theHRguy@lemmy.world to Today I Learned@lemmy.worldEnglish · 4 months agoTIL: The Phrase “Death To America” Didn’t exist Before the CIA Overthrew the Iranian Government for Nationalizing their Oil in 1953medium.comexternal-linkmessage-square46fedilinkarrow-up1420arrow-down123
arrow-up1397arrow-down1external-linkTIL: The Phrase “Death To America” Didn’t exist Before the CIA Overthrew the Iranian Government for Nationalizing their Oil in 1953medium.comtheHRguy@lemmy.world to Today I Learned@lemmy.worldEnglish · 4 months agomessage-square46fedilink
minus-squareBarqsHasBite@lemmy.calinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up34·4 months agoI’ve heard they also say “death to traffic”. So I’m wondering if it’s a translation thingy.
minus-squareAllNewTypeFace@leminal.spacelinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up54·4 months ago“death to” is apparently the literal translation of the Farsi idiom whose idiomatic translation into American English would be “goddamn” or “fuck”
minus-squarelivus@kbin.sociallinkfedilinkarrow-up33arrow-down1·4 months agoI hate how western media use literal translations like this. I would probably sound like a christian fundamentalist if someone interpreted every OMG of mine as some sort of address to God.
minus-square【J】【u】【s】【t】【Z】@lemmy.worldlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up5arrow-down18·4 months agoYou misread. They say fuck America, but they do mean death to America. That’s the translation.
minus-squarelivus@kbin.sociallinkfedilinkarrow-up15·4 months agoThat’s literally the opposite of what the person I was replying to said.
minus-square【J】【u】【s】【t】【Z】@lemmy.worldlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up1arrow-down9·4 months agoThat person is wrong.
minus-squarelivus@kbin.sociallinkfedilinkarrow-up5·4 months agoWell, I looked into it and found credible sources that support @AllNewTypeFace’s claim, so I’m going to believe them. https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=31116 https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/1558/929
minus-square【J】【u】【s】【t】【Z】@lemmy.worldlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up1arrow-down5·4 months agoRight I know that’s the translation. But they do mean they want America to be destroyed/gone/dead/whatever. And they are willing to kill Americans and attack American interests if they can.
minus-squarelivus@kbin.sociallinkfedilinkarrow-up5·4 months agoToo much of a leap. The idea that everyone who says down with a regime is willing to kill people over it, doesn’t really hold water for me.
minus-squaredelirious_owl@discuss.onlinelinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up4arrow-down2·4 months agoFuck America is one of my fav songs
minus-squareouter_spec@lemmy.blahaj.zonelinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up19·4 months agoI’m just gonna say “death to _” about anything that mildly annoys me now
minus-squarelaughterlaughter@lemmy.worldlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up5·4 months agoDeath to this groin rash!
minus-squareFlying Squid@lemmy.worldlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up2·4 months agoPut it on the list. https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20150202-the-greatest-mistranslations-ever
I’ve heard they also say “death to traffic”. So I’m wondering if it’s a translation thingy.
“death to” is apparently the literal translation of the Farsi idiom whose idiomatic translation into American English would be “goddamn” or “fuck”
I hate how western media use literal translations like this.
I would probably sound like a christian fundamentalist if someone interpreted every OMG of mine as some sort of address to God.
You misread. They say fuck America, but they do mean death to America. That’s the translation.
That’s literally the opposite of what the person I was replying to said.
That person is wrong.
Well, I looked into it and found credible sources that support
@AllNewTypeFace’s claim, so I’m going to believe them.
https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=31116
https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/1558/929
Right I know that’s the translation. But they do mean they want America to be destroyed/gone/dead/whatever. And they are willing to kill Americans and attack American interests if they can.
Too much of a leap.
The idea that everyone who says down with a regime is willing to kill people over it, doesn’t really hold water for me.
Fuck America is one of my fav songs
I’m just gonna say “death to _” about anything that mildly annoys me now
Death to this groin rash!
Death to allergies!
Put it on the list.
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20150202-the-greatest-mistranslations-ever