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Signs that prove I have way too much time on my hands.

From:Danny Wier <dawier@...>
Date:Wednesday, July 19, 2000, 0:27
Longest words (individual languages):
Dutch:
Hottentottententenbouwtentoonstellingsterreinafsluitingsmaterialenvoorraadsverzendingskostenberekeningsstatenadministratieboekhoudkundige
"the bookkeeper of the administration of the tables which show an
overview of the costs of calculation of transportation of the stock of
materials that should lock (close) the terrain where the exhibition of
tent building of the Hottentots was being organised"
Finnish:
kumarreksituteskenteleentuvaisehkollaismaisekkuudellisenneskenteluttelemattomammuuksissansakkaankopahan
[meaning unknown]
Slovak:
Najneskomercionalizovatel'nejšieho

Longest name of a city or town (Europe):
Welsh: Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch
"Saint Mary's Church in the hollow of the white hazel near a rapid
whirlpool and the Church of St. Tysilio of the red cave"
[Note also four consecutive L's]
*The longest place name is in New Zealand, right?

Seven vowels in a row:
Dutch: koeieuier "cow's udder"
Finnish: hääyöaie "a wedding night plan"

Nine consonants in a row:
Dutch: zachtstschrijdend "walking most silently"

Eight consonants in a row:
Dutch: Angstschreeuw "cry because of fear"

Quadrupled vowels:
Dutch: zeeeend "sea duck"
Estonian: kuuuurija "moon explorer"
Estonian: jäääärne "edge of the ice"

Longest palindrome (single word)
Finnish: saippuakippokukkakivikakkukoppikauppias
"soap-bowl-flower-stone-cake-box seller"

Oldest known palindrome:
Greek: Nipson anomêmata mê monan opsin.
"Wash my transgressions, not only my face."
(must be written in Greek letters; ps = psi)

Longest one-syllable words:
Romanian: s¸treang "noose, rope"

No vowels:
Czech: Vlk zmrzl, ltl hrst zrn.
"A wolf froze to death, gulped a handful of grains."
Czech: Strc^ prst skrz krk.
"Thrust a thumb through your throat."

All vowels:
Swedish: I åa ä e ö å i öa ä e å.
"In the stream there is an island and in the island there is a stream."
Danish (West Jutland): A æ o æ ø i æ å, æ a!
"I come from an island in the river, I do!"
Romanian: Oaia aia e a ei.
"That sheep is hers."
Norwegian: Æ e i a æ.  Æ e i a æ å!
"I'm from A [political party]."  "I'm also from A!"

The infamous "R-hacek" of Czech:
U R^ezác^u° r^inc^el r^etêz pr^i r^ezání r^ezanky.
"At the Rezaces you could hear chains while they were cutting grass."
Zalyar^ivší si lyar^ potkal nezaltar^ivší si lyar^ku.
"A skier who was skiing met a skier who wasn't skiing."

One repeated vowel:
Hungarian: Öt török öt görögöt dögönyöz örökös örömök között.
"Five Turks massages five Greeks among perpetual pleasures."
Hungarian: Te tetted e tettetett tettet, te!
Te tettetett tettek tettese, te!
"You committed this fake crime, you!

Hungarian: Akkor jó a jó hajó, Ha jó hajó a jó hajó.
"A good boat is good only if it is a good boat."
(apparently that's true in Ohio)

Diphthongs":
Catalan: Si qui deu deu diu que deu deu diu el que deu i deu el que
diu.
"If one who owes ten says that he owes ten he is saying what he owes
and he's owing what he says."

Six initial consonants:
Georgian: mts'vrtneli "trainer"
Georgian: vprtskvni "I am peeling it"
(ts and ts' are single consonants)

Four initial consonants:
Polish: wskrzesic' "to revive"
(rz is a single consonant)

Longest tongue twister:
Turkish:
Bir dag^da iki tarla varmIs¸ birinci tarlaya keilen bir sinik kekere
mekereye dadanan bozala boz bas¸lI kürkü yirtik pis porsuk, ikinci
tarlaya ekilen bir sinik kekere mekereye dadanan bozala boz bas¸lI
kürkü yIrtIk pis porsug~a demis, ki, sen ne zamandan beridir bu tarlaya
ekilen bir sinik kekere mekereye dadanan bozala boz bas¸lI kürkü yIrtIk
pis porsuksun?
Öbür tarlaya ekilen bir sinik kekere mekereye dadanan bozala boz bas¸lI
kürkü yIrtIk pis porsuk da demis¸ ki, sen ne zamandan beridir by
tarlaya ekilen bir sinik kekere mekereye dadanan bozala boz bas¸lI
kürkü yIrtIk pis porsuksan ben de o zamandan beridir bu tarlaya ekilen
bir sinik kekere mekereye dadanan bozala boz bas¸lI kürkü yIrtIk pis
porsug^um, demis¸.
[no translation available]

Biblical tongue-twisters:
Greek (modern): Lalêthê'setaí soi ti se deî poieîn.
(pronounced: [lali'TisEtE si ti sE Di pi'in])
"You will be told what you are to do."
(Acts 9:6; Jesus speaking to Paul on the road to Damascus)

Stuttering problem?
Icelandic: Stuttur steyttur fluttur fleittr
fljótt er breyttur skjótt hér þreyttr
þáttur skreyttur háttur hreyttr
hætti neyttur mætti reyttr.
[no translation available]

Your mother rides a horse.
Mandarin (Chinese): ma ma qí mâ mâ màn ma ma mà mâ
"Mother is riding a horse. The horse moves slowly. Mother chides the
horse."
[German: Mutter reitet auf einem Pferd, Das Pferd geht langsam, Mutter
schimpft mit dem Pferd.]

Taken from a website I completely forgot about.

DaW.

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