4 ms·

Can you give an example where the word cozy doesn't describe the same thing as gezellig?

nohaydeprobleme 4y ago
From the article, though cozy may be a rough translation, I see the author's point that cozy can't be a direct, precise translation. The author writes that Oprah Winfrey is "gezellig," but it's a bit awkward to say that a person is "cozy." The English usage is correct to say that a person is "comforting." The author also writes that cheering on a sports team is "gezellig," along with going out in the evening with friends. But these activities seem high-energy to me, so "comforting" doesn't feel quite right (where as "gezellig" would feel completely right). So, "gezellig" looks like a sentiment that is a mixture of "warm, comforting, and at-home," which can describe a person and also activities that are active and not necessarily passive. It's translatable, so I disagree with the author's premise that the word "gezellig" can't be translated, as the word is clearly translated by the author with abundant examples. However, I agree with the author's impression that a single English word cannot define the term.
- denton-scratch 4y ago
  I'm not familiar with "gezellig". The word "gemütlig" means roughly "comfortable", "comforting", "nice", and can be applied equally to a person or an environment. But it seems to have a particular resonance in German, possibly because Germans prize gemütligkeit very highly. [Edit] Maybe that explains them having two words for it?
beAbU 4y ago
Not Dutch, but I speak a language that has a similar word, with the same meaning: "gesellig". Look at the first picture in TFA. That's gesellig. Having coffee on a busy terrace on a sunny day is gesellig. Spending time in front of a fireplace while it rains outside is cozy, not gesellig. Unless, as the article points out, you have friends over that are gesellig. It shares a root with "gesels" which means "to chat". And you have the word "geselskap" which is similar to "audience", but used in a more social context. Gesellig is all about having a good time with a fun crowd. Cozy can be this too, but it's more restrictive I think. Playing a drinking game while in you underwear in the snow might not be cozy, but it's sure as hell gesellig!
- jeroenhd 4y ago
  From what I can tell you're talking about Afrikaans here. I think the words are extremely similar, if not the same, and that makes sense with Afrikaans being largely derived from an older Dutch dialect. The word "gesellich" was present in Dutch already in 1240 according to Wiktionary, so Afrikaans will have inherited the word from Dutch with much of the same meaning. Perhaps it's even exactly the same! I would describe spending time in front of a fireplace while it rains outside to be cozy (or "knus" in Dutch) as well, not gezellig. However, you could describe the fireplace and the room it's in as gezellig. I'm not sure if I'd call that a translation, though, because of how the languages have evolved. I wouldn't call color and colour translations of each other, and gesellig and gezellig are similarly close in written form and etymological history. In contrast, I find it interesting that the meaning of "gesels" and "geselskap" in Afrikaans is so different from "gezel" and "gezelschap" in Dutch. A "gezel" is a friend, mate, or some other person who stands with you; a gezelschap is a group of gezellen. I'm not aware of any similar verb ("vergezellen", perhaps, which means "to accompany"). Sadly, the Afrikaans Wiktionary is not as complete as the Dutch Wiktionary so I can't easily verify the exact relationships between these words.
  - beAbU 4y ago
    You are right about my language, it's indeed Afrikaans :) Interestingly, we also have the word knus, totally forgot about it. We also have "snoesig", which is used to describe being tucked in or wrapped in a blanket. So your description of geselskap (group of gezellen) is EXACTLY what geselskap means. Its a group of good or fun people, sometimes friends but not always. We don't have the concept of "gezel" though. Interestingly we also have the concept of bad (slegte) geselskap, which describes when you associate with the "wrong kind of people". We ALSO have vergesel, which is the verb for accompany. We have "metgesel", which is the noun given to the person accompanying you i.e. escort/chaperone or date. So for those who are not native Dutch and Afrikaans: in the 1650s the Dutch came to South Africa and started a colony. Over the centuries the Dutch dialect this side changed and picked up all sorts of words from local and other imported languages. In the early 1900s it oficially became it's own language. For a long time before that it was known as "kitchen Dutch" among other things, as it was the creole spoken by the slaves and servants of the Western Cape colonists. It's trivial for me to read and comprehend Dutch text, and a speaker only needs to slow down a little and I can follow what's being said well enough.
jeroenhd 4y ago
I'm no native speaker, so correct me if I'm wrong here. I think "knus" is a much better translation of "cosy", and in some instances knus and gezellig can be used as synonyms. As far as I can tell "cosy" is generally associated with warmth, while that's not necessarily a requirement for something to be gezellig. - I don't think you can say someone has a cosy personality - I don't think you can say "how cosy for you to be here" or "let's keep it cosy in here" when the mood is turning sour - I don't think you would call going shopping with a group of friends cosy - I'm not sure if you can have a cosy conversation, but maybe you can?

From the article, though cozy may be a rough translation, I see the author's point that cozy can't be a direct, precise translation. The author writes that Oprah Winfrey is "gezellig," but it's a bit awkward to say that a person is "cozy." The English usage is correct to say that a person is "comforting." The author also writes that cheering on a sports team is "gezellig," along with going out in the evening with friends. But these activities seem high-energy to me, so "comforting" doesn't feel quite right (where as "gezellig" would feel completely right). So, "gezellig" looks like a sentiment that is a mixture of "warm, comforting, and at-home," which can describe a person and also activities that are active and not necessarily passive. It's translatable, so I disagree with the author's premise that the word "gezellig" can't be translated, as the word is clearly translated by the author with abundant examples. However, I agree with the author's impression that a single English word cannot define the term.

denton-scratch 4y ago
I'm not familiar with "gezellig". The word "gemütlig" means roughly "comfortable", "comforting", "nice", and can be applied equally to a person or an environment. But it seems to have a particular resonance in German, possibly because Germans prize gemütligkeit very highly. [Edit] Maybe that explains them having two words for it?

beAbU 4y ago

Not Dutch, but I speak a language that has a similar word, with the same meaning: "gesellig". Look at the first picture in TFA. That's gesellig. Having coffee on a busy terrace on a sunny day is gesellig. Spending time in front of a fireplace while it rains outside is cozy, not gesellig. Unless, as the article points out, you have friends over that are gesellig. It shares a root with "gesels" which means "to chat". And you have the word "geselskap" which is similar to "audience", but used in a more social context. Gesellig is all about having a good time with a fun crowd. Cozy can be this too, but it's more restrictive I think. Playing a drinking game while in you underwear in the snow might not be cozy, but it's sure as hell gesellig!

jeroenhd 4y ago
From what I can tell you're talking about Afrikaans here. I think the words are extremely similar, if not the same, and that makes sense with Afrikaans being largely derived from an older Dutch dialect. The word "gesellich" was present in Dutch already in 1240 according to Wiktionary, so Afrikaans will have inherited the word from Dutch with much of the same meaning. Perhaps it's even exactly the same! I would describe spending time in front of a fireplace while it rains outside to be cozy (or "knus" in Dutch) as well, not gezellig. However, you could describe the fireplace and the room it's in as gezellig. I'm not sure if I'd call that a translation, though, because of how the languages have evolved. I wouldn't call color and colour translations of each other, and gesellig and gezellig are similarly close in written form and etymological history. In contrast, I find it interesting that the meaning of "gesels" and "geselskap" in Afrikaans is so different from "gezel" and "gezelschap" in Dutch. A "gezel" is a friend, mate, or some other person who stands with you; a gezelschap is a group of gezellen. I'm not aware of any similar verb ("vergezellen", perhaps, which means "to accompany"). Sadly, the Afrikaans Wiktionary is not as complete as the Dutch Wiktionary so I can't easily verify the exact relationships between these words.
- beAbU 4y ago
  You are right about my language, it's indeed Afrikaans :) Interestingly, we also have the word knus, totally forgot about it. We also have "snoesig", which is used to describe being tucked in or wrapped in a blanket. So your description of geselskap (group of gezellen) is EXACTLY what geselskap means. Its a group of good or fun people, sometimes friends but not always. We don't have the concept of "gezel" though. Interestingly we also have the concept of bad (slegte) geselskap, which describes when you associate with the "wrong kind of people". We ALSO have vergesel, which is the verb for accompany. We have "metgesel", which is the noun given to the person accompanying you i.e. escort/chaperone or date. So for those who are not native Dutch and Afrikaans: in the 1650s the Dutch came to South Africa and started a colony. Over the centuries the Dutch dialect this side changed and picked up all sorts of words from local and other imported languages. In the early 1900s it oficially became it's own language. For a long time before that it was known as "kitchen Dutch" among other things, as it was the creole spoken by the slaves and servants of the Western Cape colonists. It's trivial for me to read and comprehend Dutch text, and a speaker only needs to slow down a little and I can follow what's being said well enough.

jeroenhd 4y ago

I'm no native speaker, so correct me if I'm wrong here. I think "knus" is a much better translation of "cosy", and in some instances knus and gezellig can be used as synonyms. As far as I can tell "cosy" is generally associated with warmth, while that's not necessarily a requirement for something to be gezellig. - I don't think you can say someone has a cosy personality - I don't think you can say "how cosy for you to be here" or "let's keep it cosy in here" when the mood is turning sour - I don't think you would call going shopping with a group of friends cosy - I'm not sure if you can have a cosy conversation, but maybe you can?