Off topic: Those gaffes in full ناشر الموضوع: 00000000 (X)
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Claire Cozens
Monday November 17, 2003
KFC's "finger lickin' good" slogan was mistranslated in China as "eat your fingers off".
The Ford Pinto flopped when it was launched in Brazil. Mystified executives later learned "pinto" is local slang for small genitals.
The slogan "Nothing sucks like Electrolux" did little for the vacuum cleaner's sales in the US.
Lager brand Coors' slogan, "turn it loose", became "suffer from diarrhoea" in Spanish... See more Claire Cozens
Monday November 17, 2003
KFC's "finger lickin' good" slogan was mistranslated in China as "eat your fingers off".
The Ford Pinto flopped when it was launched in Brazil. Mystified executives later learned "pinto" is local slang for small genitals.
The slogan "Nothing sucks like Electrolux" did little for the vacuum cleaner's sales in the US.
Lager brand Coors' slogan, "turn it loose", became "suffer from diarrhoea" in Spanish.
"Pepsi brings you back to life" was translated into Chinese as "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave".
The Rolls-Royce Silver Mist range had to be renamed for Germany because mist means "excrement" in German.
From The Guardian (what a nice newspaper!)
http://media.guardian.co.uk/advertising/story/0,7492,1085570,00.html ▲ Collapse
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| Oh no not again! | Nov 17, 2003 |
Esther Pfeffer wrote: Claire Cozens Monday November 17, 2003 KFC's "finger lickin' good" slogan was mistranslated in China as "eat your fingers off". The Ford Pinto flopped when it was launched in Brazil. Mystified executives later learned "pinto" is local slang for small genitals. The slogan "Nothing sucks like Electrolux" did little for the vacuum cleaner's sales in the US. Lager brand Coors' slogan, "turn it loose", became "suffer from diarrhoea" in Spanish. "Pepsi brings you back to life" was translated into Chinese as "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave". The Rolls-Royce Silver Mist range had to be renamed for Germany because mist means "excrement" in German. From The Guardian (what a nice newspaper!) http://media.guardian.co.uk/advertising/story/0,7492,1085570,00.html[/quote] Not these boring mistranslations again! Well I suppose it makes us "professionals" who never make mistakes, puff our chests out in pride. But I do agree the Guardian is a nice newspaper. | | | | R. James
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| MJ Barber 
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Local time: 08:23
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| one I hadn't seen | Nov 20, 2003 |
hmmm, we've all seen those "tootle him melodiously" and "all water has been passed by the manager" translations so many times, that it was a surprise to find one that I, at least, hadn't seen before. Excuse me if it's been posted already:
Locum is a Swedish company. In 1991, they sent Christmas cards to all of their customers. They thought they would give their logo a little holiday spirit, by substituting a little heart for the letter "o". For some reason, they also used all lowerc... See more hmmm, we've all seen those "tootle him melodiously" and "all water has been passed by the manager" translations so many times, that it was a surprise to find one that I, at least, hadn't seen before. Excuse me if it's been posted already:
Locum is a Swedish company. In 1991, they sent Christmas cards to all of their customers. They thought they would give their logo a little holiday spirit, by substituting a little heart for the letter "o". For some reason, they also used all lowercase letters. The lowercase "L" can therefore be easily misunderstood to be an "i", and the locum logo looked like one of those "I love ..." bumper stickers, with an unfortunate pornographic sentiment to it.
example here:
http://www.skrattnet.com/sex/ilovecum.asp ▲ Collapse
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Jack Doughty
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Local time: 07:23
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احياء لذكرى | Ambiguous headlines | Nov 25, 2003 |
Newspaper editors, in their desire to save space, make headlines as brief as possible, sometimes with ambiguous results.
There is some correspondence going on in the 'Daily Telegraph' at present on this subject.
Two examples from the Second World War:
"Eighth Army push bottles up Germans"
"Legless VC opens pub"
One originally from a cricket commentary, naming two of the players:
"The batsman's Holding, the bowler's Willie".
... See more Newspaper editors, in their desire to save space, make headlines as brief as possible, sometimes with ambiguous results.
There is some correspondence going on in the 'Daily Telegraph' at present on this subject.
Two examples from the Second World War:
"Eighth Army push bottles up Germans"
"Legless VC opens pub"
One originally from a cricket commentary, naming two of the players:
"The batsman's Holding, the bowler's Willie".
Any other examples (in any language)? ▲ Collapse
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