Tagged: Word

Word of the Week #8 – maliënkolder – Dutch

This week’s WOTW is  maliënkolder – and means chain mail in Dutch. I realise this might not immediately strike you as the most useful word in the world, but if you ever find yourself in the middle of a battle-ground in medieval Holland, you’ll be glad you knew it.

Word of the Week #6 – Güle güle kullan – Turkish

I can’t think of any phrase in the English language equivalent to ‘güle güle kullan’.

Your friend might say it to you if you bought yourself a new shirt and it literally translates as, ‘use it smilingly’.
It’s pronounced, goo-LAY goo-LAY koo-LAN. By itself, ‘güle güle’ means ‘good bye’. Exacting as the Turkish language is, you have to be the person staying behind to say, ‘güle güle!’
Alexandra

Word of the Week #4 – dia ghuit – Gaelic

Just under half the population of Ireland speak Irish Gaelic to an extent – it’s a compulsory subject in schools. However, only a very small percentage of people there speak Gaelic fluently as a first language (it’s estimated to be 3% of the population).
Pronounced dee-a gwit, this Irish greeting means literally ‘God be with you’. When someone says it to you, the reply is, interestingly, ‘Mary be with you’.

– Aine