# Do any common American names have unfortunate translations? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 21, 2014, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602 "2014-04-21T12:52:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2014, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/41 "2014-04-22T16:33:00Z")
Not really a name, but the name (sound) of the fruit “FIG” is understood as fick ,which means fuck in German. Figs are called Feige. Also “Mist” is Dung in German and had very little to with the English meaning. ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2014, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/42 "2014-04-22T16:36:30Z")
[This well known Guys](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brent_Spiner) name means “Board/Plank Idiot” in German. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/43 "2014-04-23T07:27:41Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Bldysabba, that final sound (mis)written as a “t” is an “unaspirated final stop.” English doesn’t have them. > > Malay has them (so does Indonesian). To an English speaker, it’s as if you end a word by making the mouth shape for a consonant, without ever following through and actually pronouncing the darned thing. Thus the original Malay pronunciation of “amok” (“crazy” – a word English borrowed from Malay) sounds to us more like “amoh” – we can maybe detect a hard sound at the end there if we listen carefully, but we can’t tell if it’s a “k,” a “t,” or what. Thanks! I know the word aspirated, but don’t quite ‘get’ it. I think the initial D in Dikshit is perhaps also an unaspirated version of the consonant that the D in Dick actually stands for, but English does have that sound('Th’e). I think this is the first time I’ve realised that Hindi definitely has a number of sounds that English doesn’t, and the standard transliteration thus ends up being inadequate. How do you explain to someone a sound their language doesn’t have? I suppose it has to be taught from first principles, starting with the alphabet, like kids are taught. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/44 "2014-04-23T10:33:46Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > Thanks! I know the word aspirated, but don’t quite ‘get’ it. I think the initial D in Dikshit is perhaps also an unaspirated version of the consonant that the D in Dick actually stands for, but English does have that sound('Th’e)… Well, dental plosives in Hindi are definitely complicated, but not because of aspiration, really. One issue is that you have to stick your tongue right behind your teeth, even for sounds that are closer to English “d” than English “th”: > [@](#): > > The dental plosives in Hindustani are pure dentals and the tongue-tip must be well in contact with the front teeth. — from [Wikipedia](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindustani_phonology) ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/45 "2014-04-23T11:43:57Z")
> [@tapu](#): > > If you don’t render it phonetically, I can’t tell how you’re pronouncing it. Are you saying the person you know pronounced his name as /AH-suh/? /asa/ ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/46 "2014-04-23T14:13:57Z")
In Welsh, “Beth” means “what” and “Pam” means “why,” both words pronounced more or less the same as the British English names. I’ve never encountered a rude or obscene word that sounds like an English name unless it’s derived from one (e.g. Dick). I suppose the name Sal (as in Sally or Salvatore) sounds a bit like French “sale” meaning “dirty.” ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/47 "2014-04-23T15:39:15Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > An American named John Thomas would raise a few eyebrows in Britain too. Robert Heinlein used that as a subtle in-joke in one of his novels (_The Star Beast_). The alien central to the book had lived with the Thomas family for generations, and it was tradition to name the sons John. She turned out to be a young princess of her very long-lived race, and described her hobby as “Raising John Thomases.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/48 "2014-04-23T16:00:45Z")
Not entirely on-topic, but many wags have loaded their children with unfortunate names, intentionally or not. As a girl, my grandmother knew another girl who had been given the perfectly respectable first name Ophelia, after an ancestress. It was unfortunate, however, that her last name was Titty. :eek: True story. (I’ve seen references to the lady in other articles of this sort.) ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/49 "2014-04-23T16:11:16Z")
There is a town in Israel called “Kfar Pines” (Pines Village). It was NOT named for a bunch of pine trees. According to its [Wikipedia article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kfar_Pines), it was named after a Rabbi Yehiel Michal Pines. I do not know how Rabbi Pines pronounced his own name, but I do know that the name of the town is pronounced the same as “penis”. (In other words, “Pines” is pronounced with the “i” as in “taking”, and the “e” as in “longer”.) This never fails to provoke giggles from Anglos who say it out loud. (Ditto for the many streets throughout the country which are also named for Rabbi Pines.) ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/50 "2014-04-23T16:16:15Z")
Personal anecdote, a bit off-topic, but within the spirit of the thread. With the best of intentions, we gave our adopted daughter an actual first name honoring what her birth-mother had called her during gestation, along with two middle names which we actually used. Unfortunately, passports and driver’s licenses require the actual first name, which we didn’t realize at the time. :o Wouldn’t have been quite so bad, except for those Tolkien books that got made into such popular movies. 😃 Yes, my daughter is, in fact, my Precious. :smack: She wants it changed to a middle name before she gets her permanent license. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/51 "2014-04-23T16:21:56Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > \*Merde \*rhymes roughly with “scared.” Only if you overpronounce the d. “scare-duh”. > [@bldysabba](#): > > So, the correct pronunciation would be Thee-xit, with the double e sound of Thee being cut short, and the t in the end being a soft(?) t. > > Ah screw it, here’s a video with the name being said a few times. > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aoxn92oKxc](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aoxn92oKxc) That video pronunciation sounds to my ears exactly like “Dickshit”. Look at the 7 second mark. > [@Nava](#): > > /asa/ I was going into a long bit about the phoenetic alphabet, then looked it up. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/52 "2014-04-23T21:09:30Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > There is a town in Israel called “Kfar Pines” (Pines Village). It was NOT named for a bunch of pine trees. According to its [Wikipedia article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kfar_Pines), it was named after a Rabbi Yehiel Michal Pines. I do not know how Rabbi Pines pronounced his own name, but I do know that the name of the town is pronounced the same as “penis”. (In other words, “Pines” is pronounced with the “i” as in “taking”, and the “e” as in “longer”.) > > This never fails to provoke giggles from Anglos who say it out loud. (Ditto for the many streets throughout the country which are also named for Rabbi Pines.) There’s an Israeli talk show host called Guy Pines - and yes, it’s pronounced “Guy Penis”. He loves making foreign celebrities say his name. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/53 "2014-04-23T21:10:38Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > There is a town in Israel called “Kfar Pines” (Pines Village). It was NOT named for a bunch of pine trees. According to its [Wikipedia article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kfar_Pines), it was named after a Rabbi Yehiel Michal Pines. I do not know how Rabbi Pines pronounced his own name, but I do know that the name of the town is pronounced the same as “penis”. (In other words, “Pines” is pronounced with the “i” as in “taking”, and the “e” as in “longer”.) > > This never fails to provoke giggles from Anglos who say it out loud. (Ditto for the many streets throughout the country which are also named for Rabbi Pines.) There’s an Israeli talk show host called Guy Pines - and yes, it’s pronounced “Guy Penis”. He loves making foreign celebrities [say his name](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtAnlLWnJA0). ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/54 "2014-04-23T21:21:20Z")
Are British people amused by the name “Lou”? ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/55 "2014-04-23T21:58:52Z")
We had a girl in our group that went down to Mexico who’s name was “Gigi” which is a joke in Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/56 "2014-04-23T22:03:58Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > That video pronunciation sounds to my ears exactly like “Dickshit”. Look at the 7 second mark. It sounds _similar_, but it’s definitely not exact. Like I said(and JKellyMap clarified) the last sound is an unaspirated final stop, and the first is a…something. It’s like the difference between saying village and willage. It’s difficult to pin down(it was for me), until someone explains it to you exactly. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/57 "2014-04-23T22:13:02Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > An American named John Thomas would raise a few eyebrows in Britain too. There have been a few references to JT’s so far in this thread - I will add another: There is a well-regarded, hmm, I guess I would refer to him as a _Guitar Scholar_ named John Thomas. He specializes in vintage Gibson guitars and recently published a book called _Kalamazoo Gals_ about the somewhat-forgotten history of Gibson using women in their Kalamazoo factory during WW2. Very knowledgeable and nice - I’ve met him a couple of times. He just got back from a tour of Britain - I think he was interviewed on BBC Radio. That must’ve been amusing. ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/58 "2014-04-24T02:13:48Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > /asa/ Unfortunately, that shows nothing definitive sound-wise, and reveals nothing about stress. Baldly described, it just shows the possible sounds of the word the way it is spelled, inside slash marks. You need some accepted phonetic representation to communicate the sounds you want. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/59 "2014-04-24T02:18:02Z")
“Jim” pronounced with the right tone can be vulgar slang for “vagina” in Thai. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602/60 "2014-04-24T02:22:05Z")
That IS the phonetic representation, minus the stress if you will, because I don’t know how to mark the stress phonetically officially (I’ve seen all kinds of ways and don’t know what’s the right one). Would /ása/ be better, or do you prefer /'asa/? The two vowels are the same, /a/, and the stress is in the first syllable. The fact that often Spanish spellings match phonetic symbols (or, for some consonants, do not match them but have a one-to-one relationship) is both an artifact of the history of the phonetic alphabet and one of the reasons why Spanish dictionaries don’t give phonetic transcriptions (other reasons include dialectal variations and that people aren’t expected to know the phonetic alphabet but are expected to know how to transliterate). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-any-common-american-names-have-unfortunate-translations/686602.md?page=4)