Language desk
< September 7	<< Aug \| September \| Oct >>	September 9 >

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.

September 8

A Song that no one knows...

Hi! I have this really (seemingly simple) question that has stumped me for a while. I was surfing the web for a while when I found some music that I recognized as Starian (for those of you confused its from Pump it Up-like DDR-) as I was listening to the song, I realized that I had no idea what they were saying. I asked some of my friends (but not all) who are fluent in Chinese, Japanese, etc... to help me translate. They all said it sounded familiar but they didn't know what it said. My questions simply put: What are they saying?and What language is it?. Please help me out here! Link's below-

http://www.esnips.com/doc/0b5f037e-7f72-46c9-8470-7b677558179a/Starian

Thanks for your time!

♥ECH3LON ♥ 00:35, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Google searching leads me to believe this is Korean. This link states as much. However, I have been unable to find a translation, only romanizations (like this).-Andrew c ^[talk] 01:44, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I can't hear anything. Am I alone? (Using Firefox on MacOS.) —Tamfang 09:42, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It's in Korean. Artist: Duke, Title: Starian. You might want to search for "Duke Starian lyrics" or (in Korean) "듀크 스타리안 가사". --Kjoonlee 12:04, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I can't find the lyrics anywhere, and I can't make sense of the song. It's not too coherent. --Kjoonlee 12:32, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Rough lyrics based on a version found online then edited

저 회색 하늘이 너의 두눈에/ 비추어 도실 가르고 넌 현실 속에서/ 의식도 없이 내 앞에 다가와/ starian 내 모든 모든 기대가/(?) starian 천천히 나의 마음 속에 들어와/ 내 모든 것을 가져간/ starian 내 남은 것도 모두 네가 가져가/ (가둬둬 가둬둬) 가둬둬 가둬둬 날 가둬둬 제발 날 가둬둬

(unknown line)/ 다른 누구도 볼 수 없게/ 나만 새겨둬 꼭 새겨둬/ 나만 사랑 할 수 있게/ 너의 모습은 필요 없어/ 그저 니 마음이 필요 할 뿐/ 세상 누구와도 너를 포기 못해/ 너의 두 눈에 눈물이 흐른다 해도/

starian 내 모든 모든 기대가/ (?) starian 천천히 나의 마음 속에 들어와/ 내 모든 것을 가져간/ starian 내 남은 것도 모두 네가 가져가/

(가둬둬 가둬둬) 가둬둬 가둬둬 날 가둬둬 제발 날 가둬둬 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.202.87.23 (talk) 17:23, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

obo

What can the word 'obo' mean in the job offer if it is used in such a way "Compensation: obo"--80.252.131.163 15:47, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It could stand for "Or Best Offer." See our article OBO. —Daniel Šebesta {chat | contribs} 15:59, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

... though it's more usual to see 'obo' in an advertisement to sell something. —Tamfang 18:19, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks a lot.It's just it.--80.252.131.163 03:52, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

German Help

Hello,

I am studying German in school and am in my 3rd year (Junior). I am having some trouble with my German, mostly due to the whole Nominative, Dative, Accusative stuff (Direct and Indirect objects) and where to include them, how to figure out which one to use, etc. Due to this trouble, my sentence structure when I write is suffering. Is there any simple solution to help me? I had trouble with this in English class as well. Also, is there any easy way to memorize vocabulary? I find it quite tedious the way I currently do it, and if any of you have tips they would be greatly appreciated. I love learning the German language, and I hate being frustrated with it like I am if there could be a solution. Thank you very much!!!

MAP91 15:59, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I can answer one of your questions. I have learned several languages, including vocabulary. I never tried to memorize just a list of words. It's very useful to link the words with one another, to find synonyms and antonyms, hyponyms and hypernyms, to learn word-formation patterns (which rapidly widens your potentional vocabulary), to find etymologically related words in languages that you already know or other languages that you are studying, etc. —Daniel Šebesta {chat | contribs} 16:08, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

To be really basic about this, English has these cases (Nominative, Dative, Accusative) as well, but since they are not very noticeable. A place where they become more visible is in pronouns. I, he, she, we, they are pronouns in the Nominative case. This case is used mostly to say who did something (acting as subject of a verb). Me, him, her, us, them are mainly in the Accusative case. They tell you who or what an action was performed on (direct object of a verb). In German the accusative is also used with some prepositions especially to express motion towards a place or thing. The Dative is the case of the indirect object: to me, to him, her etc. However in English we don't need to use "to" when the sentence is unambiguous. The Dative is also used with some prepositions in German, especially to express the position or location of something.

English is somewhat exceptional in European languages in its apparent lack of cases, and once you get the hang of them in German you will find that many other European languages have similar case structures. Good luck! SaundersW 21:48, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The English noun has two cases, the common (sometimes called the nominative), and the possessive (sometimes called the genitive). DuncanHill 23:27, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Saunders' guide is pretty good. To be even more basic: if something is doing the verb, it's nominative; if the verb is being done to it, it's accusative. If you're saying 'to something', that something is dative. If you're saying 'of something', that something is genitive. There are other places where the dative is used, and prepositions can require different cases, but that's the basics. "I hit him" - 'I' is nominative, because I am doing the hitting; 'him' is accusative, because he is being hit. "My father's car" = "The car of my father" - 'My father' is genitive (thinking of 'genesis' meaning 'beginning' might help remember this). "I gave it to him" - 'Him' is dative. Skittle 18:11, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The above explanation is itself very good. Wrapping your head around the terms (and they are just that, fancy descriptive words) can be hard at the beginning, but once you start to get some of the underlying structure in the language it gets easier. As for how to learn vocabulary more easily, I recommend reading stuff in German. It may sound overly simple, but it (especially if you write down and review unknown terms and use the words in conversation) is really helpful. If what you find online, for example, is too hard, ask your teacher for some easy reading material. Classicalclarinet 13:16, 10 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

After research no clear answer: "What's the difference between Professor, Teacher, instructor?"

Hello, This is my first time using this part of the site so be patient with me. Last week we recieved an assignment in class to write a 6-12 page paper (12-14 for me, that's what I get for being smart, LOL!)on this question; "What's the difference between Professor, Teacher, instructor?" I did a LOT of surfing, most of the best stuff was on "professor" and most of it located here. As far as "Teacher" and "Instructor" I got a lot of scocial info, such as the differences in how the word is used here,(US)as opposed to the UK or India. That information is great, don't get me wrong, but I'm looking for a more literal definition. I need for some one to explain the DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THEM. That's what my Professor wants, and so.... The thing is no matter what the source is I run into the same problem; It redirects back to "Professor" every time I try to look up "Teacher" or "Instructor" Or, there is just really poor information. Something like "Teacher: One who teaches." It's a fair amount of information, GOOD information. I'd just like the specific info we need for this class. I'd like it to be there for my class mates and future surfers. Thanks Kurikeshi —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kurikeshi (talk • contribs) 17:05, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

These words overlap in meaning. This varies a bit by country, but what you want is a good dictionary, with illustrative quotations, such as the OED. (Surfing the web will not help much with this sort of question.) In the UK, a professor (who is also a teacher and instructor) teaches in a university. An instructor is also a teacher, but usually of more practical subjects, such as a driving instructor. Most "teachers" teach in schools.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 18:12, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Generally, in the US (at least the bits of it I'm from), a teacher is someone who teaches, typically in a school or other academic setting; an instructor would be someone who instructs, typically in a non-academic setting; professor almost always means a college-level teacher. Example: kindergarten teacher, high-school teacher, swimming instructor, ballet instructor, college professor. Kuronue | Talk 05:55, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It isn't quite right that a professor teaches in a university. There are exceptions, such as the professors of Gresham College. As pointed out above, the words professor, teacher, and instructor are used differently from one country to another, and you need to know that that's true of the words school and college, too. We can't even say for the whole English-speaking world that a professor almost always means a 'college-level teacher', because in the UK most colleges are either what the US would call high schools or else are houses of a collegiate university which usually (but not always) leave the appointing of professors to the university as a whole. Xn4 10:47, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

This sounds like an extremely difficult topic to write 12-14 pages on...there's really not that much to say. -Elmer Clark 22:09, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

In many countries, the title of professor is a highly regarded academic title, that takes years and years of work and status-gaining to achieve. In many places in europe there will only be a single professor for each (narrowly defined) resarch field at a university. Researching the standards required for such a title could perhaps provide you with content for a page or two if you need it. /65.219.168.142 04:41, 11 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I second the anon above. Becoming Oxford Professor of Poetry or a Regius Professor is much more than becoming a teacher. List_of_Professorships_at_the_University_of_Cambridge is also helpful, even though it concerns an inferior university. Seektruthfromfacts 04:37, 13 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Further/farther

Is there any difference in meaning between the words further and farther? Wiktionary gives both the same definition, but it seems odd that two words would evolve to be similar, but not identical, to the other, especially as neither seems to be an Americanism/Britishism of the other. Laïka 19:20, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Farther is a measure of distance in space, like "I moved the book farther away." further is used to measure time or degree, like "for further information" or "moved the date further back (in time)" Make sense? Lauren^whisper 20:23, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

But some people use "further" with both meanings. --Anon, 21:42 UTC, September 8.

I know I've answered this recently, but can't find the thread. Farther is simply a variant spelling of further. Chambers Dictionary says farther (and its derivatives) is the same as further (and its derivatives), and is sometimes preferred when the notion of distance is more prominent. DuncanHill 08:37, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Here we are, was a slightly different question, but relevant. Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Archives/Language/2007_August_23#Further. DuncanHill 11:10, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Another distinction: for the (somewhat rare) verb form, farther is not in current use, only further. Algebraist 16:00, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

"Farther" is the comparative form of "far"; it means "more far". "Further" is the comparative form of "fore"; it means "more forward". Hope this clears things up for you. -- Dominus 17:04, 14 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Spanish abuuu ;_;

What does "abuu..." mean in Spanish? At this youtube video, it is translated as *sad* but what does it "officially" mean? HYENASTE 20:58, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I've never heard this word before, and I didn't hear it in the Youtube video either, unless it's part of the unintelligible gibberish the child says after he's done, or it's in one of the over 3000 comments. If it does mean something, it's nothing more than Spanish babyspeak.--El aprendelenguas 21:21, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It's in the intro written by the video's poster, which is in both English and Spanish:

this child is amazing. His name is Ryota, he is only 5 years old and he is an expert dancing Dance Dance Revolution!!! even better than me!! (shame on me, I'm 20 years old *sad*)

Miren a este engendro prodigio. Su nombre es Ryota, tiene 5 años y... ¡es un experto bailando Dance Dance Revolution! ¡Incluso mejor que yo! (que vergüenza... yo tengo 20 abuuu ;_;)

--Miskwito 21:24, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

From the context, it is probably an onomatopoeic representation of crying: it sounds similar to the English "boo hoo" (note that the translation is enclosed in *asterisks*, which normally represents an non-verbal communication in webslang (*cough*, *sigh* etc.), and ";_;" is an emoticon representing a crying face). Laïka 21:40, 8 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Well, without watching the video, I can tell you that Ryota is a Japanese boy's name, and I'm sure you know that Dance Dance Revolution is a Japanese game. Maybe it's not a coincidence that the Japanese baby word for crying is 'buu' or even 'abuu'.--Manga 00:04, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The poster's name (momoneko) is also Japanese. --Lambiam 06:56, 9 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2007 September 8

Contents