Untranslatable words – our top 10
When even the most proficient translators are lost for words
Does “untranslatable” really mean “untranslatable”?
A little spoiler: no, it doesn’t. It all comes down to how you define “untranslatable”. For instance, the Internet is full of funny lists of untranslatable words. Maybe you’ve had a little chuckle too about the “woman who is only attractive from behind” (Japanese bakku-shan) or “getting drunk home alone in your underwear with no intention of going out” (Finnish Kälsarikännit)?
As you can see, these words are not untranslatable at all – they simply can’t be translated with a single word. Instead, it takes several words or a whole sentence to get the meaning across in another language.
From foreign words to loan words
Sometimes, people take the easy road and simply incorporate a foreign word into their own language instead of translating it. This is when a foreign word becomes a “loan word”. For instance, for lack of a better word, the German “Schadenfreude” (to take joy in other people’s misfortunes) is also used in many English-speaking countries.
Loan words can occur both in the source and the target language:
German loan words in other languages:
- English: Angst, Kindergarten, Sauerkraut, …
- French: Biedermeier, Rollmops, Zeitgeist, …
- Hebrew: Dübel, Feinschmecker, Isolierband, …
Loan words from other languages in German:
- English: Computer, Fan, Sandwich, Gag, ...
- French: Charme, Dessert, Recherche, …
- Arabic: Admiral, Giraffe, Karaffe, …
Why is there such a thing as “untranslatable” words?
Of course, there’s no single reason why a word is easy, hard or even impossible to translate. However, untranslatable words usually say something about the culture they come from.
Because if there is a single word for something, it’s likely that the object or situation it refers to is fairly important in this culture. After all, you only need a linguistically economic (i.e., short) version for things that are important and therefore frequently referred to.
Did you know? This phenomenon can also be seen within a language. For instance, in northern Bavaria, there’s a special term for “the last beer before going home, which is not quite full and therefore cheaper, provided that you have consumed at least one beer before that” (= Spruz). This term doesn’t exist in the rest of Germany and is usually only understood by locals. That’s priorities for you …
100 words for snow …
Things that are so important in a certain culture that there is a special word for them – does this ring a bell? After all, Eskimos have 100 words for snow, right?
Wrong! We hate to tell you that you’ve been led up the garden path on this one … Because, apart from the fact that there’s not just one but several Eskimo-Aleut languages, the Inuit don’t have more words for snow than other languages. Where does this urban legend come from then? It goes back to the “Great Eskimo Vocabulary Hoax” and anthropologist Franz Boas, who this legend is attributed to.
