There was one thing I forgot when I wrote my list of things I miss - I present to you number 6!
6. Mhmm
In Sweden we use this really quite often in conversation. We sort of have a thing for short answers. In some parts of Sweden a short, quick intake of air can pass for "yes", "I agree" and so on and so forth. To the best of my knowledge this is not used anywhere else in the world. The usage of "mhmm", as I mention here, is similar, in a way. It is commonly used when someone else is talking to you and you want to assert that you are listening and understanding or when you want to confirm something you have been asked about (usually as "mmm"). Not so much in England, it seems. Here it seems to be interpreted as "What?" as they do not use it themselves (I'm not talking about the "mmm" meaning "yummy"). Therefore a hypothetical conversation that (in my mind) should go something like
"Could you bring me a cuppa while you're in the kitchen?"
"Mmm."
becomes
"Could you bring me a cuppa while you're in the kitchen?"
"Mmm."
"I said, could you bring me a cuppa while you're in the kitchen?"
This is part amusing, since it keeps happening over and over again, and part really annoying since it keeps happening over and over again. A girl can only take directions so many times! I am aware of it now though, so maybe I'll learn not to use "mhmm/mmm" as much. It's difficult though as it's an automatic responce...
Do you have any interesting or funny finds in behaviour or linguistics from somewhere you've travelled? Please share in the comments! I would love to know who I'm talking to (or rather at) out there... :3
Anyway, enough of my ramblings. I need to go buy trousers :P
Lurvs <3
Saga xx
Hello Saga,
ReplyDeleteI was once told that there is a dialect of French around Dijon France that sucks in the Qui to that it is almost missed by most French speakers and can be mistaken of the speaker catching their breath.
Colin
So we're not alone! I do love that sound/"word" though. Even if it's not uniqe it is rare :)
DeleteOne of my teachers when I took a course of Intercultural studies told us an anecdote of an elderly gentleman from the north of Sweden who was visiting Thailand. While he was speaking to a girl in the reception of his hotel he several times answered her with only that sound and she became more and more distressed with it. She eventually asked him to sit down and she would call an ambulance, as she was convinced he was about to have a heart attack!
Jag säger fortfarande "mmmm" efter nio år i England... Min sambo har lärt sig vad det betyder! :)
ReplyDeleteVad roligt! Jag och Rob har diskussioner allt som oftast om det efter det här inlägget! Det kommer nog ta ett tag för honom att lära sig alla de fina nyanserna i det ;)
DeleteJag kan inte riktigt placera vem du är dock (så om vi känner varandra sen förut så ber jag om ursäkt!), annars är jag jätteglad att du hittat hit till bloggen! :D