Language Comedy

[Mohave]

There thread http://forum.language-learners.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1528&start=10 on Pretending Not To Understand a Language, had me reminiscing on some childhood funny language events growing up in El Paso, Tx, a border city with Juarez, Mexico. Here is one I thought I would share:

I was involved in band and was selected for an all-city band where specialty conductors are brought from out of the area. Most were not familiar with Spanish or the culture. One band director in particular, told the cymbal section during a full-band rehearsal, he wasn't getting the sound he wanted; he wanted the cymbals to make the sound "Chinga, Chinga, Chinga." Well, in English, this was perfectly acceptable, but in Spanish, in this particular region, that was a pretty bad word, and everyone in the room, whether you spoke Spanish fluently or not, knew this word. The whole room of teens fell out of their seats laughing, and of course, the visiting band director, didn't understand what was funny..... I've thought about and shared that story many times over the years, and it still makes me chuckle!!

I'd be interested in others' sharing their language comedy!

[MorkTheFiddle]

Along the same lines the story goes that a Spanish-speaking woman had hung clothes to dry on a rope outside. Came a rainstorm, and an English-speaking man, inventing a bit of Spanglish, told the woman she needed "to take off the ropa, take off the ropa." The story never said whether she followed his suggestion or not.

[Chmury]

Not a recollection of mine nor something I've heard about like what the previous two people posted, but nonetheless a whole lot of language and a shitload of comedy. This would definitely have to be one of my favourite comedy videos. I can't call it a routine or bit, as I'm not sure he ever performed it or did something similar again, given that he tends to ad-lib at each show. But anyways, Reggie Watts being amazing, bending and manipulating language, dialect, voice and sound. The man's incredible. Enjoy!

[astromule]

Tell us the truth Mork, you're between friends... were you the English-speaking man?
At the beginning of my Swedish learning, while I was in Sweden, I confused the word "semla" (a sweet roll) with the word "samlag", which means something completely different. If you want to know the end of the story, I didn't get one thing nor the other.

Along the same lines the story goes that a Spanish-speaking woman had hung clothes to dry on a rope outside. Came a rainstorm, and an English-speaking man, inventing a bit of Spanglish, told the woman she needed "to take off the ropa, take off the ropa." The story never said whether she followed his suggestion or not.

[MorkTheFiddle]

Tell us the truth Mork, you're between friends... were you the English-speaking man?

Along the same lines the story goes that a Spanish-speaking woman had hung clothes to dry on a rope outside. Came a rainstorm, and an English-speaking man, inventing a bit of Spanglish, told the woman she needed "to take off the ropa, take off the ropa." The story never said whether she followed his suggestion or not.

No, I was not the guy, but it could have been me. The "story" was told to me by a bilingual Latino friend, and told as if it were a true story, but I suspect it was only a recycled joke. But given English-speakers' penchants for inventing Spanish words, it very well could have been true.

[Montmorency]

Rhod Gilbert Learning Welsh