Untranslatable
GNXP post of the day: Free MAT
While I was away, Today’s Translations cited this BBC article about the world’s most untranslatable words. TT also gave the top ten list:
The Ten Foreign Words That Were Voted Hardest To Translate
- ilunga [Tshiluba word for a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first
time; to tolerate it a second time; but never a third time. Note: Tshiluba is
a Bantu language spoken in south-eastern Congo, and Zaire]- shlimazl [Yiddish for a chronically unlucky person]
- radioukacz [Polish for a person who worked as a telegraphist for the resistance movements
on the Soviet side of the Iron Curtain]- naa [Japanese word only used in the Kansai area of Japan, to emphasise statements
or agree with someone]- altahmam [Arabic for a kind of deep sadness]
- gezellig [Dutch for cosy]
- saudade [Portuguese for a certain type of longing]
- selathirupavar [Tamil for a certain type of truancy]
- pochemuchka [Russian for a person who asks a lot of questions]
- klloshar [Albanian for loser]
The Ten English Words That Were Voted Hardest To Translate
- plenipotentiary
- gobbledegook
- serendipity
- poppycock
- googly
- Spam
- whimsy
- bumf
- chuffed
- kitsch
I should note that translation of saudade(s) is complicated by the difference in usage between the singular and plural, as explained here (in Portuguese).