I just realized there is not really a word for "cuddling" in Chinese Languages... probably a reflection of the lack of Public Display of Affection¹ in Chinese Culture... (¹and sometimes even at home)
Can't even properly express: "Mom, I wanna cuddle"
Not the same word but in the many Filipino dialects, apparently there is no word for hike. All my relatives could only come up with the equivalent for “walk”.
Cuddling takes longer than hugging, it's like an extended hug. The -le suffix in English is often frequentative, so sparkle meant "to emit many sparks", for example.
It is one of the best bits of derivational morphology I know!
And the best part is that it is part of the explanation of where the word "disgruntled" comes from. Turns out there really is a word "gruntled", or well, there was - it's fallen out of usage. "Gruntle" meant "to emit many small grunts" - as a pig might do if it were content. So disgruntled came to mean the opposite of being content.
I don't think it's necessarily reflective of culture, but just the language never formed a word for it. E.g. in Ukrainian and Russian, hugs are generally considered more intimate, so expression describing cuddling would be "laying down hugging".
On same note, Ukrainian and Russian has a word "тискати"/"тискать", which (informally) means to squeeze affectionately (usually partners, babies, or pets, similar to "cute aggression" concept in US English). Doesn't mean that speakers of other languages don't do the same thing, there is just not a single word for it.
Cantonese and Mandarin are my languages. It's what I speak at home... so lacking these words make it hard to exptess my thoughts to my parents whose primary languages are Cantonese and Mandarin. Mom speaks English but doesn't really know any vocabulary unrelated to like everyday life stuff and doing business, money related words...
My native languges are Cantonese and Mandarin, but my primary language is English since that's just what everyone speaks here in the US and its the langua franca of the internet... I only had educatiom in China up to 2nd grade so I basically talk like a second-grader... so most complex thoughts can only expressed in English... and now I realize that some ideas can't even be translated even if I tried...
So yeah... its kina weird to be in an immigrant family... having language barriers with your own parents... I struggle to have like a "deeper connection" with them.
Oh, okay. I assumed that you are one of those self entitled English native speakers who think that they are more important than the others just because English is Lingua Franca lol. I use English and Polish everyday and a bit of Japanese and there are in fact words that cannot be literally translated, but it was never that big of an issue for me. It might be an issue for immigrants, I don't really know :/
19 Comments
hopesdead@startrek.website · 24 pts · 216d
Not the same word but in the many Filipino dialects, apparently there is no word for hike. All my relatives could only come up with the equivalent for “walk”.
Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe · 14 pts · 216d
I dunno, I've never cuddled anyone in public.
May just be a language difference without any underlying meaning.
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 16 pts · 216d
No I mean like...
I never saw my parents hug... never saw them kiss... not even at home.
Don't think they even have sex, I suspect the only two times they ever fucked was to procreate... to create my brother and me.
Literally their room is open and I could just walk in, and as a kid I go sleep in their bed a lot.
So no, they didn't have sex, because if they did, I would've had accidentally barged in and saw it.
Maybe this is why they argue a lot lol, lack of sex...
Gonzako@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 216d
Is this something you can talk your parents about? They're kinda the only ones that can answer why
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 4 pts · 215d
Oh okay, so I'm gonna walk downstairs to the living room and be like: “點解你哋唔 性交？”
💀
Nah its... how do I explain it...
Like there's this atmosphere, this "vibe" that like... it doesn't feel as open as a westerm family is.
Like I never even seen any thing remotely resembling a "sex scene" in Chinese tv shows, that just to show you what the culture is like.
It's gonna be so awkward to ask it lmao.
JaddedFauceet@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 215d
Be the change you want to see.
Create a new word for it. Spread the love in public.
northernlights@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 215d
Yeah when my Chinese ex-wife and I moved to France, she was astonished to see my parents hug and kiss.
coherent_domain@infosec.pub · 12 pts · 216d
抱抱 is more "cuddle" than "hug".
Takapapatapaka@tarte.nuage-libre.fr · 4 pts · 216d
What's the difference between hug and cuddle? My frenchie ass always thought they were the same
ieGod@lemmy.zip · 8 pts · 216d
Typically something you do lying down, or sitting. All of these are cuddling:
Hugs can be a part of cuddling, but cuddling is more than a hug.
FishFace@piefed.social · 7 pts · 216d
Cuddling takes longer than hugging, it's like an extended hug. The -le suffix in English is often frequentative, so sparkle meant "to emit many sparks", for example.
troglodyte_mignon@tarte.nuage-libre.fr · 4 pts · 214d
Thanks to your comment, I’ve learned about the -le prefix and unlocked a new word. I’m going to bed satisfied. :)
FishFace@piefed.social · 2 pts · 214d
It is one of the best bits of derivational morphology I know!
And the best part is that it is part of the explanation of where the word "disgruntled" comes from. Turns out there really is a word "gruntled", or well, there was - it's fallen out of usage. "Gruntle" meant "to emit many small grunts" - as a pig might do if it were content. So disgruntled came to mean the opposite of being content.
Randelung@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 215d
TIL
Yaky@slrpnk.net · 1 pts · 214d
I don't think it's necessarily reflective of culture, but just the language never formed a word for it. E.g. in Ukrainian and Russian, hugs are generally considered more intimate, so expression describing cuddling would be "laying down hugging".
On same note, Ukrainian and Russian has a word "тискати"/"тискать", which (informally) means to squeeze affectionately (usually partners, babies, or pets, similar to "cute aggression" concept in US English). Doesn't mean that speakers of other languages don't do the same thing, there is just not a single word for it.
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 214d
Btw, the word "propaganda" also doesn't really exist in Chinese.
Like you have 宣传 (to publicize, to announce), but this word lacks the connotation of "propaganda".
Fokeu@lemmy.zip · 0 pts · 214d
Why would other languages need an equivalent of a specific word from your language?
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 214d
Cantonese and Mandarin are my languages. It's what I speak at home... so lacking these words make it hard to exptess my thoughts to my parents whose primary languages are Cantonese and Mandarin. Mom speaks English but doesn't really know any vocabulary unrelated to like everyday life stuff and doing business, money related words...
My native languges are Cantonese and Mandarin, but my primary language is English since that's just what everyone speaks here in the US and its the langua franca of the internet... I only had educatiom in China up to 2nd grade so I basically talk like a second-grader... so most complex thoughts can only expressed in English... and now I realize that some ideas can't even be translated even if I tried...
So yeah... its kina weird to be in an immigrant family... having language barriers with your own parents... I struggle to have like a "deeper connection" with them.
Fokeu@lemmy.zip · 1 pts · 214d
Oh, okay. I assumed that you are one of those self entitled English native speakers who think that they are more important than the others just because English is Lingua Franca lol. I use English and Polish everyday and a bit of Japanese and there are in fact words that cannot be literally translated, but it was never that big of an issue for me. It might be an issue for immigrants, I don't really know :/