Wait....seriously? "Alfa?"

[yianniv]

I checked, it's hard to tell. Greek didn't have the same exact alphabet than us, to begin with. And I'm not good enough in Greek for sure
French use "Alpha" (I'm french, I know). So does the brits. I wouldn't be surprised if it's because of William the (a lot of English have old French roots).

As for star charts, the arabs one come from the Abbassid, which predate the Turks. The Turks didn't (and still don't) speak an Arab language, they speak a language with roots in the north Asia, with mongols and stuff. Where they come from (they are relatively late invader of this region of the world).


In any case, the proper way to spell Alpha is άλφα. Everything else is not the proper way, and we deal with it.
The game use the NATO alphabet, and it's alfa. Also, it's Juliett, which is neither the proper French (Juliette) nor the proper English (Juliet) for it.

Your greek is suspiciously good

 

[Wimmer]

Ha! Wimmer, I love that map! Is'nt there some wierd North European connection with sanskrit, Poland perhaps?

The word "śpiączka" for "coma" (or "koma") in Polish is taken directly from the meaning of the word. "Spać" it means "sleep". "Śpiący" it means "sleepy" or "sleeping". So the medical condition where someone looks like sleeping is "śpiączka".

 

[VR micmacmoc]

I'm learning Greek at the moment, a Herculean task, if you will.

 

[Riverside]

The word "śpiączka" for "coma" (or "koma") in Polish is taken directly from the meaning of the word. "Spać" it means "sleep". "Śpiący" it means "sleepy" or "sleeping". So the medical condition where someone looks like sleeping is "śpiączka".

If only Pineapple could be so logically explained

 

[[VR] James Constantine]

Add the Krauts. Unless one of the useless, awful "reforms" changed the spelling to something horrible. I tend to ignore those reforms though. I am too old to let someone dictate that my spelling is wrong now!

It got dropped by one of those 'reforms', although it had already been dropped in other German-speaking countries long before. Only a matter of time before the Eszett goes the same way...

 

[yianniv]

I'm learning Greek at the moment, a Herculean task, if you will.

If you need someone to add more confusion, ask away...

 

[Vandaahl]

If only Pineapple could be so logically explained

I did...

 

[BL1P]

beeta, baita is always fun to talk about too

 

[Wimmer]

I did...

500 years ago:
-Look! What a strange fruit!
-It looks a bit like a pine cone.
-I only know apples.
-Let's call it a pineapple!

 

[Erei]

500 years ago:
-Look! What a strange fruit!
-It looks a bit like a pine cone.
-I only know apples.
-Let's call it a pineapple!

-Look, a flying insect, how should we call it ?
-A fly.
-Mhh ok, but then that one which also fly !
-Dragonfly. It kinda look like a dragon.
-Ok, but that one ?
-Butterfly. I like butter.

 

[Rat Catcher]

If only Pineapple could be so logically explained

I did...

But the list didn't include Chinese or Japanese, oddly...

 

[LKx]

... of which the British English pronunciation of the word lieutenant is probably the most extreme example.

I never actually knew how to pronounce "lieutenant" in british english, now i looked it up on google and...... what the heck?

 

[Vandaahl]

But the list didn't include Chinese or Japanese, oddly...

No, I meant the part I edited in later
That the English prolly used the Dutch Denneappel.
Denneappel, the "appel van een den" literally translates to Pineapple in English.

In a similar way, a Dutchman once asked an Englishman, while pointing to a Squirrel holding an acorn, what that was. The answer prolly was "an acorn".
From that day, the Dutch called a Squirrel an Eekhoorn (double 'ee' is pronounced in dutch like the 'a' in English).

 

[Erei]

I never actually knew how to pronounce "lieutenant" in british english, now i looked it up on google and...... what the heck?

Not their first. Look up for Edinburgh, Worcester and yacht.

 

[HRDiagram]

-Look, a flying insect, how should we call it ?
-A fly.
-Mhh ok, but then that one which also fly !
-Dragonfly. It kinda look like a dragon.
-Ok, but that one ?
-Butterfly. I like butter.

Makes me think of this brilliant series of skits

 

[LKx]

Not their first. Look up for Edinburgh, Worcester and yacht.

 

[Erei]

English pronunciation :

 

[Cosmo]

Colour, color. The weird, difficult to understand accents are more shocking than the spelling in the UK.

 

[Vandaahl]

English pronunciation :
View attachment 252817

"U" in dutch is the respectable form of 'je', which means you. Kind of like the English thee (which means tea in dutch, but I digress).
So a colleague asked what the English use for "U kunt " (thou canst).
You can guess the answer I guess

 

[Rubbernuke]

I honestly started thinking about Alfalfa