# Symbols that have different or no meaning in various cutures **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 10, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673 "2012-06-10T03:07:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2012, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/61 "2012-06-20T02:02:22Z")
In England the lion is called “king of the jungle”. Apparently in Germany he’s “king of the desert”. In reality of course lions live on the savannah, so kinda half-way between. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2012, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/62 "2012-06-20T05:57:13Z")
> [@PookahMacPhellimey](#): > > The one at [1.37](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FVIqSTJK6I), right? I didn’t know the Spanish do that too. Ah no, I thought he meant fingers up. Which we did copy from the Italians; we’ve spent the last 21 centuries or so hopping back and forth from there to here and here to there so the cultural exchange is pretty much continuouos. ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2012, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/63 "2012-06-20T10:27:41Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > The fourth-season intro for _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_ had Spike giving the gesture - which makes sense, as the character is English, but the network would never have allowed them to use the equivalent American gesture. It is UK and Europe only, though. Not the rest of Europe AFAIK. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2012, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/64 "2012-06-20T10:49:42Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Cyrano de Bergerac wore a white feather (panache) as a symbol of his courage. The word has come to mean a dashing manner in English. In England, however, people accused of cowardice were given white feathers by their colleagues. Huh…is this one (at least formerly) Canadian, too? I remember a scene in an Anne of Green Gables sequel-movie set in WWI featuring something like this. [Carlos Hathcock](http://www.bench-talk.com/blogs/benchtalk/Carlos%20Presenting%20Shooting%20Award.jpg), however, used the Cyrano de Bergerac version, of course. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/65 "2012-06-20T18:10:19Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Americans do it too - or at least, their [space marines](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNDteLH2vUE) do. > > (Actually, it may be a military gesture originally. One laughing eye, one angry eye…) Of perhaps more significance is the finger he is pointing to his eye with, given some of the more popular American hand gestures. In the sci-fi classic Robot Jox, Achilles does something similar towards Alexander (with just the middle finger), pissing the guy off greatly. It’s just a discrete way to give someone the finger without making it obvious to others. ---
**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:** [June 20, 2012, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/66 "2012-06-20T20:43:53Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Of perhaps more significance is the finger he is pointing to his eye with, given some of the more popular American hand gestures. In the sci-fi classic Robot Jox, Achilles does something similar towards Alexander (with just the middle finger), pissing the guy off greatly. It’s just a discrete way to give someone the finger without making it obvious to others. Good point - I hadn’t noticed that before. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2012, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/67 "2012-06-21T09:06:48Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Good point - I hadn’t noticed that before. That said, I’ve never seen it done in real life. It may very well have a connection to the “Evil Eye” and it could easily have been something the actor/writers/director came up with for Aliens to add a bit of unexplained depth to the characters. Sort of a thing that they would get and we would not because we’re not one of them. Which, BTW, is something that you’ll see in largely any group that is exclusive for any reason, be they military or technical or academic or what not. ---
**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:** [June 21, 2012, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/68 "2012-06-21T11:18:42Z")
A quick search shows that Al Matthews, who played Apone, was a six-year Marine veteran, an E-5 and a decorated Vietnam vet. So that supports the theory that it could be an actual military gesture. ---
**Author:** ![Sister\_Vigilante](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sister\_Vigilante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sister_Vigilante)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/69 "2012-06-21T18:09:21Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > The fourth-season intro for _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_ had Spike giving the gesture - which makes sense, as the character is English, but the network would never have allowed them to use the equivalent American gesture. Lots of Americans give this as their “peace” symbol. Justin Bieber even does it in photos. I guess either everyone around him is ignorant or no one has the heart to tell Bieber he’s been technically giving the finger to all of his fans for years. Also, J.K. Rowling must not have known the slightest thing about honey badgers when she gave that animal to Hufflepuff. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2012, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/70 "2012-06-21T18:55:12Z")
> [@Sister\_Vigilante](#): > > Lots of Americans give this as their “peace” symbol. Justin Bieber even does it in photos. I guess either everyone around him is ignorant or no one has the heart to tell Bieber he’s been technically giving the finger to all of his fans for years. It’s not a matter of ignorance. It just doesn’t have that meaning over here. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2012, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/71 "2012-06-21T19:13:13Z")
> [@Sister\_Vigilante](#): > > Also, J.K. Rowling must not have known the slightest thing about honey badgers when she gave that animal to Hufflepuff. She don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/72 "2012-06-22T17:29:14Z")
Honey badgers? I thought Hufflepuff had just plain \*badger \*badgers. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2012, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/73 "2012-06-22T23:40:29Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > Honey badgers? I thought Hufflepuff had just plain \*badger \*badgers. That’s right: the European badger (Meles meles), rather than the honey badger (Mellivora capensis), or indeed the American badger (Taxidea taxus). ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2012, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/74 "2012-06-23T01:46:32Z")
Mushroom mushroom? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2012, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673/75 "2012-06-23T02:57:05Z")
Not quite a symbol but to waffle here means to talk a lot, to babble, but in the US it means to say one thing then say its opposite. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbols-that-have-different-or-no-meaning-in-various-cutures/624673.md?page=3)