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Kind of related, in German we mostly say "die Ukraine" (the Ukraine", exactly the same as "the Netherlands" and surprisingly Slovakia (and former Czechoslovakia
by wink 12y ago
Kind of related, in German we mostly say "die Ukraine" (the Ukraine", exactly the same as "the Netherlands" and surprisingly Slovakia (and former Czechoslovakia, but not always "the Czech Republic", only when we say "die Tschechische Republik", not "Tschechien" (which is informal, to be fair, as is "Slowakei" - but afaik "Tschechoslowakei" was official).
Did I confuse you already?
There's also "die Elfenbeinküste" (Ivory Coast), and certainly a few more.
- Mz 12y ago"die Elfenbeinküste" (Ivory Coast) My German is pretty bad but it looks to me like "elephant bone coast" in German.
- voltagex_ 12y agoLooks like Google Translate disagrees with you: https://translate.google.com/#auto/en/Elfen%20%0Abein%20%0Ak%C3%BCste https://translate.google.com/#auto/en/Elfen%20%0Abein%20%0Ak... Elven leg coast. I guess this is why I've been told off by German speakers in the past for deconstructing words like that.
- Vespasian 12y agoYes, you shouldn't do this. ;) In this case "Bein" (or in the long form "Gebein") is an outdated term for bone or skeleton. "Elfenbein" is the modern word for ivory. The meaning of Elf is somewhat similar (though not identical) to English and therefore refers to the perceived beauty of ivory. A tusk on the other hand is called "Stoßzahn" recognizing it as a tooth ("Zahn").
- Mz 12y agoMy German is not so great but bein means both leg and bone. I know that much. I just wasn't sure about the "elfen" part. So glad to see someone else provide some info on that bit. FYI: Google translate is not the most reliable translator.
- kijin 12y agoIvory is elephant tusk, and people in the past didn't always distinguish between tusks, bones, and teeth.