Thread: Informal English usage and possible translation issues
View Single Post
Old 01-21-2024, 04:16 PM   #37
j.p.s
Grand Sorcerer
j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.j.p.s ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 5,814
Karma: 103362673
Join Date: Apr 2011
Device: pb360
Quote:
Originally Posted by hildea View Post
I tested with Google translate, English to Norwegian:
  • "Come on guys" --> "Kom igjen folkens" (= folks or people, gender neutral)
  • "All the guys" --> "Alle gutta" (= boys or men, definitively gendered)

As someone with English as a second language, my immediate impression is that "guys" is gendered. If someone used "guys" about a group I was part of, I'd assume I was included, but I'd be mildly (very mildly) annoyed. (And if someone said "Come on, guys and Hilde" I'd be much more annoyed )
Thank you, although I'm more insterested in translations in the opposite direction. I assume folkens would be most likely to translate to folks and certainly not to men. I haven't heard folks used in quite a while, and it hasn't been suggested in this thread, but it seems like a reasonable alternative.

As to thee and thou, I've only encountered them in a scriptural (religious) context or depictions of ancient times. I had always assumed they were formal in olden times.
j.p.s is offline   Reply With Quote