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This isn't a translation ask about hatari but im just wondering. What are Icelandic pet names? (babe, love, sweetie ect.) thanks in advance!
The main equivalents that we have are:
- elskan (literally âthe loveâ, gender-neutral) - thisâd generally be how youâd translate a term like âbabeâ when used to catcall or approach a stranger, but you might also use this for your spouse.
- ĂĄstin (also literally âthe loveâ and gender-neutral) - this one would sound pretty strange as a catcall or to approach a stranger, reserved mostly for actual long-term partners. Some people might also use this for their children (thatâs whatâs going on in SofĂ°u unga ĂĄstin mĂn).
- ljĂșfur/ljĂșfan (masculine/feminine respectively, meaning gentle or sweet) - tends to be used to translate âhoneyâ.
However, I would say these are significantly more common in translations than in peopleâs actual speech; our usual terms of endearment work a little differently. The most common way to affectionately refer to someone in Icelandic is to add minn (masculine) or mĂn (feminine), literally âmyâ, after their name. So if, say, Ronja were affectionately asking Klemens to do something, sheâd probably be more likely to go âKlemens minn, gĂŠtir ĂŸĂșâŠâ (literally âMy Klemens, could youâŠâ), rather than âKlemens, elskanâ or âKlemens, ĂĄstinâ, or âKlemens, ljĂșfurâ (though all of those would also be possible, or just âElskanâ or âĂstinâ or âLjĂșfurâ). In English, âMy Klemensâ sounds weirdly overdramatic and kind of old-fashioned, but in Icelandic this is a very normal casually affectionate way to address someone, and a lot more common than any of the above pet names. You can use it for your spouse, your child, another close family member, your petâŠ
âElskanâ and âĂĄstinâ are also commonly used with mĂn (elskan mĂn, ĂĄstin mĂn), probably more commonly than on their own. Note that itâs not ever âelskan minnâ or âĂĄstin minnâ! Elskan and ĂĄstin are both feminine words, even if the actual person they refer to is not, so any descriptors you attach to them should also be feminine, regardless of the actual gender of the person being referred to. Theyâre still gender-neutral terms and itâs perfectly normal to refer to a man that way. I know this sounds super-weird to English-speakers, but this is how gendered languages work.
LjĂșfur, on the other hand, is specifically a nounified masculine form of an adjective, and itâd sound grammatically odd to call a woman that. The feminine form would just be âljĂșfâ, but that doesnât really sound good as a pet name, so the feminine version adds a definite article ending, â-anâ. (âElskanâ is actually a nounification of the verb âelskaâ, to love, with a definite article, whereas âĂĄstinâ is the actual noun âloveâ.) âLjĂșfan mĂnâ sounds okay but I donât think itâs common. For the masculine youâd want âljĂșfurinn minnâ if you were going to do this, but thatâs unwieldy and you never hear that.
Personally I come from a family where we just go all out with unusual terms of endearment, though. I like to give my husbandâs name a definite article ending (not usually ever done for proper nouns), or turn his name into a superlative adjective, but I donât think most people do that, probably. You donât even want to know what Iâve called my cats.
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Witchy kitty
Minecraft witch but itâs the witchâs cat >:3Â
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my blog is a safe space for me. the rest of you are in danger i think
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i can't actually art tonight so have this shitpost instead
Edit: oh my god y'all. This was so dumb and took no time why are y'all giving it attention đ€Łđ€Łđ€Ł
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âPerhaps you are, like me, a romantic who dreams of something very spiritual,â
â Federico GarcĂa Lorca, from a letter to MarĂa del Reposo UrquĂa c. 1918
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ehm I decided to make u fanart bc I rely liked ur Beetle art :3
@bun0nthemoon
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