In this corner- Private Tutoring Shack-we share a daily expression in three different languages, English, Arabic and Korean. The expression conveys the same idea in the three languages but in different wordings derived from the relevant cultures. We will discuss the expression and its literal and idiomatic meanings.
Today’s expression:
Talk of the Devil/ Speak of the Devil
This expression is used when a person arrives after being discussed or mentioned.
The expression changes in Arabic. The devil becomes the cat. The Arabic equivalent is:
جبنا سيرة القط أجى ينط(when mentioned, the cat comes jumping) : مثل عامي يعبر عن حضور أو وصول شخص عند ذكره. لا نستخدم عبارة "تحدث عن الشيطان" في اللغة العربية بل " جبنا سيرة القط أجى ينط ".
In Korean, the expression that communicates the same thought is:
호랑이도 제 말 하면 온다 (A tiger will come if it is talked about): "다른 사람에 관한 이야기를 하는데 공교롭게 그 사람이 나타나는 경우를 이르는 말.”
It literally means even the tiger lying deep in the mountains will come if it is talked about.
It is interesting how Arabic and Korean use animals to express the idea while in English the devil is used.
So we learned how to talk about a person arriving after being discussed or mentioned in three languages:
English: Talk of the Devil/ Speak of the Devil
Arabic: جبنا سيرة القط أجى ينط
Korean: 호랑이도 제 말 하면 온다
Stay tuned to our daily dose of interlingual expressions with #WiamNajjar via Private Tutoring Shack.
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