Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
I just went to the ladies' room, and for about thirty seconds was really excited because I thought I'd discovered a Finnish-Turkish cognate. That would have forced me completely to revise my dismissal of the Ural-Altaic language family hypothesis. Right above the toilet, there it was--the word kädet. Doesn't that look like kağıt? That's the word for "paper" in Turkish. Similar! Don't flush it, right?
Except that I just looked it up, and it means "hands."
I should have known better. This is definitely a country where you wouldn't have to worry that the plumbing will suffer an embolism if you flush paper down the toilet. And where they remind you to wash your hands after using it, too.
By the way, when it comes to toilets, the Turks are absolutely right--it's just gross that Westerners ... well, actually, this conversation isn't suitable for Ricochet. Let's just say that I'm glad the Finns are washing their hands, at least.
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Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Note to my fellow Americans: Have any interest in remaining globally relevant? Then get your minds out of the gutter and focus. We've got bigger problems.
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
You win! Totally fair point. However, in about ten minutes I swear I will get up from this comfortable Finnish cafe and go look for real news.
Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Claire Berlinski, Ed.
You win! Totally fair point. However, in about ten minutes I swear I will get up from this comfortable Finnish cafe and go look for real news. · Jun 9 at 2:38am
Aw, its so hard to stay mad at you...
Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Have you seen the Right Wing News list of the 20 hottest conservative women in new media. You aren't on it!!! How can that be???? Sarah Palin is #6. I expect a full report.
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
A priori evidence of voter fraud.
Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Claire Berlinski, Ed.
A priori evidence of voter fraud. · Jun 9 at 3:05am
I'm a limited government guy, but this a case for federal intervention if ever there is one. Let's get Richard Epstein on the job.
Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
I just went to the ladies' room, and for about thirty seconds was really excited
There's something about that lede that's just so wrong when I see Claire Berlinski's name attached to it.
Feb '11
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Here in America, the rage in public restrooms is to hang a laminated, step-by-step instruction manual about how to wash your hands. I find it offensive.
Mar '11
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Does anyone else sing Happy Birthday to themselves while washing? I heard once that one should wash his hands for at least as long as it takes to sing the Happy Birthday song. I usually add "...and many moooore" just to be safe.
Mar '11
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Claire,
Only on Ricochet could a trip to the bathroom generate a thread of philological consequence.
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
The obvious “Uralo-Altaic” cognates in Finnish are things like “minä” and “sinä” which are “ben” and “sen” in Turkish. I know, “minä”/“ben”? But the initial b- has gone to m- in almost all Turkic languages (Turkey Turkish is the conservative exception), so in a lot of languages it's men or män or some version thereof.
The agglutination, SOV order, vowel harmony, and lack of gender are what also got the Uralo-Altaic folks hyped.
Apr '11
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Bill Walsh: The obvious “Uralo-Altaic” cognates in Finnish are things like “minä” and “sinä” which are “ben” and “sen” in Turkish. I know, “minä”/“ben”? But the initial b- has gone to m- in almost all Turkic languages (Turkey Turkish is the conservative exception), so in a lot of languages it's men or män or some version thereof.
The agglutination, SOV order, vowel harmony, and lack of gender are what also got the Uralo-Altaic folks hyped. · Jun 9 at 3:03pm
Dang. Bill just beat me to it.
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Claire Berlinski, Ed.
A priori evidence of voter fraud. · Jun 9 at 3:05am
Amen.
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Bill Walsh: The obvious “Uralo-Altaic” cognates in Finnish are things like “minä” and “sinä” which are “ben” and “sen” in Turkish. I know, “minä”/“ben”? But the initial b- has gone to m- in almost all Turkic languages (Turkey Turkish is the conservative exception), so in a lot of languages it's men or män or some version thereof.
The agglutination, SOV order, vowel harmony, and lack of gender are what also got the Uralo-Altaic folks hyped. · Jun 9 at 3:03pm
As a sometime speaker of Turkish, Bill, I understand everything except SOV order. what's that?
Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Paul A. Rahe
Bill Walsh: The obvious “Uralo-Altaic” cognates in Finnish are things like “minä” and “sinä” which are “ben” and “sen” in Turkish. I know, “minä”/“ben”? But the initial b- has gone to m- in almost all Turkic languages (Turkey Turkish is the conservative exception), so in a lot of languages it's men or män or some version thereof.
The agglutination, SOV order, vowel harmony, and lack of gender are what also got the Uralo-Altaic folks hyped. · Jun 9 at 3:03pm
As a sometime speaker of Turkish, Bill, I understand everything except SOV order. what's that? · Jun 9 at 3:13pm
Subject-Object-Verb, I believe.
Aug '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Pseudodionysius
Subject-Object-Verb, I believe. · Jun 9 at 3:29pm
Doggone it, Pseud, ya beat me to it.
Or should that be "catgone it"?
Sep '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
Midget Faded Rattlesnake
Pseudodionysius
Subject-Object-Verb, I believe. · Jun 9 at 3:29pm
Doggone it, Pseud, ya beat me to it.
Or should that be "catgone it"? · Jun 9 at 3:31pm
Woebegone it.
Nov '10
Re: Linguistic Excitement, Followed By Disappointment, in a Finnish Toilet
To be fair, though, SOV is the most common word order in the world. Even Latin, which is unquestionably Indo-European and had variable word order, defaulted to SOV.