Word Geek’s summer tour: taking a linguistic snapshot

The sun is out and the long days of summer await us. Join Word Geek as they uncover how different regions and cultures use language to speak about summer.

English is characterised by idioms, including to soak up the sun to describe the joy of spending time outdoors in sunny weather, or as cool as a cucumber to stay calm in a difficult situation. Of course, no conversation about the British weather would be complete without reference to rain and storms. A favorite Word Geek expression is steal my thunder, originating from the literary critic and playwright, John Dennis who, in 1704, invented a new way to create the sound of thunder for his play. Unfortunately, after the play closed early, the method was used in another playwright’s production of Macbeth and Dennis is reported to have said ‘They will not let my play run, but they steal my thunder.’

Moving into continental Europe, our first stop is Spain where a popular summer phrase is un calor de justicia, literally translated as a heat of justice, to describe a particularly bright and hot day when the sun almost feels like a punishment. Another well-known expression is en verano, hasta las plantas se mudan a la sombra which translates to in summer, even the plants move to the shade, referring to a particularly hot day.  But Word Geek’s top pick is obremesa meaning on the table, that time spent relaxing after a meal, just chatting with friends and family and enjoying a coffee. A tradition we’re sure many countries would like to adopt at any time of the year! 😉

From French we get fondre comme neige au soleil, literally translated as to melt away like snow in the sun, to describe things that disappear quickly, similar to ice melting on a hot summer day. Who hasn’t felt like that in our latest heatwave?;) While German gives us Summerloch or summer hole, the time when schools and business are closed for the summer and there’s a break from the usual busy routine.

Word Geek continues their linguistic tour, going north where Denmark gives them Morgenfrisk literally meaning morning fresh, when you wake up feeling well-rested after a good night’s sleep, and Sólarfrí or sun vacation In Iceland. This is the term used for a day off or early finish for workers to be able to enjoy an unexpected warm sunny day.

Moving continents, Arabic has some fun summer-related words, including sahabat alsayf or summer cloud, when an issue can be solved as easily as the sun burning the clouds away on a sunny day, and tarab meaning enchantment. Regarded as almost untranslatable, it’s a musical term for something mesmerising, such as a great guitar riff, a profound lyric or a stirring instrumental that can lull an audience almost into a dream-like state.

From Asia, Work Geek highlights the phrase Rè Nao in Mandarin, meaning somewhere you want to be, used to explain an exciting event, such as a lively party or great street parade. While Japanese gives us karo tōsen, literally translated as summer furnace, winter fan, to explain something out of place, like a winter jumper bought in a summer sale.

We hope you have enjoyed Word Geek’s magical mystery language tour.

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