Languages

225 points · 23 comments · view on lemmy.world

23 Comments

CyanideShotInjection@lemmy.world · 36 pts · 19d (7 replies)

I understand how letter combinations in french are hard to get at first and there are sometimes many ways to write a sound, but once you learn them you will always know how a new word is pronounced. English is such a joke of a language that you never know how a word is pronounced until you hear it or you happen to know its ethymology...

Transform2942@lemmy.ml · 22 pts · 19d (6 replies)

So what you gotta do is settle the island with a bunch of Germans, then get conquered some centuries later by the French. Steal all the vocabulary from French - especially the vocabulary of the nobility - but keep the German grammar. Then just for fun when you are about to standardize your spelling with the invention of the printing press import a bunch of Dutch people to do your spelling for you

Daryl76679@lemmy.ml · 9 pts · 19d (5 replies)

Don’t forget getting converted by St. Augustine bringing Latin and Greek words!

Transform2942@lemmy.ml · 7 pts · 19d (4 replies)

And who could forget grabbing all available loanwords from The Colonies

Brkdncr@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 19d (3 replies)

Insert booze at every step.

Transform2942@lemmy.ml · 4 pts · 19d (2 replies)

The limeys need their grog or its mutiny

bobs_monkey@lemmy.zip · 2 pts · 19d (1 reply)

While every other country has their wines

Transform2942@lemmy.ml · 1 pts · 16d

The English are rarely accused of culinary greatness

stardustpathsofglory@lemmy.world · 12 pts · 19d (4 replies)

Slavic languages: nothing is silent. We write as we speak. For this we will also write your name as we think it should be written.

Example: Hju Džekman

yogthos@lemmy.ml · 7 pts · 19d (2 replies)

Fun fact, Poles in their infinite wisdom switched from using Cyrillic alphabet which naturally maps to Polish sounds https://www.omniglot.com/conscripts/polishcyrillic.htm

davel@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 19d (1 reply)

Huh. NATOpedia tells me that the Latin has always been the predominant script for Polish. But it only traces this back to the 13^th^ century or maybe the 10^th^, coinciding with the Christianization of Poland. Supposedly it was only a spoken previously, which sounds to me like historical revisionism to erase a Cyrillic predecessor. But if Cryllic only dates back to the 10^th^ century… 🤷

yogthos@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 19d

they actually do have a link about it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Church_Slavonic

lauha@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 19d

"Write as we speak"

The biggest lie of the russian language.

In theory yes, but pronounciation of о depends on if it has stress or not and stress of the word you have to just know.

Trex202@lemmy.world · 9 pts · 19d

Without reason, sure, but with a gender

folaht@lemmy.ml · 7 pts · 19d (2 replies)

Funny, but that last one counts for Gaelic, not French.

some_designer_dude@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 19d (1 reply)

Came for this. Like… Gaelic reads like it’s some kind of prank on the rest of the world.

SubArcticTundra@lemmy.ml · 2 pts · 19d

Funny, because Welsh, at least from what I can tell, seems reasonably phonetic

inlandempire@jlai.lu · 6 pts · 19d

ils huent = they boo

only the u is needed

Wren@lemmy.today · 6 pts · 19d

As someone learning french, all you gotta do is take an english word, add a bunch of vowels, and Vièoulâh!

WhyIHateTheInternet@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 19d

Aye whundher why

SubArcticTundra@lemmy.ml · 5 pts · 19d (1 reply)

I swear the French just pronounce their words based on vibes

SubArcticTundra@lemmy.ml · 5 pts · 19d

Although it's rich criticizing them in the bastard of a language that is English

SuDmit@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 1 pts · 17d

Spanis? Eglish? ?