Stealing Slang From Other Cultures

[Ophelia]

I notice its quite popular to steal British lingo lately here in America. Actually, I find it annoying. Don't say the "lift" or the "tube" unless you are IN England, thank you very much. However, I am guilty of saying "tele" as opposed to TV.

I think Madonna started all this...harlot.


Anyways, do you steal any lingo from another culture? Do tell.

[CaseyM]

I had to adopt it. Fiance's British, he says 'lift', 'tele', 'queue', 'answer phone'. Living here even the accent rubs off.

I don't think there's anything wrong with changing your vocabulary to what you prefer.

The only word I won't change in my vocabulary is 'cigarettes'. yes, I smoke but not a lot. 1 pack last me a week, some times 2.

[Blackmask]

A lot of our words come from the UK originally so they've become part of Aussie speak. I do notice quite a lot of American lingo is around. Some of it I suspect is from the amount of American TV we have here and some just sounds weird when it's originated from the gangster rap type scene.

Something that does seem to growing in popularity is Jamie Oliver's "yeah" at the end of a sentence.

[MSFixR]

Being in a multi-national work environment, I'm used to having to listen very closely to understand what some people are saying. In print, my pet peeves are the errors in spelling and syntax that seem to be endemic on FanHost. English, whether it be the version used in Britain, America or Australia, is a hodgepodge of words imported from other languages so the used of words like "lift" for elevator, for example, do not concern me in the least.

[Cat]

Yeah, well, here we don't really speak Norwegian anymore Yeah, we do. But we have picked up too many English loanwords and a lot of slang. I love the ones that came in as loanwords, changed both spelling and meaning and is now a completely different word. Like 'tight' and 'teit'. 'Teit' means stupid.

[Samson The Cat]

British English is hilarious however. Not the real British English of course, but the one spoken by American actors who play British people in semisuccessful TV series.

Yeah, well, here we don't really speak Norwegian anymore

That's because you don't get your tele, I mean your TV dubbed. We don't do that and therefore don't get our language soaked through like that. The downside is, we tend to express ourselves in this way, when asked to speak in English.

No, that's not completely true. People here have a better knowledge of the English language than they used to in the past. Meanwhile it's not considered to be something bad anymore. Why would use of English be considered to bad, you might ask? The reason: English words were overused in the youth language of the 70s, 80s and 90s. When using English words you outed yourself as a yob rebelling against the establishment. Recently I heard someone speak like that again and it all came back. English words sound so arrogant when used in German sentences, especially when the "r"s and "ay"s are pronounced correcly. It's weird, because they don't have that bad sound to them when used in complete English contexts.

[Jocasta]

Anyways, do you steal any lingo from another culture?

I don't imagine there's a country in the world that has free media access, that isn't influenced by American culture. Hollywood and the US music scene has a lot to answer for.
There are time here when I'll say "tv show" not "tele programme" but that's just here, I never say "tv" in life... unless I'm talking about cross dressers.
Madge's faux English accent is a joke here.

[MSFixR]

Originally Posted by Samson The Cat

Meanwhile it's not considered to be something bad anymore. Why would use of English be considered to bad, you might ask? The reason: English words were overused in the youth language of the 70s, 80s and 90s. When using English words you outed yourself as a yob rebelling against the establishment.

Very interesting. I thought Germany was trying to distance itself from its rigid, conservative past. Youths of any any (free) country rebel against the establishment asserting their independance. Likewise the older population dismisses youth as immature - "Those darn whippersnappers." - put that one in your lexicon.

[Samson The Cat]

Very interesting. I thought Germany was trying to distance itself from its rigid, conservative past.

Yes. I don't think that has to do with being rigid. English did not get a bad name because of the past. It's the overuse of single English words by youngsters. It's not hatred against the language itself when spoken by natives or even Germans who can actually conversate in it. The wording "rebelling against establishment" was a little unluckily chosen by me. Using English words, where there's German words with the same meaning, is associated with teenage language. When done by older people it seems like desperate attempts to look "cool" or worse shows bad understanding of one's own language. There's a point to it. It's sad when words from a different language replace words in another. Like I hear the word "level" used quite often in German, when one would used to say the French word "niveau" (a long established foreign word) or the German words "Höhe" (with the alternative meaning 'height') or "Ebene" (with the alternative meaning 'layer'), depending which would fit better in the context. But new words can be ugly as well, like the nasty use of the word 'download' as a verb - "downloaden", it's just not suited for the grammatical conjugation of German verbs: 'downloaded' becomes "gedownloadet" or even "downgeloadet". Worse than mixing several languages in one sentence is using made up words with syllables from different languages. Solution: translate the verb as a whole to "herunterladen" with the past participle "heruntergeladen".

[edawg99]

Here we got Suburban white kids acting like there black wearing bagging pants and stuff.

[Captain Beefheart]

Not exactly slang since i've given up on universal lingos, but i'm trying to make a conscious effort to use lots of silly colourful hyperboles like:



Them brits just have this thing for elitist run on sentences that I lurve.

[Plastic Flute]

True..Beef just taught me what wank means

[Jocasta]

Which definition did he tell you?

Beef doesn't recognise the state of The Irish Republic.

[Plastic Flute]

nm than

[Captain Beefheart]

Recognise.

[SWEET DYNAMITE]

Originally Posted by edawg99

Here we got Suburban white kids acting like there black wearing bagging pants and stuff.

Yes same here in Oz, where I live theres heaps of young guys trying to dress & act like 'Homies'. One guy I used to work with loves the whole rap stuff & listens to it flat out. When we used to work together he used to call me 'bro', 'homie', 'G' & he is a caucasun guy & I think abit Italian! LOL.
I do like to say 'for shiz'.

[CaseyM]

Originally Posted by Jocasta

Which definition did he tell you?

Beef doesn't recognise the state of The Irish Republic.

All English out of our island!

[Captain Beefheart]

To "be" irish is to know the odds have been stacked against you like a drunken Jenga game since the day you were born. Solo took that and carved his own set of Lincoln Logs with a dull butterfly knife.

[Plastic Flute]

and than moved to Ca.USA

[Plastic Flute]

Plus i also just learned what Bollacks is. i have been watching Chef Ramsey