Swea words

[Phelix]

What do people refer to in swearwords in your country? You don's have to say the actual words if you feel a bit (Laughing...) about that. But what area in life does the words refer to? Are they common, accepted in daily life - or are they a definite no-no?

In Sweden we swear about hell, who should go there and what they ought to do there. There is also some refering to the male organ. Using swearwords are not something big bad, but it is never used in official laguage. (I've never heard our King and Queen swear.) On the whole I think we could be a bit more creative in our colour language. Sadly I have to admit that a common insult is to call another homosexual. The use of that word I Stronlgy discourage.

(Censored) (Censored) (Censored) (Censored) (Censored) (Censored)

Well - I'm curious. I would especially appreciate a comment from our Finnish members. The Finns are a people of many talents, and swearing is definetly one of them. (Eek...) :-/

Edited November 17, 2005 by Phelix

[Sasanishiki]

Well, I work in English, and as most of you know, swearing relates to bodily functions and parts, sex, a person's background, disease, sexual orientation/potency, and of course to religious aspects (hell, blasphemy, etc). I'd think it would be the same in most languages. Am I wrong?

Edited November 17, 2005 by Sasanishiki

[Phelix]

A friend of mine once presented the theory that what you swear about goes with what is most hush-hush in the countrys religion. So catholics - i.e. southern Europe - swears about sex, while protestants - i.e. Germany and Scandinavia - swear about hell.

But is it true that the Australians and the Russians are the absolute gold medalists at colourfull language?

[Kashunowaka]

I'd think it would be the same in most languages. Am I wrong?

Yes, I think you are. (Eek...)

[Kintamayama]

In case anyone wants to swear multilingually..

http://www.insultmonger.com/swearing/index.htm

[Mark Buckton]

I'd think it would be the same in most languages. Am I wrong?

Yes, I think you are. :-S

but in saying so, I contribute nothing (Showing respect...)

One way to rack up the posts, Cashew-san.

FWIW - I feel that the Aussies are pretty prolific - also depends on backgrounds / education / jobs the number of times you'd swear in a day and what some would say is swearing, others wouldn't perhaps - 'crap' a recent example on the forum. (crap yokozuna thread IIRC)

[Kintamayama]

FWIW - I feel that the Aussies are pretty prolific - also depends on backgrounds / education / jobs the number of times you'd swear in a day and what some would say is swearing, others wouldn't perhaps - 'crap' a recent example on the forum. (crap yokozuna thread IIRC)

Oh, I think we're pretty much up in the top ten. We swear about anything and everything-even if something is really, really good, we say" Man that was a S.O.B of a show". Mind you - there are no swearwords in Hebrew -we swear in Arabic and Russian mostly.

[Iwagakki]

The few friends and acquaintances that I have from Australia swear so much that it isn't even swearing anymore...

It just ends up being a speech pattern that includes a lot of colorful adjectives. Sort of like, saying, "ummm" or "like" in American speech. The heavy use renders the "swear" words harmless, and they just become part of the vernacular and syntax of language.

Just a thought.

[Iwagakki]

oh, yeah...I forgot to mention...

Apparently, I swear so much, just in regular pattern, that my prim and proper Japanese wife walks around perpetually scandalized. I think she has the idea that people swear when they are pissed off, so she must think I need anger management therapy, or something?

I asked her one time, "don't Japanese people swear?" and she said "Of course they do, but never like THAT!"

Maybe I should wash my own mouth out with soap?

Edited November 17, 2005 by Iwagakki

[Sasanishiki]

I don't know if it is true of the whole country, but the South African sumo team swear like troopers in both Afrikaans and English! Great guys though!

[Fujisan]

I think Sasanishiki summed up my definition of swear words pretty well but another aspect is context-

Some perfectly normal words have been turned into swear words by by

peoples using them as insults-B**tard(Child born out of wedlock) being a primary example.

Most swear words are defined in the English dictionary though as 'vulgar slang.'

[Phelix]

But what do'ya think of the reasons for swearing? F'instance the Aussies. Do they all swear so much 'cause they're ancestors are convicts? But why then, do the Finns swear so much ('cause they DO!)?

[Jakusotsu]

The fact that I'm still thinking very hard about an appropriate answer indicates that I simply don't seem to be swearing all that much. (Eating...)

[Kaikitsune Makoto]

Finnish youngsters use the all so common female genitalia cursing all the time. Not all but many do. Older people use that too but more beelsebub words like perkele and saatana are heard too. kusip

[Takanobaka]

I'm an English speaker, but having grown up in Florida, I had a ton of Cuban and Puerto Rican friends, and the main swear words for them were pretty much the same as in English....Puta (whore), maricon or pato (queer), chingate (f*ck you), Cono (not sure how to do the n with the tilda over it...in any case cunt), besa me culo (kiss my ass), etc. The only one which doesn't have much of a translation (but which is also probably the most common / serious) was cabron (I guess the closest association is bitch, since the literal meaning is just male goat, but the connotation is that you have gay sex with goats). Much like what Nishinoshima ws saying, many of the noun swear words were just as likely to be used in friendly connotations as in unfriendly ones (heck, a couple friends of mine would use "ay cono" as like a sigh), but I get the impression that that's mostly for North American latinos and that South American latinos tend to take it more seriously, as I heard much less of that when I was in Peru and Bolivia than when I was in Guatemala or back in Florida. Funny side note, the Tex-Mex dish the chimichanga got that name because the restaurant worker who accidentally invented it started to say a swear word when she dropped an enchilada into the deep fryer and changed what she was saying midstream into some jibberish...

[Phelix]

F'instance the Aussies. Do they all swear so much 'cause they're ancestors are convicts?

this is such a common misperception.

There you go. This only goes to show that there is always so much more stuff that you think you know that you actually do not know, than there is stuff that you think you know that you actually do know.

Anyways, 'tis an interesting debate.

Edited November 20, 2005 by Phelix

[Mark Buckton]

listening to Nishi in the ambulance today (on the other end of the phone) I can tell you he swore not once - fine chap - could almost be English!

[Phelix]

There seem to be a whole lot of text missing to that post. Ambulance?

[Andreas]

The by far most common swearword in Germany is the German equivalent to the English "sh*t".

to be continued, dont have time now ;)

[Sasanishiki]

I'm an English speaker, but having grown up in Florida, I had a ton of Cuban and Puerto Rican friends, and the main swear words for them were pretty much the same as in English....Puta (whore), maricon or pato (queer), chingate (f*ck you), Cono (not sure how to do the n with the tilda over it...in any case cunt), besa me culo (kiss my ass), etc. The only one which doesn't have much of a translation (but which is also probably the most common / serious) was cabron (I guess the closest association is bitch, since the literal meaning is just male goat, but the connotation is that you have gay sex with goats).

I am reliably informed that the worst thing you can say in Puerto Rico (and in Latin America in general) is "your mother". This really makes the curse personal and so has major impact. Is this correct?

[Asojima]

Being a retired sailor, I, of course, have had no life experiences which would grant me a level of expertise sufficient to provide a cogent comment on this disgusting subject. :-)

[Takanobaka]

The by far most common swearword in Germany is the German equivalent to the English "sh*t".

to be continued, dont have time now ;)

Problem is that the word for female frontal region sounds pretty similar to that as well. My ex, to a German friend, once tried to say 'esse mein (Censored) ' but missed the word by a letter, and the Germans got a pretty good laugh.

As for 'your mother', I suspect that it differs in different parts of Latin America. Adding 'su madre' to the front of a string of swear words does seem to make it more serious though...

[Onnagumo]

I think the most common swear words in Dutch refer to genitals, not just the male genitals but also the female. At least, that is what I hear most often. A Dutch word for homosexual is also used as a swear word, and I feel as bad about that as you do (Sign of disapproval).

We also have swear words that refer to religious topics. The latter are generally considered the worst among my family and friends. I wasn't allowed to use any swear words as a child, but if I used one of that particular kind, I was sure to get a very strong reprimand.... :-) I still can't get those words over my lips, so I guess it worked (Hugging...)

Edited November 21, 2005 by Onnagumo

[Jakusotsu]

Are we beginning to mix up swearwords with insults here? :-)

[Onnagumo]

Are we beginning to mix up swearwords with insults here? (Applauding...)

My mistake here (Applauding...) - I was referring to this part of Phelix's original message:

Sadly I have to admit that a common insult is to call another homosexual. The use of that word I Stronlgy discourage.

All I wanted to say was that this is done in Holland too, and that I hate it as much as she does. But indeed she did not call it a swear word, but an insult. I used the wrong word, that is all.