Comments on: Fuck the Fresh Fruit: save bad Chinese/English translations http://boingboing.net/2006/09/09/fuck-the-fresh-fruit.html Brain candy for Happy Mutants Fri, 24 May 2013 02:39:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 By: Anonymous http://boingboing.net/2006/09/09/fuck-the-fresh-fruit.html#comment-415050 Anonymous Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-415050 These two articles explain where that "mistake" comes from. Where Chinglish comes from http://www.boingboing.net/2006/09/09/fuck-the-fresh-fruit.html and THE ETIOLOGY AND ELABORATION OF A FLAGRANT MISTRANSLATION http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/005195.html The Yeti, again! These two articles explain where that “mistake” comes from.

Where Chinglish comes from
http://www.boingboing.net/2006/09/09/fuck-the-fresh-fruit.html

and

THE ETIOLOGY AND ELABORATION OF A FLAGRANT MISTRANSLATION
http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/005195.html

The Yeti, again!

]]> By: Anonymous http://boingboing.net/2006/09/09/fuck-the-fresh-fruit.html#comment-414934 Anonymous Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-414934 The word "dry" and the Chinese slang for "fuck" are the same. Many translation software that are used by unqualified translators, usually people who know a bit of English and want to make some money on the side by picking up a translation job, would translate "dry goods" into "fuck goods", and "dry fruits" into "fuck fruit" etc. Chinese have no conjugation for singular and plural. Signs would say, e.g., "We sell apple" instead of "We sell apples." The Yeti, just happened to pass by. The word “dry” and the Chinese slang for “fuck” are the same. Many translation software that are used by unqualified translators, usually people who know a bit of English and want to make some money on the side by picking up a translation job, would translate “dry goods” into “fuck goods”, and “dry fruits” into “fuck fruit” etc.
Chinese have no conjugation for singular and plural. Signs would say, e.g., “We sell apple” instead of “We sell apples.”
The Yeti, just happened to pass by.

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