Кое-что из трудностей перевода...

[Игорь Николаевич]

Want some 'salad of veal language'?
Some 'beef on European' or 'allsorts from a carbonate'? Menus get lost in translation
By Jeff Lee, Vancouver Sun June 15, 2010

Kazan , Tatarstan -- I'm quite an adventuresome eater. Maybe it comes from my years travelling with my parents to some pretty interesting places.

But I have to admit, there's something lost in translation when the item on the menu is "cutting from beef language moves with a horseradish and mustard."

Or "eat allsorts from a carbonate, sausages Moscow, a beef tongue and beef on European."

Or "Beef, tomatoes, prunes and potato. Moves in a pot."

Or "Salad Talker" made of "salad of veal language."

I found these hysterical translations on the menu of the Russian Railways dining car going from Moscow to Kazan.

Polina Rheinhold, a translator in Sochi, told me she once saw "boiled language," a transliteration error for "boiled tongue." She also once found a menu that offered "fresh cancer" when it really was offering fresh crab. So much for astrological signs.

This is the power of Google and other instant translators. What should be "comes with" in Russian becomes "moves with."

But I have no idea what a carbonate is or how you serve "beef on European." I'm sure Europeans aren't too pleased.

And rather than check the translations against reality, menu-writers are putting the words up for all to giggle about.

I am certain that we've mashed up other languages when converting them to English. I can't think of any right now, but if you have any examples you've come across, send them to me.

In the meantime, I think I'll have the "Soup Ear Fishing" that comes from "ear on morjatski from a trout, with vegetables.

jefflee@vancouversun.com

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