You're on to something there, Chas. Guess they use that feature too in China and Taiwan.

CHINGLISH SIGNS ABOUND IN BOTH TAIWAN AND CHINA

(China Post, Wednesday 19, 2006)

There are simply too many Chinglish signboards, not just in Beijing, where the next Olympic Games will take place next summer, but also in Taiwan, where a former premier wanted to make English a second official language.

The British Broadcasting Company has reported quite a few Chinglish masterpieces in Beijing. Among them are "No entry on peacetime" instead of "emergency use only," and "government abused chicken" on a menu instead of "chicken a la king."

Another example cited is a warning sign on a city street in the Chinese capital. Pedestrians are warned of a slippery road. But the signboard says: "The slippery are Very Crafty."

Beef for teppan-yaki (Japanese style stir-fried beef) is translated as "Corrugated iron beef." while raw fish )for sushi) is called "Chop the strange fish." The mistake occurs in translating the second character "sheng," which means either "live (or raw)" or "strange."

Supermarkets in Beijing join the fray. One supermarket sign reads "F**k Goods" though the right words are "kan ho (dry goods - dried food)." The translator mistook "kan (dry)" for another "kan (do or f**k). The two words differ only in tone.

That explains why another section in the same supermarket is designated as "F**k the fruit area." It is meant to "drive" the customers to nuts (not crazy).

"Ethnics" Park is named "Racist" Park. Just one more example how translations run out of hand.

Tainan (Taiwan) has not fared any better. One sign atop a hand-dryer at a Tainan railroad station toilet indicated the machine as "Bake the Call-Phone," because the translator thought the first Chinese character "hong" was the verb and the following two logograms "shou chi" are a two-character combination that actually means "cellphone."

The saving grace is that the Tainan translator was duly informed of his mistake. The sign has been changed to "Hand Dryer."

Thanks Taike for a "priceless" report

I never cease to be amazed at the vagaries of translating one language into another.
Wouldn't it be just perfect if we all spoke just one language (providing it wasn't chinese )
cheers
Eddie Johnson

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Eddie from Rotherham
Skype:eddiefromrotherham
www.yamahakeyboards.info

'ya took the words right outta my mouth...



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...shboom