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When should we use commas?
Mental block help needed here – the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had an eye injury resulting in blindness in one eye in spite of measure including "lying in a darkened room" blah blah. Is it correct or does a person lay in a ... ? Thanks, Julia Rossi ( talk) 04:49, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold
And his cohorts were gleaming in silver and gold
For the sheen of his spear was as blue as the sea
Where the moon shines so brightly on deep Galilee
This is a poem I studied over 40 years ago and I have forgotten the name of it. I would like to reread it in its entirety now that I am an adult.
Thanks for any help... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.195.109.135 ( talk) 11:41, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
Does Máj mean the month of May or something in Czech? If it isn't then what does the title of the epic poem by Mácha mean? Exactly how is it pronounced? (It's not like English for sure, but I can't imagine it otherwise.) By the way, I cannot read IPA. 203.188.92.70 ( talk) 13:54, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
In the 18th century, Quakers named the months and days of the week with numbers, because they objected to references to pagan gods and goddesses [2] AnonMoos ( talk) 12:20, 1 November 2008 (UTC)
To me, the whole topic of Slavic month names is fascinating. Generally, modern Slavic languages can be divided into those that use Latin-derived names only (e.g. Russian, Slovak), those that retain old Slavic names (e.g. Czech, Ukrainian), and those that mix Latin and Slavic names (e.g. Polish). The Slavic names are all derived from natural phenomena or labors of the month, a little like French Revolutionary month names. This is what it looks like in Czech:
Month in English | Month in Czech | Meaning of the root word | Month in English | Month in Czech | Meaning of the root word | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January | leden | ice | July | červenec | worm (referring to the Polish cochineal) | |
February | únor | to float (referring to ice floe) | August | srpen | sickle | |
March | březen | birch | September | září | rut | |
April | duben | oak | October | říjen | rut | |
May | květen | flowers | November | listopad | falling leaves | |
June | červen | worm (referring to the Polish cochineal) | December | prosinec | to shine through (referring to the sun shining through the clouds) |
To those who speak at least some French, I recommend this website with a comparative table of month names and their meanings in all Slavic languages. — Kpalion (talk) 13:26, 1 November 2008 (UTC)
The Slovaks use Latin month names, probably to differentiate themselves from the Czechs just like the Croats. I think the word "Máj" was popular during the Communist era in Czechoslovakia; for example, the downtown Tesco store used to be a store called Máj. -- Mwalcoff ( talk) 03:42, 2 November 2008 (UTC)
Language desk | ||
---|---|---|
< October 30 | << Sep | October | Nov >> | November 1 > |
Welcome to the Wikipedia Language Reference Desk Archives |
---|
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages. |
When should we use commas?
Mental block help needed here – the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had an eye injury resulting in blindness in one eye in spite of measure including "lying in a darkened room" blah blah. Is it correct or does a person lay in a ... ? Thanks, Julia Rossi ( talk) 04:49, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold
And his cohorts were gleaming in silver and gold
For the sheen of his spear was as blue as the sea
Where the moon shines so brightly on deep Galilee
This is a poem I studied over 40 years ago and I have forgotten the name of it. I would like to reread it in its entirety now that I am an adult.
Thanks for any help... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.195.109.135 ( talk) 11:41, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
Does Máj mean the month of May or something in Czech? If it isn't then what does the title of the epic poem by Mácha mean? Exactly how is it pronounced? (It's not like English for sure, but I can't imagine it otherwise.) By the way, I cannot read IPA. 203.188.92.70 ( talk) 13:54, 31 October 2008 (UTC)
In the 18th century, Quakers named the months and days of the week with numbers, because they objected to references to pagan gods and goddesses [2] AnonMoos ( talk) 12:20, 1 November 2008 (UTC)
To me, the whole topic of Slavic month names is fascinating. Generally, modern Slavic languages can be divided into those that use Latin-derived names only (e.g. Russian, Slovak), those that retain old Slavic names (e.g. Czech, Ukrainian), and those that mix Latin and Slavic names (e.g. Polish). The Slavic names are all derived from natural phenomena or labors of the month, a little like French Revolutionary month names. This is what it looks like in Czech:
Month in English | Month in Czech | Meaning of the root word | Month in English | Month in Czech | Meaning of the root word | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January | leden | ice | July | červenec | worm (referring to the Polish cochineal) | |
February | únor | to float (referring to ice floe) | August | srpen | sickle | |
March | březen | birch | September | září | rut | |
April | duben | oak | October | říjen | rut | |
May | květen | flowers | November | listopad | falling leaves | |
June | červen | worm (referring to the Polish cochineal) | December | prosinec | to shine through (referring to the sun shining through the clouds) |
To those who speak at least some French, I recommend this website with a comparative table of month names and their meanings in all Slavic languages. — Kpalion (talk) 13:26, 1 November 2008 (UTC)
The Slovaks use Latin month names, probably to differentiate themselves from the Czechs just like the Croats. I think the word "Máj" was popular during the Communist era in Czechoslovakia; for example, the downtown Tesco store used to be a store called Máj. -- Mwalcoff ( talk) 03:42, 2 November 2008 (UTC)