Now here's where the Germanic influence reveals
itself!
In the UK (and America, too), plenty of people tackle
jobs that they're not qualified to do. This seems to
be unusual in Germany.
Some years ago I used to build lutes (lauten) and was
pretty much self-taught. I once sold a lute to a
German musician, and he was pleased with it. He asked
me who I had been apprenticed to. I told him I had
taught myself and wasn't a member of any guild or
trade organisation. He was shocked!
So I suppose that the German culture must regard
people who have developed competency without going
through trade school as very different from those who
have progressed through the 'normal' route. Hence a
special word is needed to describe the competent
amateur craftsman. It's not regarded as unusual in
the UK, so no special word is needed for such
presumptious individuals (like most of us!). ;-)
Cheers,
Bill
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: 02 February 2001 17:24
Subject: [foldingboats] "Basteln" and other things ...
>Dear fellow Amateur Folding Boat Builders. From the
old country it-very-self
>comes the below definitive explanation of what
"basteln" / "Bastler" means. I
>forward this without permission and shall rely on
your good services to ward
>off the wrath of the attorney who concocted it -- he
did berate me something
>rotten for not coming up with a better translation
myself:
>
>[Cassels figures that "Raffia" (bot.) is a "needle
bearing palm tree". "Bast"
>originally refers the fiber on its inner bark, hence
the below use of the
>term ...]
>
>Let's try to have a useful explanation and also a
proper English word for
>Basteln. The word itself goes back to the eighteenth
century, so the
>dictionary says. Bast simply means raffia.
>
>There was a time in the fifties and early sixties,
when people in Germany -
>and perhaps other countries - began to buy raffia in
his natural fair color
>and to make things. Useless rubbish, like simple jam
pots or e.g. test tubes
>were wrapped around with raffia, connected together
to form a vase for
>flowers and plants. Beasts were made by wrapping
raffia around a frame of
>wire, preferred were giraffes and cats. These
self-made items were given as
>little gifts to the parents, the friends or bother
and sister. The act of
>wrapping or binding gave them all the proper name, .
>Basteln means in the very sense of the word
raffi-ing. Soon all kind of
>privat handicraft and skilful work in the basement
for private purposes, all
>creation of items for the own hobby was called
Basteln. The ordinary Bastler
>(raffing-man) is a kind of character of his own.
Often dreamers and
>philosophers.
>
>So a good translation of the word Basteln by means of
existing English does
>not exist. We have to make a new one.
>
>My suggestion sounds as follows.
>
>NOn Professional Sophisticated Enthusiastic BASement
Handicrafts WOrk
>Philosophie
>
>NO P S E BAS HA WO P.
>
>No one would use a word like nopsebashawop, this
would be simply nonsense.
>But everyone would like to say nops, nopsing and
nopser. That sounds like a
>good, proper and useful English word. Merriam Webster
does not yet claim that
>word for another meaning.
>
>So why not use Folder-Nopsing for the self-making
work with our boats and
>the equipment.
>
>Note - the web-site faltbootbasteln.de contains
nowadays only a small part of
>nopsing-ideas (especially the suggestions of mine).
The main subject matters
>are now Folding Boats in all dimensions, shape and
form , historical and
>other references. Jutta and Jürgen really enjoy the
world of Folders and real
>Folding-Nopsers and I am proud to help them
occasionally wherever I can.
>
>Good - Nopsing over the pond
>
>(from me too -- Ralph)
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