Language / Foreigners speaking Polish - examples. [61]

Hungarians speaking Polish (thick accent as far as I can tell, ignoring differences between ś and sz, i and y etc., LoL):

youtu.be/HMIR1PiQeho

You can also see 1956.pl for the former Hungarian ambassador speaking Polish.

Language / Dzwoniono / Czytano [22]

szveronika,
As far as I understand, czytano is the same as "széles körben olvasott könyv" (a book read by a wide public), but it sounds too cheesy, so in common speech we just say without referring to a person/persons: "sokan olvassák" (lots of them read it). That's why you might mistake it for "czytali" (they have read it). :)

Being a beginner in Polish, I don't know if these "-no" forms have the same "cheesy" (too sophisticated) taste in Polish or they can be used everyday without sounding like a snob. :)

Study / Which university (erazmusem)? Poznań, Lublin, Krosno and Białsko-Biała. [17]


I've spent two weeks at the Lublin Catholic University Summer School. That's been three years ago, but Lublin now is also a candidate for the European City of Culture, so there are lots of events focused around that -- might be an easy way to socialise. :)

Language / Polish nationality insults in Polish? [67]


In the "Eastern Bloc" of the communista era, anything "Russkie" indicated something not working appropriately. :) If someone with a runny nose is not using a tissue, we say he's using a Russkie handkerchief (HU. ruszki zsebkendő, PL. ruska chusteczka). Or a "Russkie bulldozer" = a lone worker with a shovel, "Russkie electricity" = you light a candle, "Russkie toilet" = a bucket etc.

Study / Opinions about '2 weeks intensive Polish course' [26]

If you can afford it, I do recommend taking the challenge of such a course. :)
I spent a fortnight at the summer school of the Catholic Uni of Lublin two years ago.

Their homepage: kul.pl/school,art_8284.html
The School of Polish Language and Culture, see "Programs for 2010/2011" for prices. They have semi-intensive / intensive / highly-intensive courses for up to 8 weeks.

And you can read my 'impression' here: greenvault.tvn.hu/lublin/

(Sorry for any non-working links, if any.)

Language / The Future of Polish Language [179]


What many English-speakers never realise is just how off they sound to non-native speakers! :D

Language / Do Poles prefer US American or UK English language? [147]


Not bad, but when it comes to British accents, this Scottish bloke is the classic :)

youtube.com/watch?v=KH_kOjsXakM

Language / Polish and Hungarian, how similar? [53]


“A mixture of Slavic and Finno-Ugric”, you mean.
No, it’s not.

Language / Is the term 'Polak' derogatory?? [254]

IMHE (in my humble experience), as long as terms are not racial, they depend on the context heavily. Racial terms tend to be derogatory by definition.

Life / Racism in Poland - the future [441]

LoL, hopefully.

Language / Too many English words in the Polish language! [709]


Not just Polish, Hungarian still have a couple of terms from German, following our close co-existence with the Austrians. :) Most of them would sound archaic in contemporary language, though, as we don't use or understand them now (i.e. "kravatt" for neck-tie, "anzix" for postcard). But when it comes to technical languages of different professions, it is still amazing to hear their German-sounding terms. My uncle used to be a mason, and it was like a riddle to solve when he started to explain how to build or fix something in a house...


Actually, szabla comes from the Hungarian. "Szabni" = to cut, to tailor something. "Szablya" [pronounced in Polish: "sabja"] = szabla.
A similar military term is szereg, from the Hungarian "sereg" (pron. "szereg" in Polish) = army or lots of people/things.
:)

Language / Can you recognise the nationality of foreign Polish speakers by their accent? [43]


S*d off. I can even say Grzegorz Brzęczyszczykiewicz, Chrząszczyrzewoszyce powiat £ękołody with no problem at all.
:)

Language / Polish words difficult to translate into English [66]


Do you use kilkadziesiąt for everything over 20 (between 20 & 100), or use specifically “kilkatrzydzieści”, “kilkaczterdzieści” etc. as well? In English, they use twenty-some, thirty-some... hundred-some etc. (Several is no good. I.e. several hundred = 200 and more, while hundred-some = from 101 to up to a very maximum of 199.)

I can’t really think of anything specific for kilkanaście, apart from "ten or so".

News / Poland's Organized Crime [58]


Sad but you're actually right here. In former(?) communist countries you can't really hear about the mafia for the very reason that the governments work as "legalized mafias"...

Language / Polish slang phrases - most popular. [606]


And what about kumpel? It means “mate”, if I’m not mistaken. (Of course, not in the British English “vocative” way at the end of every single sentence, but as a reference between males who know each other.) Is it closer to przyjaciel, friend?

News / RHD cars in Poland - my campaign to change the rules in Poland [128]

Now you regret it... Should've got rid of the old alcoholic Churchill back in those days, I say. Rechts fahren über alles. :P

Language / Interesting inconsistency between Polish and Russian [71]


Even in England we have a laugh at the natives... To speak "correct" English, you should not ever let your tongue touch your teeth, and should not ever let your lips close. That's why they have no pure vowel or consonants. :o)

They still understand the Hungarian 'kiss', though. :)

Language / IS "MURZYN" word RACIST? [686]


It's called inferiority complex...

But has anyone noticed that "nigger" is not only a racial term all the time, but a denomination of social status? In that sense, it can be applied to non-black people as well.

Language / Interesting inconsistency between Polish and Russian [71]



I know that, but it is pronounced as "b-u-z-i". But it's not a PC term, so it does not mean "gay", but more like poofter. :D

Actually, the Polish kiss, buzi (b-u-ź-i) sounds quite similar to the Hungarian kiss, puszi (p-u-s-i), which then takes us to the Hungarian-English false friends as it is pronounced the same as the Engish pussy. :)) Looks like our ancestors were even more messed up round the lips..... :D

Language / Interesting inconsistency between Polish and Russian [71]

For me, the worst case is when supposedly "common, European" ( = based on Old Greek/Latin) words have different meanings in different European languages...

A funny false friend: dynia is pumpkin in Polish, but dinnye is melon in Hungarian. Looks like our ancestors were always too drunk and could never taste the plants in their garden. :)

Language / learning Polish using American phonics [24]

Hope Joan could manage...


+ Hungarians have no problem with long vs. short vowels.
...but we have problems pronouncing English diphthongs (+ the triphthong in flower, R.P.) and we can't hear the difference between ae vs. e (bad vs. bed).

UK, Ireland / Warning to British people visiting Poland!! Don't get drunk and smash the place up! [447]

Well, there's one thing about the night-life in England: most clubs close at 2am. No wonder why...

IMHO the underlying problem is not the alcohol, but the fact that the English youth (or, hmm, the youth in England) have no discipline. When they go out on the p*ss, they know neither God, nor human. They drink brainlessly... And they turn totally unpredictable, no matter their age, though. At home, I know "who to avoid, where to go" (generally the low-life type of people like gipsies and low-class pubs + all-too-popular clubs), but in England even the most harmless situation can end up awfully...

Language / learning Polish using American phonics [24]

Joan,

I suggest you have a look at the "sticky" topic (at the top of this forum):collection of Polish language learning resources. You can find lots of audio/video courses for beginners in Polish.

For example, Magauchsein's videos are great for a start. They go through the Polish alphabet, pronouncing each letter -- which means each Polish sound. Unlike English, every letter (or a double/triple combination of letters) conforms to one vocal in Polish, so you only have to memorize them once to be able to read/pronounce Polish texts. It is a much better way than trying to transcribe them into "American"...

I don't know if you want to keep this as a secret... If not, you can always ask your daughter-in-law to aid you in the correct pronunciation. :)

Language / Your perception of the Polish accent [145]

I know that there are accents (I actually prefer the non-Southern English accents, with no vowel-split). But I mean, come on, people, you’ve probably made every logopedian flee from the country. Most of the time, it’s not the accent but the fact that there’s no articulation in speech, you just do not pronounce the sounds clearly. (I mean "you" in the impersonal sense here. :) It’s just a kind of broken English. Especially young people can speak as if their tongues were just failed efforts that Darwinism speaks of. :)

Language / Polite forms in Polish vs English [49]

Actually, it's the other way round.

I don’t know about the Americans, but the English just can’t be as simple and straightforward as probably every other nation in the world. They have a strange mind to over-complicate everything. When it comes to asking someone about something, it’s even worse: for example, you should not ever directly say ‘no’ to anything they ask. Just make up an excuse, say there’s an earthquake or UFOs have landed, but do not ever say ‘no’ to an Englishman.

One typical example:

“You want a cupper, darling?”
“I’m alright, thanks.”

(I.e. translated: Would you like a cup of tea? - No, thanks.)

Language / Your perception of the Polish accent [145]


No offence, but it seems that the English have no different accents - they are just trying to make individual efforts to avoid speaking properly.

Anyway, Latin and Germanic languages tend to "spread apart", while Slavonic languages are much more cohesive. If you're a native in English, sometimes you can't even understand a fellow native English speaker, and it's even worse for a German or an Italian - and you are mutually unintelligible in speech (I mean a German for an English etc. - save the Italian-Spanish inter-intelligibility in some cases). But if you're a native in Russian, for instance, you can even manage with a Pole, Croatian etc. (most of the time they only have political reasons not to do so).

Language / The Polish language - it's bloody hard! [210]


All because the English never have introduced diacritical marks to ease the pressure...

Remember the famous GHOTI?
enough
women
nation

-> ghoti = fish

Language / The Polish language - it's bloody hard! [210]

No, it ain't easy. :) Even native speakers are lost at it, IMHO...

Language / Word order and swearing in Polish [44]


Hmm, I wouldn't dare to say the first and the last one to a female. :o) "Kurwa, co ty robisz?!" may sound like you call her a whore, unless you really press it: Kuuurwa! Co ty robisz?! :D


It's the same in every language, I suppose. Even English, which is really poor when it comes to swearing, could still use "fancy swearings" like: "Glorious piece of a heavenly shit!" But most people have no creativity these days, they are just sad and blatant...

Language / Use of A/An/The ...... Articles [186]


Bwaah... Then how the English manage with practically no conjugation/inflection at all? Take the accusative, which is the most necessary grammatical case after nominative: dziewczyna - dziewczynę. They both had to be translated to English as "girl".

You just can't compare languages on a basis like that...

(Btw., it is spelled absence.)