Irish Twins

Dutch translation: "Irish twins"

17:30 Jul 2, 2013

English to Dutch translations [PRO]
Slang

English term or phrase: Irish Twins

Example: My sister and I were born 11 months apart. We were known in our family as Irish twins.

Explanation:

The roots of the idea behind the term are actually quite old, although no one knows when, exactly, people first began to talk about Irish twins. In both England and the United States, a massive influx of Irish immigration in the 1800s led to a negative connotation with Irish people and society. This often happens when a large immigrant group begins to settle in mass numbers in a new country. The Irish were accused of being backwards and uncultured, and it was assumed that they were uneducated, dirty, and a general pox on society. As a result, the use of the word “Irish” began to be pejorative.

A number of derogatory terms incorporating stereotypes about the Irish began to emerge, including “Irish confetti” for thrown bricks and “Irish kiss” for a slap. Irish twins fits into this vernacular, and is actually insulting on multiple levels.

Firstly, the term pokes fun at the stereotypical fertility of Irish Catholic families, which traditionally do not use birth control. In addition, it implies that the Irish lack the ability to plan ahead or control themselves, having children in quick succession rather than responsibly spacing them. Finally, it suggests that the Irish do not understand the medical definition of twins, which involves two children conceived and born together.

Marcel van Dijk Not a translator KudoZ activity Questions: 8 (1 open) Answers: 7 Netherlands
Local time: 12:29

Dutch translation:"Irish twins"

Explanation:
Leuke discussie en uitleg. Als ik je zin lees zonder verdere context van het verhaal, zou ik het ook nog een optie vinden om de term onvertaald te laten en een uitleg mee te geven als 'vertaling':
Mijn zus en ik schelen 11 maanden. Omdat we zo kort na elkaar geboren zijn, noemt onze familie ons de "Irish twins".
Succes!

Selected response from:

Philine Veldhuijsen
Netherlands
Local time: 12:29

Grading comment

4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

4 +1

Ierse tweeling

Lianne van de Ven

katholiek nest

Lianne van de Ven

3 +1

"Irish twins"

Philine Veldhuijsen

bijna-tweeling

Ellen Soors

Discussion entries: 7

Barend van Zadelhoff

Netherlands

20:00 Jul 2, 2013

This is the sentence to be translated - no problem, I think it works here as well

"XXX and YYY are 9 months apart and are not Irish twins – we have had the privilege to adopt XXX from China."

Tussen de geboorte van XXX en YYY zit 9 maanden en ze zijn geen schoolvoorbeeld van katholieke vruchtbaarheid :-) - we hebben het voorrecht genoten om XXX vanuit China te kunnen/mogen adopteren.

Lianne van de Ven

United States

19:49 Jul 2, 2013

Maar het hier gaat om twee Chinese adopteerde kinderen. "Not Irish twins" is bijna een grapje...

Barend van Zadelhoff

Netherlands

19:04 Jul 2, 2013

Ik ging hier vanuit:

My sister and I were born 11 months apart. We were known in our family as Irish twins.

Mijn zuster is 11 maanden na mij geboren. In onze familie werd over ons gesproken als een schoolvoorbeeld van katholieke vruchtbaarheid.

Lianne van de Ven

United States

18:58 Jul 2, 2013

Maar hoe past dit in de gevraagde context?

Barend van Zadelhoff

Netherlands

18:54 Jul 2, 2013

Ik zou meer denken aan iets als:

In onze familie werd over ons gesproken als een schoolvoorbeeld van katholieke vruchtbaarheid.

In Nederland in de vorige eeuw drongen paters er bij katholieke gezinnen op aan om veel kinderen te produceren, o.a. om tegenover de protestanten een grotere vuist te kunnen maken, het was echt een soort beleid, 'veelkindpolitiek' :-)

Mede dankzij een scherpe terugval in de katholieke vruchtbaarheid, maar met name door uittreding stijgt het aandeel van de onkerkelijken halverwege de jaren tachtig in Limburg tot bijna een kwart, in Noord-Brabant al tot ruim een derde van de bevolking.

http://tinyurl.com/lo336j4

Please note:
Cassell's Dictionary of Slang

Irish twins (20C) two siblings born within a 12-month period [the stereotypical fecundity-and lack of contraceptive practices-of Irish families]

Marcel van Dijk

Netherlands

ASKER

18:00 Jul 2, 2013

A father talking about his daughters and using the term in the exact sense the Urban Dictionary provides:

"XXX and YYY are 9 months apart and are not Irish twins – we have had the privilege to adopt XXX from China."

Lianne van de Ven

United States

context

17:48 Jul 2, 2013

Hi, you provided context out of the Urban dictionary (without referencing it, btw). There is also a movie called "Irish twins". Could you please provide the specific purpose of YOUR translation query?

Thanks.

Answers

35 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

irish twins Ierse tweeling

Explanation:
It is hard to translate all of the connotations that you describe.
As for a literal translation, this would be it: Ierse tweeling
http://autumn-leave.skynetblogs.be/archive/2006/09/19/ierse-...

X en Y verschillen 9 maanden met elkaar en zijn geen Ierse tweeling.

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Note added at 40 mins (2013-07-02 18:10:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

If you want to localize it, you could say:
X en Y verschillen 9 maanden met elkaar maar komen niet uit een katholiek nest.

That would at least get something across about the large number of children that catholic families used to get. I think however that that would imply X and Y are not siblings altogether. Is that correct?

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Note added at 43 mins (2013-07-02 18:13:31 GMT)
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Now that I think of it this way, I think that would be the best translation for Irish twins = katholiek nest (literally "catholic nest")

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Note added at 52 mins (2013-07-02 18:22:49 GMT)
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As for myself, "katholiek nest" definitely refers to the fertility aspect of the parents.
These days, actually, there is little in catholic context that does NOT refer to anything sex-related, unfortunately (yes, I am a "recovering catholic" as they call us in the US).

Lianne van de Ven
United States
Local time: 06:29
Native speaker of:

Dutch
PRO pts in category: 4

Notes to answerer

Asker: I don't know. To me, een Ierse Tweeling is just that: twins from Ireland. That's also what Google comes up with - more specifically with the famous Eurovision twins John Grimes en Edward Grimes. The one exception is the Autumn Leave blog, whose poster immediately provides an explanation, acknowledging that to the Dutch, the term doesn't ring the intended bell. I've thought of katholiek nest too, but the problem there is that the term is used to refer to the religious background of the family, and not usually to the fertility of the parents.

45 mins confidence:

irish twins katholiek nest

Explanation:
This would be the localized translation for "Irish twins".
See my comments under that entry.

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Note added at 55 mins (2013-07-02 18:25:18 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I believe "katholiek nest" does have the connotation of fertility.

Lianne van de Ven
United States
Local time: 06:29
Native speaker of:

Dutch
PRO pts in category: 4

16 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

irish twins

"Irish twins"

Philine Veldhuijsen
Netherlands
Local time: 12:29
Native speaker of: Dutch
PRO pts in category: 4

Notes to answerer

Asker: Ik heb uiteindelijk deze suggestie gevolgd, mede omdat het beoogde lezerspubliek hoog opgeleid is en vaak Engels spreekt.

18 hrs confidence:

irish twins bijna-tweeling

Explanation:
Ik zou er zoiets van maken. Dat is uiteindelijk wat bedoeld wordt en ik denk niet dat veel Nederlandstaligen 'Ierse tweeling' of 'Irish twins' zouden begrijpen. Het hangt natuurlijk wel van je tekst af of je die connotatie kan laten vallen.

Ellen Soors
Local time: 05:29
Native speaker of:

Dutch,

Flemish

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