Mark Vella, Luxembourg.
Translation of mouse
It seems that the current "language question" which has resurfaced recently with a certain vigour and consistency, is based on ignorance, prejudice and also a predisposition to jump to conclusions in order to voice any other opinion.
The greatest problem, however, is the "ideological stance" taken by many, either in an us-and-them tussle reminiscent of the original kwistjoni tal-lingwa, or else a quasi-totalitarian view of language, far removed from viewing it both scientifically and sociologically.
Charles Mizzi's letter Lost in Translation (January 7) could be a case in point.
While defending the Maltese language from possible denigration by stating that the computing term "mouse" is untranslateable as it is an acronym, he concludes his letter by wondering what would happen if it had been translated as gurdien, implying that this would lead to possible ridicule.
One need not go too far: the accepted word in French is souris (Mus).
Spanish also uses occasionally ratón. Romanians render it phonetically as maus but their Moldovan cousins (who share by and large the same language) call it guzgan (which is the word for rat - Rattus). Same as some of our Arab "cousins", who use something akin to far.
In this case, a brief socio-linguistic survey shows that every society, language or culture chooses, according to its particular linguistic circumstances and traditions, which words to use and how to translate them. The current French term for the computer mouse does not sound ridiculous in France, as there was a form of common acceptance that this word should be used. Others, like us Maltese, have deemed and accepted that the English word is more than enough (but obviously, there will soon be an endless tug-of-war between mouse and maws). In a different socio-linguistic scenario, the mouse could have been easily called gurdien, or anything else.
Language is essentially neutral, and it is only ill-informed notions and prejudices that ascribe value-judgements to it. On the other hand, since language is alive, being the means of communication for societies, rules and conventions may be applied to it over time, and also changed according to varying circumstances. However, there are never any hard and fast rules as to how a language should develop, much less a priori aesthetic canons which deem utterances funny, ridiculous or unsuitable.
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Christopher Farrugia
Jan 10th 2008, 17:01
I agree wholeheartedly with Mr Mark Vella. Another example similar to mouse is laser which is an acronym for "Light Amplification By Stimulated Emission of Radiation" Language is a dynamic process which is neutral. If people can understand it as laser... who am I to dictate to the common folk otherwise? Tell me how many people knew that it was an acronym... and yet we use it, as it is...
Raymond Sammut
Jan 10th 2008, 08:12
It is a great pity that the Maltese people, in general, are not assertive with our native tongue. Only a small proportion of us are aware of the richness and depth of our language. I may determine to think in English. In doing so, I shall express myself purely in English. I can do likewise, and equally well, in Maltese. But to mix the two would relegate me to scatterbrain, which I dislike. Hence, in Maltese I say without much trouble, "gurdien", "bicca" (bit), "tmin bicciet" (byte), "blog" (this is pretty much universal), "wirdiena" (bug), "suq" (run), "tikka" (pixel), "zip" (since this is equally established in Maltese), "cuc" (spam). Do I have more? Of course I do. Do I have any problems with any of these? None at all.
Alfred Grech
Jan 9th 2008, 12:32
I would call mouse "gurdien". When I started on the computer, lots of names used on the pc and its software, sounded funny to me, but eventually I got used to them. If we call "mouse" "gurdien" we will eventually get used to it also. I am in favour of using Maltese names as much as possible. We have a language - let's use it!
Adrian Gouder
Jan 9th 2008, 11:35
I honestly think that anyone who wastes time thinking of mouse or any other imported term really doesn't have anything better to do. The importantion of such terms stems from the language of its originator - the language of science is vastly English. Words are just tools we use to communicate - no glorification here. But, while we're at it, we can try finding words for the following computer terms; byte, floppy (disk), blog, bug, run (a program), pixel, zip, and spam. Need more?
Mario Costa
Jan 9th 2008, 10:55
I do not think that the fact that mouse is an acronym should be taken into consideration in this question. The fact is that, in people's minds, the gadget is called a mouse because it looks vaguely like the biological version of the species. This would certainly eliminate the option of calling the thing "far" which, Mr Vella says, is what "our Arab cousins" (sic) use. The gadget may look vaguely like a mouse but not like a rat which is much bigger. In my view, it would be useless to invent any word but "mouse" as this is what everybody will continue to use. In language, its users are supreme and nobody shall succeed in dictating what speakers and writers will use.