This Reminds Me

Lois’ friend Brooke just returned from a six-week educational program in Japan bearing souvenir shirts for my three eldest:

For Lois – who plans to wear it the first day of school

For Rachel – You may need to read this more than once for understanding.  Or not.

For Hannah – Who’d like to know who, too?

I was chuckling reading these shirts’ messages, remembering some advertising slogans that didn’t translate well.  I ran across them about eight years ago, launching the original SBC Espanol site.

Coors’ “Turn It Loose” in Spanish became “Suffer from Diarrhea.”

The Dairy Association’s “Got Milk?” in Spanish translated to “Are You Lactating?”

Pepsi’s “Come Alive with the Pepsi Generation” morphed into China’s “Bring Your Ancestors Back from the Grave.”

KFC’s “Finger Lickin’ Good” translated to “Eat Your Fingers Off” in Chinese.

“Jolly Green Giant” in Arabic became “Intimidating Green Ogre.”

The chicken slogan, “It takes a strong man to make tender chicken” was translated into Spanish as “It takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate.”

Those slogans are every translator’s nightmare.

Maybe even T-shirt slogan translators?!

Lois and Brooke at our church’s “Around the World” Women’s Spring Fling – Who knew she’d be a world traveler so soon?!  Ah, Brookie-san – frank you!

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