely more a 'ts' than a 'ch'. I'm not sure they use it to swear though. The yup thing is infinitely more offensive...

Don't know the other one But that isn't very surprising... My favourite Rissian words of all time (so far) are Nojsh-nit-tsee (scissors) cos it sounds so cute, and pel-i-sossa which is vacum cleaner, but is literally dust-sucker. And they say English is a literal language...

And, oh pants, you can't get Goovooloo, I'm afraid. It must be the vowel sound. You would be that sort of scottish ' sound ch': cchhhhhoovooloo. Just be thankful your name isn't Hughey, cos that's also really rude in Russian...

Hughie is pretty graphic in English, too!

I love the little bits of German I know. Flieschwolf which is a food mincer, and Schleimspoor which is self explanitory in the context of snails.

B

Is it? *looks completely bewildered* Maybe I've been out the country too long but... could you explain?

I adore the sound of german, actually. But I've always had a soft spot for a language that can compress the four words of black forest cherry gateaux into one... But that pretty much exhausts my german...

And I just looked up boiky (never let it be said that I don't occassionally try and improve), which apparently is a terribly useful word as it simaultaneously means bold, spry, smart, sharp, glib, lively, animated and busy. Thank you, I shall have to remember that one, especially when being boiky and cleaning the fridge.