I need a phrase decoded please.

They speak essentially German with their own version

You live in Bucks Country and can't find someone locally to "decode" it for you?

Send it to me in a private message (Scott might appreciate it not showing up on his web site). I'll try to interpret it for you unless it's something really fowl. It happens.

Bob

If you drive over to Berks County you can't swing a dead cat and not hit 50 people that speak Pennsylvania Dutch. Like Rich said, the dialect varies somewhat, so an exact interpretation varies depending on who you are talking to.

Bob

Sent

When speaking in either German or Pennsylvania Dutch sometimes the words are transposed. Hose pollen soc nix is not totally familiar to me but essentially it means You should not talk, or "It's not your place to talk".

I don't recognize hosh but Believe that it means "Place" but mollen means "should" soc is a German dialect I also don't recognize and nix obviously means no. A similar phrase in Pennsylvania Dutch is "hoc de grewa" (Probably not spelled correctly) or "you should not talk/speak", or simply "Be quiet".

Perhaps not a lot of help but there are so many German/Dutch dialects it's difficult to be accurate.

Bob

German itself is a difficult language and like our own English has many dialects and local slang sayings.

No different than America really. Some sayings various parts of our country are really unknown unless your familiar with them.

The Pa. Dutch really have some unique sayings and foods and traditions.

I am German and took German in high school for a year + and guarantee I could not understand someone speaking straight up German no less the Pa. Dutch version.

They are some very unique folks and there are the Amish and then the Mennonites and some very big differences there as well.

Whatever the saying is if you Google it and look at translations from German to English it should help.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: SCDIV1,

I should have mentioned that I lived on a farm Sheerlund Farm) south of Reading in Berks County. My Shatzi (Girl friend) at the time spoke fluent Pennsylvania Dutch and some German.

I am very familiar with the word NIX, she used it a lot.

Bob

Amish don't own or drive cars, or at least they shouldn't. Mennonites can own and drive a car but they paint all the chrome items black. I had a few Mennonite friends that liked to race, well actually street race.

Bob

Your right on Bob.

The Mennonites drive cars and use electricity and many modern things. Amish mostly no but I’m sure no expert. Always found it interesting that they can live like that in today’s world down there.

The Mennonites do have lots of restrictions but nowhere near what the strict Amish do.

My buddy took us one time to a place called “The Goods Store” run by Mennonites not far from the track. And we stopped to eat at some other places nearby. A very different environment for sure.

My pronunciation and spelling is not correct I’m sure.
Granns been gone 10 years so I haven’t heard the phrase in quite awhile. But I do know what she wanted us to do when she spoke it.
I’m not sure where she picked it up.
My granddaughter is 5 and tends to chatter a bit so I thought it may be nice to bring back and wanted to use the correct phrase.

2 of my grandparents were born in Germany

My fathers mother always used German sayings and I heard her say them many times. Really did not know exactly what she was saying.

My father used numerous sayings from a mixture of languages. We lived in a somewhat Polish neighborhood so I got Polish sayings mixed in!

I still use some of them and people look at me and say what ? Lol

Years ago we were building Aerial Fire Trucks in Ephrata Penn. LTI American La France. Out front were Amish farms... we watched an older gent come down the street in his buggy trotting along.., parked in the barn and he led the horse out to the pasture. Minutes later the door pops open and the guy drives away in a Toyota corolla! It was really funny at the time! I also got to tour the country there, Blue Balls, Intercourse ( yes I bought there FD shirt! love the history there!

Nice country up there..Had an Aerial repaired at LTI / La France probably back in 2004??

Funny the phrases you pick up over the years.

I never heard any Italian phrases from my dads father whose parents came over in 1900 or so from da boot.

I use many Italian slang sayings. Had a friend born in Italy and his father was from Yugoslavia so I have some of those too.

Very funny stuff and mostly X rated

Lol don’t be a Dumpfkoff

And the funny way things are said like "throw me over the screwdriver"

quote:

Lol don’t be a Dumpfkoff

LOL. Use to work in Saudi Arbia, had a German that had less that enjoyable encounter with the top ranking Arab on location. His departing comment was "Ma Salama Dumpfkoff".

Dummkopf is the correct spelling

I always loved "schweinehund" and that's way worse then being a Dummkopf