Tuis » Taal » Afrikaans, ons taal » Idiome: langerige lys
| Idiome: langerige lys [boodskap #9466] |
Vr, 23 Mei 1997 00:00 |
Stefan Harms
Boodskappe: 35
Geregistreer: Oktober 1996
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Om die uitruil en vergaar van idiome te vergemaklik, stel ek volgende
reëls voor:
1. Een idioom per boodskap (of wat is die Afrikaans vir "posting"?)
2. Begin die titel van die boodskap met "Idioom: " gevolg deur enige
woord uit die idioom. Dit sal verwarring voorkom, en maak alfabetiese
sorteer makliker. Dit bly dan aan jouself oorgelaat of jy al die response
op die nuusgroep ook wil vergader.
3. Begin die boodskap met die idioom
4. 'n Verduideliking in soveel tale as wat tot jou beskikking is, kan
die pittigheid Afrikaans vir meer mense toeganklik maak.
5. Gee een of twee voorbeelde, asook 'n klein storie, as verduideliking
van die betekenis of oorsprong saam.
6. Teken gerus met jou naam, of gee dan een of ander verwysing.
7. Vermy afjak en politiek.
Natuurlik is hierdie voorstelle, net soos enige reëls op die internet,
net so kragtig as wat die gebruikers dit maak.
Hier dan die lys van idiome tot dusver, sonder die antwoorde daarop (wat
natuurlik ook heel interessant was):
Hy maak vuis in die broek
Ek het onlangs hier in die Kaap die volgende uitdrukking raakgeloop. Ek
het dit nogals as 'n raak beskrywing gesien en deel dit graag. Miskien
kan iemand my laat weet of dit 'n bekende uitdrukking is. 'Hy maak vuis in
die broek'Wanneer iemand baie op die oogaf dreigend praat sonder om
werklik op te tree, dan kan mens se 'hy maak vuis in die broek' Wat dink
julle van die uitdrukking ? am...@iafrica.com (Blue Peter)
Hand in die as geslaan; Sy hand is in die as geslaan
Ek is nie doodseker van hierdie een nie, want dis 'n baie ou een wat
ekdink al amper verdwyn het. Tekens van die tye!Idioom: Hand in die as
geslaan; Sy hand is in die as geslaan.Meaning: His romantic advances to a
girl was rejected. More specifically:In the race for the girl's romantic
attention he was beaten to it byanother chap.Literally: His hand was
knocked into the ashes. Charl Durand
Dis net die oor van die seekoei
'n Idioom wat ek onlangs vir die eerste keer gehoor het, en wat vir my 'n
pragtige plaaslike vervanging van die "punt van die ysberg" is: "dis net
die oor van die seekoei" Chris Theron
So toe soos 'n dinky toy se vensters
In plaas van: so toe soos 'n klei-os se gat.
dan...@ihug.co.nz (Daniel)
So toe soos 'n klei-os se g*t
"Is jy regtig so dom? Jy is so toe soos 'n klei-os se g*t!"[Are you really
so stupid? You are as impenetrably closed as a clay ox's ass!]I first
heard this extremely offensive "skelwoord" [insult] a few years ago being
used by a very refined lady from Springs - which made its vulgarity all
the more startling - to her neighbour whowas dumping kitchen refuse over
the garden wall into her garden. Needless to say it had the desired
effect. I have often wondered about the origin of this most expressive
metaphor. Can somebody help?One occasionally comes across it in a very
funny sequence of sign language gestures used by deaf (and not so deaf
either) persons. Useful when caught up in a Johannesburg traffic snarl. In
English we speak of people being "anal" but this delightful idiom is the
very pits if you really want to insult them! I imagine it must have had
its origin among little Afrikaans boys accustomed at "clay-play" making
clay oxen (and other things!), a pastime which itself conjures up for me
happy memories of "kleilat" [lit. "clay twig" - a 'war game' played by
young South Africans using long twigs to catapult missiles of mud at the
opponent] as boy in Potchefstroom along the "Mooirivier". Perhaps somebody
on the newsgroup can throw some light on the roots and origins of the
idiom.
gar...@iafrica.com (Colin Garvie)
Agteros kom ook in die kraal
"Toemaar, moenie moed opgee nie. Agteros kom ookin die kraal."
Literally, the ox at the back (walking behind the others)or a back ox in
the span of oxen pulling the wagon,will also get to the corral. In other
words, don't despairif you are going slowly.Toemaar: Don't worry. Never
mind.Agter: behindKraal: an enclosure, pen or fold for farm
animals. From early Dutch "koraal" from Portuguese
"curral/corral." The word "kraal" has several meanings in Afrikaans:(1)
corral(2) bead kraal/krale/kraaltjie(3) A village or
settlement occupied by an indigenous tribe, or a cluster of
huts occupied by one family or "clan." Gloudina Bouwer.
'n Riem onder die hart. "Sy hulp was vir my 'n riem onder die hart." A
"riem" is basically a thong cut out of a curedanimal skin. The idiom
means: it gives me greatmoral support, it makes my load lighter. It is
likesomebody is lifting my spirits by using a leatherthong to elevate my
heart, preventing me fromfalling into a depression.The word "riem" comes
from Dutch, where it hasroughly the meaning of :strap, leash,belt etc.
(It isrelated to the English word "ream" for a quantityof paper. )
However, in Afrikaans and to a largedegree also in South African English,
the word "riem" (rieme, riempie) has a very special place. Inthe world of
the pioneer farmers the thongs madefrom the cured hides of animals played
an importantpart. It was used for numerous purposes instead ofrope,
tethering domestic animals and inspanning oxen in front of their wagons.
They used it in the riding gear of their horses, and tethered the
horseswith it to prevent them from running away. They alsoused it in the
fabrication of furniture. The weavingwith small leather thongs to form the
seats for chairs andcouches became an art that is treasured to this day,
andthe open crisscross basket-work pattern called "riempies-mat" remains
to this day an important part of the CapeDutch style and is much
treasured. There are other idioms in which the word appears: riemspring:
to receive a hiding riemtelegram: a false rumourjou rieme styfloop: to
find yourself in hot water die rieme neersit: to take to your heelsuit jou
rieme uit wees : to be in a huff There is a village in the Northern Cape
called "Riemvasmaak." In the past the North EasternFree State was dubbed
"Riemland" because oftheir adeptness at cutting whips and
thongs. Apparently the word "riem" was also used for ostrich feathers of
the highest quality. There the word was apparently derived from the name
ofa particular ostrich bred from stock that was brought from Syria many
years ago. Accordingto the Dictionary of South African English the very
best cock Riempie, brought from the Near East, was by far the most famous
of all ostriches in the region and his qualities have been bred
into ostriches all over the Klein Karoo. Gloudina Bouwer
In die bundu (boendoe). " Hy leef in die bundu, weg van alle
beskawing." He lives in back of beyond, in the sticks, backof Bourke, the
bush. He therefore lives farfrom the mainstream, far from the
socalledcivilizing presence of urban life. I have always associated the
word "bundu" (whichis also extensively used in SA English) with
forestedareas. I was therefore surprised to learn that the wordcomes from
the Shona word for "grasslands." Although the languages of the various
black tribes ofsouthern Africa did not exert as much influence on
thevocabulary of Afrikaans as did the Khoisan group oflanguages, there are
many words from these languagesin common use all over South Africa. Here
are a fewwidely used ones:bonsella/pasella/basela: a present, token of
gratitude (Zoeloe: ibhanselo, Xhosa: ukubaseleindaba: a tribal
meeting (North American pow-wow) now come to mean a meeting
between two political or power groups.hamba: "go!" usually used
offensively. Like Canadian "mush" (from French
"marchez.") khaya/kaia : basically just used by Africans for
"house," but in Afrikaans come to mean a humble make-
shift house.mampoer: home distilled spirits (from Sotho
"mampuru" for "strongest man.") muti : medicine, African
medicine, witchcraft)There are many more such words from African
languagesin Afrikaans. They are spoken with greater frequency incertain
parts of South Africa, especially in the Eastern Capeand in Natal and
parts of the north. I would think that wewill also see a greater influx
of these words into Afrikaansin the next few decades, as the Afrikaans of
the "Coloured" people of South Africa becomes more widely used by
thegeneral Afrikaans speaking population. I suspect that thenon-white
speakers of Afrikaans during the apartheid yearsborrowed much more
liberally from the black languagesthan the "official" Afrikaans that had
to toe the party line.
Gloudina Bouwer
Hy is 'n Rooinek.
"Hy is 'n Rooinek. Snaaks, ek dink nie dat 'n mens in Afrikaans 'n Engelse
vrou 'n Rooineksal noem nie." In North America the term "redneck" is
useddisparagingly of an inexperienced person, " oneof the white rural
laboring class in the southern United States" (American Heritage
Dictionary.) In South Africa it has a very specific meaning. The "red"
and "neck" in the expression "Rooinek" refer to the red necks that the
British developed when exposed to the South African sun. It becamea term
of derision especially at the end of the nine-teenth century when Britain
very aggressively triedto bring the whole of Southern Africa under
herdomination, starting wars to bring the independentOrange Free State and
Transvaal Republics to theirknees ( The First and Second Wars of
Independence)using a quite large army to fight a traditional war against a
much smaller Boer force who engaged theEnglish in quite a successful
guerilla war. They werebrought to their knees eventually, but only after
womenand children were confined to concentration camps anda scorched earth
policy was followed to prevent themfrom getting food from the farms.
England of course had already for about a hundredyears before that ruled
the western part of the country.England had captured the Cape Colony
during theNapoleonic Wars, since the Dutch "Batavian Republic" was an ally
of the French. It had to give the Cape backto the Dutch briefly in the
beginning of the nineteenthcentury, but nearly immediately captured it
again. It followed a policy of anglicization in the Cape, bringingin
Scottish ministers of religion to preach to the colonistsin English. (Some
of these ministers actually assimilatedwith the Dutch speakers, so that
you find McDonalds andMcGregors in SA that have Afrikaans as their mother
tongue.) It is however safe to say that the nearly two hundredyears of
English cultural contact that the inhabitants ofSouthern Africa have been
subjected to has had a crucialinfluence on the residents of South Africa.
Even Afrikanerswill, when they go to Europe, feel frequently more at
homein England than in the Netherlands, where their efforts tomake
themselves understood in Afrikaans will quite oftenbe met with a blank
stare. Most Afrikaners will also quitefrequently interlace their Afrikaans
with English wordsand phrases, a habit that I notice is increasing not
onlyin the Afrikaans of the writers on this newsgroup, but alsoin written
Afrikaans. Would this be part of the picture inthe New South Africa?
Gloudina Bouwer
Die Kretie en Pletie
Uit 'n brief: "Ek weet ek vra nou die gode om van Mt Olimpus af te klim en
met die Kretie en Pletiete meng." Ek neem aan dit beteken dieselfde as "die
hoi poloi" of "jan rap en sy maat" maar is nie seker nie. Ek salgraag die
etimologie wil uitvind. Wonder of dit 'n Nederlandse uitdrukking is?
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
Om krokodiltrane te huil. Ek het krokodiltrane gehuil toe ek hoor P.W.
Bothais nie meer President van Suid-Afrika nie.To shed crocodile tears.
Pretended grief. From theold legend that crocodiles make weeping soundsto
attract victims and then shed tears while eatingthem. I was quite
surprised to find this expression in theDictionary of American Idioms. I
thought that theywould not use the word "crocodile," since they call
thevarieties here "alligators." I was even surprised thatsuch an
expression existed in English, because thecrocodile was surely not
something that figured largein the consciousness of the people of Europe.
But Iwas wrong. It is from the Middle English cocodril,from Medieval Latin
cocodrillus, from Latin croco-dilus, from Greek krokodilos : "worm of the
pebbles" (from its habit of basking in the sun; kroke (pebbles)drilos
(worm). I guess even in ancient times the peopleespecially of Southern
Europe and Egypt were awareof the geography and the flora and fauna of
especiallythe northeastern part of Africa above the equator.
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
Lyf wegsteek.
"Hy steek sy lyf weg. Hy doen nie sy deel vandie werk nie." Stefan
Harms wou 'n kuber-idioombundel begin.Nou sien ek al vir 'n hele ruk geen
bydraes meer van hom nie. Hoekom steek hy sy lyf so weg? Ofis dit te koud
daar in Winnipeg? "Hy steek sy lyf weg" means that he is shirkinghis
duty, that he is not there when you need him,that there is work to be done
and he is not pullinghis weight. "Wegsteek" : hide
"lyf" : body
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
Dit reën oumeide met knopkieries.
It is raining cats and dogs.The words in Afrikaans literally mean that
itis raining old black women with canes thathave knobs at the top end.
This is a quiteclever description of the phenomenon thatoccurs just after
a raindrop has hit the water.However, nobody could be blamed for
alsofinding it racially repulsive. Now in the original Dutch word
"meid" thereis no such racial connotation. The Dutch "meid" and the
English "maid" come from the same Germanic root. It is a sad reflection
on the raciallystructured class society that developed in SouthAfrica over
the centuries that the word "meid" came to have the meaning of "being
non-white." Both in English, Dutch and Afrikaans a womancould also not be
blamed for finding it repulsivethat the word is accepted as referring to
femalesonly. As if only females could serve as maids! (There are
supposedly "manservants" in the uppercastes of British society, but they
are considereda notch above the maids.)Ek wonder wat sê hulle in Duits
vir "it is raining cats and dogs." Ek saluitvind wat sê hulle in Frans.
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
Neem die Kimberley se trein.
" Om sy lewe makliker te maak, het hy besluit om die Kimberleyse trein
te neem." "To take the Kimberley train" meant to be a Colouredbut to try
and pass yourself off as white. It was a phrasefrom a World War One folk
song sung by the Colouredpeople. It was said to be easier to pass
yourself off as white in the rougher conditions on the Kimberley
diamondmines than in the structured society of Cape Town. Thesong went
like this: "The Kimberley train is coming tonight, It comes in black
and it goes out white." It was a sad situation that until recently the
people of mixedrace in South Africa could gain better jobs and
privilegesby passing themselves off as white. It is also interesting
that there is now a movement in theUSA to have people of mixed heritage
considered a separatecategory. They say that in the USA there is as much
occasionwhen people are asked what category they fit in, and that theyare
at a disadvantage if they are neither black nor white. The idiomatic
expression in the above song explains thewords of the folk song "Hoe ry
die trein, hoe ry die trein, Kimberley se trein." The words of the song,
telling of goingup and down mountains on the way to Kimberley, fits inwith
this explanation. If you go to Kimberley from CapeTown you have to
traverse a series of mountains before youget to the flat Karoo.
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
Wys waar David die wortels gegrawe het.
" As hy nie opskud nie, sal ek hom wys waar David die wortels gegrawe
het." English: To show a person a thing or two. When
irritated with a person's lack of action, threaten to take
some action yourself. This idiom literally translated means "To show
where David dug up the roots." The idiom has, however, nothing to do with
the name David and is an indigenous Afrikaans idiom. The word "Dawid" is a
Khoi word made to sound like something familiar to Dutch ears. In Khoi the
word "davib/daveb" can be used for morethan one type of tree. The ending
-b indicates the wordas masculine. Quite a large number of original
Khoi words existin Afrikaans (and South African English.) Most of themare
for flora and fauna and in place names. However, theKhoi heritage that I
find most interesting in Afrikaansis the large number of exclamatory words
that we havetaken over from the Khoi: Aitsa (surprise and
admiration),arrie (expression of surprise), eina (ouch), g^a (when
smelling something bad), sies ( disgust), soe ( to expressreaction to
heat), e^ (yes), e^-e^ (no).
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
'n Stuiwer in die armbeurs gooi.
"As ek ook nou 'n stuiwer in die armbeurs kan gooi,hoekom is daar so min
mense, behalwe Stefan Harmsen ek, wat idiome op die nuusgroep plaas? Stel
net dieKanadese van Suid-Afrikaanse oorsprong in hierdiesake belang, of
is meeste lede van die nuusgroepmaar net meer geinteresseer in
argumenteer?"Explanation for beginner-students of Afrikaans: The
literal translation of the above idiom is: " to put a halfpenny into the
collection purse for the poor." In England one would probably say "to
put in yourtuppence worth" or, here in North America, "to putin your two
cents' worth." The "stuiver" was the smallest monetary unit in useat
the Cape until the mid-nineteenth century. The DutchEast India Company
introduced the colonial paper rix-dollar at the Cape in 1781. It was
declared to be equalto 48 full weighted pennies of Holland (about 4s
sterling.)The value of the rix-dollar gradually sunk in exchange,until in
1825 it appears to have reached its lowest pointof depression, and then
became known as the "daalder."(om te daal : to go lower. ) That is why
Afrikaans peopleeven in the middle of this century would sometimes
callone shilling and six pennies a "daalder" or a "daler." The
various monetary units in use in Southern Africafrom the seventeenth
century until now provide a rich storeof words enriching the language. It
is interesting to notethat the word "dollar" comes from the Low German
"daler"from the German "Taler," short for "Joachimstaler," a coinmade from
metal from Joachimstal, a town in the ErzgebirgeMountains, now in
Czechoslovakia. Most older people in South Africa today will still
haveintimate knowledge of the English monetary system thatwas introduced
in 1824. That consisted of pounds, shillingsand pence. Words like "crown"
(5 shillings) half-crown(two and a half shillings) guinea (twenty one
shillings)sixpence, tickey or three pence etc. will be found in
bookswritten before the sixties. The present day system is adecimal
system, and the "rand" unit chosen was basedon the value of half a pound
or ten shillings. I personallythink that it was quite a smart way to
anchor the newsystem, much more sophisticated and imaginative thanthe way
the British chose the names of the units of theirsystem, which gives me
the cold shivers every time Ihave to use it.
Gloudina Bouwer (iz...@igs.net)
Vinkel en Koljander :Vinkel en Koljander, die een is soos die ander.
English: "Six of the one and half a dozen of the other." "Vinkel" is
"fennel" in English. Koljander is "coriander." These two plants look much
the same. I assume that thissaying is of Dutch origin. Voorbeeld: "Leendert
dink dat Bhengu en Verwoerd vinkel en koljander is." Ek
hoop dat Bhengu meer onderwys het as ons Ministervan Onderwys hier in
Ontario. Hulle sê dat hy 'n "schooldropout" is en net glo graad ses
gemaak het in 'n openbare skool. Dis deesdae in die mode om "school
dropouts" te wees in Noord-Amerika. Peter Jennings, wat die pos by CBS
van die legendariese Walter Cronkite ge-erf het, het nie sy hoëerskool
hier in Kanada klaargemaak nie.
Gloudina ( iz...@igs.net)
Dit reën honde en katte
Daar is 'n ander idioom as die een te moeilik is vir jou om te gebruik.
Algehoor van dit reën honde en katte.
klaas...@aol.com (KLAASVAKIE)
Hy slaan die spyker op die kop.
Vry interpreteerde verduideliking: om die kern van 'n situasie akkuraat
(en gewoonlik bondig) uit te druk.Voorbeeld: Gloudina beweer dat ek lyf
wegsteek by die instuur van idiome. Sy vermoed dat dit te doen het met
die koue, en daarmee slaan sy die spyker op die kop: die lewenslus en
energie raak maar laag hier in die winter (temperature is aan die
verbeter: vandag net minus 17 maks.)(Engels: an accurate and usually brief
synopsis of a situation)
Stefan...@mbnet.mb.ca
Hy lig die ellenboog.
Verduideliking: om alkohol in oormaat te drink.Voorbeeld: nie nodig nie -
daar is reeds te veel voorbeelde in die wêreld. To drink too much alcohol
Stefan...@mbnet.mb.ca
Jy kan maar aan sy oksel ruik.
Verduideliking: jy kan die persoon as 'n goeie voorbeeld neem.Voorbeeld:
As dit by die ywerige versamel, intik en instuur van goeie Afrikaanse
gedigte kom, kan jy maar aan Gloudina Bouwer se oksel ruik!(Engels: you
can take this person as a role-model. I'm sorry, there must be an English
equivalent?)(Duits: Du kannst Dir Scheiben von ihm abschneiden)
Stefan...@mbnet.mb.ca
Alles vir soetkoek opeet.
Betekenis: om liggelowig waarhede van 'n ander te aanvaar. Voorbeeld 1: In
die nuusgroep s.c.s-a.a is daar maar weinig deelnemers wat alles vir
soetkoek opeet.Voorbeeld 2, vertel deur my Afrikaansonnie, Mnr. Erasmus:
Op pad na Upington toe, het 'n slang lans die pad in die motor se
regtekantse voorwiel gepik. Ons het die klapgeluid gehoor en toe ons
stilhou, toe hou die slang hom so styf soos 'n stok na die kant, tande nog
steeds in die rubber. Dis sisgeluid van lug wat uit die buiteband kom was
duidelik te hore. Terwyl ons rondstaan, begin die koperkapel opswel - soos
'n balon, en voordat ons nog kon keer, bars die slang: oorals le^ stukke
slang rond, teen die motor en langs die pad, op my klere! Ons had nie 'n
spaarwiel nie, en nog steeds blaas die wiel af. Hoe nou gedaan? Maar
gelukkig, vanwee die slanggif in die wiel, swel die band toe, en met die
stop die lek in die band en kon ons aanry. Julle outjies moet tog nie
alles vir soetkoek opeet nie!
Stefan...@mbnet.mb.ca
Tussen die hand en die mond, val die pap op die grond (of: Van die hand na
die mond...)
Verduideliking: Dinge draai nie altyd so uit as wat beplan is nie.
Voorbeeld: Ek wil graag 'n elektroniese idioompers op die been bring,
maar tussen die hand en die mond, val die pap op die grond.
Stefan...@mbnet.mb.ca
--
Stefan Harms @ S.E.
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