The old country

Discussion in 'Vocabulary & Translation Help' started by TimValenta, Oct 4, 2003.

  1. TimValenta

    TimValenta New Member

    Ahoj! Já jsem Tim Valenta

    I am just beginning my study of Czech. I apologize now for my simple questions.

    I have people coming to visit from Prague very soon and I want to say several things to them.

    The first is:
    Welcome, my new friends from the old country!

    also, is it ok for me to refer to the Czech Republic as "the old country"?
     
  2. Lorenzo

    Lorenzo Well-Known Member

    Hi Tim,

    I'm not a native speaker of Czech but I think your greeting could be translated as:

    Vítejte moji novi kamarádi ze staré země

    You could also use "přátelé" instead of "kamarádi" as both mean "friends" but I think in Czech you would call someone a "přítel" (singular of "přatelé") only if he's a good or close friend. "Kamárad" is more neutral.

    As for the expression "the old country" I don't know what you mean to say. It sounds a little funny to me but maybe you're referring to the Czech Republic as "the old country" as it's a country in Europe, the "Old World" for Americans?
    I think it depends a lot on people's sensitivity.

    Maybe you could say "z krásné země" (the beautiful country) as the Czech Republic is called in the Czech national anthem.

    I hope this can help but maybe a native speaker could be more specific or suggest a more tactful expression to friendly refer to the Czech Republic.

    Lorenzo

    [This message has been edited by Lorenzo (edited 04-10-2003).]
     
  3. Dana

    Dana Well-Known Member

    Hi Tim,

    Lorenzo's translation is correct, except "noví" should have a long "í".

    I don't see a problem with calling the Czech Republic "the old country". After all, it is pretty old, isn't it? Are you a little careful because of the reaction that followed G. W. Bush's infamous reference to some European countries as "old Europe"? [​IMG]
     
  4. Jana

    Jana Well-Known Member

    Maybe you could say "ze staré vlasti", as your surname suggest you have got some Czech ancestors?
     
  5. Jirka

    Jirka Well-Known Member

    Hi Tim:

    I have just discovered this place on the Net and I like it. I'm from Liberec, Czech Republic.

    To the topic: I would like to second Jana's suggestion of using the word "vlasti".

    Good luck with your Czech...

    Jirka
     
  6. TimValenta

    TimValenta New Member

    Thank you all for your replies. I like the idea of "the beautiful country". The old country phrase is a suggestion from a person who knows some Czech / slovic.

    I am focusing on pronunciation, and have not learned enough yet about constructing proper sentences. If you have enough patience for 3 additional sentences I would very much appreciate it! I have only 1 week, so the time is very short.

    I would like to say:
    1- Your daughter and her family live very far from you.

    2- That has been a difficult sacrifice.

    3- Your sacrifice has become a blessing to us.

    Thank you so much for all your help. I have wanted to learn Czech for a long time, and hope this can be my beginning.

    Tim
     
  7. Lorenzo

    Lorenzo Well-Known Member

    Hi again,

    I'd like to try and translate your three sentences. To give you a correct translation, I would need to know who these sentences are meant for or what kind of relationship you have with these people, as for sentences 1 and 3, there are two ways you can say that in Czech according to whether you use the familiar or the polite form to address people. The number of people you address also determines (in this case) which possessive pronoun you should use. (In Czech You/Your for the second person singular and You/Your for the second person plural are different). When using the polite form you address your interlocutor with the second person plural.
    I will give you both versions for sentences 1 and 3.
    Anyway, I suppose you would like to use these lines with the "noví kamarádi" you mentioned in your previous post so you should use version 1 for both sentences.


    Your daughter and her family live very far from you
    1) Vaše dcera a její rodina žijí od vás daleko.
    2) Tvoje dcera a její rodina žijí od tebe daleko.


    That has been a difficult sacrifice
    Byla velká oběť


    Your sacrifice has become a blessing to us
    1) Vaše oběť se stála požehnáním pro nás
    2) Tvoje oběť se stála požehnáním pro nás

    As I said before I'm not a native speaker of Czech so it would be nice if someone could confirm my translations.

    Lorenzo

    [This message has been edited by Lorenzo (edited 07-10-2003).]
     
  8. Dana

    Dana Well-Known Member

    Hi Tim,

    Again, Lorenzo did a great job translating your sentences. Here are just a few small edits:

    Your daughter and her family live very far from you.
    Vaše/Tvoje dcera a její rodina žijí od vás/tebe velmi daleko.
    ("velmi" was missing, which means "very")

    That has been a difficult sacrifice.
    Byla to velká oběť.
    ("to" needed to be added)

    Your sacrifice has become a blessing to us.
    Vaše/Tvoje oběť se pro nás stala požehnáním.
    ("stala", not "stála", and a slight change of word order)
     
  9. TimValenta

    TimValenta New Member

    Thanks for such quick replies! If I rely on my knowledge of Spanish, I would probably not speak to these people in the familiar. I do feel closer to them than complete strangers. My great grandparents came from Prague, but I am not related to these people. I will be speaking to two people when I attempt to not make a fool of myself!

    They will be coming to see their grandchild blessed at church here, so the setting will be somewhat formal, although I want it to be friendly.

    I hope that helps. I will spend my time practicing what you all have given me thus far. My next step will be to study more of the language itself.

    Thanks!

    Tim
     
  10. TimValenta

    TimValenta New Member

    Many thanks to you all for your help. The day was nothing short of great. I am sure that my pronunciation was not perfect, but the appreciation that my friends expressed for my efforts to speak a few words in Czech made the day!

    Thanks again,
    Tim
     

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