Follow me on Twitter
Check out my Facebook page
Hi all,
I’ve only got one week to go before I start my 23 EU Languages in 12 years challenge/experiment and, apart from being unable to get my hands on a good guide to writing essays in my two target languages (Polish and Spanish), I guess I’m pretty much prepared for it.
Ok, so what should I write about in this week’s blog post?
Well, since I haven’t started my challenge yet, I thought that I would turn my attention to something which I’ve been aware of but haven’t really paid much heed to, until I visited a farm with my children.
On the farm, standing next to my kids, was a little Spanish boy, who would every now and then make a sound when he spotted an animal. At first, my children and I were puzzled but we soon realised that he was making the sounds of the different animals. This led my daughter to ask me whether animals from different countries spoke different languages. Her question not only made me laugh but also made me want to know what noises do Polish and Spanish people make to mimic the sounds of animals?
I asked my Polish and Spanish friends to help me out.
Old MacGarcía had a farm…
Spanish animal sounds
Dog/Perro – Guau
Cat/Gato – Miau
Donkey/Burro – I-ha
Sheep/Oveja – Beeee
Cow/Vaca – Mu
Frog/Rana – Croac
Wolf/Lobo – Aúúú
Chicken/Pollo – Spanish people have a sound for a cock (Kikiriki) and for a hen (co-co), but not for a chicken.
Duck/Pato – Cua-cua
Horse/Caballo – Iiiih
Old MacNowak had a farm…
Polish animal sounds
Dog/Pies – Hał
Cat/Kot – Miał
Sheep/Owca – Bee
Cow/Krowa – Muu
Frog/ Żaba – Kum kum
Wolf/Wilk: Auuuu
Chicken/Kaczka – Ko ko ko
Duck/Kurczak – Kwa kwa
Goat/Koza – Meee
What I found really interesting was that according to my friend, Polish people don’t mimic the sounds of horses, mice and donkeys.
What have I learnt?
I’ve learnt that little things like knowing the sounds of animals in different languages, makes language learning fun, so in keeping with the animal theme, I’ve put together a list of Polish and Spanish sayings involving animals.
Polish sayings
Glodny jak wilk/Hungry like a wolf
Gruby jak świnia/Fat as a pig
Uparty jak osioł/Stubborn as a donkey
Mądry jak sowa/Clever as an owl
Pracowity jak pszczoła/Hardworking as a bee
Sprytny jak lis/Clever like a fox
Zwinny jak kot/Agile as a cat
Wierny ja pies/Faithful as a dog
Pracowity jak mrówka/Hardworking as an ant
Zły jak osa/Angry as a wasp
Zdrów jak ryba Healthy as a fish
Chytry jak lis/Sly as a fox
Łagodny jak baranek/Gentle as a lamb
Spanish Sayings
A otro perro con ese hueso/You’re kidding
Verle las orejas al lobo/The writings on the wall
A caballo entre/Doing two things at once
Hay gato encerrado/Something fishy is going on
Ser un perro/ To be very lazy (this is the one thing I can’t be, if I want to achieve my goal)
learn23eublog 