Hebrew puns translated into other languages
I am gathering a collection of Hebrew expressions that appear in other
languages as idioms or nonsense. Some examples are provided below,
using @ = aleph, X = het, and 3 = aiyin. I hope the members of the
list can provide additional examples.
Type 1: The translation of a Hebrew pun on a Hebrew phrase
Ex. 1:
Clear text: B'QoSHi = barely, hardly, scarcely
Heb. pun: B'3oR SHiNai (Job 19:20)
English: "by the skin of my teeth"
Ex. 2:
Clear text: YaRa:aX GaVNooNi = gibbous moon
Heb. pun: YaRoK G'ViNaH
English: The moon is made of "green cheese".
Ex. 3:
Clear text: PeLeTZ + K'Foo = shiver, tremble + frozen (compare
English palsy)
Heb. pun: P'LiZ + KoF
English: brass monkey (weather)
(Treating P as B in Arabic, P'LiZ KoF => balls (k)off ..., hence
"cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey")
Ex. 4:
Clear text: YeReKH = buttocks, haunch, thigh.
Heb. pun: YaRa:aX = moon
English: mooning; to moon = to expose one's buttocks
Type 2: The translation of a Hebrew pun on a phrase in another language
Ex. 5
Latin: sopor sond = sleep soundly/deeply
Heb. pun: S'PoR [EMAIL PROTECTED] (imperative)
English: Count sheep (to go to sleep)
Ex. 6
Latin: Saccharomyces cervisae = Brewer's yeast (an ancient
hangover remedy)
Heb. pun: Sa3aR MiNSHaKH KeLeV = hair bite dog (compare Greek
Cerberus, the 3-headed dog guarding the entrance
to Hades)
English: Take "hair of the dog that bit you" (as a hangover
remedy)
There are far more cases where a Hebrew phrase is transliterated (not
translated) into an [English] idiom. I will post some of these at a
later date. In the meantime, I hope to receive more translation
examples from list members.
Best regards,
Israel "izzy" Cohen
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BPMaps
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