KudoZ home » French to English » Government / Politics

glaciation

English translation: stagnation

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

French term or phrase:	glaciation
English translation:	stagnation
Entered by:	Clare Macnamara

Options:
- Contribute to this entry

23:52 Feb 27, 2006

French to English translations [PRO]
Government / Politics / Ukraine politics

French term or phrase: glaciation

Hi all!

I know the meaning of this word and that it can be translated by glaciation or Ice Age in English, but how would you translate it here?

"Si nous souhaitons conserver le système qui régnait dans le pays auparavant, autant ne rien changer. Sacrifions la liberté de la presse, la démocratie au profit de la **glaciation** et il se peut même que la situation économique du pays n’en soit pas gravement affectée."

Could it be a reference to cold war-type politics or returning to the Ice Age instead of progressing or is this reading too much into it or getting it completely wrong?

Many TIA

Clare Macnamara KudoZ activity Questions: 150 (none open) (1 closed without grading) Answers: 1240 Spain
Local time: 04:05

stagnation

Explanation:
in this context, anyways...

Selected response from:

Debbie Tacium Ladry
Canada
Local time: 22:05

Grading comment

Thanks Debbie. Sorry about delay in grading, been away on hols. I'd really like to have given one point each; I liked all the answers but ...
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

4 +1

stagnation

Debbie Tacium Ladry

4 +1

Cold War politics

Cristina Chaplin

3 +1

idea

Jocelyne S

3 +1

deep freeze

Adam Deutsch

Answers

8 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

stagnation

Explanation:
in this context, anyways...

Debbie Tacium Ladry
Canada
Local time: 22:05
Works in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 4

Grading comment

Thanks Debbie. Sorry about delay in grading, been away on hols. I'd really like to have given one point each; I liked all the answers but ...

10 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

Cold War politics

Explanation:
Cold war politics -more likely

Bearing in mind that you speak of Ukraine and their very troubled history and that the field is politics I am more inclined to think it means "cold war politics" rather than anything about Ice Age

The reason I say that is beause part of the cold war politics and much of the politics afterwards were first of all based on the hushing the press, the non existing freedom of speech and the idea of democracy was entirely alien.

Cristina Chaplin
United Kingdom
Local time: 03:05
Native speaker of:

Romanian

2 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

deep freeze

Explanation:
I think this might be more appropriate when talking about freedom of the press and democratic rights.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2006-02-28 02:05:59 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

http://www.freenepal.org:8080/FreeNepal/action/discussion.do...

Adam Deutsch
Canada
Local time: 22:05
Native speaker of:

English

7 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

idea

Explanation:
Hi Clare,

I recall learning about glasnost as a "melting" of old ways. This "icy" reference may be meant to be its opposite and may actually be a translation from the Ukrainian. It might be worth posting the question in EN-UK (or Russian) just to be sure.

Otherwise perhaps something like "seize-up" (of liberties/freedom). In any case I think you need a term which implies that, as opposed to progress which moves things forward, the state of things is blocked, immobile, etc.

Good luck,
Jocelyne.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 16 hrs (2006-02-28 16:22:49 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

To "petrify" also comes to mind.

Perhaps you could avoid the term "glaciation" altogether by turning the sentence around a bit to read something like : "The petrification of democracy and freedom of expression might not even affect..."

Jocelyne S
France
Local time: 04:05
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 28