Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2017 September 16

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Language desk
< September 15 << Aug | September | Oct >> Current desk >
Welcome to the Wikipedia Language Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.


September 16[edit]

"Apple" is one word. If I'm not mistaken, "New York" is also one word, it just happened to have a space inside the word. (Please correct me on this if I'm wrong.)

But what about "unfunded mandate"? Is it considered two words or one big word? Mũeller (talk) 03:05, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Two words, because an "unfunded mandate" is a kind of mandate, whereas "New York" is not a kind of York. See also English compound. --Jayron32 03:36, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
... and "New York" is two words, even though it is a compound proper noun. The "New" was originally an adjective, though not regarded as such for long. Dbfirs 06:44, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
York 50.4.236.254 (talk) 12:43, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
New York is not "another" York unless it's an exact replica. A city name is just an arbitrary label. It could be renamed Bloombergburg and it would still be the same city. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 12:56, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Before 1664 it was New Amsterdam, then is was renamed in honour of the Duke of York, not the city. Dbfirs 16:24, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
The fact that the name New York was used says that it was named after the city. In honor of the Duke, yes, I'm sure, but after the city. --69.159.60.147 (talk) 02:26, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Either way, New York is not "another York". ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 03:50, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
The name was often spelled "New-York" during the 18th century and into the 19th. However, it would be considered two words by most linguistic criteria. AnonMoos (talk) 15:10, 18 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Unfunded mandate is a term used by women to describe a date with a man where they have to pay their own way. Also known as "going Dutch". :-) StuRat (talk) 13:20, 16 September 2017 (UTC) [reply]
The advantage to the woman with going Dutch is that she won't feel like she "owes him" anything. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 03:54, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
And if he tries anything, a wooden shoe to the crotch should curb his enthusiasm. :-) StuRat (talk) 04:25, 17 September 2017 (UTC) [reply]

Question about French-language source on animated short project[edit]

I'm currently working on an article in my sandbox about a French animator named Xavier Ramonède and have come across this page [1] about a short project, on which he's credited as an animator. Google translate is able to help me understand most of the source, but doesn't do a perfect job. The source says, "Ce n'est pas tous les jours qu'un carré de soie a droit à une pub en animation, c'est donc d'autant plus surprenant de découvrir le joli spot Hippopolis, basé sur une illustration de Ugo Gattoni, et vendu donc en foulard par Hermès."

Google doesn't seem to know how to translate the word "pub", so it's unclear to me what kind of a project this is. Can anyone help with this? Thanks! --Jpcase (talk) 17:33, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]

That would be an ad/commercial (pub is short for publicité = advertisement) for some sort of silk handkerchief or neckerchief sold by Hermès. --Wrongfilter (talk) 18:26, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Great! Thanks! --Jpcase (talk) 18:39, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Would Americans be los gringos or los mestizos?[edit]

I know los gringos is a term to describe a foreigner (such as American) in a Spanish-speaking country. I also know mestizo means someone of part-European and part-indigenous American ancestry. In addition, many Americans do have indigenous North American ancestry and European ancestry in their bloodline. So, would an American be recognized as gringo because s/he is a foreigner or as a mestizo because of mixed race between indigenous American and European? 50.4.236.254 (talk) 18:46, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Gringos. To be accepted as a mestizo, you need a lot of Indian blood, like 50%. The other 50% should be European Spanish, but the main thing is lots of Indian blood. If you look like the average American, you're a gringo. —Stephen (talk) 19:58, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
I think you mean Native American or Indigenous American blood. Does the type of Indigenous American matter? Aztec, Mayan, Incan, Native American (ancestry from the tribes in what is now the USA), and the Inuit? And of course, there are the Indians of India. If Mom is India-born American and Dad is European American with ancestry from different ethnic groups all over Europe, then is the child a gringo or mestizo? 50.4.236.254 (talk) 20:35, 16 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
No, not East Indians. Also, the Inuit have a different look and probably would not be recognized as mestizo in Mexico. Most Mexican mestizos that I have seen claim Aztec roots, but Mayan and other Mexican, Central American, and South American tribes would be included. Most Mexicans are mestizo, in my experience. I know and talk to a lot of Navajos, and they very often identify as Indians, and I often use that term as well. I don't recall hearing of East Indians being called Indians, but maybe I just didn't notice. —Stephen (talk) 07:52, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
In Spanish, as in English, the same word means both "Native Americans" and "People from India". See es:Indio. --Jayron32 10:49, 19 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
What the fuck is this, a Monty Python sketch? African or European? I dunno...aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah μηδείς (talk) 02:54, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Well, if Dad was European American, I suppose he might be pining for the fjords. :-) StuRat (talk) 03:51, 17 September 2017 (UTC) [reply]
That term mestizo literally means "mixed" and refers to those of mixed European and AmerIndian heritage.[2] The term gringo refers to a foreigner.[3] As far as I know, gringo is insulting but mestizo is not. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 03:49, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Gringo most certainly does not refer to a mere foreigner. It refers to NW Europeans, mostly white Brits and Americans, or those who could pass for one--and not Latins. It would not apply to a black American, a Hindu, or a Chinaman in any sense. μηδείς (talk) 04:57, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Wouldn't it be nice if we had an article on everything? One that could e.g. include the phrase "which may have different meanings depending on where it is used", to make people aware that maybe their local impressions are not the whole truth? Well, a man can dream... --Stephan Schulz (talk) 06:00, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]
We have an article on White supremacy. We may have articles on Hispanic Supremacy and the racisms of random ethnic groups. No, it would not be nice to have articles on any of these. --Cookatoo.ergo.ZooM (talk) 17:46, 17 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]

If you want to see visual depictions of a whole long list of racial sub-classifications in the Spanish empire, look at Commons:Category:Casta paintings (however, gringos are not included)... AnonMoos (talk) 15:12, 18 September 2017 (UTC)[reply]