4 ms·

As a Norwegian, I find English profanity to be pretty tame. It all means the same, but I think we have more pathos: "May the devil take you" and "go hang yourse

by tormeh 10y ago

As a Norwegian, I find English profanity to be pretty tame. It all means the same, but I think we have more pathos: "May the devil take you" and "go hang yourself" has to be the highlights....

semi-extrinsic 10y ago
There is also quite an interesting geographical variation in swearing in Norway. In the northern parts, swearing is sufficiently common that it's legal to call a policeman "you horse cock".
pcrh 10y ago
The English are masters of the subtle insult, though. This is usually illustrated by quoting Churchill, for example: Bessie Braddock to Churchill -- "Winston, you're drunk!" Churchill: "Bessie, you're ugly, and tomorrow morning I shall be sober" Edit: there was a great one on TV yesterday, one politician was commenting on the former London Mayor Boris Johnson's stance in the upcoming referendum on the UK's continued membership of the EU and said: "He is far too intelligent to believe what he said." http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36401104 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36401104
- sheraz 10y ago
  Agreed -- the Brits are in a class of their own when it comes to wit. They can tell you to fuck off, and you are actually happy to do so :-)
  - pcrh 10y ago
    There you go, quoting Churchill :-) Winston S. Churchill — 'Diplomacy is the art of telling people to go to hell in such a way that they ask for directions.'
    - david-given 10y ago
      Ooh! Ooh! Churchill quotations! Lady Astor: "Sir, if you were my husband, I'd poison your tea." Winston Churchill: "Madame, if you were my wife, I'd drink it."
markusfjeld 10y ago
Yeah, especially the Northern varieties are particularly expressive. To add to your examples, I was on the receiving side of this particular gem from a fisherman friend of mine up North: "Din skaderunka måskuk", which roughly translates to "you're the penis of a seagull, which has been whacked off in such a manner that it became damaged".
Symbiote 10y ago
"Go to hell" and "go hang yourself" exist in English. "Devil" is very mild profanity as a noun. It's stronger as an intensifier: "What the devil are you doing?!". I'm British and live in Denmark. Danes swear in English far more than they should, perhaps because they learn all the strongest words from American TV, where swearing replaces humour...
- cdr 10y ago
  "Go hang yourself" and "devil" are exclusively British English as far as I know as an American. "Go to hell" is certainly also an American swear though.

by tormeh 10y ago

As a Norwegian, I find English profanity to be pretty tame. It all means the same, but I think we have more pathos: "May the devil take you" and "go hang yourself" has to be the highlights....

semi-extrinsic 10y ago

There is also quite an interesting geographical variation in swearing in Norway. In the northern parts, swearing is sufficiently common that it's legal to call a policeman "you horse cock".

pcrh 10y ago

The English are masters of the subtle insult, though. This is usually illustrated by quoting Churchill, for example: Bessie Braddock to Churchill -- "Winston, you're drunk!" Churchill: "Bessie, you're ugly, and tomorrow morning I shall be sober" Edit: there was a great one on TV yesterday, one politician was commenting on the former London Mayor Boris Johnson's stance in the upcoming referendum on the UK's continued membership of the EU and said: "He is far too intelligent to believe what he said." http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36401104 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36401104

sheraz 10y ago
Agreed -- the Brits are in a class of their own when it comes to wit. They can tell you to fuck off, and you are actually happy to do so :-)
- pcrh 10y ago
  There you go, quoting Churchill :-) Winston S. Churchill — 'Diplomacy is the art of telling people to go to hell in such a way that they ask for directions.'
  - david-given 10y ago
    Ooh! Ooh! Churchill quotations! Lady Astor: "Sir, if you were my husband, I'd poison your tea." Winston Churchill: "Madame, if you were my wife, I'd drink it."

markusfjeld 10y ago

Yeah, especially the Northern varieties are particularly expressive. To add to your examples, I was on the receiving side of this particular gem from a fisherman friend of mine up North: "Din skaderunka måskuk", which roughly translates to "you're the penis of a seagull, which has been whacked off in such a manner that it became damaged".

Symbiote 10y ago

"Go to hell" and "go hang yourself" exist in English. "Devil" is very mild profanity as a noun. It's stronger as an intensifier: "What the devil are you doing?!". I'm British and live in Denmark. Danes swear in English far more than they should, perhaps because they learn all the strongest words from American TV, where swearing replaces humour...

cdr 10y ago
"Go hang yourself" and "devil" are exclusively British English as far as I know as an American. "Go to hell" is certainly also an American swear though.