Where is your placenta buried?
Or translated to the Seri language: ni quih zo’ hant ano tiij?
This staccato phrase is how a Seri would ask another where they were born because before the advent of hospital births, the placenta would be buried into the ground. These indigenous people are also known as the Comcaac before the Spaniards assigned them the name “Seris”. I also like the Seri expression for car: ziix hacx tiij catax, which translates to “thing that moves on its own”.
But my favorite word from another indigenous language (Yanghan) is:
mamihlapinatapei
Roughly translated: that expressive, meaningful romantic silence between two people.
Euskara language in Alegia in the Basque country of España
Another lesser known language is the Quechua language. I highly recommend hearing its sing-song characteristic in an excellent film featuring one of my favorite actresses, Magaly Solier. The movie is called “Milk of Sorrow” or in Spanish, “La Teta Asustada” which translates to “the frightened teat”. The story encompasses a girl who lodged a potato in her vagina and the movie scenes are hauntingly beautiful and hesitant.
Thoughts about how we extract our feelings onto words originated upon finishing “Candide” by Voltaire. Ever since visiting his chateau in Ferney, France (“where sensitive hearts crusade to”), I have wondered whether I would find amusement in Voltaire’s witty writing despite the centuries past. The funniest part of Voltaire’s story was when the enchanting Princess of Palestrina escaped an invasion from her family palace and boarded a ship to Morocco with other royalties and servants — only to be met by vicious Moors who slaughtered all except herself. Fatigued from the battles, she awoke to see an old man admiring over her body and who responded in Italian, “What a misfortune to have no testicles!”
I recommend this short story filled with adventure, history, loyalty, and tragedy. The intense romantic notions of Candide for Cunégonde reflect Voltaire’s amorous writings such as in letter to his mistress:
No letters from you, it is heart-breaking, it is abominable. I write to you daily, and you abandon me. I have never missed you so much and never been so angry with you.
While Australia holds the unfortunate record of having the highest rate of vanishing languages, ways of articulating our feelings are becoming less eloquent. Even the simple letter “I” weighs in much bulk to carry in meaning what lies between the mouth and the mind. For example, the other day my father sent me a text message asking if I was going to be with the family for the holidays (which is a no, because I do not have time to be in the USA for the holidays), and he ended the question with “miss you”. Now, I know that the love of my father is unconditional and lacks boundaries but I felt that omitting the “I” from his “miss you” was too casual sounding. This is why I refrain from saying “love you” and make sure to insert that singular letter to make the phrase “I love you” more significant.
Perhaps social media and emailing are providing the influence to exclude certain words and letters from phrases to give a summarized view of our true feelings. Maybe one day instead of laughing with our friends at the dinner table, we will start to exchange mere “LOL”s.
Nevertheless, this holiday season when you are with your loved ones, whether it be with
your family
HAWAII
your friends
UK
your significant other
ES
…and if you cannot find the words to convey your emotions, offer a hug…a kiss…a laugh. Do not let that language disappear.
Beautifully written. It touched close to home since we have become all creatures of bad habits, such as the ones you mentioned above. I prefer a hug to words, but I seldom get to give or receive one. Hugging and kissing seems to have become something only done in sexual encounters, and even that is not a guarantee at times. Thank you for sharing this, I’ll make sure to pass it along.
I hope you get the hug you a long overdue for. Hugging and kissing does not always mean sexually , at least in European and Hawaiian cultures , we like to hug and kiss each other even if it is just meeting with a friend.
It’s not common in Eastern Europe (the Balkans) at all. Yet, shaking hands and kissing on the cheek 4 times is, which I’m sorry to say but it’s so gay 😛
Reblogged this on Infernal Deity of a Psychotic Mind and commented:
Beautifully written. It touched close to home since we have become all creatures of bad habits, such as the ones you mentioned above. I prefer a hug to words, but I seldom get to give or receive one. Hugging and kissing seems to have become something only done in sexual encounters, and even that is not a guarantee at times. Thank you for sharing this, I’ll make sure to pass it along.
oh, yes…and thank you for re-sharing this post on your site as well!
My pleasure
Hi Frances – nice post. I’ve been reading Voltaire’s Candide for a course I’m taking and I must say that I loved it. I cried with laughter because of his marvellous deadpan humour, even though the storyline is farcically tragic but at the same time totally admired his tight prose and his ability to convey a philosophical viewpoint in two perfectly formed lines. The man is a genious (though obviously I’m reading a translation not the original French!). Hope you and yours have a wonderful Christmas
Heartbreakingly true! And why does one put a potato in her vagina?? I might have to find that film to answer that question. Finland is also losing the tongues of the elders, my Grandmother’s side was Lapplander.
Have a very Merry Christmas 🙂
I was chuckling along Candide’s adventure as well. If I may recommend another tragicomedy, by a Spanish author who wrote “Celestina”. I wrote about it in this post:
https://francescannotwrite.wordpress.com/tag/celestina/
Really lovely post, Frances. Happy Holidays to you!
Many thanks for your visit — enjoy your holidays as well =)
Thank you for such a beautifully expressed post my friend – it makes you think…
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Thank you for visiting my blog — happy holidays!
Your interest in language reminds me of Elizabeth Gilbert in Eat, Pray, Love. Words will always be insufficient to describe emotions. No single word/phrase can summarize unconditional love nor can summarize love with many conditions as well .. nice post!:)
I am sorry for my tardy response to your comment on my blog, thank you for visiting. Yes, I have heard about that book written by Elizabeth Gilbert, and caught a glimpse of the movie previews. The tangible touch of another person can overflow a river of mere words.
Awww we have the same sentiments in the omission of ‘I’. Haha
I too, never say ‘love you’, or ‘miss you’ or ‘hate you’. Well, especially in the ‘hate you’ phrase. It has more weight & significance when ‘I’ is always part of it 😉
“hate” in itself is such a potent word that sort of makes me feel evil when I say it. I am trying to get into the habit of using a more gentler negative word such as “dislike” or “despise”.
Haha or try, $%#^@* 🙂 ‘just kidding!
Well… your language is certainly not vanishing. Yet again your post has given your readers words for thought. Like the photos btw! Sometimes… it takes a lot of effort to say ‘I….’.
thank you for your compliment on my blog…happy holidays to you and your family!
Thank you! And likewise 🙂
Beautifully articulated.
I am a lover of sesquipedalianism (the art of using long, rare words in communication). Not many share my love and prefer communicating in short-message abbreviations.
I love a hug. Even more when it arrives wrapped in words.
Apologies for my tardy response on your always welcomed comment on my blog — holiday have been really busy for me lately. And thank you for introducing that long word to me. A hug wrapped in words of affection, yes that is quite warming — especially during these cold winter holidays.
Sometimes feelings are there without words, but agree that words with “I” in it are more personal. They teach you not to be personal in business writing though, so the I become the royal “we” and then it disppears too in other forms of communicating. Sometimes, it’s the thought that counts. Hugs and Happy Holidays to you!
Dear Lisa,
Thank you for your comment on my blog. My apologies for a late reply to it — the holidays are so busy for me! I definitely does a certain weight to certain short sentences meant to convey a feeling. And yes, “we” also has special meaning when it comes to relationships.
What a curious way to ask that. Languages and people’s habits can be fascinating. Merry Christmas!!
Yes, it is interesting how history can change language and the accompanying slang over time. I hope you had wonderful holidays as well!
Have a wonderful 2013 Frances. Have an Hawaiian hug. Ralph x 😉
I would rather have a Hawaiian hug…it is rather cold in Spain, no?
It is cold here at night so an Hawaiian hug would be quite a warming experience 😀
Such and interesting and fascinating post. I loved it! <—note, I wanted to include the "I" in that phrase, too.
Phew…thank you for including the “I” into that compliment, =D
I love this post. Very informative and very romantic. Can I keep this? Please? 🙂
Hehe…Addie dear…come by to visit anytime =) As for “mamihlapinatapei”, — when you and your love are experiencing such a moment, try to pronounce it … I’ve always failed at it.
Frances Antoinette – a nice gallery again … – where’s your placenta buried 🙂
Beautiful post. I agree, “and if you cannot find the words to convey your emotions, offer a hug…a kiss…a laugh. Do not let that language disappear.” In today’s world, communication is very important. People are now into high tech gadgets but sadly we loose that human ability to say words with meaning in person. Thanks for an eye opener post with a huge heart that cares.
give me a glass pls. 🙂
glass of coffee or glass of alcohol — take your pick =)
a glass of cafe sua da! (or alcohol if available) hahahaha. 🙂