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мать ее...

English translation: ... and Myan-f----g-mar


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18:19 Jun 12, 2009
Russian to English translations [PRO]
Other
Russian term or phrase: мать ее...
The author is drawing parallels between Orwell's 1984 and Medvedev's Russia. He gets a bit carried away and extends the comparison to other autocratic regimes also. However, I cannot account for the words that end the sentence, except to say that it looks like a gratuitous obscenity (mat' ee ?), though why Burma should be singled out for abuse, I don't know.

Герой романа, Уинстон Смит, работал, в сущности, в отделе борьбы с фальсификацией истории в ущерб интересам Океании… Г-н Медведев, вам привет от г-на Оруэлла!Привет – Уго Чавесу, Ким Чен Иру, Махмуду Ахмадинежаду, братьям Кастро, братской Джамахирии, Мьянме, мать ее… Всем по периметру.

Winston Smith, the novel’s hero, worked, essentially, in the department for combating the falsification of history to the detriment of the interests of Oceania… Mr Medvedev, greetings from Mr Orwell! Greetings to Hugo Chavez, Kim Chong-Il, Mahmud Ahmadinejad, the Castro brothers, fraternal Jamahiriya [Libya], Myanmar [Burma], ???
Clive Wilshin
Local time: 12:26
English translation:... and Myan-f----g-mar
Explanation:
That's what a certain category of folks in the US would probably say under the circumstances. Though "... her mother" is exactly what the original says, this usage is by far not native and would probably sound confusing enough. There would also be the issue of using "her" to consider, which is a pain in the neck in its own right.
Selected response from:

The Misha
Local time: 07:26
Grading comment
The other suggestions were good too.
3 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +4... and Myan-f----g-marThe Misha
4 +2curse be upon it
Aleksey Chervinskiy
5God, forgive my tongue
Alexandra Taggart
3 +1...may they all go to Hell in a handbasketAlexandra Goldburt
3and whatf****ngnot...
Roman Bulkiewicz


Discussion entries: 7





  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
curse be upon it


Explanation:
Мексиканцы сказали бы su madre! :)



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Note added at 1 hr (2009-06-12 19:24:13 GMT)
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или так: ...Mahmud Ahmadinejad, the Castro brothers, fraternal Jamahiriya, that god damned Myanmar...

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Note added at 1 hr (2009-06-12 19:32:14 GMT)
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или еще так - fraternal Jamahiriya, screwed up Myanmar, ...

Aleksey Chervinskiy
Local time: 06:26
Native speaker of: Russian
PRO pts in category: 16

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  klp
6 mins
  -> Thank you!

agree  Denis Guchok
11 mins
  -> Thank you!
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7 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +4
... and Myan-f----g-mar


Explanation:
That's what a certain category of folks in the US would probably say under the circumstances. Though "... her mother" is exactly what the original says, this usage is by far not native and would probably sound confusing enough. There would also be the issue of using "her" to consider, which is a pain in the neck in its own right.

The Misha
Local time: 07:26
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 27
Grading comment
The other suggestions were good too.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Aleksey Chervinskiy: Myanfreakingmar sounds perfect to me
2 hrs
  -> Sure, we all have our favorite ones

agree  Tatiana Lammers: this one is so f-g good =)
3 hrs
  -> Oh, boy, you're gonna make me blush now. Thanks.

agree  klp: With Tatiana.
9 hrs
  -> Thanks

agree  IlyaI
2 days22 hrs
  -> Thanks
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19 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
and whatf****ngnot...


Explanation:
Imho, "мать ее", does not specifically refer to Myanma (it just happens to be the last one in the list). I see it just as a way of "rounding off" the sentence while showing general disapproval to the subjects thereof. :)

Roman Bulkiewicz
Ukraine
Local time: 14:26
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in UkrainianUkrainian, Native in RussianRussian
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3 days3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
...may they all go to Hell in a handbasket


Explanation:
Just my humble attempt to translate the untranslatable.

Good luck, Clive! (You'll need lots of it...)

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Note added at 3 days7 hrs (2009-06-16 01:47:39 GMT)
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Or you can say, if you prefer, "Devil take them all".

The Misha is right - it is too civilized. I thought about "screw'em all" as an "uncivilized" option. But the problem with it is that the Russian original only alludes to the action expressed by the verb "screw", without actually saying it. So we have options here that are either too civilized or too vulgar.

Alexandra Goldburt
Local time: 04:26
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  The Misha: This is actually very, very good, if somewhat too civilized, and it addresses the issue of "all of them", rather than that unfairly singled out hapless Burma
3 hrs
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2 days22 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
God, forgive my tongue


Explanation:
"remembering the happy snort of her mother and her tail curling tightly while doing her". Russiand use these swear words when it is hard for them to pronounce something, especially some long foreign name.

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Note added at 3 days4 hrs (2009-06-15 22:55:44 GMT)
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"Мать её" - that is an exuse not to say everything you think about...whatever her name is. Her name sounds as an obsenity:"God forgive me my wicked tongue".

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Note added at 3 days5 hrs (2009-06-15 23:24:11 GMT)
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Probably, these words refer to the whole row of inspeakable names that's why it was put at the end of the sentence."По периметру" - "all across the given figure" (number of names) - to each snout of their pack/herd.

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Note added at 3 days11 hrs (2009-06-16 05:28:27 GMT)
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Sorry,"unspeakable names".

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Note added at 3 days11 hrs (2009-06-16 05:34:38 GMT)
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"excuse"

Alexandra Taggart
Russian Federation
Local time: 16:26
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 31
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