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Any languages that use a distinctively different word for "robot"? Well other than Chinese and Arabic (which also use very different words for "taxi" than most

Any languages that use a distinctively different word for "robot"? Well other than Chinese and Arabic (which also use very different words for "taxi" than most other widely spoken languages). Btw my other candidate is "chihuahua" (though there's probably other dog breeds...). And yes it's the essentially the same in Chinese and Arabic if Google translate is to be believed.

hyperthesis 3y ago
I think new words is the right approach in general, but golem.
- wizofaus 3y ago
  "Sushi" and "jazz" seem to be good candidates too. Chinese often seems to be the language that adopts very different terms even for quite culturally specific terminology (e.g. I'd tried niqab/burqa plus a bunch of less common musical instruments or styles from other cultures and they all seemed to have their own word in Mandarin. But the word for "jazz" superficially sounds similar at least).
  - eru 3y ago
    Many things considered to fall under the umbrella of 'sushi' in English would probably be called 'gimbap' in Korean. Japanese also has different words for what English speakers would call 'sushi'.
  - wizofaus 3y ago
    One strike against "jazz" - in Irish it's "snagcheol" - no idea how it's pronounced but it's definitely etymologically unrelated.
ralfd 3y ago
Mandarin and Cantonese: Jīqìrén https://translate.google.de/?sl=de&tl=zh-CN&text=robot https://translate.google.de/?sl=de&tl=zh-CN&text=robot Meaning: http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/words/22467/ http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/words/22467/
- mostlylurks 3y ago
  Do they still call it Jīqì"rén" if it's not human-like? Like a vacuuming robot or a robotic arm at an assembly line?
  - oefrha 3y ago
    Yes, a vacuuming robot is saodi jiqiren (literally sweeping robot). Industrial robotics are gongye jiqiren in general, although a robotic arm is more precisely a jixiebi (literally robotic arm).
- xeonmc 3y ago
  English also has "Android"
thaumasiotes 3y ago
> Well other than Chinese and Arabic (which also use very different words for "taxi" 的士, "taxi", Cantonese dik-si, a transparent loan from English.
tintedfireglass 3y ago
Tamil uses Enthiran and Telugu uses maramanishi but colloquially the English word robot is used

hyperthesis 3y ago

I think new words is the right approach in general, but golem.

wizofaus 3y ago
"Sushi" and "jazz" seem to be good candidates too. Chinese often seems to be the language that adopts very different terms even for quite culturally specific terminology (e.g. I'd tried niqab/burqa plus a bunch of less common musical instruments or styles from other cultures and they all seemed to have their own word in Mandarin. But the word for "jazz" superficially sounds similar at least).
- eru 3y ago
  Many things considered to fall under the umbrella of 'sushi' in English would probably be called 'gimbap' in Korean. Japanese also has different words for what English speakers would call 'sushi'.
- wizofaus 3y ago
  One strike against "jazz" - in Irish it's "snagcheol" - no idea how it's pronounced but it's definitely etymologically unrelated.

ralfd 3y ago

Mandarin and Cantonese: Jīqìrén https://translate.google.de/?sl=de&tl=zh-CN&text=robot https://translate.google.de/?sl=de&tl=zh-CN&text=robot Meaning: http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/words/22467/ http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/words/22467/

mostlylurks 3y ago
Do they still call it Jīqì"rén" if it's not human-like? Like a vacuuming robot or a robotic arm at an assembly line?
- oefrha 3y ago
  Yes, a vacuuming robot is saodi jiqiren (literally sweeping robot). Industrial robotics are gongye jiqiren in general, although a robotic arm is more precisely a jixiebi (literally robotic arm).
xeonmc 3y ago
English also has "Android"

thaumasiotes 3y ago

> Well other than Chinese and Arabic (which also use very different words for "taxi" 的士, "taxi", Cantonese dik-si, a transparent loan from English.

tintedfireglass 3y ago

Tamil uses Enthiran and Telugu uses maramanishi but colloquially the English word robot is used