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ractu/ratcu - a tidbit
- To: John Cowan <cowan@SNARK.THYRSUS.COM>, Eric Raymond <eric@SNARK.THYRSUS.COM>, Eric Tiedemann <est@SNARK.THYRSUS.COM>
- Subject: ractu/ratcu - a tidbit
- From: Logical Language Group <cbmvax!uunet!GREBYN.COM!cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu!lojbab>
- Date: Wed, 5 Feb 1992 11:58:06 -0500
- Reply-To: Logical Language Group <cbmvax!uunet!GREBYN.COM!cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu!lojbab>
- Sender: Lojban list <cbmvax!uunet!CUVMA.BITNET!cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu!LOJBAN>
A tidbit from Athelstan:
People have on occasion noted the possibility of confusing ractu and
ratcu (rabbit and rat, respectively) because they sound so much alike.
Athelstan mentioned that there is a satisfying precedent for this type
of similarity. A familiar-to-many New Testament story has Jesus
chastising the Pharasees with a line translated as "Ye blind guides,
which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel." (Matt. 23:24) Lost in
translation is the fact that Jesus had a sense of humor - the statement
is wordplay in Aramaic - gnat is "galma" and camel is "gamla" (or vice
versa).
lojbab