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Originally Posted by davem
Is there a difference in the German translation of Mister Frodo & Master Frodo, or is the same word used for both?
And for those in search of some light relief http://www.kombu.de/twain-3.htm |
Davem, I'm not familiar enough with the German translations to answer that question. Maybe
Guinevere or
Macalaure or others who have read the German version can give more information. As I read the original first, I could never bear to read more than a page or two of the translations!
Thanks for that wonderful Twain link - I'm familiar with his essay on the "awful German language" and have chuckled over it many times, but a number of these quotes are from other works and new to me. One in particular is quite appropriate for the Downs:
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...it ought to be gently and reverently set aside among the dead languages, for only the dead have time to learn it.
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Lalaith, normally "ihr" is an informal
plural pronoun; in the old-fashioned usage, it can substitute for "Sie", which is the formal pronoun and can be either plural or singular. Good reference to the (obsolete) usage of "thee" by Éowyn/Tolkien! Nowadays, the fact that it is used only in a religious context clouds its original intimate meaning.