MLP: Words we need in English

Your Mrs. Language Person may be a Snitty Old Bitty, but never let it be said she has no sense of beauty, no love for creativity. No, Dear Reader, words are limited only by human ingenuity and (among the Snittier) fidelity to accuracy in their expression.

Some of man's best words have no translation - or at least no transliteration from one language to another, but the human experience behind them is universal. Consider the following wonderful words from a variety of sources, including Adam Jacot de Boinod's "The Meaning of Tingo and Other Extraordinary Words from Around the World." These are easily understood despite their lack of English equivalents.

Experiencing nature:

Hanyauku (Rukwangali; Namibia): The act of walking on tiptoes across warm sand

Gkotta Swedish To wake up early and hear the first birds sing

Waldeinsamkeit (German): The feeling of being alone in the woods

Komorebi (Japanese): The dappled light of the sun shining through trees

Wabi-Sabi (Japanese): Accepting nature's cycle of growth and decay

Friolero (Spanish): A person especially sensitive to cold temperatures

Human relations:

Mamihlapinatapei (Yagan; Tierra del Fuego): A wordless look between two people, both wanting to initiate something, yet each reluctant to make the first move

Ya'aburnee (Arabic): "You bury me," a hope to die before another person does, because living without that person is unimaginable

Saudade (Portuguese): A feeling of longing for a loved one now gone

Tartle (Scottish) The act of hesitating while introducing someone because you've forgotten their name

Iktsuarpok (Inuit): The frustration of having to wait for someone; or to go outside to check if he is coming

Jayus (Indonesian): A joke so poorly told, so unfunny that one cannot help but laugh

Istoriesmearkoudes (Greek): "Stories with bears," or narrated events so wild they can't possibly be true

Geography:

Fernweh (German): Feeling homesick for a place you have never been

Depaysement (French): The feeling that comes from not being in one's home country

Unique feelings:

Duende (Spanish): The mysterious power of art to deeply move a person

Cafune (Portuguese): To tenderly run one's fingers through hair

Hyggelig (Danish): Something that can only be understood by experiencing it

Awar-e (Japanese): The bittersweetness of a brief moment of transcendent beauty

For old timers like your MLP who remember land lines and long distance charges, there is the Czech "prozvonit": To call and let it ring once so the other person will call back, that sneaky reversal of charges. And to indulge in just one more, MLP's favorite naturally derives from that inaptly-called "dead" language (but so alive in everyday English!), Latin: "Abutor" means to use abusive language, which in oh-so-beautifully-complex Latin is the same as "to use a word incorrectly."

And you, Dear Readers? Any favorite words without English mirrors? Mr. Professor Person suggests you share them with your Mrs. Language Person so she may in turn identify, define, and share them with you. He begins with "uff da" and "savoir-faire." For the sake of decorum, your MLP declines to print his other suggestions of the four-letter variety.

Mrs. Language Person and Sholeh Patrick are columnists for the Hagadone News Network. You may reach them at [email protected].