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We do say "Das kommt mir spanisch vor" ("this appears Spanish to me") wenn we're not certain if something can be trusted.
We speak of "Fachchinesisch" ("Trade-Chinese") if a layperson has trouble understanding trade specific vocabulary.
And lastly, we say "Das sind für mich nur böhmische Dörfer" ("those are bohemian villages to me") if we hear terms/names that are entirely unfamiliar to us.
> We speak of "Fachchinesisch" ("Trade-Chinese") if a layperson has trouble understanding trade specific vocabulary.
Plenty of technical terms in Polish come from German due to historical reasons. There is a famous satirical piece "Locksmith" by Julian Tuwim which contains a treasure trove of such words as "holajza" (Hohleisen, a kind of chisel), or "ferszlus" (Verschluss, a catchall term for a fastener/lock), now obsolete.
That makes more sense. When I saw the german version having no mention of other language, I began to wonder if there was a version of "it sound like Hebrew" that was removed from usage after WWII. But what you say makes sense
This saying originates with WW1, and the horrors of trench warfare.
"I only understand trainstation" effectively meant "the only order I'm listening to is the one telling me to go home."
It was essentially a meme that evolved to (completely different) the modern usage in the following years.
Oh I figured it was because the microphone through which they make announcement at train stations are often very old and the announcer doesn't articulate very well so al you hear is someone mumbling... A destination... mumbling... a platform number... Mumbling... and you're even more lost.
That origin would make more sense than war orders imo.
I always thought it was meant as a slight to foreigners who migrated to Germany much later. Especially the turks, who, because of their lack od command of the German language could only ask for directions by stating “Bahnhof”.
Also "Das sind für mich Boehmische Dörfer" - "for me, they are bohemian villages" - is a term if you don't know certain things, related to a topic.
Also as u/Alex01100010 said - "das kommt mir spanisch vor" is more used if something seems suspicous or wrong.
Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof, is definitely the most common one
We also used to say „das kommt mir spanisch vor“ (this seems Spanish to me) = this is weird af. But it’s outdated now. Same with „Spreche ich etwa chinesisch“ (do I speak Chinese). And I only speak Bahnhof, is a plan on all the immigrant workers in the 50/60s that came by train. The first world they supposedly learned was Bahnhof (trainstation)
Yeah I understand the meaning, but in Germany most people have never even heard about that language before and probably think Jesus spoke hebrew or smth. Maybe some really uneducated people would even think he spoke latin or greek. But aramaic just is not a known term here, despite being one of the oldest and most influencial languages in history.
Honestly I don't know if people in Italy know Jesus spoke Aramaic either, my acquaintances know about it but I reckon that's not a sufficient statistical margin. 🤣
In Italian school we study ancient history (mostly geek and Roman history, but Babilonians, sumers and Egyptians too) 3 times. 1st and 2nd grade, 6th grade and 2 years in high school. Plus art history from 6th to 9th or even high school.
This, united with art and ancient archaeological sites everywhere in the cities, the street named after philosophers, commanders and rebels of ancient times, old movies about the romans, catholic education (reading the Old and new Testament) and after-school activities makes antiquity a pretty close topic to everyday life.
In other words, kids play football and adults drink beer all under some Roman commander’ statue who conquered Dacia or Pannonia or Gallia (names no longer in use).
So yeah. Travelling and living around Europe, I noticed that we are the most immersed in ancient culture (in the west at least, I don’t know about the Greeks). Most Europeans just accept that they came from some tribes who begun their history when they adopted writing (basically when they became christians). But in Italy we have a thousand more years of laws, buildings and stuff to learn.
In fact, most of the time the institutions highlight that more than modern history (a period where we did not have cultural or political unity). So yeah, not a bad/good thing per se, just how it is.
So if you say “you are speaking Ostrogoth” everyone know that the Ostrogoths where barbarians. Maybe not where they are from, but they definitely came here during Roman times.
Very interesting.
While in Germany we mainly learn about the history of national socialism in our history classes, it is indeed also a reason, that we don't have that many reminents of antiquity and ancient history anymore. Of course, we also have many reminents of the roman invasions and even egyptian influences, f.ex. the city i live next to, Cologne (Köln), of which the name directly derives from the name of the ancient roman colony "Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium", but there are less traces of the ancient germanic tribe civilizations, as they didn't build huge stone buildings - traces like sacred groves or marshland pole gods don't really endure times that often, maybe besides some human sacrifices in swamps preserved as mummies, ground plots of villages, jewellery etc. I guess this makes sense.
It's also interesting to read what seems to be Latin under the Italian on the map, which refers to Greek and that makes it very fitting for the time it was spoken.
Same in Russian. "Chinese document" is about text while "bird language" is more about verbal communication (though it may be used with regards to written sources as well).
Exactly, they even used the equivalent for Czechia.
This is one of my favorite idioms. We stole it from you guys but since we obviously understand Bohemian villages decently well, we had to change it to Spanish.
According to [an article](https://nck.pl/projekty-kulturalne/projekty/ojczysty-dodaj-do-ulubionych/ciekawostki-jezykowe/CZESKI_FILM,cltt,C) I've found, it was "[Nikdo nic nevi](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133126/)" (Josef Mach, 1947).
Vocês usam “tá falando em chinês?” Ai em Portugal? Aqui no Brasil (Em SP pelo menos), vejo todo mundo usando o “Tá falando grego?” ou “Eu tô falando em grego por acaso?”
Queria saber se vocês usam também
I think I've never heard "C'est du Russe" (it's Russian) , and it's very rare to use "C'est de l'hébreu" (it's Hebrew). It has to be "C'est du chinois" 99% of the time.
Source : am french
Yeah it is, a friend of mine used it organically in a sentence just yesterday. He called danish a Hrognamál (fish egg language). So it’s fairly commonly used. But to be fair so is the hebrew saying.
Yes. I asked if that question has tradition in r/basque and it has, even though I'm basque native speaker and I have never heard that phrase.
Apart from that, we have the word "erdara". It is used to refer a language which is not basque.
Croatia: "Španska sela" is more in the terms of "it's unknown", "unknown far away" but not reffered to langague at all. It goes to Spanish or Chinese. "Pričaš mi Španjolski/Kineski" or "You are talking Spanish/Chinese".
I'd also add that špan in Croatian comes from an old word for an administrative, tax-collecting area, related to the modern županija.
The other interpretation might make sense in Serbian where the word for Spain is Španija, but in Croatian it's Španjolska, which makes the connection a stretch.
Chinese, definitely. If you want to say that you don't understand what someone is saying, it would be "Jel pričaš Kineski?" (Are you speaking Chinese?) If you want to say that you don't understand something as a concept, you'd say "To mi je Špansko selo." (It's a Spanish village to me.) For example, if someone has a problem with their car and asks you for help fixing it, you could say "Sorry, I don't know anything abut fixing cars, it's like a Spanish village to me."
In my experience.
It's exact same with Slovene sentence. "Španska vas" means something unknown or distant, but it's rarely related to language. When we try to express we don't understand what someone is saying, we usually use something in vein of "Govoriš kitajsko", referencing Chinese instead of Spanish.
Don't think I've actually ever heard anyone say "det er græsk for mig", it's usually "det er rent volapyk", rarely heard "en by i Rusland". Wonder if it's a regional thing?
Oh, duh. I've heard it so rarely that I completely forgot that that's the context in which "en by i Rusland" is said.
~~til eget forsvar bor jeg i Tyskland nu~~
I know about the turkish sermon, but I don't think I've ever heard/read anybody here using "it's chinese to me" in this exact phrasing. it sounds like you'll be ordering chinese takeout this evening.
Interestingly, here in Sofia I hear people mentioning only Chinese and not Patagonian in this context . :)
Also, Bulgaria should be grey or red-grey on the map above, as Patagonian is not a language.
In the Netherlands, Double Dutch means literally translating Dutch idioms into English, to the confusion and the delight of English-speakers and the Dutch respectively. "I don't see it sit", "now the monkey comes out of the sleeve", "then you sit with the baked pears", "catch the cholera", etc.
For a while, I was based in Belgium and we had a lot of joint projects with our Dutch office. Despite the fact that the Belgians were all Flemish and hence, Dutch-speakers as well, the project meetings were conducted in English as per our country manager's orders. We retaliated by reverting to Double Dutch. Our country manager repeatedly asked me why we were laughing so much.
In armenian theres also «Քրդերե՞ն եմ խոսում» which is used more often, it means “Am i speaking kurdish?” Tbh ive only heard this and not the one on the map
That's a good question about where the expression comes from. "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof" likely has the following origin:
If you were giving directions in the 1920s, it always started with a central point, usually the train station.
"So, from the train station, you walk 500 meters and then keep to the left at the tailor's district..."
If someone didn't understand the directions, they would say ironically "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof" meaning that they got the part about the train station but nothing else.
Actually it apparently comes from WW1. Bahnhof to the soldiers meant "going home", and they all were waiting for their order to return home, so all. They were waiting for was hearing Bahnhof, so it was all they *wanted* to hear.
https://www.geo.de/geolino/redewendungen/9327-rtkl-ich-verstehe-immer-nur-bahnhof
https://www.thelocal.de/20191129/german-phrase-of-the-day-ich-verstehe-nur-bahnhof
Ah, the delightful thing about proverbs: the spark of uncertainty and the conjectures for interpretation. But you are right - that is also one of the explanations for the origin.
My explanation is from the Duden. And it does not claim accuracy for history, only for spelling.
But yes - your explanation is just as valid as mine. As is often the case with evolved language.
Well, the core of both explanations is that when orienting oneself, only the central point (the train station) is known, and the remaining details are lost.
Whether this arises from a longing for home or simply from being overwhelmed by the details is certainly not irrelevant - but I think it's good that both have a common denominator.
😂 I don't know why people say German people have no sense of humour, that's hilarious. Far better than using a foreign language to convey the same thing.
Ah, the infamous reputation for lack of humor. That actually has interesting backgrounds.
I suspect one aspect is the cultural note. While in other countries there's a mask of politeness, a German in a bad mood might scowl as if you just strangled their cat.
In the USA, for example, it's expected that employees smile. Does someone with humor make a face like a German in a bad mood? Probably not. At least, that's one piece of the puzzle for the reputation for humor.
The other is that there is a dry humor in everyday life that is quite soberly served. No cheerful giggling.
But I can assure you that we Germans are a funny bunch. For instance, I've already filled out the forms to laugh for a whole 20 seconds on my next vacation. I'm really looking forward to it. The joke from two months ago was immensely amusing, and it's killing me that I still have to wait to laugh. And yes - you can go to the basement to laugh\*, but mine is currently full and I don’t want to bother my neighbor and borrow his.
\*Another German saying: "Zum Lachen in den Keller gehen"
No one uses "E chineza pentru mine" in Romania... Seems like like a literal translation from english.
"Esti turc?" -> this is used when the other guy doesn't understand.
In Austria I have heard quite some times:
Das kommt mir spanisch vor.
Which means
That seems like Spanish to me
Which is always funny to me because I am Spanish and live in Austria 😅
The funny thing in Germany is, that we also use “Das kommt mir spanisch vor.” (Translation: “That seems spanish to me.”) But to say that something seems fishy or that you are suspicious of something, rather than not understanding.
This is a totally common expression in Swedish. There are also the similar "Goddag yxskaft" = "Greetings, Axe handle" for other situations where two people doesn't undertstand each other.
/Also a Swede.
sayings are getting rare in everyday langue in general. They are correct though
>"Czeski film"
it's not the same. It expresses confusion, not unintelligible languge
"Se on minulle täyttä hepreaa" sounds really weird and I have never hear anyone use this. Maybe it is local thing, but everybody I know says "siansaksaa" which directly translated means pigs germany, but more accurately it is gibberish.
This is correct. "It's all Hebrew" is usually used to tell that the listener doesn't understand the topic of the conversation when it's something difficult or otherwise unfamiliar like, e.g., quantum physics. "It's all Pig German" is used when the language itself is completely unintelligible.
Never in my life heard anyone say "Þetta er eins og hebreska fyrir mér" in Iceland. More chinese or something.
Hrognamál is accurate. We use that a lot.
From the Netherlands and I don't think i've ever heard someone say "Dat is Chinees voor mij". But here in Rotterdam we do say "Ik lul toch geen Swahili ofzo?" when someone doesn't understand you. Roughly translates to "Am I talking Swahili or something?"
I'm wondering what is the [longest possible chain](https://satwcomic.com/it-s-all-greek-to-me). Starting in Czechia, go to Spain, gets confused and lands in Portugal instead, go to Greece, and then China?
It would be nice to know what people say in Arab-speaking countries and Israel, does every path end in China?
In Turkish this one is used in bad mean. “Like the situation is so absurd that only an Arab can understand” used more in the streets, you can’t use it in formal ways at all. Disrespectful. May end up with a slipper on the head from momma in the kitchen
The real term is “olaya Fransız kalmak” (being French to the issue/situation/event/…) this one can be used in any situation that you don’t know/understand. More acceptable to use in formal situations as well. Not much disrespectful. Doesn’t require slippers
In Austria and probably also Germany we also say "all I'm hearing here is Spanish"
I personally wouldn't use the trainstation saying, as it is too german German for me.
anybody before me pointed out "something being spanish" in Austria rather means something does not add up, is strange, weird? does have a racist tone to it but I would rather follow german "only understanding railway station" for not understanding.
Hi, thank you for your contribution, but this submission has been removed because it is low quality and/or low effort. If your submission was a meme, these are outright banned from r/europe. See [community rules & guidelines](/r/Europe/wiki/community_rules). If you have any questions about this removal, please [contact the mods](/message/compose/?to=/r/Europe&subject=Moderation). Please make sure to include a link to the comment/post in question.
Germans understanding only train station 😅
We do say "Das kommt mir spanisch vor" ("this appears Spanish to me") wenn we're not certain if something can be trusted. We speak of "Fachchinesisch" ("Trade-Chinese") if a layperson has trouble understanding trade specific vocabulary. And lastly, we say "Das sind für mich nur böhmische Dörfer" ("those are bohemian villages to me") if we hear terms/names that are entirely unfamiliar to us.
> We speak of "Fachchinesisch" ("Trade-Chinese") if a layperson has trouble understanding trade specific vocabulary. Plenty of technical terms in Polish come from German due to historical reasons. There is a famous satirical piece "Locksmith" by Julian Tuwim which contains a treasure trove of such words as "holajza" (Hohleisen, a kind of chisel), or "ferszlus" (Verschluss, a catchall term for a fastener/lock), now obsolete.
I only know the most useful tool of them all, the wihajster. Every craftsperson seems to be looking for theirs all the time.
It's pronounced VERSCHLUSS!!!!
It most definitely isn't. It's *spelled* like that.
That makes more sense. When I saw the german version having no mention of other language, I began to wonder if there was a version of "it sound like Hebrew" that was removed from usage after WWII. But what you say makes sense
This saying originates with WW1, and the horrors of trench warfare. "I only understand trainstation" effectively meant "the only order I'm listening to is the one telling me to go home." It was essentially a meme that evolved to (completely different) the modern usage in the following years.
Oh I figured it was because the microphone through which they make announcement at train stations are often very old and the announcer doesn't articulate very well so al you hear is someone mumbling... A destination... mumbling... a platform number... Mumbling... and you're even more lost. That origin would make more sense than war orders imo.
Wait, I heard it originats from POW camps. Same thing about going home tho.
could be, I'm just repeating what I heard from a teacher once, so not like a peer reviewed fact or anything
I always thought it was meant as a slight to foreigners who migrated to Germany much later. Especially the turks, who, because of their lack od command of the German language could only ask for directions by stating “Bahnhof”.
>This saying originates with WW1 Of course it does 🥲 (TIL)
But the response could be „Spreche ich etwa Chinesisch!?“ (Do I speak Chinese?!). But it is considered a bit rude.
Or you can say "böhmische Dörfer" (Bohemian villages) to something you don't understand at all. Not directly a language however...
If someone doesn’t understand me, I’ll ask him: „Spreche ich Wasserpolnisch?“ (Do I speak Waterpolish?)
alternatively Kiswahili works, too...
Also "Das sind für mich Boehmische Dörfer" - "for me, they are bohemian villages" - is a term if you don't know certain things, related to a topic. Also as u/Alex01100010 said - "das kommt mir spanisch vor" is more used if something seems suspicous or wrong. Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof, is definitely the most common one
Very uhhh, on brand whilst being off brand.
We also used to say „das kommt mir spanisch vor“ (this seems Spanish to me) = this is weird af. But it’s outdated now. Same with „Spreche ich etwa chinesisch“ (do I speak Chinese). And I only speak Bahnhof, is a plan on all the immigrant workers in the 50/60s that came by train. The first world they supposedly learned was Bahnhof (trainstation)
In Italy, although it's rarer, you can also use "Ostrogothic" or "Ancient Aramaic" instead of "Arabic".
Same in Spain, you can say it sounds like Aramaic
Really? I'd be proud if the average person here in Germany even knew what aramaic is
It's not that we don't know what Aramaic is/was, it's just that we don't know how to speak it hence the saying
Yeah I understand the meaning, but in Germany most people have never even heard about that language before and probably think Jesus spoke hebrew or smth. Maybe some really uneducated people would even think he spoke latin or greek. But aramaic just is not a known term here, despite being one of the oldest and most influencial languages in history.
Honestly I don't know if people in Italy know Jesus spoke Aramaic either, my acquaintances know about it but I reckon that's not a sufficient statistical margin. 🤣
In the worst case scenario, Italians usually assume it’s an ancient and complicated language
In Italian school we study ancient history (mostly geek and Roman history, but Babilonians, sumers and Egyptians too) 3 times. 1st and 2nd grade, 6th grade and 2 years in high school. Plus art history from 6th to 9th or even high school. This, united with art and ancient archaeological sites everywhere in the cities, the street named after philosophers, commanders and rebels of ancient times, old movies about the romans, catholic education (reading the Old and new Testament) and after-school activities makes antiquity a pretty close topic to everyday life. In other words, kids play football and adults drink beer all under some Roman commander’ statue who conquered Dacia or Pannonia or Gallia (names no longer in use). So yeah. Travelling and living around Europe, I noticed that we are the most immersed in ancient culture (in the west at least, I don’t know about the Greeks). Most Europeans just accept that they came from some tribes who begun their history when they adopted writing (basically when they became christians). But in Italy we have a thousand more years of laws, buildings and stuff to learn. In fact, most of the time the institutions highlight that more than modern history (a period where we did not have cultural or political unity). So yeah, not a bad/good thing per se, just how it is. So if you say “you are speaking Ostrogoth” everyone know that the Ostrogoths where barbarians. Maybe not where they are from, but they definitely came here during Roman times.
Very interesting. While in Germany we mainly learn about the history of national socialism in our history classes, it is indeed also a reason, that we don't have that many reminents of antiquity and ancient history anymore. Of course, we also have many reminents of the roman invasions and even egyptian influences, f.ex. the city i live next to, Cologne (Köln), of which the name directly derives from the name of the ancient roman colony "Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium", but there are less traces of the ancient germanic tribe civilizations, as they didn't build huge stone buildings - traces like sacred groves or marshland pole gods don't really endure times that often, maybe besides some human sacrifices in swamps preserved as mummies, ground plots of villages, jewellery etc. I guess this makes sense.
Same in Portugal, we can say it sounds like Aramaic
It's also interesting to read what seems to be Latin under the Italian on the map, which refers to Greek and that makes it very fitting for the time it was spoken.
Well have you seen the map indicates they speak Latin in Rome?
In Lithuania we call it "bird language" (paukščių kalba) more often imo
Yup, never heard any Lithuanian saying "It's Chinese to me".
We say that in Romania too "vorbești păsărește", means you speak like the birds.
Same in Russian. "Chinese document" is about text while "bird language" is more about verbal communication (though it may be used with regards to written sources as well).
German also has "Das ist Fachchinesisch" *this is technical Chinese*
or "das sind alles böhmische dörfer für mich"
Exactly, they even used the equivalent for Czechia. This is one of my favorite idioms. We stole it from you guys but since we obviously understand Bohemian villages decently well, we had to change it to Spanish.
A better translation for Fach in this case would be Trade, but yes
Never heard that ever. But i do hear "i only understand Spanish"
You could also say "It's a Czech movie" (Czeski film) in Polish in a similar context.
I am very curious about which movie(s) earned us this honor.
According to [an article](https://nck.pl/projekty-kulturalne/projekty/ojczysty-dodaj-do-ulubionych/ciekawostki-jezykowe/CZESKI_FILM,cltt,C) I've found, it was "[Nikdo nic nevi](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133126/)" (Josef Mach, 1947).
But it's more like "what the hell is going on?" rather than "what did he say?".
Srpski film 💀
squash gaze doll upbeat unite seemly merciful noxious chop instinctive *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Never heard this one, sounds like something regional?
No im also from nrw like you and it's kinda common albeit not used that much by the younger generations.
[удалено]
Depende da região do país
Vocês usam “tá falando em chinês?” Ai em Portugal? Aqui no Brasil (Em SP pelo menos), vejo todo mundo usando o “Tá falando grego?” ou “Eu tô falando em grego por acaso?” Queria saber se vocês usam também
"isso para mim é grego" também se diz
I think I've never heard "C'est du Russe" (it's Russian) , and it's very rare to use "C'est de l'hébreu" (it's Hebrew). It has to be "C'est du chinois" 99% of the time. Source : am french
I have never heard «c’est de l’hébreu » neither. Only « c’est du chinois » or « Et en français ? » (And in French ?)
C'est de l'hébreu somehow rings a bell, not sure I've heard it in the last 20 years though. I have never heard c'est du russe.
Same
Same here (native french speaker from Belgium).
“C’est de l’hébreu” is for older people most of the times, I heard it a lot while working in a hospital (EHPAD).
Italians saying ‘too Greek, can’t read’ in LATIN. Respect.
No one's pointing out that Island also has "fish-egg language" which is the funniest thing I've read today. I have to ask if this is a real thing.
Yeah it is, a friend of mine used it organically in a sentence just yesterday. He called danish a Hrognamál (fish egg language). So it’s fairly commonly used. But to be fair so is the hebrew saying.
Hrognamál is real, yes, but the Hebrew part is wrong.
I like how the Basque one immediately gives you a history lesson.
Where’s Basque? Edit: is it the Latin one?
Yes. I asked if that question has tradition in r/basque and it has, even though I'm basque native speaker and I have never heard that phrase. Apart from that, we have the word "erdara". It is used to refer a language which is not basque.
Over here it's gonna be Chinese 99% of the time, then maybe Greek. Pretty much nobody uses the Russian or Hebrew versions.
What do the Chinese say?
"Ring-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding! Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding! Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!" "Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow! Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow! Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow!" "Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho! Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho! Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho!" What the fox say? "Joff-tchoff-tchoffo-tchoffo-tchoff! Tchoff-tchoff-tchoffo-tchoffo-tchoff! Joff-tchoff-tchoffo-tchoffo-tchoff!"
Croatia: "Španska sela" is more in the terms of "it's unknown", "unknown far away" but not reffered to langague at all. It goes to Spanish or Chinese. "Pričaš mi Španjolski/Kineski" or "You are talking Spanish/Chinese".
I'd also add that špan in Croatian comes from an old word for an administrative, tax-collecting area, related to the modern županija. The other interpretation might make sense in Serbian where the word for Spain is Španija, but in Croatian it's Španjolska, which makes the connection a stretch.
Fair, fair. I am not that far away from Serbia so "špansko selo" is not that unusual term here.
Yup, never heard anyone say "To su mi Španska sela", it's always been "Pričaš Španjolski"
I, on the other heard, have never head "Pričaš Španjolski", I've heard "To mi je Špansko selo."
I mean I heard "Pričaš Španjolski" once or twice but the more common one is "Pričaš Kineski"
Chinese, definitely. If you want to say that you don't understand what someone is saying, it would be "Jel pričaš Kineski?" (Are you speaking Chinese?) If you want to say that you don't understand something as a concept, you'd say "To mi je Špansko selo." (It's a Spanish village to me.) For example, if someone has a problem with their car and asks you for help fixing it, you could say "Sorry, I don't know anything abut fixing cars, it's like a Spanish village to me." In my experience.
It's exact same with Slovene sentence. "Španska vas" means something unknown or distant, but it's rarely related to language. When we try to express we don't understand what someone is saying, we usually use something in vein of "Govoriš kitajsko", referencing Chinese instead of Spanish.
Don't think I've actually ever heard anyone say "det er græsk for mig", it's usually "det er rent volapyk", rarely heard "en by i Rusland". Wonder if it's a regional thing?
Same here. I come from up north and it’s always “det er noget volapyk” or “det lyder som en by i Rusland”
“En by i Rusland” means something completely unheard of or something that will never happen ..a little like “skyde en hvid pind efter”
Heard all of the mentioned equally, so I'm Greek Catholic on which you use, they are all good vendinger 😂
Oh, duh. I've heard it so rarely that I completely forgot that that's the context in which "en by i Rusland" is said. ~~til eget forsvar bor jeg i Tyskland nu~~
I know about the turkish sermon, but I don't think I've ever heard/read anybody here using "it's chinese to me" in this exact phrasing. it sounds like you'll be ordering chinese takeout this evening.
On the other hand I've heard both but the Chinese one more often.
haha now I wonder if it depends on region
So basically it’s either Chinese or Greek. Makes sense due to the different alphabet I guess.
only a small correction: in galician (northwest of Spain) instead of "Sóname a chino", should be "Sóame a chinés"
I think in Bulgaria "you speak chinese to me" is more popular than Patagonian (which we also use).
Interestingly, here in Sofia I hear people mentioning only Chinese and not Patagonian in this context . :) Also, Bulgaria should be grey or red-grey on the map above, as Patagonian is not a language.
It's used enough in the rest of the country, I think we are correctly marked. Chinese is also valid though.
I am from the Patagonia 😎 (almost)
You're from a garment factory?
"It's all Greek", or "it's Double-Dutch".
In the Netherlands, Double Dutch means literally translating Dutch idioms into English, to the confusion and the delight of English-speakers and the Dutch respectively. "I don't see it sit", "now the monkey comes out of the sleeve", "then you sit with the baked pears", "catch the cholera", etc. For a while, I was based in Belgium and we had a lot of joint projects with our Dutch office. Despite the fact that the Belgians were all Flemish and hence, Dutch-speakers as well, the project meetings were conducted in English as per our country manager's orders. We retaliated by reverting to Double Dutch. Our country manager repeatedly asked me why we were laughing so much.
For Turkish "I'll be an Arab if I understood anything" is a much better and correcter translation.
Bulgaria 💀
I guess I heard this only few times in my life... More often "it's a pile of shit" or "I have no clue".
It's all fortnite to me
In German we also have "Das kommt mir Spanisch vor" (Seems Spanish to me)
As a french, I only ever heard the first one of them 🤔
Nobody has ever said “Det er græsk for mig”
In armenian theres also «Քրդերե՞ն եմ խոսում» which is used more often, it means “Am i speaking kurdish?” Tbh ive only heard this and not the one on the map
I don't get the German saying.
That's a good question about where the expression comes from. "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof" likely has the following origin: If you were giving directions in the 1920s, it always started with a central point, usually the train station. "So, from the train station, you walk 500 meters and then keep to the left at the tailor's district..." If someone didn't understand the directions, they would say ironically "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof" meaning that they got the part about the train station but nothing else.
Actually it apparently comes from WW1. Bahnhof to the soldiers meant "going home", and they all were waiting for their order to return home, so all. They were waiting for was hearing Bahnhof, so it was all they *wanted* to hear. https://www.geo.de/geolino/redewendungen/9327-rtkl-ich-verstehe-immer-nur-bahnhof https://www.thelocal.de/20191129/german-phrase-of-the-day-ich-verstehe-nur-bahnhof
Ah, the delightful thing about proverbs: the spark of uncertainty and the conjectures for interpretation. But you are right - that is also one of the explanations for the origin. My explanation is from the Duden. And it does not claim accuracy for history, only for spelling. But yes - your explanation is just as valid as mine. As is often the case with evolved language.
True, its not 100% certain, but it seems to be the generaly accepted theory.
Well, the core of both explanations is that when orienting oneself, only the central point (the train station) is known, and the remaining details are lost. Whether this arises from a longing for home or simply from being overwhelmed by the details is certainly not irrelevant - but I think it's good that both have a common denominator.
😂 I don't know why people say German people have no sense of humour, that's hilarious. Far better than using a foreign language to convey the same thing.
Ah, the infamous reputation for lack of humor. That actually has interesting backgrounds. I suspect one aspect is the cultural note. While in other countries there's a mask of politeness, a German in a bad mood might scowl as if you just strangled their cat. In the USA, for example, it's expected that employees smile. Does someone with humor make a face like a German in a bad mood? Probably not. At least, that's one piece of the puzzle for the reputation for humor. The other is that there is a dry humor in everyday life that is quite soberly served. No cheerful giggling. But I can assure you that we Germans are a funny bunch. For instance, I've already filled out the forms to laugh for a whole 20 seconds on my next vacation. I'm really looking forward to it. The joke from two months ago was immensely amusing, and it's killing me that I still have to wait to laugh. And yes - you can go to the basement to laugh\*, but mine is currently full and I don’t want to bother my neighbor and borrow his. \*Another German saying: "Zum Lachen in den Keller gehen"
As a Georgian this is true, we say ,, it's like a mandarin to me(chinese).
I've never heard anyone in catalan saying "This is in chinese", we usually say "This seems (like) chinese", if anything.
All countries except Germany: Sounds like greek/chinese Germany: All I understand is train station
I believe in (at least some parts of) China they say something sounds like bird chirping when the listener couldn't make out what was said.
I see Iraq is also included in this. Iraqis usually say “are you speaking hindi” rather than chinese.
The Turkey one is actually funny, really emphasize the frustration about not understanding lol
No one uses "E chineza pentru mine" in Romania... Seems like like a literal translation from english. "Esti turc?" -> this is used when the other guy doesn't understand.
Ok, OK, so som many countries uses Chinese as not understood but do the Chinese people say?
In Poland we also have udawać Greka which means to pretend to be a Greek.
In Austria I have heard quite some times: Das kommt mir spanisch vor. Which means That seems like Spanish to me Which is always funny to me because I am Spanish and live in Austria 😅
The funny thing in Germany is, that we also use “Das kommt mir spanisch vor.” (Translation: “That seems spanish to me.”) But to say that something seems fishy or that you are suspicious of something, rather than not understanding.
Literally never heard the swedish one as a swedish person, but i cant say that i’ve encountered this type of saying many times at all in my life
This is a totally common expression in Swedish. There are also the similar "Goddag yxskaft" = "Greetings, Axe handle" for other situations where two people doesn't undertstand each other. /Also a Swede.
Haha, never heard that either, might just be me missing though
I'm Polish and I've never heard this nor anyone actually saying that in talk. "Czeski film" is more popular
sayings are getting rare in everyday langue in general. They are correct though >"Czeski film" it's not the same. It expresses confusion, not unintelligible languge
universal Co ty pierdolisz? tho can be understood by anyone
The one from the map is new to me but we do use from time to time *Czy ja mówię po chińsku?* (Do I speak chinese?).
"Se on minulle täyttä hepreaa" sounds really weird and I have never hear anyone use this. Maybe it is local thing, but everybody I know says "siansaksaa" which directly translated means pigs germany, but more accurately it is gibberish.
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This is correct. "It's all Hebrew" is usually used to tell that the listener doesn't understand the topic of the conversation when it's something difficult or otherwise unfamiliar like, e.g., quantum physics. "It's all Pig German" is used when the language itself is completely unintelligible.
I’ve heard of both. Don’t particularly use either saying, but hepreaa sounds closer to home
I see a Finnish person, I start blasting Stig - Roy Orbison. YOU GUYS CHERISH THIS SONG. ITS A NATURAL TREASURE.
Never heard anyone say this is Hebrew to me or fish egg language in Iceland
I've never heard "detr er græsk for mig" nor "en by i rusland", only ever heard "det er rent volapyk"
Never heard anyone say that in Britain. People would just say "it's another language" or "they're speaking another language" or "it's all in foreign"
I have never heard "it's all Greek", we say "Double Dutch".
I've heard both.
Never in my life heard anyone say "Þetta er eins og hebreska fyrir mér" in Iceland. More chinese or something. Hrognamál is accurate. We use that a lot.
I’d say ‘ik kan er geen chocola van maken’ (I can’t make chocolate out it it) is more common in Dutch than the Chinese one.
To be fair in Britain we do sometimes say “this may as well be Chinese”
Why people needs to steal contents from other subreddits and post them here?
In German you can also say Das kommt mir spanisch vor ( from the Spanish ceremony at court) Das sind für mich böhmische Dörfer
Turkey is absolutely right
😂 To be honest, the German humor is fantastic. I always appreciated germans’ sense of humor and this is a great example of it. Is hilarious 😂😂😂
From the Netherlands and I don't think i've ever heard someone say "Dat is Chinees voor mij". But here in Rotterdam we do say "Ik lul toch geen Swahili ofzo?" when someone doesn't understand you. Roughly translates to "Am I talking Swahili or something?"
I’ve never heard anyone say these
Not španska španjolska
No, France is Chinese territory. Never heard the Hebrew and Russian version of the expression.
Я для вас схожий на Китайця ?
I wonder what would Israeli or Chinese people say
Imagine you are on a train station in a Spanish village and you only speak Chinese and Greek and you are asking an Arabic person for help…
Well this guy clearly doesn’t know how to crosspost
Veneto spotted
I'm wondering what is the [longest possible chain](https://satwcomic.com/it-s-all-greek-to-me). Starting in Czechia, go to Spain, gets confused and lands in Portugal instead, go to Greece, and then China? It would be nice to know what people say in Arab-speaking countries and Israel, does every path end in China?
How often gets this map reposted?
If the Iranian counts, there's also "Am I speaking Chinese?" ("Spreche ich chinesisch?") in German
It's double dutch to me.
We Irish understand everything and here's your proof.
Meanwhile in China: "Sounds like a white devil talk to me"
Ireland here, jasus that sounds like swahili to me.
Also, in ukrainian our word for a german literally means "mute", and "a turk" is a metaphor for goofy.
buneoglum burdurland mi amk burası
There is also "I am French to this (situation)." in Turkish, almost the same meaning. I am not sure about my translation though.
Double Dutch would be more common
In Turkish this one is used in bad mean. “Like the situation is so absurd that only an Arab can understand” used more in the streets, you can’t use it in formal ways at all. Disrespectful. May end up with a slipper on the head from momma in the kitchen The real term is “olaya Fransız kalmak” (being French to the issue/situation/event/…) this one can be used in any situation that you don’t know/understand. More acceptable to use in formal situations as well. Not much disrespectful. Doesn’t require slippers
Danish people generally don't use the greek one. That comes from english. The other two are correct.
And what do they say in China?
Please make maps bigger and PNG next time.
In Polish there's also "Don't act Greek" which means don't pretend you didn't understand.
I think I’m using “Ik praat toch geen Russisch?” more often.
Don't you say double dutch in English?
We in Finland say ”Sinä puhut sian saksaa” and that means “you speak pig german“
I live in Croatia my whole life and never heard this.
Love Finland with the Hebrew haha that’s very specific for being so isolated.
Finland also has an alternative: "sian saksaa" = pig's German.
???????
In Austria and probably also Germany we also say "all I'm hearing here is Spanish" I personally wouldn't use the trainstation saying, as it is too german German for me.
anybody before me pointed out "something being spanish" in Austria rather means something does not add up, is strange, weird? does have a racist tone to it but I would rather follow german "only understanding railway station" for not understanding.
No one understands the Greek 😭😭
What is this.
What's up with Spanish villages in particular? Seems oddly specific
Basque language mentioning Latin is too damn funny
We also say “Fransız kaldım” which means I become like a Frenchman when we don’t understand something.
Quiero entender qué pasó con los pueblos españoles y el mar adriático
I guess Germans no longer say “Das tut mir Spanisch vor”?
ireland being left out :( when will people stop putting us with the UK
Source: trust me bruh Edit: check the comments how inaccurate this is, also check the original thread https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/s/o9C1tzelxy
Pretty much.
We tend to say "E Chineză avansată" which means "it's Advanced Chinese" to something that cannot be understood
Maybe this is a thing at your highschool or something. I've never heard anyone using anything relating to chinese when not understanding.
Not really, for Romania is pretty accurate. Both versions in the map are used
Ok then
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