The concept of bad language

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Freightdog
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The concept of bad language

Post by Freightdog »

Her indoors sent me a clip from t’internet of a small child swearing, and it reminded me of an ongoing discussion that is as yet to come close to a conclusion.

Many Khmer that I know freely and innocently utter the more coarse words found in the English language. Many of us do so at times- swear like troopers, gutter mouths, and so forth. I try not to do so around passengers unless they really are behaving like mindless cunts, and fortunately a well honed bank-account-preservation instinct generally stops it from progressing. Some of us also still exercise greater caution about this around children. Let’s face it, in between torturing kittens and burning ants with a magnifying glass, there is an immense capacity for miss learning the most amusing and socially awkward flaws of their ‘betters’.

I remember the amusement and mild surprise some years ago when my niece came in from the cold, all of 4 or 5 years old, and with the same body language, arms flapping, as her father, (my mother’s other son) clearly stated ‘bugger me, it’s bleeding cold outside’.
Admittedly, it was sodding cold, but possibly the greater surprise was that she hadn’t yet fully adopted some of his more base and colourful language. Over the years, she’s adjusted these flaws in her character, and is now utterly foul mouthed and ignorant.

All too often, though, people use bad language almost as an alternative to punctuation. My mother’s other aberration being one.
But for those who learn English (and probably many other languages) as a second language, in a very informal way, it’s likely not that obvious that uttering ‘what the fuck?’ in front of a group of teachers and youngsters is not the best idea. Fortunately, SWMBO has managed to avoid such a social gaff*, but I do find myself tut-tutting on occasion, and reminding her that just ‘cos she learnt it from barang doesn’t mean it’s always acceptable.

Among the first priorities I (jokingly) set, along with being able to order simple food and alcohol in a local language, is learning the more expressive swear words. You know; the basics for survival. Apparently, it was quite impressive being able to say motherfucker in Bengali. With feeling, no less!

So what does Khmer language offer? And for those others who have ventured into a more family oriented existence, how have you dealt with the issue?



*i wonder if it is a social gaff anymore...
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frank lee bent
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by frank lee bent »

Choy Mai is popular as is chkai chgout
Mishmash
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by Mishmash »

With kids - it's like voting - you can learn all about it - but can't use it until you are 18 or 21 or whatever

I was 18 before I swore in front of my dad and 30 before I accidentally swore in front of my mother when her cat bit through my thumb.

Of course with friends away from the family I used it as appropriate....or not - practice makes perfect.

On construction sites I got called a million different creative words and phrases by 08:30 - Fuck this, Fuck that, Fuck the Fucking Other so it's kind of normal and expected.

Use the BBC rankings of coarse language as a guide to correct usage of the various words.

As to Khmer swear words - if I don't know them then when someone calls me something, I can just nod politely and smile, and they think I'm the king of poker face with huge restraint on my emotions and then gape in awe at their failure to bait me. :beer3:
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

The challenge is to put in the effort to live a good life while your children are growing up. They learn by example. Maybe easier said than done.

I don't know how many of you have noticed the censoring on Cambodian television. When there is a film with bad language, they blank both the sound and the picture. In Australia they blank very little, and then they only blank the sound. If you can lip read you can still get it. In Cambodia there are a lot of things they don't even show. Its probably a good thing, or you would have a lot more foul mouthed Cambodians.

But then they don't learn those words, and may have names that may not be appropriate if they spoke English. For example, I don't know if you remember Dum Rida who got killed in an accident. Her mother should have learnt English before she named her. Then Dum Rida started a company called Kok Khmer. She learnt English, but not all words.

Some Cambodians asked me recently: What is the meaning of 'are you crazy?' I told them and they had a good laugh. They had heard is somewhere, but didn't know what it meant. They also asked me some other words, which I thought would better not to tell them.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

Most of you have probably heard it so often that you dont think about it. But who named Bangkok. Then there is Phuket. In English Ph is pronounced F. Those who dont know the pronunciation may say Fucket. Maybe they named these places appropriately.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

frank lee bent wrote: Thu Oct 24, 2019 2:03 am Choy Mai is popular as is chkai chgout
Some readers speak Khmer and know foul words. Maybe it is not a good idea to teach those who don't. Somebody gave a false definition of one of them maybe a couple of months ago. He had heard it said, knew they said it in certain situations, but did not know the real meaning. I didnt want to teach readers foul words.

The second one above is not really foul: chkai chgout. I would sound it chkae chgoot. Chkae means 'dog.' Chgoot means 'crazy.' So chkae chgoot means 'crazy dog.' So somebody must have used it to call someone else a crazy dog. As a matter of interest, rabies is called 'joomngoo chkae chgoot,' or 'crazy dog disease.'

No doubt, someone will come on here now and give a list of foul Cambodian words, to teach those who have not already learnt them.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by Freightdog »

explorer wrote: Thu Oct 24, 2019 3:32 am I didnt want to teach readers foul words.
I think you might be a bit late joining that party.
Lack of education is unlikely to ensure cleanliness of thought or word, though. A reasonable analogy being sex education. By not teaching sex education in schools, some misguided folk believe that this will help curb unwanted pregnancy and other associated ills. They forget, though, that most successful species have survived without books on the subject. Basic instinct will win. By educating, it provides for an informed opinion, or at least some element of caution.

You’d be astonished (or perhaps not), at the misconceptions surrounding sex and reproduction among those who are denied sex education.

As mentioned. Children copy. As do adults. If you hear something and emulate it; failing to comprehend it’s importance doesn’t mean that you won’t repeat it at an inappropriate time.
The second one above is not really foul: chkai chgout. I would sound it chkae chgoot. Chkae means 'dog.' Chgoot means 'crazy.' So chkae chgoot means 'crazy dog.' So somebody must have used it to call someone else a crazy dog. As a matter of interest, rabies is called 'joomngoo chkae chgoot,' or 'crazy dog disease.'
Crazy dog disease... a sort of proof that lack of understanding doesn’t make one immune from its existence. Only immune from the knowledge and appropriate precautions.

No doubt, someone will come on here now and give a list of foul Cambodian words, to teach those who have not already learnt them.
Pen poised in anticipation....
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Re: The concept of bad language

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explorer
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

Maybe getting off the subject a bit, but
explorer wrote: Thu Oct 24, 2019 3:32 am The second one above is not really foul: chkai chgout. I would sound it chkae chgoot. Chkae means 'dog.' Chgoot means 'crazy.' So chkae chgoot means 'crazy dog.' So somebody must have used it to call someone else a crazy dog. As a matter of interest, rabies is called 'joomngoo chkae chgoot,' or 'crazy dog disease.'
The words for high blood pressure in Khmer can be translated in English as 'blood rises.' Which is OK.

The words for diabetes in Khmer can be translated in English as 'sweet urine.' When we say they have diabetes, they say they have sweet urine. Which is true. Diabetics normally pass out more sugar in their urine than non diabetics.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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pissontheroof
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by pissontheroof »

Pen poised in anticipation.... 👆🏼
I have them bookmarked but just googled “ khmer swear words “ and got a bunch
Never use because i don’t talk very much

https://www.google.com.kh/search?source ... CAk&uact=5

http://www.youswear.com/index.asp?language=Khmer
http://www.youswear.com/index.asp?language=Cambodian
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