EEVblog Electronics Community Forum
General => General Technical Chat => Topic started by: Smokey on October 01, 2012, 09:35:56 pm
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Post up your favorite real companies that have funny names.
I'll start.
Mutual Screw Hardware. (Check out the tag line. Gets me every time)
http://www.mutualscrew.com/ (http://www.mutualscrew.com/)
Assmann Components (Makes me think of Seinfeld)
http://www.assmann.us/ (http://www.assmann.us/)
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Bimbo bread
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/de/Grupo_Bimbo_Logo.jpg/250px-Grupo_Bimbo_Logo.jpg)
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Bimbo bread is great.
Internacionale Moustache Wax
(That's my company)
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Beaver Liquors
http://www.beaverliquors.com/ (http://www.beaverliquors.com/)
Dave.
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sexwax
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http://www.wayne-kerr.co.uk/ (http://www.wayne-kerr.co.uk/)
For some reason this one reminds me of Beavis & friend :
http://www.buttkereit.co.uk/ (http://www.buttkereit.co.uk/)
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http://procreation.com.au (http://procreation.com.au)
Sadly, I know the owner... :o
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BJ Pipeline Inspections
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BJ_Services_Company (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BJ_Services_Company)
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For many years there was a Bread Company in Perth WA,by the name of "Brown & Burns"! ;D
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http://www.experts-exchange.com/ (http://www.experts-exchange.com/)
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IPS (does not stand for Inverted Penis Syndrome)
http://www.railwayparts.com/ (http://www.railwayparts.com/)
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www.therapistfinder.com (http://www.therapistfinder.com)
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I once came across a builders van that was sign written with the name. " Bodgitt & Scarper "
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I once came across a builders van that was sign written with the name. " Bodgitt & Scarper "
I think they may have done some work on my place! ;D
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In my home town we have:
"Hair off the dog" dog groomers (not sure if the expression "hair of the dog" makes it outside of the UK)
"Smallbone and Sons" funeral directors
"Pull yourself together" curtain shop
Elsewhere I've seen:
"Curl up and dye" hairdressers
And this:
(http://static.fjcdn.com/pictures/Cock_1c4ba3_67825.jpg)
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Sign on a badly damaged PUB after a storm
"Fallen INN"
also there was an eatery in Noosa . "Musk Duck Inn"
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I worked for a Swiss company that was taken over by Siemens, the UK office was in Staines.
The receptionist quit four days later, after all the crank calls (many of them internal), waiting to hear her announce "Good Morning Siemens Staines, how may I help you?".
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I once came across a builders van that was sign written with the name. " Bodgitt & Scarper "
A few miles up the road from here is a firm of solicitors called Wright Hassall -- they are, by all accounts, very good, but the name must get them remembered!
I seem to recall the same town used to play host to a shop selling door furniture, called simply Knobs & Knockers.
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I worked for a Swiss company that was taken over by Siemens, the UK office was in Staines.
The receptionist quit four days later, after all the crank calls (many of them internal), waiting to hear her announce "Good Morning Siemens Staines, how may I help you?".
Ladies & gentlemen,we have a winner! ;D
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Wallis Prance solictors.
Always misread it as Wally Prance from my dad's office (opposite side of the car park.)
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On another project I was introduced to the cleaning supervisor from a company called Swan.
They all had uniforms embroidered with "Swan Cleaning", so I suggested to him that I had never before met someone involved in such a specialist occupation.
He did assure me that they had a lot of work. ;)
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I wonder how many people genuinely enquire about swan cleaning services instead of Swan Cleaning services.
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A. Duie Pyle
www.aduiepyle.com (http://www.aduiepyle.com)
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Smeg
Need I say more?
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Another Red Dwarf fan................
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FOKUS... its a bank that like that the customers screw them..
http://www.fokus.no (http://www.fokus.no)
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Another Red Dwarf fan................
Yep and hoping the new new series isn't s**t
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there is a company that makes automatic gates called FAAC
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A company called Fluke but they make really good multimeters. ;D ;D ;D
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yes we nevere think of how funny that name is considering what they make, although we have joked about it at work.
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Spotted this on my visit to Berlin a few years ago.
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Surprised to see no one has mentioned King Dick.
http://www.kingdicktools.co.uk/ (http://www.kingdicktools.co.uk/)
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Surprised to see no one has mentioned King Dick.
http://www.kingdicktools.co.uk/ (http://www.kingdicktools.co.uk/)
They probably specialized in "big" tools ;)
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I have a King Dick podger and adjustable spanner in the shed.
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How about "Ash Wipe" Chimney Sweeps ?
They even have a website http://ashwipe.com/ (http://ashwipe.com/)
;)
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This is just around the corner from me.
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What about these companies. Not sure what the department of homeland security would say if you used the second company's services.
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Not a company name, but a local plumber used to have the email address of nuggetjuggler@****.com ;D
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It often amuses me how badly Chinese company names translate. They seem to try so hard to hit the mark with things that will please western ears, only to miss, every time.
Remember "Lucky Gold Star" ERGH! Became "LG" (and revised tagline: Life's Good" - double ERGH) when the western marketing guys got thier hands on it.
But this one's for REAL http://www.banggood.com/ (http://www.banggood.com/) not too sure if they are selling appliances of a "bedroom gymnastics" nature - ooh just looked - they do, too! <embarrassed :-[>
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What about these companies. Not sure what the department of homeland security would say if you used the second company's services.
I've used the services of rent-a-bomb many years ago in Sydney. Rent-A-Wreck was a popular one too.
I also suspect I've been to the diesel fried chicken place too, although they weren't honest enough to use that name :)
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http://www.totaltools.com.au/ (http://www.totaltools.com.au/)
Last time I went there the teenage assistance was so clueless and lazy I almost comment to the effect that they really are a bunch of "total tools".
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(http://www4.picturepush.com/photo/a/10612297/oimg/10612297.png) (http://www.doolittle-dalley.co.uk/)
And from: http://brettenham.onesuffolk.net/assets/Newsletters/March-2010-Parish-Mag.pdf (http://brettenham.onesuffolk.net/assets/Newsletters/March-2010-Parish-Mag.pdf)
(http://www2.picturepush.com/photo/a/10612590/oimg/Anonymous/deathandsons.png) (http://picturepush.com/public/10612590)
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I wonder if this is real.
(http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1121/1418520059_86eba0387e.jpg)
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In the 80's, Taiwan had a brand of cigarettes called "Long Life"!
I smoked a lot of these, we will see if I have a "short life".
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I quite like "Meanwell" power supplies.
After all,as long as they have good intentions! ;D
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After all,as long as they have good intentions! ;D
You are of course fishing for the answer, don't you? The way to hell is paved with good intentions. There you have it.
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I quite like "Meanwell" power supplies.
After all,as long as they have good intentions! ;D
Serious question, are Meanwell products any good?
I've never used them, but the name seems to crop up occasionally and I couldn't help but wonder.
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"Mean Well": used a lot of their power supplies/converters.
Never got any trouble/fault.
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Nobody thinking of Dick Smith?
A joke I used to tell in grammar school:
If a black smith deals with iron and a lock smith deals with locks, what does a dick smith do?
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If Mr Thatcher's ancestors used to thatch roofs,I am a little worried about Mr Hancock,or his friend Mr Cockburn! ;D
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I saw a UK furniture retailer's signing in a news-story this week.
The company was Sofa King.
The slogan was "Our furniture is Sofa King good"
Or something like that -- I'm old, I forget more than I remember these days.
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Serious question, are Meanwell products any good?
I've never used them, but the name seems to crop up occasionally and I couldn't help but wonder. [/quote]
I'm associated with an OZ distributor, and have used 100s various devices. Build quality is very good, design is
at worst very good, prices are great. Designs are usually rugged / over engineered / large end ...
so, if you don't need small-as possible, ultra-efficiency - you're good to go.
Sorry, can't think of a funny company name, TBC
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Here in Germany there's a company called Dick.
They make knifes and some other tools. Most of them are long and sharp...
http://www.dick.de/en/index.php (http://www.dick.de/en/index.php)
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In the UK there was a skin care product manufacturer. They sponsored a large hot-air balloon which had on it's side, in big letters "For Skin Care"
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I've seen a touring bus of this company: www.fuecker-reisen.de (http://www.fuecker-reisen.de)
In German "ue" can also be spelled as "ü"...
(http://www.fahrschule-fuecker.de/picts/sidebar-1.jpg)
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SiCK sensors.
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Good call on the SICK sensors.
Their USA web site link is www.SICKUSA.COM (http://www.SICKUSA.COM)
Silly
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Nice sensors, I have some really old ones. The head is the size of a cigarette pack and the controller is a large DIN box that has a near A4 size PCB in it. All built with Siemens chips, capacitors and transistors.
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I remember going to the first DARPA grand challenge autonomous car race qualifying event. Everyone had those shoebox size SICK laser scanners hanging off the front of their cars. Everyone cringed when one of the cars ran into a wall or something. I'm pretty sure those scanners aren't rated for that kind of shock impact to the face.
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I wonder if this is real.
(http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1121/1418520059_86eba0387e.jpg)
No, not true, just advertising puffery :)
cheers, a
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(http://yourhomewizards.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/fna.jpg)
Real company. They do enormous low speed high volume fans.
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There's a used car dealer in Werribee, Victoria (visible from the train to Hoppers) called 'Lemon Motors'
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I quite like "Meanwell" power supplies.
After all,as long as they have good intentions! ;D
Serious question, are Meanwell products any good?
I've never used them, but the name seems to crop up occasionally and I couldn't help but wonder.
No problems with them they are great power supply but there are a mountain of MW fakes out there so beware of where you source them. Another problem is that the prices vary huge from different regions. MW supplies are often cheaper in Asian countries.
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bump for an old favorite...
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(http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5759/21613880638_f670133a58.jpg)
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Back in the '90s the first ISP in the area was called Software Tool and Die.
It helps to know the local meaning of "tool": doing unenjoyable but necessary work.
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I quite like "Meanwell" power supplies.
After all,as long as they have good intentions! ;D
Serious question, are Meanwell products any good?
I've never used them, but the name seems to crop up occasionally and I couldn't help but wonder.
I have opened up a broken one (just a bad cable, easily fixed) at work and it was very well built. But the particular Meanwell in question (5V, 4A wall wart) was the nosiest PSU I ever tested on the noise tester setup. I tested several to make sure it wasn't just a bad one.
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(http://i.imgur.com/qxOKtdP.jpg)
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Before Netflix, there was ....
(http://www.motivateusnot.com/fbresize.php?name=LzM3OC9NZWdhZmxpY2tzLVlvdS1zaG91bGQtaGF2ZS11c2VkLWEtZGlmZmVyZW50LWZvbnQtNGIxZDZjNDcyZGQxMi5wbmc=&w=550&h=288&nwm=1&extension=.jpg)
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You may guess whats near this bicycle store.
Reservoir Cogs
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Analygas - They make gas detection and analysis systems. At a glance it looks a lot like "Anal Gas".
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Ansmann (battery chargers). ;D
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(http://yourhomewizards.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/fna.jpg)
Real company. They do enormous low speed high volume fans.
We have some of thier fans here in the manufactoring plant I work at. Those suckers are huge.
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Not a company but may be worse, a Village name.
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On the southside of Brisbane...
http://www.mikehuntscars.com.au (http://www.mikehuntscars.com.au)
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Not a company but may be worse, a Village name.
Well, time to pop a beer... :-DD
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/150929/yjhxsfh9.jpg)
...and a suggestion for a recommended road trip, if you ever come to visit Austria and Germany... :-+
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/150929/6t2qvumy.png)
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I once came across a builders van that was sign written with the name. " Bodgitt & Scarper "
My best mate is a mechanic and has a sideline doing custom cars from home. He jokingly calls that "B&S Hot Rods..."
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There was a fishmonger in Friedberg (30km north of Frankfurt/Main) called "Fisch Umsonst", which translates to "free fish".
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Not a company but may be worse, a Village name.
Well, time to pop a beer... :-DD
...and a suggestion for a recommended road trip, if you ever come to visit Austria and Germany... :-+
How funny!
Cool road trip, we should suggest that for the next family honeymoon trip.
But where do you get that beer?
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But where do you get that beer?
They run an online-shop:
http://www.fucking-hell.de/en/ (http://www.fucking-hell.de/en/)
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Found this company a few days ago:
Elektro Porn ;D
http://www.elektro-porn.de (http://www.elektro-porn.de)
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(Kissing Petting F*cking Wedding)
You'd have to take a huge diversion, but you could visit Titisee too. Presumably between Petting and F*cking.
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Mort-subite (Beer) french : instant death
oh and what about our favorite : Batteroo : contraction of Battery and Poo .
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You'd have to take a huge diversion, but you could visit Titisee too. Presumably between Petting and F*cking.
Haha... That's actually not very far away from where I live... :-DD
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Still on town and village names I nominate Batman:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@37.892466,41.1256028,13z (https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@37.892466,41.1256028,13z)
With the town of Worms a close second:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@49.661322,8.342184,11z (https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@49.661322,8.342184,11z)
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As for people, would you believe that there is a Urologist called Nicolas Burns-Cox? No, I thought not, so here's his page at the hospital where he works:
http://www.musgroveparkhospital.nhs.uk/wards-and-departments/consultants/nick-burns-cox/ (http://www.musgroveparkhospital.nhs.uk/wards-and-departments/consultants/nick-burns-cox/)
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Still on town and village names I nominate Batman:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@37.892466,41.1256028,13z (https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@37.892466,41.1256028,13z)
With the town of Worms a close second:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@49.661322,8.342184,11z (https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@49.661322,8.342184,11z)
Intercourse, Pennsylvania, USA, also King of Prussia, same state. In Florida we have Christmas.
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Pen Island and their nice domain name http://www.penisland.net/ (http://www.penisland.net/)
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Intercourse, Pennsylvania, USA, also King of Prussia, same state. In Florida we have Christmas.
There are so many. Hell, Michigan; Belchertown, Ma; Big Bone Lick, KY; Beaver Lick, KY; Hookersville, WV; Spread Eagle, WI...
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There's a construction company here in Victoria called Hooker Cockram Ltd. They were doing a job not far from my house a few years ago and I chuckled as I walked past the 30 metre pile driver they were using... :)
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Not so much the name, but the choice of business:
There's a split premises (two companies, in one building) near where I live run by a husband and wife. She runs a driving school in one half, in the other half the husband runs a Funeral Service!! I wonder if he considers her business as a supplier?
McBryce.
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- Experts Exchange
- Pen Island (http://www.penisland.net/)
- Pompous Ass English Pale Ale (http://greatlakesbeer.com/index.php/beer/pompous-ass/)
- Fat Bastard Wines (http://www.fatbastard.com/story-and-wines.php)
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On the subject of unusual place names, we can't forget Dildo, Newfoundland....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dildo,_Newfoundland_and_Labrador
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This thread wouldn't be complete without this one...
(https://www.flickr.com/photos/garrett_odonoghue/10370055093)
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I've seen a cheap power supply from a Chinese company called "Golden Profit Corporation". I have no doubt they have no problems with profits, but why put that in the name? :)
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Check what's next door to: http://thedick.com.au/ (http://thedick.com.au/) on Google streetview
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I've seen a cheap power supply from a Chinese company called "Golden Profit Corporation". I have no doubt they have no problems with profits, but why put that in the name? :)
I can guess what the original Chinese for that was, and its an example where things change flavour in translation.
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This thread wouldn't be complete without this one...
(https://www.flickr.com/photos/garrett_odonoghue/10370055093)
Hey, I know that place. Its not far from Hung Hom train station in Kowloon.
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What about Assmann, sorry if it's already noted.
http://www.assmann-wsw.com/en/ (http://www.assmann-wsw.com/en/)
Kramer finds them funny anyway
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tujqM2u-BVo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tujqM2u-BVo)
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There used to be a restaurant with this name near where I grew up.
(http://www.localbozo.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Exterior.jpg)
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Intercourse, Pennsylvania, USA, also King of Prussia, same state. In Florida we have Christmas.
There are so many. Hell, Michigan; Belchertown, Ma; Big Bone Lick, KY; Beaver Lick, KY; Hookersville, WV; Spread Eagle, WI...
You didn't mention that near Intercourse, PA there's a town called Climax. Also, here in Indiana we have French Lick.
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There is a Mr Peter Ness who runs a small Furniture Removal Company not far from my home. Emblazoned down the side of the van is the Company Name "P Ness Removals".
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There were some hippies in California that called their company Apple Computer ;)
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And then we have the Danish town Bøgballe which in the neighbouring country Sweden (with very similar languages) means "homosexual penis"....
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i am surprised that no one though of banggood
http://www.banggood.com/ (http://www.banggood.com/)
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Try saying the name of this company a few times quickly...
http://www.fodderking.com.au/ (http://www.fodderking.com.au/)
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Sliding doors are evil... ^-^
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/151001/frno8452.jpg)
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/151001/snn2c4zx.jpg)
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Projects Unlimited Inc. (P.U. Inc.) http://www.pui.com/ (http://www.pui.com/)
Hughes Peters. http://www.hughespeters.com/ (http://www.hughespeters.com/)
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Picked some of these D'asses up at the Japanese market the other day.
(https://i1.wp.com/i84.photobucket.com/albums/k8/omnivoroustraveler/dasses1.jpg)
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We used to have an electrical supply house around here called Vee Dee Electrical Supply. :palm:
And there is a nearby fastener supplier called Uneeda Screw. :-+
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uh huh
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There used to be a product for sale called Voltaren Analgel (from "analgesic" obviously)
It is now "Emulgel"!!
For many years,a sign on a business near me advertised that they did "Televesion" repairs.
I wondered why they didn't have it corrected,but it was memorable,where "Television" wasn't.
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What are these?
The second one is hilarious. The Japanese text seems to say "Tradefair Eating Area", but obviously their translation server had an error and they thought that the error message was the translation :D
McBryce.
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What are these?
The second one is hilarious. The Japanese text seems to say "Tradefair Eating Area", but obviously their translation server had an error and they thought that the error message was the translation :D
McBryce.
The second one is actually Chinese, and says "Dining room". In this context it actually means a small family run restaurant.
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What are these?
The second one is hilarious. The Japanese text seems to say "Tradefair Eating Area", but obviously their translation server had an error and they thought that the error message was the translation :D
McBryce.
The second one is actually Chinese, and says "Dining room". In this context it actually means a small family run restaurant.
Cool, then the text has a almost similar meaning in both languages.
McBryce.
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Misleading thread subjects are dangerous to monitors and keyboards. Almost spit my coffee :-DD
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/151109/ruacfuxt.png)
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Our factory in Korea used to buy parts from the 'Do One Ohm Resistor Company'. I kid you not!
Edit: and of course LG is short for 'Lucky Goldstar'
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Inside old Goldstar TV sets you often found a sticker which said " Lucky HIPS". Prosaically it refers to the parent company of Goldstar and LG - Lucky manufacturing Co, and indicated the casing is made from high impact polystyrene plastic.
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Korean Companies are actually very superstitious about good luck (I guess we all are actually :) ). Such things as company names and the ubiquitous wooden pendulum clock in reception.
Another example: Sam sung translates as 'Three stars'
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On many invoices (fiscal documents) from Farnell here in brazil, when you bought almost any OpAmp (analogic IC) they came as "XYZ CI ANAL" (CI is portuguese equivalent to IC)... Possibily something about character numbers, but it happened several times...
Always made me think all possible jokes...
Unfortunatelly Farnell is closing here...
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Bear droppings anyone? ;D
(https://cascadegifts.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/p-657-IMG_4357lg.jpg)
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Capacitor manufacturer -> http://www.shinyspace.com/ (http://www.shinyspace.com/)
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http://www.dongenergy.com/en (http://www.dongenergy.com/en)
They're not even Chinese, what's their excuse!
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Knowing what industry drives internet traffic, you wonder if Intel was paying homage when they named their 14 nanometer technology CPU, the Braswell.
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At work we used to have a van that when open spelt "Gay"
There was a lot of fuss around a photo that purported to be a train called the flying scotsman that with a door open spelt lying scotman with the picturte of the scottish first minister above it. It came out during the scottish referendum capaign. Apparently while the unfortunate spelling on the train with the door open is true the placement of the picture is not:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/jimwaterson/that-alex-salmond-lying-scotsman-train-photo-is-fake#.nwK8Y6A0a (http://www.buzzfeed.com/jimwaterson/that-alex-salmond-lying-scotsman-train-photo-is-fake#.nwK8Y6A0a)
Sliding doors are evil... ^-^
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/151001/frno8452.jpg)
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/151001/snn2c4zx.jpg)
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(http://funnythings.companions.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/8/files/funny-signs/absnews_car.jpg)
Made in Australia.
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http://www.dongenergy.com/en (http://www.dongenergy.com/en)
They're not even Chinese, what's their excuse!
It's actually a Danish company - It's a short for "Dansk Olie og Natur Gas" = Danish Oil and Natural Gas Energy ;)
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Not a company, but a formula/subscription/service:
Youtube Red
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From mikeselectricstuff (http://pic.twitter.com/annli4Thko):
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CTc3wOQVAAEaAxG.jpg:large)
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Reminds me of the pathetic emails I get from chinese wholesalers treating electronic components like fashion items telling me they have new hot item in stock for this season bla bla bla.
From mikeselectricstuff (http://pic.twitter.com/annli4Thko):
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CTc3wOQVAAEaAxG.jpg:large)
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Reminds me of the pathetic emails I get from chinese wholesalers treating electronic components like fashion items telling me they have new hot item in stock for this season bla bla bla.
From mikeselectricstuff (http://pic.twitter.com/annli4Thko):
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CTc3wOQVAAEaAxG.jpg:large)
Makes me think of all the spam email I am getting recently. Thinking of adding Foxitmail to the always spam list. Almost as bad at spamming as Yahoo, but at least they do not simply forward all email as if it is gospel.
Wonder just how big an outlook folder can grow to, I have several 3G stored mail folders on it......... Might even empty deleted items this year, and compact the folder a little. Oldest mail there was migrated from Outlook Express. At home Evolution is starting to be a little memory hog, time to prune it a lot, 2.9Gb in virtual memory. Almost as bad as Firefox.
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How funny!
Cool road trip, we should suggest that for the next family honeymoon trip.
Or for the next European Delivery.
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I bought an inner tube for a wheelbarrow tire from the local hardware store. Chinese brand: name was "High Run". I guess that is trying to convey the idea that it is top quality and will last a long time. OMG did it smell bad when I opened the plastic bag holding the tube. I joked with the guys about how bad it would be if Chinese condoms smelled like that ;D, and would you actually put one on if the gov't wouldn't castrate you for having an unlicensed child. Then we started talking about what a Chinese company that made condoms would call itself. We eventually agreed that it would be the "Safe Joy Condom Company" :-DD
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When I was but a beardless lad at my first job,there was a Car Radiator company diagonally opposite work,called "Tucker & Aurisch".
They had double doors,with the Company name in a very nice Cursive font across the pair.
At some time, a truck or something had scraped a line on one door,adding a crossbar to the,Capital "T",transforming it to a Capital "F",much to the delight of "the boys"!
We were real little turds!
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How about this:
(http://cdn.hotfrog.com.au/companies/Lube-Mobile-NSW/images/Lube-Mobile-NSW_225930_image.jpg)
(http://fs5.directupload.net/images/151109/ruacfuxt.png)
Fungus?!? :scared:
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Sounds like he needs some...
Man Service!
(http://www.richardreadtransport.co.uk/images/MAN-Services-Sales-Service.jpg)
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Sounds like he needs some...
Man Service!
(http://www.richardreadtransport.co.uk/images/MAN-Services-Sales-Service.jpg)
In China MAN has a JV which builds buses with the brand name "Young MAN".
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From mikeselectricstuff (http://pic.twitter.com/annli4Thko):
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CTc3wOQVAAEaAxG.jpg:large)
TBH I didn't even notice the names - just that there were huge billboards with capacitors on them...
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bump...
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Clearly from the 1990's, but if you happen to open the doors and take the photo just at the right tongue angle, "ABC News & Current Affairs" takes on a new meaning...
(https://funnyshit.com.au/img/abc-news-and-cunt-affairs.jpg)
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation are known to be a little odd at times.
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Athlete's foot.
selling sport shoes.
eeewwww
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Switzerland is absolutely ripe with gems like these:
The neighborhoof of Wankdorf (https://goo.gl/maps/i99HtEyNcms) in Bern, where the stadium (http://events.bscyb.ch/de/home) is, which is where Bern's football club the Young Boys (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/BSC_Young_Boys) practice.
The annual jazz and blues festival in Lucerne, the Blue Balls Festival (http://blueballs.ch/). (note the URL)
The Swiss subsidiary of Neutrik rebranded to Contrik (http://www.contrik.ch/).
And then there's the amazing case of Zurich Airport, which for many years was a source of amusement. Back in the 1990s, some marketing genius decided that "Zurich Airport" wasn't good enough, that it needed a brand. And what they came up with was "Unique". (I shall mention here that their original plan was to roll out the "Unique" brand at airports worldwide...) At this point, English teachers throughout Switzerland groaned, because when Swiss German speakers speak English, they pronounce "unique" as "eunuch".
And indeed, for years, the airport announcements in English sounded like "Thank you for flying through Zurich Eunuch Airport". And for years, I thought that was hilarious enough. But it gets better, as I learned later.
Like most city airports, Zurich Airport is actually in a suburb. In this case, the town of Kloten. Which means "balls" in Dutch. OK, so now we know it's the wily Dutch that have been taking them off the male passengers. But where to put them? Well, the town of Kloten has three train stations within its borders: Kloten, Zurich Airport, and Kloten Balsberg. You couldn't make this shit up. (It was rebranded to just Zurich Airport a few years ago.)
Now, suppose you had wanted to go from the Eunuch Airport down to Lucerne for the Blue Balls Festival? You might want a snack for the road. Back then, the largest grocery chain had a line of convenience food products titled "Plan B" (funny enough already, but I know what they meant), with the individual products having very literal names (like the raspberry sports drink being called "Pink" because of its color). And one of the products was round corn puffs without any distinct flavoring. Their label literally said "Plan B Salty Balls".
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Meanwhile, images of the restaurant shown below became some of the internet's earliest viral images. But it's a real place (https://goo.gl/maps/ecvoaUJc1cG2) in Lake City, FL (where my grandmother retired to) and I drove past many times. Apparently it's still around, probably thanks to internet infamy and souvenir sales (see image)!
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This:
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Just remembered another: my GP. His last name is Loser (pronounced "loh-zer"). His website is www.drloser.ch (http://www.drloser.ch)
(Which I highly recommend you visit and look at the gallery, because the decoration is insane. I describe it as a "cross between your grandma's sitting room and a Las Vegas bordello". The friend who referred me to this doc said it was "as if South Park had Big Gay Al's Big Gay Doctor's Office". And that wasn't enough to prepare me. The flip side: he's the best GP in town, especially for LGBT people.)
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Just remembered another: my GP. His last name is Loser (pronounced "loh-zer"). His website is www.drloser.ch (http://www.drloser.ch)
(Which I highly recommend you visit and look at the gallery, because the decoration is insane. I describe it as a "cross between your grandma's sitting room and a Las Vegas bordello". The friend who referred me to this doc said it was "as if South Park had Big Gay Al's Big Gay Doctor's Office". And that wasn't enough to prepare me. The flip side: he's the best GP in town, especially for LGBT people.)
Will check this website at home as my company's firewall blocks it for some reason... ::) As for the doctors' names, my dad used to visit one whose last name you could translate as Barelyalive (Ledwo?yw in Polish).
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There used to be a London company specialising in organising high end social events for a certain set, the company name: "Balls to you".
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the company called STD
(http://i.imgur.com/Zs15GkE.jpg)
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This is a law firm near Maitland (NSW Australia).
http://www.vileandvilelaw.com/ (http://www.vileandvilelaw.com/)
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An old car called Mitshubishi Pajero. In spanish it means wanker, literally.
Enviado desde mi Jolla mediante Tapatalk
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Believe it or not, there's actually people paid to check that new car names don't insult in any other language, and yet there are many examples of names that slipped through. The Toyota MR2 didn't go down well in France because MR2 is pronounced "Merde" (Shit) in France.
McBryce.
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Around the beginning of this millennium, Honda introduced a car with the name Fitta. That means c*nt in Swedish. They changed the name to Jazz quite fast.
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An old car called Mitshubishi Pajero. In spanish it means wanker, literally.
Not so old, still being produced: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Pajero
It's sold in Spain as the Montero.
In the 70-80's Opel/Vauxhall launched the "Ascona": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opel_Ascona . In Portugal it was renamed to "1604" as "Ascona" reads the same as "Asc*nt" in english, way too close to avoid embarrassment.
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Jew's Juice
How companies come up with this is beyond me.
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Jew's Juice
How companies come up with this is beyond me.
Because jew's ear (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auricularia_auricula-judae) is the name of a fungus. It's probably an ingredient.
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P.S. "Jew" in the fungus's name is a corruption of Judas, by the way — in German the fungus is called Judasohren.
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Jew's Juice
How companies come up with this is beyond me.
Because jew's ear (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auricularia_auricula-judae) is the name of a fungus. It's probably an ingredient.
The Chinese says black wood ear mushroom cream, and wood ear is one of the names on that Wikipedia page. Its more often known as cloud ear mushroom in Asia. Its popular in Chinese cuisine.
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Yep. In culinary use in USA, it's commonly called wood ear mushroom.
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Not a name on its own - but a company slogan.....
Anyone remember this?:
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=347016;image)
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
Well part of the proteus pcb software is called ISIS
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An old car called Mitshubishi Pajero. In spanish it means wanker, literally.
Not so old, still being produced: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Pajero
It's sold in Spain as the Montero.
In the 70-80's Opel/Vauxhall launched the "Ascona": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opel_Ascona . In Portugal it was renamed to "1604" as "Ascona" reads the same as "Asc*nt" in english, way too close to avoid embarrassment.
There's certainly still quite a few Pajeros on the route I take to work... Some Mitsubishi cars too :)
McBryce.
Gesendet von meinem Motorola DynaTAC 8000x mit Tapatalk
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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/3H6wvQvac7TOIRyFX8Ft1_yLYfx3E8q09xgEDoo4G0hel7ccGVrzAgybElsd1kwTWoH6RfvWQA260VKmxT7LaAKXRsQ=w500-h272-nc)
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(http://photos.forlix.org/devices/20100703210333n.jpg)
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(http://www.minikits.com.au/image/cache/catalog/logos/hitano-640x640.gif)
(https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS2ph5W5YwbZXgFdl2X2bLxi0aeQDxPHTLY4lovcUDZafnuoDWsPg)
"GITANO" = Gipsy
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
Well part of the proteus pcb software is called ISIS
Until they changed their name there was also heath care agency in Melbourne called ISIS
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/isis-primary-care-changes-name-over-isis-terror-group-link/news-story/487450da08d79c72afd16a8465976ab1 (http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/isis-primary-care-changes-name-over-isis-terror-group-link/news-story/487450da08d79c72afd16a8465976ab1)
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I'm working with a industrial supplies company, which goes by the name 'Schad' which also distributes enclosures (German: 'Gehaeuse') from a big manufacturer and modifies them. That's what we buy there.
But the term 'Schadgehaeuse' or 'Schad-gehaeuse' also means 'defective enclosure' or 'damaged enclosure'. We have a lot of jokes on them.
Another case happened in a project, where a company going by the name 'Stock' was involved. They supplied special peripheral modules both to us and to our customer. For those components and materials, which were already in common use in our production line, we noted under 'source' in the BoMs 'from stock'.
One time a representative of our customer called me and complained that 'Stock' does not sell those items!
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Cisco in Spanish is kinda "in shambles".
And not exactly a company name, but Moron AFB does exist. It's in Spain :)
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Cisco in Spanish is kinda "in shambles".
At least not in Latin America, in Mexico for example is more like to intimidate or to shame someone in past tense. In vulgar slang way it means to shit in the pants. It's also a short way of Francisco. In the Southern Cone it means nothing at all.
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Until recently our company used a photo ID card printer manufactured by TIT Engineering Co of Korea.
http://titeng.tradekorea.com/ (http://titeng.tradekorea.com/)
BTW: Crap quality, don't buy one.
We now use a Zebra ID card printer.
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Not a name on its own - but a company slogan.....
Anyone remember this?:
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=347016;image)
The story I heard was that WANG Computers had a stand at an Australian trade show. The American salesmen at the show could not understand why every Australian visitor to their stand burst into laughter the moment they saw the "WANG Cares!" lapel buttons the staff were wearing.
It's been mentioned before, but I also like TOTAL TOOLS. https://www.totaltools.com.au/storelocator/moorebank (https://www.totaltools.com.au/storelocator/moorebank)
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Why would they think Americans wouldn't understand that? Sounds more like "dumb American" stereotyping than anything else...
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Boston area: Death Wish Piano Movers.
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Why would they think Americans wouldn't understand that? Sounds more like "dumb American" stereotyping than anything else...
Right, I'm sure Dr. Wang did it on purpose as an elaborate joke on his shareholders.
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
Well part of the proteus pcb software is called ISIS
How about the Philips ISIS "mobile" phone back in the day.
(https://http2.mlstatic.com/philips-isis-9963-para-reparar-o-piezas-D_NQ_NP_14536-MLM20088085788_042014-F.jpg)
There are actually two really different products of Philips with the "ISIS" branding:
One is the phone as stated above and the other one is a breast pump.
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How about a "KID-SEX_CHANGE"
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How about the Philips ISIS "mobile" phone back in the day.
There are actually two really different products of Philips with the "ISIS" branding:
One is the phone as stated above and the other one is a breast pump.
Don't tell the DHS that Cisco, Juniper and other router vendors are supporting IS-IS for years. >:D
Hint: IS-IS (Intermediate System to Intermediate System) is a routing protocol often used by carriers/ISPs as IGP.
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Remember that before Isis was, well, what we know now, it was the name of an Egyptian goddess :)
It was considered a somewhat cool and mysterious name.
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So it all depends on what the meaning of IS IS.
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So it all depends on what the meaning of IS IS.
2x International Spacestation's ?
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So it all depends on what the meaning of IS IS.
2x International Spacestation's ?
That would be ISSISS surely?
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Oh ok
Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk
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How about a "KID-SEX_CHANGE"
Even the name Kid Exchange is kind of funny. Is that where you bring your kid to trade it in for another? :-DD
AS for the ISIS phone it has convenient dry contact terminals to hook it up to a detonator. "Be the Hero Allah wants. Order the ISIS phone now, no contract needed!"
Not a company name, but saw a septic company once and their phone number was 264-SHIT". I loled so hard when I saw that on the pumper truck.
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In my neighborhood there is a convenient store called 6 Twelve.
Isn't that a spinoff of 7-eleven?
In my previous country, we also had "otso-dose" which means eight-twelve". Its just nearby a 7-eleven store too. :D
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Around north Toronto for a while, a tradesman drove a van with the slogan "Don't Get Boned" on it. :D
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Around the beginning of this millennium, Honda introduced a car with the name Fitta. That means c*nt in Swedish. They changed the name to Jazz quite fast.
Close.. It was called the "Honda Fit", but it was still deemed to be too close for comfort.
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How about a "KID-SEX_CHANGE"
Even the name Kid Exchange is kind of funny. Is that where you bring your kid to trade it in for another? :-DD
https://youtu.be/OEScCJzY4V4
Turn on English captions if you don't speak German. :D
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Around the beginning of this millennium, Honda introduced a car with the name Fitta. That means c*nt in Swedish. They changed the name to Jazz quite fast.
Close.. It was called the "Honda Fit", but it was still deemed to be too close for comfort.
The Toyota MR2 was just known as the Toyota MR in France.
MR2 = "Emm Err deux" = "merdeux" = "sh1t"
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Around the beginning of this millennium, Honda introduced a car with the name Fitta. That means c*nt in Swedish. They changed the name to Jazz quite fast.
Close.. It was called the "Honda Fit", but it was still deemed to be too close for comfort.
No, it was called Fitta, they changed it to Fit in some markets after they realised what the meening was in some languages.
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No, it was called Fitta, they changed it to Fit in some markets after they realised what the meening was in some languages.
They might as well left it, imagine the marketing slogans:
"Small on the outside, roomy on the inside."
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This one isn't the company name, but the logo for the Office of Government Commerce. If you don't get it, try tilting you head to the left or have a read here (https://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/04/22/ogc_logo/).
(https://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/21/ogc.jpg)
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This one isn't the company name, but the logo for the Office of Government Commerce. If you don't get it, try tilting you head to the left or have a read here (https://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/04/22/ogc_logo/).
(https://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/21/ogc.jpg)
The proposed version, which you have sent over, has been shared with staff, and is now going through final technical stages. It is true that it caused a few titters among some staff when viewed on its side, but on consideration we concluded that the effect was generic to the particular combination of the letters 'OGC' - and is not inappropriate to an organisation that's looking to have a firm grip on government spend!
:-DD
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Err....what?
https://ww2.minicircuits.com/products/Yoni.html
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
Well part of the proteus pcb software is called ISIS
How about the Philips ISIS "mobile" phone back in the day.
(https://http2.mlstatic.com/philips-isis-9963-para-reparar-o-piezas-D_NQ_NP_14536-MLM20088085788_042014-F.jpg)
There are actually two really different products of Philips with the "ISIS" branding:
One is the phone as stated above and the other one is a breast pump.
I don't think it is fair to count these, as they were probably named after the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis, long before "ISIS" referred to a bunch of delusional neckbeards going on random beheading/kidnapping/raping sprees while yelling about a law-whack bar.
The "funny in another language" ones are a gray area too, since there are so many different languages out there it is very hard to make a name that is guaranteed not to be "funny" to anyone.
Not a company name, but saw a septic company once and their phone number was 264-SHIT". I loled so hard when I saw that on the pumper truck.
Related to ShitBegone? (http://shitbegone.com/)
(http://shitbegone.com/images/1roll-recy-front.jpg)
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Life imitating art.
This joke -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cY1YndLmbXQ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cY1YndLmbXQ)
became a real product -> https://www.nulon.com.au/products/Aerosols/Start_Ya_Bastard_Instant_Engine_Starter (https://www.nulon.com.au/products/Aerosols/Start_Ya_Bastard_Instant_Engine_Starter)
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Here you go:
(https://i.pinimg.com/736x/06/1f/e9/061fe917dd29b448c60b64752d806325.jpg)
EDIT:
Ooops..I just remembered that the title was funny company names not logos. |O
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Just found this one whilst looking at the UK Companies House database
;DROP TABLE "COMPANIES";--LTD
Obviously created by a SQL coder with a sense of humor
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In a town near by there was a fishmonger called "Fisch Umsonst". "Fisch" is the German world for fish, and "Umsonst" is the family name but also an adverb with the meaning of "for free".
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Just found this one whilst looking at the UK Companies House database
;DROP TABLE "COMPANIES";--LTD
Obviously created by a SQL coder with a sense of humor
:D
https://xkcd.com/327/
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I used to work for a company named Double D Electronics
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
I loathe how "Isis" suddenly has become a naughty word. It's been a well known and used name before the whole angry men thing. I know a girl named Isis. It would be terrible to let them appropriate it. In my eyes, they get to borrow it for a bit at best, but the term is actually something else.
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I loathe how "Isis" suddenly has become a naughty word. It's been a well known and used name before the whole angry men thing. I know a girl named Isis. It would be terrible to let them appropriate it. In my eyes, they get to borrow it for a bit at best, but the term is actually something else.
I had a cat named Isis. It felt.. wrong.. to go out on the porch to call her in.
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I had a cat named Isis. It felt.. wrong.. to go out on the porch to call her in.
If you're not wearing a funny belt at the same time, you should be fine :D
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I had a cat named Isis. It felt.. wrong.. to go out on the porch to call her in.
If you're not wearing a funny belt at the same time, you should be fine :D
Nope, no funny belts. Just a garage filled with wires, soldering irons and old cellphones...
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I do have another one: The company that I work at (some random defense contractor) does actually have a department named "IS training academy". Go figure.
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Nope, no funny belts. Just a garage filled with wires, soldering irons and old cellphones...
Cool clock, Ahmed! :-DD :-DD
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I do have another one: The company that I work at (some random defense contractor) does actually have a department named "IS training academy". Go figure.
At least it's more descriptive than IS NOT training academy.
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Some German ones:
Killtec - An outdoor clothing brand
ISIS - beauty treatments
I loathe how "Isis" suddenly has become a naughty word. It's been a well known and used name before the whole angry men thing. I know a girl named Isis. It would be terrible to let them appropriate it. In my eyes, they get to borrow it for a bit at best, but the term is actually something else.
It always seems weird to me that a group of extreme Monotheists would use an acronym which was the name of a pagan goddess.
Of course, it doesn't have that meaning in Arabic, so maybe it doesn't bother them that non-Arabic speakers read the English version as "ISIS".
Apparently even the Arabic acronym Da'esh is frowned on by some in that organisation because the individual words in its derivation can have perjorative meanings.
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Back in the 80es, Honeywell Information Systems Merged with a French company called "Compagnie des Machines Bull" (and NEC) and over the next few years Honeywell then 'reduced their ownership' (presumably sold their shares) until in 1991 Honeywell Bull was renamed simply:
Bull Information systems
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Reminded me of a meeting once where a software salesman was asked a question. They gave a response and then added: "Trust me."
The others in the room had various reactions ... and I don't think many were of the trusting type.
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I used to work for a company named Double D Electronics
There's an organization called DD-WRT that makes router firmware. The "DD" apparently was for "Daily Driver", referencing the time when its main rival OpenWRT didn't have a very good GUI and was thus not good for the average user.
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Coocheer (https://www.eevblog.com/forum/projects/horribly-designed-usb-borescope-camera/). Appropriate name (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooch) for a boroscope maker? :o
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A new restaurant just opened here in Perth, with the name "Laputa".
I thought it a bit strange, so checked with a Spanish-English translation site.
The complete word "Laputa" has no bad connotations, but the separate parts:- "La Puta" translate as
"The Whore".
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A new restaurant just opened here in Perth, with the name "Laputa".
I thought it a bit strange, so checked with a Spanish-English translation site.
The complete word "Laputa" has no bad connotations, but the separate parts:- "La Puta" translate as
"The Whore".
See Gulliver's Travels or the Hayao Miyazaki movie Laputa: Castle in the Sky, which adopts ideas from Swift.
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Once I looked out of curiosity for commercial representations of the family name 'Wutz' (Southern German for Pig, Hog). Most occupations yielded ONE, if any. To my great astonishment, there are THREE electrical contractors.
http://www.wutzgmbh.de/ (http://www.wutzgmbh.de/)
http://www.elektro-wutz.de/ (http://www.elektro-wutz.de/)
http://www.elektrowutz.de/index.html (http://www.elektrowutz.de/index.html)
Made me think! There might be a connection to our receptacles, though!
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Bullshift Transmissions
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
I met a guy from the UK called Dick Woodcock. If I were him I would have changed my name. There's also a Gynocologist near my parents called John Dick and his son is also in the same business and called John Dick Junior.
McBryce.
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
I met a guy from the UK called Dick Woodcock. If I were him I would have changed my name. There's also a Gynocologist near my parents called John Dick and his son is also in the same business and called John Dick Junior.
McBryce.
Knew a guy at school with the surname Seaman but who's parents had the laack of foresight to name him Richard. Apparently he changed his name by deed poll pretty much as soon as he was able.
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
Oh, it happens everywhere. Back when I worked at a company whose customers were 90% in Germany, I had one customer whose name was Frau Fick (noun, "fuck") and there was also Herr Mitesser (noun, medical, "blackhead")!
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
I met a guy from the UK called Dick Woodcock. If I were him I would have changed my name. There's also a Gynocologist near my parents called John Dick and his son is also in the same business and called John Dick Junior.
McBryce.
As well as some fairly common Dyer surnames in the UK, you get lots of instances of parents messing up a perfectly good surname, as an old coworker Rick Shaw found.
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Parents have funny senses of humor. I have known two different individuals named Richard Hymen. Both went by the familiar form Dick.
Sometimes it is just a matter of pronunciation. There are two obvious choices for the very common surname Braswell (also spelled Brasswell). The ones I know personally insist on the pronunciation that doesn't sell lingerie.
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Hancock is reasonably common in the UK, easily misinterpreted.
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I know a Rick Shaw......
Have also ridden in them as well.
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I remember an engineer from the UK who bears the family name 'Quirk'. I really don't know what made him take up a technical profession and how he managed to get through his studies and early working years.
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Michael Hunt Co.
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I remember an engineer from the UK who bears the family name 'Quirk'. I really don't know what made him take up a technical profession and how he managed to get through his studies and early working years.
I know an English expat here whose last name is Quirke!
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So what if a female professor says "I like to eat semen" in class? That's my numerical method professor, she meant "salmon".
Is she Asian? Many Asians have problems pronouncing English words...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGasSdSRoXo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGasSdSRoXo)
McBryce.
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A Freudian Slip perhaps? ;) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freudian_slip
McBryce.
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A Freudian Slip perhaps? ;) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freudian_slip
McBryce.
our politicians keep making those, so do journalists particularly when it comes to saying "jeremy hunt"
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A Freudian Slip perhaps? ;) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freudian_slip
McBryce.
our politicians keep making those, so do journalists particularly when it comes to saying "jeremy hunt"
Best example of this was the James Naughtie interview on Radio4 Today program with Jeremy Hunt
https://youtu.be/YS5mVoqJpUk (https://youtu.be/YS5mVoqJpUk)
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aw naughtie (naughty) James ;)
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
Oh, it happens everywhere. Back when I worked at a company whose customers were 90% in Germany, I had one customer whose name was Frau Fick (noun, "fuck") and there was also Herr Mitesser (noun, medical, "blackhead")!
an old family name in my hometown was "Sborra" (a worse term for semen)
as far as i know there are no males with that surname anymore and the last person i knew who had that name was one of my friend's grandmother
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A Freudian Slip perhaps? ;) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freudian_slip (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freudian_slip)
McBryce.
our politicians keep making those, so do journalists particularly when it comes to saying "jeremy hunt"
Our politicians sometimes say funny things too.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/liberals-squirm-as-abbott-refers-to-the-suppository-of-wisdom-20130812-2rryy.html (http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/liberals-squirm-as-abbott-refers-to-the-suppository-of-wisdom-20130812-2rryy.html)
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that made the news here :)
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Best example of this was the James Naughtie interview on Radio4 Today program with Jeremy Hunt
https://youtu.be/YS5mVoqJpUk (https://youtu.be/YS5mVoqJpUk)
Germaine Greer quipped that this was a miss-appellation of Jeremy Hunt as, "He has neither the warmth nor the depth to be a...".
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hahaha, good one
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Back in the late 80's early 90's I worked in the office of a Labor pool.
We would send workers to OT Carter that were to report to a Gentleman named Elmo Gross.
On occasion he would need help for his own side work which he had our company
bill him through OT Carter under the company name of
Gross Erections.
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Depending on traffic I end up driving past this place from time to time and every time it gets me.
<iframe src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!4v1515271272527!6m8!1m7!1sIY_WSScDRk6L82PuCqlbLA!2m2!1d43.57647989965762!2d-79.55955599828472!3f37.41715545892963!4f-4.573200020400975!5f0.7820865974627469" width="600" height="450" frameborder="0" style="border:0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.5764799,-79.559556,3a,75y,37.42h,85.43t/data= (https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.5764799,-79.559556,3a,75y,37.42h,85.43t/data=)!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sIY_WSScDRk6L82PuCqlbLA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
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My wife knows a woman whose first name from birth is Lovely. She married a gentleman with the last name of Butts. 'nuff said. You can't make this stuff up.
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My wife knows a woman whose first name from birth is Lovely. She married a gentleman with the last name of Butts. 'nuff said. You can't make this stuff up.
I can't imagine that not causing issues when applying for all kinds of stuff, like permits and subscriptions.
(https://media.giphy.com/media/xT5LMsKw3BSB1sE5KE/giphy.gif)
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I knew of a family whose surname was Motor, they seriously called their children, Petrol, Electric, Starter. What were they thinking (or smoking)!
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In the Netherlands there is a company whose main business is transportation of manure...
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180107/e13d02e89a63a6fe46182a624252f0d4.jpg)
The URL of the website: https://www.shitgroup.nl (https://www.shitgroup.nl)
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reminds me of a newish australian company called "Who gives a crap": https://au.whogivesacrap.org/ they unsurprisingly make toilet roles with a twist.
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My wife knows a woman whose first name from birth is Lovely. She married a gentleman with the last name of Butts. 'nuff said. You can't make this stuff up.
Well it was once said in a group of friends that I could never marry one of the girls as it would make her a "Paige Turner" not that I was at all interested in here anyway so we are safe there ;)
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My wife knows a woman whose first name from birth is Lovely. She married a gentleman with the last name of Butts. 'nuff said. You can't make this stuff up.
Well it was once said in a group of friends that I could never marry one of the girls as it would make her a "Paige Turner" not that I was at all interested in here anyway so we are safe there ;)
She is a patient where my wife works. My wife says she has a very good sense of humor over her name. There are a few patients with odd names that she has told me over the years but Lovely is the only one that I can remember. The funny thing here is that part of my wife's family don't use their first names. My wife, her 2 daughters and my wife's brother all go by their middle names. It is a standing joke that everyone is in the witness protection program.
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On the subject of odd given name/surname pairings I offer the following:
Back in the day, a friend of mine, Dave, worked in the local DHSS office. One of their clients was a Miss Balls (a not uncommon English surname). Her parents had decided to christen her Ofelia.
I used to know a family that went by the surname Snow. There were three children. The eldest was a handsome lass called Winter, then another very pretty girl called Angel and the youngest was a boy called Crispin. I used to keep an eye on the local paper for a report of latter killing his parents in bed one night.
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I wear mine proudly every day. :-DD
www.dickies.com (http://www.dickies.com)
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House of Hose
It's in Salt Lake City, Utah
It's funny because at first i read it as House of Hoes.
Salt Lake City has more nude strip clubs per square mile than any other city in the USA.
And that is funny because Salt Lake City is made up mostly of Mormon people.
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Hiscox Commercial Insurance?
Tim
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Found a hilarious one in a Youtube video about Japan:
(https://i.imgur.com/PcH18oT.png)
Starvations, a children's clothing store.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C-My9-dtXA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C-My9-dtXA)
That entire channel is great, it's about living in Japan, not just shitty translations.
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https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/169-171+Northbourne+Rd,+Campbellfield+VIC+3061/@-37.6486971,144.9631237,3a,50.2y,185.42h,92.25t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sCXfBigo0-fo42vsz8X4D_w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x6ad64fd676119723:0xb92cd804686cf601!8m2!3d-37.648908!4d144.962955 (https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/169-171+Northbourne+Rd,+Campbellfield+VIC+3061/@-37.6486971,144.9631237,3a,50.2y,185.42h,92.25t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sCXfBigo0-fo42vsz8X4D_w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x6ad64fd676119723:0xb92cd804686cf601!8m2!3d-37.648908!4d144.962955)
-
My wife knows a woman whose first name from birth is Lovely. She married a gentleman with the last name of Butts. 'nuff said. You can't make this stuff up.
Well it was once said in a group of friends that I could never marry one of the girls as it would make her a "Paige Turner" not that I was at all interested in here anyway so we are safe there ;)
She is a patient where my wife works. My wife says she has a very good sense of humor over her name. There are a few patients with odd names that she has told me over the years but Lovely is the only one that I can remember. The funny thing here is that part of my wife's family don't use their first names. My wife, her 2 daughters and my wife's brother all go by their middle names. It is a standing joke that everyone is in the witness protection program.
Are you married to my best friend's sister? I'll never forget when I first met him, back in 7th grade, and the first time I went to his house. When we met, he introduced himself as John. I go to his house, his mom and sisters are all calling him Greg. Turns out his Dad is also John, but they have different middle names, so they used middle names to be sure they were talking to the right person. And one of his sister also went by her middle name at home, because her first name was the same as her Mom's.
-
I once had a dot matrix printer made by ODC: the "One Day Corporation"
-
A company that sold lemon 'cider' , 'Two Dogs'.
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surnames in the UK can be interesting, met a guy called Prat and a young lady and her father that went by the name of Caunt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_AxpycKeQA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_AxpycKeQA)
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Not a company but institute. I have a one device laying around made by them. http://www.vsegei.ru (http://www.vsegei.ru) Russian speakers may have a good laugh. If translated, it's called "Allgays".
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=385328;image)
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Are you married to my best friend's sister? I'll never forget when I first met him, back in 7th grade, and the first time I went to his house. When we met, he introduced himself as John. I go to his house, his mom and sisters are all calling him Greg. Turns out his Dad is also John, but they have different middle names, so they used middle names to be sure they were talking to the right person. And one of his sister also went by her middle name at home, because her first name was the same as her Mom's.
That's quite common in some countries. Americans tend to go for "Junior" if the father/son names are the same, but other countries choose the middle name. I have the same name as my father, but not even my best friends know that, they've always known me by my middle name instead. The only time it gets noticed is when I travel or book flights, because my passport (and flight ticket) have to have my real name.
McBryce.
-
The first time I saw the sign for this place I laughed for a while..
https://www.yellowpages.com.au/nsw/ashfield/unlimited-head-jobs-13074513-listing.html (https://www.yellowpages.com.au/nsw/ashfield/unlimited-head-jobs-13074513-listing.html)
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There is a street called Boulevard in Richmond VA. Can't imagine how they named it. It sounds weird as you won't name a road "Road Rd".
Boulevard doesn't mean road. It's a type of road. A boulevard is a wide often tree lined road which is the main route through a city.
McBryce.
-
Yeah but Boulevard Street is just silly. And there seems to also be one in Shreveport Louisiana as well as Atlanta Georgia.
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Yeah but Boulevard Street is just silly. And there seems to also be one in Shreveport Louisiana as well as Atlanta Georgia.
I didn't say it not a stupid name for a road, just that it doesn't mean road :)
McBryce.
-
Are you married to my best friend's sister? I'll never forget when I first met him, back in 7th grade, and the first time I went to his house. When we met, he introduced himself as John. I go to his house, his mom and sisters are all calling him Greg. Turns out his Dad is also John, but they have different middle names, so they used middle names to be sure they were talking to the right person. And one of his sister also went by her middle name at home, because her first name was the same as her Mom's.
That's quite common in some countries. Americans tend to go for "Junior" if the father/son names are the same, but other countries choose the middle name. I have the same name as my father, but not even my best friends know that, they've always known me by my middle name instead. The only time it gets noticed is when I travel or book flights, because my passport (and flight ticket) have to have my real name.
McBryce.
It's technically not Junior/Senior/whatever unless the father and son have the same first AND middle names. Or for a "the Second" or "The Third" for skipped generations, unless the full names match. Never looked in to if that was a legal thing or just common convention.
-
Shiny Box Microphhones
(https://images.reverb.com/image/upload/s--GVbrS2aA--/a_exif,c_limit,e_unsharp_mask:80,f_auto,fl_progressive,g_south,h_620,q_90,w_620/v1498089315/s5arrt4qohlxoysh3vvy.jpg)
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Not electronics related, but there's a business around here who's vans I see from time to time called 'Total Meat Supplies'. Their slogan is 'We'll Meat Your Needs' :D.
-
Shiny Box Microphones
Can't fine any web reference but reminds me of some pcb I saw in 1989 that was made by Shiny Space Ohm.
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So what if a female professor says "I like to eat semen" in class? That's my numerical method professor, she meant "salmon".
maybe she mean:
(https://pics.me.me/gama-fresh-cemen-din-8109426.png)
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Not sure, but try in www.hornibrooks.com.au (http://www.hornibrooks.com.au) , bunnings, or gumtree.
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So what if a female professor says "I like to eat semen" in class? That's my numerical method professor, she meant "salmon".
I remember an anecdote on a university:
One professor said that semen was full of sugar.
Then one woman, attendant, said: then, why it tastes salty?
Just after this she realized and blushed. While she was getting off class embarrased professor said: that's because swweet papilas are in front of tongue and salty ones are in the back....
-
(https://sgfm.elcorteingles.es/SGFM/dctm/MEDIA02/CONTENIDOS/201510/05/00120654802154____4__600x600.jpg)
:wtf:...
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So what if a female professor says "I like to eat semen" in class? That's my numerical method professor, she meant "salmon".
I remember an anecdote on a university:
One professor said that semen was full of sugar.
Then one woman, attendant, said: then, why it tastes salty?
Just after this she realized and blushed. While she was getting off class embarrased professor said: that's because swweet papilas are in front of tongue and salty ones are in the back....
That whole "taste zones on the tongue" theory has been discredited since hasn't it?
McBryce
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So what if a female professor says "I like to eat semen" in class? That's my numerical method professor, she meant "salmon".
I remember an anecdote on a university:
One professor said that semen was full of sugar.
Then one woman, attendant, said: then, why it tastes salty?
Just after this she realized and blushed. While she was getting off class embarrased professor said: that's because swweet papilas are in front of tongue and salty ones are in the back....
That whole "taste zones on the tongue" theory has been discredited since hasn't it?
McBryce
IDK, I'm informatic, not biologist... :P
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Fluke Transportation Group. Their slogan is, "If it's on-time... it's a Fluke!"
fluke
flo͞ok/
noun
unlikely chance occurrence, especially a surprising piece of luck.
Yeah...
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Today we got to know that the notorious Cambridge Analytica of the recent Facebook controversy has shutdown...
only to reborn again with a new name: Emerdata.
That tells at least one thing: in their marketing/branding team they don't have any French or Italian staff, or somebody would have cautioned them against using a company name that sounds like Itsshitty :-DD
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Today we got to know that the notorious Cambridge Analytica of the recent Facebook controversy has shutdown...
only to reborn again with a new name: Emerdata.
That tells at least one thing: in their marketing/branding team they don't have any French or Italian staff, or somebody would have cautioned them against using a company name that sounds like Itsshitty :-DD
And lends itself naturally to calling them EnemaData...
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Today we got to know that the notorious Cambridge Analytica of the recent Facebook controversy has shutdown...
only to reborn again with a new name: Emerdata.
That tells at least one thing: in their marketing/branding team they don't have any French or Italian staff, or somebody would have cautioned them against using a company name that sounds like Itsshitty :-DD
Add catalan, portuguese and gaelican to the list.., even spanish more or less...,
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Today we got to know that the notorious Cambridge Analytica of the recent Facebook controversy has shutdown...
only to reborn again with a new name: Emerdata.
That tells at least one thing: in their marketing/branding team they don't have any French or Italian staff, or somebody would have cautioned them against using a company name that sounds like Itsshitty :-DD
Even Toyota knew to release the MR2 in France just as the MR
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My favourite is the British (now International) bookmaking company Ladbrokes!
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Even Toyota knew to release the MR2 in France just as the MR
Honda planned to release the Honda Fit/Jazz with a different name. They changed their mind when the promotional materials they sent out was met with protests from Sweden.
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Have an old invoice from a jeweller in Hong Kong airport, Fook jewellers. Was for a ring my father bought in 1981 during a trip to Japan.
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Very appropriately named;
https://puckerbuttpeppercompany.com/
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My favourite is the British (now International) bookmaking company Ladbrokes!
I thought that was just truth in advertising (for a change)
-
Reminds me of joke I read some 20 years ago:
Micro soft: It needs Viagra
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=11060.0;attach=432947;image)
Now looking at the Windows logo, I wonder if it's going to be a diamond shape in the next iteration.
-
Say it three times quickly...
-
DanDong Bettersize (http://bettersize.ecvery.com/) (they've since dropped the DanDong)
Sod It LLC (https://www.dandb.com/businessdirectory/soditllc-maitland-fl-2634092.html)
Simply Bollocks (https://www.simplybollocks.com/)
Wanker's Corner (http://wankerscorner.com/)
(This is like looking up rude words in the dictionary.)
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Mitsubishi called one of their cars "Pajero" from the Leopardus pajeros (south american mountain cat).
Needless to say that this model was not exactly a high runner in Spain :-DD
Dictionary says:
Pajero [persona] Que se masturba con frecuencia.
Pajero [person] That masturbates frequently.
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Mitsubishi called one of their cars "Pajero" from the Leopardus pajeros (south american mountain cat).
Needless to say that this model was not exactly a high runner in Spain :-DD
Dictionary says:
Pajero [persona] Que se masturba con frecuencia.
Pajero [person] That masturbates frequently.
That car seems to have a different name in each market - Pajero, Montera, Shogun. etc.
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The first of many times i drove through France, i passed a hotel after a vandal;with a sense of humour.
the huge sign on the side said ' Hotel Premier ass ' he smashed the C off the front and the E off the end.(Hotel Premier Classe)
In tenerife we saw coffee called 'chitti' (shitty)..AND IT WAS!
we had a parcel delivered (badly) by a company called TransHit; their sticky tape around the mangled box read 'TRANSHIT'
my ex-wife went to school with a girl called Theresa Green; spoken in her 100mph Liverpool accent 'treesa-green'.
my son noticed a T-Shirt in a supermarket trying to copy the group 'backstreet boys' logo...unfortunately 'Back Side Boys'...?
that's what happens when someone who 'thinks' they can speak english orders crap from china!
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FeelTech
FeelElec
-
Was at a trade show over the weekend and discovered there is a company in China that makes Milling machines called Threeway.
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Was at a trade show over the weekend and discovered there is a company in China that makes Milling machines called Threeway.
I suggested a "Threeway Mill" to the wife last night. She was even less enthusiastic about it than my other equipment purchase ideas. :D
McBryce.
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I'm not sure what a dick blick is, but it sure looks crafty...
https://www.dickblick.com/ (https://www.dickblick.com/)
-
Fun fact, the domain "threesome.com" is for sale for a whopping 240 000 USD. :o
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How about Sick USA (https://www.sick.com/us/en/?saveCookie=true)?
-
How about Sick USA (https://www.sick.com/us/en/?saveCookie=true)?
Hahah, "SICK smart sensors". Now that's a really sick name.
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Whenever I have some problem with my car, I always take it to Fucks Car (https://www.facebook.com/pg/Fucks-Car-1125626000788692/posts/). They're the best.
(https://oficinasonline.com.br/files/workshopimages/image/f433103d-197c-404f-929b-2f4ddcc84ac4/fucks_car_01_1110x0.jpg)
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I still snicker every time I drive past Tacoma Screw and they've been there for years.
-
I worked for a Swiss company that was taken over by Siemens, the UK office was in Staines.
The receptionist quit four days later, after all the crank calls (many of them internal), waiting to hear her announce "Good Morning Siemens Staines, how may I help you?".
Ladies & gentlemen,we have a winner! ;D
When speaking English, I am always careful to pronounce Siemens correctly as Zeemans.
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Some years back, a panelbeater in my suburb, by the name of Hans, had a business called "Hans-on panel repair"
In the next industrial unit was a car exhaust company called "Butts-0n exhaust systems"!
No doubt just a coincidence.
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A Chinese lithium battery supplier called Ultra Fire
-
Edited by moderator:Tyche Gulf is a company who likes to spam forums and its customers. As such, this post has been modified by a moderator to point out this dodgy behaviour so it may continue to live in Google results. So if you want to deal with a company with dodgy business practices, Tyche Gulf is your answer! Also, the representative from this company has also been banned from this forum.
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There's a Chinese restaurant in Plaza Atlixco, in Mexico called "Long Dong". When I saw it I posted a picture here.
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There's a Chinese restaurant in Plaza Atlixco, in Mexico called "Long Dong". When I saw it I posted a picture here.
Pro tip:
Order the salad.
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Got a Lemon? ;)
Lemonaid Health advertises widely for pills to treat ED (https://www.lemonaidhealth.com/drug/viagra-compare?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsMzXwezM8AIVvfLjBx2nbgArEAAYASAAEgLwTvD_BwE (https://www.lemonaidhealth.com/drug/viagra-compare?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsMzXwezM8AIVvfLjBx2nbgArEAAYASAAEgLwTvD_BwE) ).
Company profile: https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/122106-43#overview (https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/122106-43#overview)
It seems to have 3 physicians in staff. None are urologists. It does not take insurance.
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There's a Chinese restaurant in Plaza Atlixco, in Mexico called "Long Dong". When I saw it I posted a picture here.
FYI "Long" is a dragon, "Dǒng" is supervisor or manager, so "Long Dong" roughly translates as "Dragon Master" or "Dragon Tamer".
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Not a company but business name as seen in Washington DC some years back.
Dr. E. F. Korn, Podiatrist
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Whenever I have some problem with my car, I always take it to Fucks Car (https://www.facebook.com/pg/Fucks-Car-1125626000788692/posts/). They're the best.
(https://oficinasonline.com.br/files/workshopimages/image/f433103d-197c-404f-929b-2f4ddcc84ac4/fucks_car_01_1110x0.jpg)
"Fuchs" is a legitimate motor oil supplier, & the business in the pic seems to have stolen their logo complete, except for changing the spelling.
Fuching scumbags!
-
A veteran Brit test equipment manufacturer, who are no longer around, rejoiced in the name "Wayne Kerr". ;D
-
Call Bill for your electrical needs!
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=1219694;image)
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https://holysheet.com.au/
-
https://holysheet.com.au/
Access denied for mere mortals? (from a German IP address at least).
McBryce.
-
A veteran Brit test equipment manufacturer, who are no longer around, rejoiced in the name "Wayne Kerr". ;D
The computer company Wang once had a slogan "Wang Cares".
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A veteran Brit test equipment manufacturer, who are no longer around, rejoiced in the name "Wayne Kerr". ;D
Guess what?!! http://www.waynekerrtest.com/index.php (http://www.waynekerrtest.com/index.php)
I used one of their bridges many moons ago to measure conductance which, of course, has the most appropriate units.
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Whenever I have some problem with my car, I always take it to Fucks Car (https://www.facebook.com/pg/Fucks-Car-1125626000788692/posts/). They're the best.
(https://oficinasonline.com.br/files/workshopimages/image/f433103d-197c-404f-929b-2f4ddcc84ac4/fucks_car_01_1110x0.jpg)
"Fuchs" is a legitimate motor oil supplier, & the business in the pic seems to have stolen their logo complete, except for changing the spelling.
Fuching scumbags!
Fuck and Fucks, which in the local pronunciation rhyme with book and books, is a surname in Brazil. In the local language, Portuguese, Fuck and Fucks mean nothing. So, several companies were established with that name. Like this car dealer, called Fuck Fiat.
(https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1P7pwwGGmwE/TvsC4TDxYdI/AAAAAAAABGI/J5Uv-pRFGkA/s1600/fiat%2Bfuck.jpg)
I think they were prophesying the coming of crypto, or something.
But with the advent of the Internet, where information is globalized, we are seeing a tendency to change those names for something more palatable. Except for this guy (https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/565328/Guilherme-Carabagiale-Fuck-unfortunate-surname-Canada), I guess.
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Whenever I have some problem with my car, I always take it to Fucks Car (https://www.facebook.com/pg/Fucks-Car-1125626000788692/posts/). They're the best.
(https://oficinasonline.com.br/files/workshopimages/image/f433103d-197c-404f-929b-2f4ddcc84ac4/fucks_car_01_1110x0.jpg)
"Fuchs" is a legitimate motor oil supplier, & the business in the pic seems to have stolen their logo complete, except for changing the spelling.
Fuching scumbags!
As their central administration is local to my place, they are well known here. But their logo is different.
https://www.fuchs.com/de/de/ (https://www.fuchs.com/de/de/)
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Whenever I have some problem with my car, I always take it to Fucks Car (https://www.facebook.com/pg/Fucks-Car-1125626000788692/posts/). They're the best.
(https://oficinasonline.com.br/files/workshopimages/image/f433103d-197c-404f-929b-2f4ddcc84ac4/fucks_car_01_1110x0.jpg)
"Fuchs" is a legitimate motor oil supplier, & the business in the pic seems to have stolen their logo complete, except for changing the spelling.
Fuching scumbags!
As their central administration is local to my place, they are well known here. But their logo is different.
https://www.fuchs.com/de/de/ (https://www.fuchs.com/de/de/)
Yeah,-----my bad!
I misremembered the origin of that logo----on reflection, it was, in West Oz, that of Marlows, a now defunct autio parts supplier.
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I saw a large truck in the Boston area decades ago: DEATH WISH PIANO MOVERS
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I saw a large truck in the Boston area decades ago: DEATH WISH PIANO MOVERS
You mean these guys? Still in business: https://www.deathwishpiano.com/ (https://www.deathwishpiano.com/)
-
How about WHO? :-DD
-
How about WHO? :-DD
Great rock band.
:P
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Not a company but a school. Bangkok business college. Had to chuckle every time I would see any of the young ladies in there shirts that read
BBC College.
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When visiting my mom I saw an ad for a Thai restaurant. Phuket Thai Restaurant and Sushi
https://www.phuketexperience.com/ (https://www.phuketexperience.com/)
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When visiting my mom I saw an ad for a Thai restaurant. Phuket Thai Restaurant and Sushi
https://www.phuketexperience.com/ (https://www.phuketexperience.com/)
The holiday resort of Phuket is pronounced poo-ket. Its not really that much better than the way most westerners scan the name.
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United Nations... :palm:
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I saw a large truck in the Boston area decades ago: DEATH WISH PIANO MOVERS
This obviously brings to mind the classic "dropping a piano on someone from an upper storey" trope.
Something very similar happened back in the '80s.
We had a couple of specialists over from the USA when we moved the Earth Station at my old work from across the road to just next door to the TV studio.
One of these blokes had an interesting story about something that happened in a city in the USA.
It's years ago, so if he mentioned which one, I've long forgotten.
A company had an Earth Station on the roof of a multi-storey building.
For some reason, they wanted to move it from one side of the roof to another, & requested a quote for the job from our storyteller's employer.
On seeing the quote, the "bean counters" threw up their hands in dismay, & resolved to find a cheaper option.
They found "Fly by night Earth Station movers", or something of that nature, who set out to do the job.
Amazingly they moved the dish OK, and proceeded to move the "hut" with all the electronics.
They were sure they could move it without removing the heavy bits, & save time & money, so set to with a will.
A bit of background, the transmitter part of these Earth Stations has a very PA section, with integrated power supply.
This is mounted on rollers for ease of maintenance.
When in service, the assembly is held in place by quite light latches which are just to stop it moving slightly over time.
The hut was lifted successfully, & swung out over the side of the building in order to reach the new position.
At this point, bad things started to happen-----the hut tilted, under gravity, the PA rolled out of its cabinet, ripping off both latches & wiring, making short work of the door, & plummeted to the street below.
From pure good luck, no one was hurt, but there was a lot of damage done.
Paying for this,plus follow up mental care for the people who were subject to this "near miss", & buying a new PA, made it a very expensive exercise, indeed!
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A sushi bar near me named "Yuki Sushi". Obviously correctly pronounced you-key, but another pronunciation is obvious. One of those failures to cross language barriers like the Chevy Nova.
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A sushi bar near me named "Yuki Sushi". Obviously correctly pronounced you-key, but another pronunciation is obvious. One of those failures to cross language barriers like the Chevy Nova.
Yuki means snow. It is also sometimes a nickname for girls called Yukari. But it is pronounced Yuki, not you-key.
McBryce.
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There was a "sole trader" in Perth called "Long Hung"----fortunate chap!
He wasn't as fortunate as the car mechanic, "Mr Tripenis", however.
Getting away from vulgarity, there was the other chap,"HamHing"--- I often wordered what his hobby was!
Not a company name but funny nonetheless ----the bloke whose phone book entry was "A.Slob". ;D
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A sushi bar near me named "Yuki Sushi". Obviously correctly pronounced you-key, but another pronunciation is obvious. One of those failures to cross language barriers like the Chevy Nova.
Yuki means snow. It is also sometimes a nickname for girls called Yukari. But it is pronounced Yuki, not you-key.
McBryce.
So how does one pronounce Yuki correctly? I can puzzle out phonetic markings or use crude representations like I did.
For an American speaker of English yuckee is a likely pronunciation, and is less appealing than snow as a food descriptor.
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Yes, it's more or less pronounced like a child would describe food they don't like: Yukky!
McBryce.
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Not a company name but funny nonetheless ----the bloke whose phone book entry was "A.Slob". ;D
Mr Harold Albert Ha's phone book entry?
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(https://i2-prod.birminghammail.co.uk/incoming/article13738911.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/JS133169332-1.jpg)
(https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/NINTCHDBPICT000556023481-1.jpg)
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BEAVER LIQUORS !!!
How about 'BRUNETTE LIQUORS' !
...My (favorite) brother-in-law requested I send him a coffee cup just like mine.
'Brunette Liquors', Hayward California (printed on the plastic coffee cup.)
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BEAVER LIQUORS !!!
How about 'BRUNETTE LIQUORS' !
...My (favorite) brother-in-law requested I send him a coffee cup just like mine.
'Brunette Liquors', Hayward California (printed on the plastic coffee cup.)
I recall reading telegrams at a wedding. One conveyed best wishes from the 'lick-her' association.
Oh my.
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A sushi bar near me named "Yuki Sushi". Obviously correctly pronounced you-key, but another pronunciation is obvious. One of those failures to cross language barriers like the Chevy Nova.
We have one of those here in central Flori-DUH.
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The SMELLY DELI was pretty cute / PG rated
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? Can we open subject, to further include names, of people in some work capacity?...
How about 'Mrs. Due': Longtime Attendant for local library.
Also, I got 'Catherine Sheets': 3-star Hotel Manager of...you guessed it: housekeeping staff.
God, I'm seeing wacky names all over the place, now.)thanks, Ed)
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My friend moved to Germany (Heidelberg) and bought his car from here:
https://www.bmw-cuntz.de/de/home/# (https://www.bmw-cuntz.de/de/home/#)
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https://www.blmworld.com/ (https://www.blmworld.com/)
I came across this one lately, and it would not have caught my attention if it weren't for recent events.
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My friend moved to Germany (Heidelberg) and bought his car from here:
https://www.bmw-cuntz.de/de/home/# (https://www.bmw-cuntz.de/de/home/#)
I think their whole extended family is in this line of business.
I bought a car from one of them.
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URREA Professional Tools
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/231ACF0F-08BE-4078-874C-92826B368EDD (https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/231ACF0F-08BE-4078-874C-92826B368EDD)
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Logan's Heroes
https://www.logansheroes.net/ (https://www.logansheroes.net/)
Sandwich shop I saw driving through Utah back in the day. I bet most people don't even get the joke anymore.
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Logan's Heroes
https://www.logansheroes.net/ (https://www.logansheroes.net/)
Sandwich shop I saw driving through Utah back in the day. I bet most people don't even get the joke anymore.
I know nuffing.
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Logan's Heroes
https://www.logansheroes.net/ (https://www.logansheroes.net/)
Sandwich shop I saw driving through Utah back in the day. I bet most people don't even get the joke anymore.
Our family is currently watching that show twice a week. We are up to season 2 episode 9.
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Quote from: CatalinaWOW on 2021-05-31, 09:24:23 (https://www.eevblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=11060.msg3579829#msg3579829)
...
So how does one pronounce Yuki correctly? I can puzzle out phonetic markings or use crude representations like I did.
...
As McBryce wrote, this "yuki" would probably mean snow, Hiragana spelling ゆき, Kanji 雪, IPA [jɯki].
The Japanese sound system is way more streamlined than that of English or German. The resulting "crispness" makes spoken Japanese quite easy to understand, even if you take local dialects into account.
The "Yukky" used by McBryce in his last post is a bit problematic, since it introduces a glottal stop before the ki-mora and shifts the [ɯ] towards [ʌ], and is therefore quite far from the original pronunciation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Japanese (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Japanese)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_phonology (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_phonology)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_language#Vowels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_language#Vowels)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_diagram (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_diagram)
Edit: had to correct my brackets... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet#Brackets_and_transcription_delimiters (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet#Brackets_and_transcription_delimiters)
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Quote from: CatalinaWOW on 2021-05-31, 09:24:23 (https://www.eevblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=11060.msg3579829#msg3579829)...
So how does one pronounce Yuki correctly? I can puzzle out phonetic markings or use crude representations like I did.
...
As McBryce wrote, this "yuki" would probably mean snow, Hiragana spelling ゆき, Kanji 雪, IPA [jɯki].
The Japanese sound system is way more streamlined than that of English or German. The resulting "crispness" makes spoken Japanese quite easy to understand, even if you take local dialects into account.
The "Yukky" used by McBryce in his last post is a bit problematic, since it introduces a glottal stop before the ki-mora and shifts the [ɯ] towards [ʌ], and is therefore quite far from the original pronunciation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Japanese (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Japanese)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_phonology (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_phonology)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_language#Vowels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_language#Vowels)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_diagram (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_diagram)
Edit: had to correct my brackets... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet#Brackets_and_transcription_delimiters (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet#Brackets_and_transcription_delimiters)
I think the problem is that you are pronouncing "Yukky" as it would be pronounced in German, whereas it has a commonly known pronunciation in English (the word small children use to describe something that doesn't taste good), which is the pronunciation I was trying to convey.
McBryce.
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McBryce, help me out and put that "yukky" of yours in IPA, please.
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I think the problem is that you are pronouncing "Yukky" as it would be pronounced in German, whereas it has a commonly known pronunciation in English (the word small children use to describe something that doesn't taste good), which is the pronunciation I was trying to convey.
No, it's quite the opposite. If you speak "yukky" it as it would be pronounced in English, you get the Japanese pronounciaton wrong. If you pronounce the "u" the German way, you get much closer.
harerod has provided the phonetic alphabet (IPA) transcription for the vowel you want. Please see (and hear) here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close_back_unrounded_vowel
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In the "Hepburn romaji" transliteration of Japanese into the Roman alphabet, the rules for vowels are often stated: "pronounce all vowels as in Italian". (It would be a horrible specification to pronounce all vowels as in English.) Before understanding that, I once asked for a can of "Calpis", a dairy-flavored soft drink, pronouncing "a" as in apple and "i" as in "idiot", and the Japanese store clerk could not understand me. I had much better luck with "a" and "i" as in "pizza".
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I think the problem is that you are pronouncing "Yukky" as it would be pronounced in German, whereas it has a commonly known pronunciation in English (the word small children use to describe something that doesn't taste good), which is the pronunciation I was trying to convey.
No, it's quite the opposite. If you speak "yukky" it as it would be pronounced in English, you get the Japanese pronounciaton wrong. If you pronounce the "u" the German way, you get much closer.
harerod has provided the phonetic alphabet (IPA) transcription for the vowel you want. Please see (and hear) here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close_back_unrounded_vowel
Ok, then the problem is my (non)-english accent. I come from Dublin, where "u" is pronounced exactly the same as it is in German. I know the British "u" sounds completely different. So "but" in British english sounds more like "bat", but in Dublin is has the "u" sound as it would in German.
As for IPA* and other phonetic descriptive formats, I have never understood them! :D
McBryce.
* IPA for me is Polypropylene :D
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TimFox, "Calpis"/カルピス is a great example. Due to the current plight, I haven't been to Japan since 2019. While I try to keep the kanji in memory and review their various readings, I remember things that I mispronounced while talking to people. Some of those mistakes could have been taken as rather offensive.
O'Bryce, excellent excuse. In deference to your native accent, you are hereby officially permitted to fly the German flag under your name. As for IPA, maybe we should start a thread about homographs among TLAs.
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Well I've lived in Germany for many years, so the flag is where I am, not where I'm from. As for Japanese, I only spent a few years there and other than recognising the road signs of certain cities, I never really learnt to read it. My pronunciation seemed ok though as I was understood most of the time.
McBryce.
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McBryce: Living and working in Japan? Now I am a wee bit jealous.
CatalinaWOW: There is one important link that I forgot before:
https://translate.google.de/?sl=ja&tl=en&text=%E9%BB%84%E8%89%B2%E3%81%AE%E9%9B%AA%E3%81%AF%E9%A3%9F%E3%81%B9%E3%81%BE%E3%81%9B%E3%82%93%E3%80%82&op=translate (https://translate.google.de/?sl=ja&tl=en&text=%E9%BB%84%E8%89%B2%E3%81%AE%E9%9B%AA%E3%81%AF%E9%A3%9F%E3%81%B9%E3%81%BE%E3%81%9B%E3%82%93%E3%80%82&op=translate)
Google Translate has a reader function, with what seems to be a Tokyo accent. The handwriting recognition is excellent, especially if one sticks to the standard stroke order.
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I think the problem is that you are pronouncing "Yukky" as it would be pronounced in German, whereas it has a commonly known pronunciation in English (the word small children use to describe something that doesn't taste good), which is the pronunciation I was trying to convey.
No, it's quite the opposite. If you speak "yukky" it as it would be pronounced in English, you get the Japanese pronounciaton wrong. If you pronounce the "u" the German way, you get much closer.
harerod has provided the phonetic alphabet (IPA) transcription for the vowel you want. Please see (and hear) here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close_back_unrounded_vowel
Ok, then the problem is my (non)-english accent. I come from Dublin, where "u" is pronounced exactly the same as it is in German. I know the British "u" sounds completely different. So "but" in British english sounds more like "bat", but in Dublin is has the "u" sound as it would in German.
As for IPA* and other phonetic descriptive formats, I have never understood them! :D
McBryce.
* IPA for me is Polypropylene :D
India Pale Ale or Isopropanol. But Polypropylene? why?
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Doh! Because my brain was on standby and I had just been discussing PP at work :palm: I meant Isopropanol.
McBryce.
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While on the way to Belgium (for a beer tour of course), I spotted this car in a German car park:
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=1233670)
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reminds me of this old story
An old raf veteran was giving a talk during assembly at a posh girl's school, and was recounting one of the many dogfights he took part in during world war 2
"I had two fuckers to the left of me, two fuckers to the right, another two fuckers below, and one fucker coming in from the sun"
At this point the headmistress went pale and interjected "I must inform you girls that there is a type of aircraft called a fokker spelled f-o-k-k-e-r"
raf veteran replied "That may be true madam but these fuckers were in messerschmitts""
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While on the way to Belgium (for a beer tour of course), I spotted this car in a German car park:
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=1233670)
Which is pronounced "fycker", due to the umlaut dots. So Germans, even those who know English, won't raise an eyebrow at this. 8)
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When reading the classic "On the Sensations of Tone as a Physiological Basis for the Theory of Music" ("Die Lehre von den Tonempfindungen als physiologische Grundlage für die Theorie der Musik"), by Hermann von Helmholtz (1863), I was very impressed by his early work on synthesizing musical notes, since he adjusted his apparatus to produce German vowel sounds, which I could never do properly in German class.
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While on the way to Belgium (for a beer tour of course), I spotted this car in a German car park:
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/funny-company-names/?action=dlattach;attach=1233670)
Which is pronounced "fycker", due to the umlaut dots. So Germans, even those who know English, won't raise an eyebrow at this. 8)
An English speaker won't understand the "y" in "Fycker", they would read that like the German "Feiker". For English ears/readers it would be "Fou-ker".
McBryce.
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I was always taught that an U with an Umlaut was to be prounced somewhere in-between "EW" and "OO"; so somewhere between
FOOKER and FEWKER in English, but not as a "y" in English (german EI sound)
Was I led astray by poor teaching?
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The IPA transcription of "Fücker": [fʏkɐ]. [fʏkər] would sound unnatural to most German native speakers, at least in the south. We have lots of accents and dialects in this country.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Standard_German
[ʏ] is used to transcribe umlaut ü.
/er/ at word ending is often reduced into [ɐ], an effect similar to the schwa-sound in English - [ə].
As for ebastler's "won't raise an eyebrow at this" - that depends pretty much on the mental age of the reader... :)
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boffin, have a look at this:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_German_phonology (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_German_phonology), especially the vowel diagram.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_diagram (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowel_diagram)
The vowel diagram shows the position of the blade of the tongue during sound production. The history of the first vowel diagram tells of sacrifices comparable to what the Curies did. When this research was first done, MRI was not available. So volunteers had several pieces of metal sewn to their tongues to enable x-ray photography and movies to be taken, while they spoke.
Edit: if one wanted to investigate further, the name "Daniel Jones" would provide a good starting point.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_vowels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_vowels) <- check x-ray pictures to see the metal strips.
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I was always taught that an U with an Umlaut was to be prounced somewhere in-between "EW" and "OO"; so somewhere between
FOOKER and FEWKER in English, but not as a "y" in English (german EI sound)
Was I led astray by poor teaching?
I wasn't thinking of the long "y", but a short one like in "mystery" or "cyst". But I realize now that this does not get the right "ü" sound. The English pronouciation of that short "y" is much closer to a short "i" like in "picture" or "minion" than what we want for the "ü".
I guess there is a reason the the "ü" and "ö" are difficult for English speakers; there is no directly equivalent sound in English. "EW" or "OO" don't cut it either, I'm afraid. ;)
There are plenty of sites with pronounciation examples these days, e.g. here: https://de.wiktionary.org/wiki/dr%C3%BCcken. But if one is not used to the sound, it might be difficult to pick up the difference even from listening? (Just like it is difficult for Germans to get the English "W" or "TH" sounds initially...)
Edit: To offer another take on the "ü" sound: It is somewhere halfway between "eee" and "ooo" (as pronounced in English). Raise your tongue towards the roof of your mouth as when pronouncing "beetle", but round your lips as you would when pronouncing "boot". That should get you in the ballpark?
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Every time I write "per se", I cannot help but giggle a bit. You see, Finnish "perse" = "arse" (in English). I've hidden several dad jokes in my posts for those who know that to discover. No laughs yet, though.
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One of these just opened a location near me. They have lasers. They shoot the lasers at your privates. pew .. pew .. pew.
Are you ready for a visit? Schedule with your friendly neighbourhood vagicians.
I don't know, but when I was growing up if someone said they were visiting their friendly neighbourhood vagician I would have an entirely different service in mind.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71gggfYtH8o (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71gggfYtH8o)
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Every time I write "per se", I cannot help but giggle a bit. You see, Finnish "perse" = "arse" (in English). I've hidden several dad jokes in my posts for those who know that to discover. No laughs yet, though.
Err, I enjoy reading your posts because of the insights they contain. So, to get those jokes - would one have to know Finnish?
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So, to get those jokes - would one have to know Finnish?
No, just that sometimes replacing the term "per se" (by itself/in itself) with "arse" may make sense, in the dad joke style. (Including, it is never used offensively, and any deprecation hidden in there is self-deprecation and shared misery. Dads don't belittle kids, they help them grow into dads too.)
You do realize that having to explain ones jokes that nobody laughs at, is per se a dad joke?
The only immediately helpful Finnish term that anyone might care to know that pops into my mind is the word perkele (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkele) [ˈperkele]. The next time you stub your toe or something, let those hard r's roll with that sharp k immediately following – [ˈperrrr kele], and you'll find it helps deal with the sudden sharp pain. Tests do indicate that pain threshold is higher when you get to use such 'words of power', compared to when you stay silent or just yell non-words, and among my admittedly small international sample, that word has particularly good characteristics for exactly that use.
[Lots of edits, because me fail English, and getting the wording even in the correct ballpark is hard. Finnish is so much easier...]
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Out of context, I would have bet that "perkele" was Greek. Thanks, again what learned.
Finnish being easier than English? "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!"
I'll put Finnish is on my bucket list, right after Japanese, Hebrew and Oromo.
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Forgot to mention: part of the funnyness to me is that the Finnish word for family, "perhe", is only very slightly different: replace the sibilant with an exhalation, and that's it. Also works for a kid-friendly expletive, you see.
Finnish being easier than English? "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!"
Only because I grew up with it, of course. It has its beautiful features like all languages have.. Tolkien for example liked the phonotactics (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonotactics), and used those to create Quenya.
I myself don't often speak English aloud at all. I read a lot, and use it in very narrow technical contexts, but outside of entertainment (mostly Youtube, old comedies et cetera), nothing "social". About the opposite to majority of English speakers, I guess. Some of the issues and errors I make are just :o to native speakers. Although I almost never confuse then/than or they/their/they're (except as typos), so it is not that I make fewer errors, mine are just different. For example, at one point I realized my pronounciation had degraded so much (due to lack of use) that people had trouble telling whether I said "can" or "can't". I switched to letting my Finnish Rally English Accent come clear through, and that made my speech much easier to understand, it seems.
(At school, we are taught that That Accent Is The Worst Sin, and should emulate British/American/etc. pronunciation, because Rally English, although clear and understandable, being instantly recognizable, immediately marks us as Finnish and that is Shameful. Don't get self-hating xenophiles teach you foreign languages; the results are just too odd. Many, many Finns, especially the older folk, won't talk to you in English because they fear you laugh at their accent. Get them drunk, and suddenly they talk like five languages. Usually all mixed together, though. The tales I could tell, for example of that one discussion where the Finn used 'swamps' instead of 'mushrooms', because of Swedish influence. Was hilarious, what with the mental imagery of someone eating peat and whatnot.)
Wrt. the language issues all over this thread, my point here is that it is not just language, nor just culture. Some of us just use non-native languages in weird ways that make for odd (and hopefully entertaining) errors and mistakes. Speaking a language well does not mean you know all the idioms used, and that explains many of the funny company names. It is not just a matter of picking up a thesaurus or automatic translator, although the company and product names generated that way are definitely in their own hilarious class. Sometimes it is just, whatstheword, context or social circles or such.
I happened to stumble on certain videos and stuff that used the pressurized air analogs for certain electrical circuits recently. You can talk about whether the analog is apt or not, but fact is, very few kids nowadays know anything about pressurized air (except that you either have to pump it, or you get it from a hose at the gas station). Which makes that approach, well, hilarious: it's like trying to teach city kids computer repair by using livestock rearing similes and analogs.
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UNLESS I missed something over the last numerous pages here...
There are also a LOT of funny & inappropriate Website/Domain names! . . . 8)
https://www.boredpanda.com/worst-domain-names/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic (https://www.boredpanda.com/worst-domain-names/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic)
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UNLESS I missed something over the last numerous pages here...
There are also a LOT of funny & inappropriate Website/Domain names! . . . 8)
https://www.boredpanda.com/worst-domain-names/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic (https://www.boredpanda.com/worst-domain-names/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic)
Oh, my.
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UNLESS I missed something over the last numerous pages here...
There are also a LOT of funny & inappropriate Website/Domain names! . . . 8)
https://www.boredpanda.com/worst-domain-names/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic (https://www.boredpanda.com/worst-domain-names/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic)
Oh, my.
I'm sure a lot of these, (and numerous other companies!), must be aware of the situation, but are happy to play
on it to gain further attention to themselves!! 8)
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Many, many Finns, especially the older folk, won't talk to you in English because they fear you laugh at their accent. Get them drunk, and suddenly they talk like five languages. Usually all mixed together, though.
On the last contract I did for a German company I had a colleague who spoke native German, very good English and passable French and Italian. I speak native English, terrible German (but with a near impeccable north western accent as I learned it all in Germany from Germans which results in people greatly overestimating my competence in the language) and passable French. We had other colleagues from all over Europe and Africa and the one common language was English. Said colleague, Sven, had the habit of lapsing into French, sometimes when he couldn't find an English word for the German in his head, sometimes just because he knew he was in a "foreign" non-German conversation, so might drop into a conference call with "Bonjour tout le monde". I, on the other hand, have a habit of at least trying to reply in the language I've been spoken to in, and, like Sven, my brain sometimes short circuits and knows it should be speaking "foreign" and grabs the most familiar foreign word, even if it isn't in the language being spoken.
The net result of all this is that when Sven and I were talking to each other the conversation could be in a mixture of English/German/French, often all in one sentence, complete with accent shifts. We used to drive people crazy with it, especially folks from the Balkan countries who often only had English as their only non-native language, and the English who are notoriously bad at "foreign" even though it has been compulsory to teach at least one modern foreign language in our schools since I was a child.
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Nominal Animal:
Quenya being based on Finnish phonotactics - that is excellent information. I will keep that in mind when I reread the Tolkien's work.
"Finnish Rally English Accent" - I had to look that one up. Schumacher vs. Häkkinen, those were the days.
I took university phonetics classes for aspiring English teachers in 2017/2018. Highest grades will only be awarded to students with flawless General American or Received Pronunciation, judged by native speakers. I soon dropped out of the advanced classes, but stayed friends with my American phonetics teacher, who became my sparring partner for Japanese. That connection is rather fortunate for me, since my more severe oral production mistakes still get corrected.
"Don't get self-hating xenophiles teach you foreign languages; the results are just too odd." Indeed, I couldn't find a better term for the people that make the liberal arts departments so unbearable for engineers.
"Get them drunk, and suddenly they talk like five languages". From first hand experience with Finns I can only say that this would be an expensive experiment, requiring solid funding.
All the other readers:
I would like to apologize for taking this thread OT. However I can't come up with any funny company names that would work in English. Feel free to laugh at mine, a rather direct translation of my last name. It stems from the sticks peon drivers used to beat about the bushes with - to chase rabbits out for the noble hunters. Nothing naughty, sorry.
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So long as we are discussing multi-lingual environments:
I just finished J Sancton's "Madhouse at the End of the Earth" (Crown, 2021), the first English-language book about the Belgica expedition to Antartica (1897-1899) under the command of the Belgian commandant Adrien de Gerlache with Belgian backing and a polyglot crew. The lingua franca aboard ship became a "mixture of French, Dutch, Norwegian, German, Polish, English, Romanian, and Latin" (p 5). Among the ship's company were F Cook and R Amundsen, who became infamous and famous explorers on their own expeditions.
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I worked with a woman from the states with the same sir name. We nicknamed her "Bunny Stick" which she thought was cool. :D
McBryce.
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McBryce, that comes as a bit of a surprise, since that name stems from one tiny village. Half a century ago its people had all but two family names. I have heard "rabbit/bunny stick" more often than I care for. Even if there are several acceptable translations for German "Hase" into English, none matches the noble "hare". As for the "Stab" - well, I chose "rod" for aesthetic reasons.
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TimFox, one would assume that this was a pidgin language. Those are often problematic, because of the simplified grammar. I wonder how that would work for scientists, where precision is paramount.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pidgin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pidgin)
From my experiences with Japanese who don't speak any western language: It is really easy to do trade, exchange basic ideas, even find each other sympatico. However it is quite impossible to exchange more complex concepts. I was/am my own Guinea pig regarding language development in 45+year olds, since my four trips where spread over three years. During my last trip one acquaintance commented on my progress: "I remember meeting you for the first time, you could barely speak. Now we sit here and do quite normal smalltalk." Can't wait to get back and apply the work which I did during the pandemic. No visa in sight, though.
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I think the Latin component of the pidgin was due to the scientists onboard, especially the zoologists.
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Ah, how could I have missed Latin. At that time most scientists would have been quite fluent in Latin, comprehension and production. So, stick with Latin grammar, then define and use any term you need. Should work like a charm.
In my peak times (e.g. close to failing Latin classes) I visited a lecture on sub-atomic particles, held in Latin. I was surprised how much I seemed to understand. That was more due to prior background, less than my prowess in Latin. The Latin-ace lady who had dragged me to that lecture admitted that she didn't get a thing. That was over thirty years ago, I wonder of stuff like that still happens at universities today.
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Gaudeamus igitur,
Iuvenes dum sumus,
Gaudeamus igitur,
Iuvenes dum sumus,
Post iucundam iuventutem,
Post molestam senectutem,
Nos habebit humus,
Nos habebit humus.
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You HAD to pick that one, right? That reminds me of Latin classes in France, mid 1980s. That song being sung by French students. "Gohdeamüüs ishitüür..." Approximate IPA transcription: /ɡodɛam̩ys iʒityʁ/...
The issue with dead languages is that modern "speakers" tend to use their native accent for speaking. I learned Latin with a German accent, the biggest discussions being about pronunciation of 'e' (/eː/) and 'c' (/k/). -> /ɡaʊdeːamʊs ɪɡɪtuːr/
Nunc est bibendum.
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The late Peter Ustinov told an anecdote about sitting in a bar in Athens when a British subject turned to him, complaining "This bartender doesn't understand a word of ancient Greek!"
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You HAD to pick that one, right? That reminds me of Latin classes in France, mid 1980s. That song being sung by French students. "Gohdeamüüs ishitüür..." Approximate IPA transcription: /ɡodɛam̩ys iʒityʁ/...
The issue with dead languages is that modern "speakers" tend to use their native accent for speaking. I learned Latin with a German accent, the biggest discussions being about pronunciation of 'e' (/eː/) and 'c' (/k/). -> /ɡaʊdeːamʊs ɪɡɪtuːr/
Nunc est bibendum.
Bigus Dickus.
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That story is a classic. If one looks at language change in modern languages, it comes as no big surprise. However, for an archeologist in whose mind the ancient history is alive and predominant, this experience must be outright frustrating.
Not too long ago I had an exchange with an Hebrew native speaker. This language is a rare example of a resurrected language. I was told that literate modern native speakers have not much trouble reading the old texts. Quite remarkable.
Folks - I keep asking myself if we better open up a language/linguistics/phonetics thread? The question is - how would we attract customersreaders?
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Not too long ago I had an exchange with an Hebrew native speaker. This language is a rare example of a resurrected language. I was told that literate modern native speakers have not much trouble reading the old texts. Quite remarkable.
Not a surprise really. I remember my (male) jewish school pals all being sent off to shule every Saturday to learn ancient Hebrew so that they could read the Torah out loud on the occasion of their Bar Mitzvah. That has been going on throughout Jewish history and has kept the language alive between the diaspora and the formation of modern Israel. These were folk from very Liberal jewish households (Judaism has roughly split into Orthodox, Reform and Liberal from most to least observant in that order) so even in households that weren't very far removed from the level of religious tokenism of Christians attending church on "high days and holidays" they still kept up the tradition of leaning Hebrew.
In the same vein, Muslims are quite comfortable with reading 6th century Arabic and I myself can comfortably read early 17th century English because when I were a lad religious education was compulsory at school and it was the King James version of the bible that was foist on us.
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Another anecdote, this time about "Early Modern English", i.e., Shakespeare and the King James translation.
A suburban high school English teacher was bragging to an academic that he was teaching his students Shakespeare "in Old English".
The academic was surprised, since that would take a philologist at the level of the late J R R Tolkien to pull off.
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I was always taught that an U with an Umlaut was to be prounced somewhere in-between "EW" and "OO"; so somewhere between
FOOKER and FEWKER in English, but not as a "y" in English (german EI sound)
Was I led astray by poor teaching?
I wasn't thinking of the long "y", but a short one like in "mystery" or "cyst". But I realize now that this does not get the right "ü" sound. The English pronouciation of that short "y" is much closer to a short "i" like in "picture" or "minion" than what we want for the "ü".
I guess there is a reason the the "ü" and "ö" are difficult for English speakers; there is no directly equivalent sound in English. "EW" or "OO" don't cut it either, I'm afraid. ;)
There are plenty of sites with pronounciation examples these days, e.g. here: https://de.wiktionary.org/wiki/dr%C3%BCcken. But if one is not used to the sound, it might be difficult to pick up the difference even from listening? (Just like it is difficult for Germans to get the English "W" or "TH" sounds initially...)
Edit: To offer another take on the "ü" sound: It is somewhere halfway between "eee" and "ooo" (as pronounced in English). Raise your tongue towards the roof of your mouth as when pronouncing "beetle", but round your lips as you would when pronouncing "boot". That should get you in the ballpark?
I remember some old German friends telling me that back in Germany, when trying to learn/pronounce English, (with an Aussie Accent!!),
they were told to say the letters 'MNX' (with English pronunciation), to ask for "Ham And Eggs" :-DD
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I remember some old German friends telling me that back in Germany, when trying to learn/pronounce English, (with an Aussie Accent!!),
they were told to say the letters 'MNX' (with English pronunciation), to ask for "Ham And Eggs" :-DD
Were they "Mirror Eggs"? ;)
McBryce.
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I remember some old German friends telling me that back in Germany, when trying to learn/pronounce English, (with an Aussie Accent!!),
they were told to say the letters 'MNX' (with English pronunciation), to ask for "Ham And Eggs" :-DD
Were they "Mirror Eggs"? ;)
McBryce.
I've never heard of that term!!, so I looked it up... 8)
https://forum.english.best/t/what-are-mirror-eggs/144709