Ilunga

Ilunga

Ilunga is a relatively common personal name in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In June 2004, it was reported as being the world's most difficult word to translate. This claim was made by a British translation company, Today Translations, based on its survey of 1,000 linguists. According to Jurga Zilinskiene (head of Today Translations), the difficulty in translating the words picked out by the survey is not finding the meaning of these words, but rather conveying their cultural connotations and overtones.

Ilunga, described as a word from the Bantu language of Tshiluba, was said to mean "a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time, to tolerate it a second time, but never a third time". However, there is no independent evidence that the word actually means what the translation company claims. When asked for confirmation by one reporter, representatives of the Congo government recognized the word only as a personal name. Furthermore, the translation company failed to respond to inquiries regarding the survey, made by the same reporter.

Ilunga as a family name

Ilunga is a family name placed before the given name. There are many famous African and African-descended people named Ilunga. For example:

* Kalala Ilunga, legendary founder of the Luba ethnic group of Democratic Republic of Congo
* Bendele Ilunga, boxer, Belgium
* Didier Ilunga-Mbenga, basketball, Congo, joined Dallas Mavericks in July 2004
* Dorah Ilunga Kabulu, politician, Belgium
* Enock Ilunga, painter, Zambia
* Ferousi Ilunga, boxer, Congo
* Ilunga A. Kalonzo Ilunga, politician, Congo
* Ilunga Katele, traditional culture hero, royal ancestor of the Chokwe people
* Martin-Léonard Bakole wa Ilunga (deceased), Catholic archbishop, Congo
* Gen. Ilunga Shamanga (deceased), Congo, Army General, last interior minister of Mobutu's regime, and later prominent member of the Congolese Rally for Democracy rebel group.
* Ilunga Mwepu
* Kasongo Ilunga Congolese politician

Tshiluba is a language spoken in the southeastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

ources

* MacIntyre, Ben. "Why do Koreans say "a biscuit would be nice" instead of "I want a biscuit"?", The Times, August 21, 2004.

ee also

* Words hardest to translate

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3830521.stm BBC News: Congo word "most untranslatable"]
* [http://www.todaytranslations.com Today Translations] -- with the [http://www.todaytranslations.com/index.asp?PageKind=NewsItem&RefID=37203181&PageNumber=1 survey result]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ilunga — ist ein relativ häufiger Familienname in der Demokratischen Republik Kongo. Im Jahr 2004 hat die britische Übersetzungsagentur Today Translations durch eine Befragung von 1000 Linguisten das Wort Ilunga zum schwerstübersetzbaren aller Wörter… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ilunga Mbili — was a warrior, hunter, prophet and the civilizing hero and patriarch of the Luba and Lunda people. Origins The details of his origins are not complete, though it’s commonly known that he was a prince of royal descent from the Beta Israel also… …   Wikipedia

  • Ilunga Tshibinda — was a Kingdom of Luba emperor and Lunda. Tshibinda Ilunga was the second son of Ilunga Mbidi and younger brother Kalala Ilunga.At the seizure of power by Kalala Ilunga, Ilunga Tshibinda decided to leave his brother s empire is too small for both …   Wikipedia

  • Ilunga Tshibinda — fut un prince Luba et empereur Lunda. Ilunga Tshibinda fut le second fils de Ilunga Mbidi et petit frère de Kalala Ilunga. A la prise du pouvoir par Kalala Ilunga, Ilunga Tshibinda décida de partir, l’empire étant trop « petit » pour… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ilunga Mbidi — Ilunga Mbili Ilunga Mbidi (ou Ilunga Mbili) Kilue fut un prince Kunda (tribu proche des Bahemba, à l’est de la province du Tanganyika en République démocratique du Congo) qui fut réputé comme étant un grand guerrier. En excursion à l’ouest, avec… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ilunga Mbili — Ilunga Mbidi (ou Ilunga Mbili) Kilue fut un prince Kunda (tribu proche des Bahemba, à l’est de la province du Tanganyika en République démocratique du Congo) qui fut réputé comme étant un grand guerrier. En excursion à l’ouest, avec ses siens, il …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ilunga Shamanga — Le général Ilunga Shamanga, décédé le 15 juin[Quand ?] à Johannesburg, en Afrique du Sud, est un officier général congolais ayant exercé les fonctions de Ministre de l intérieur et de chef d état major particulier du président Mobutu. Sommaire 1… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ilunga Mwepu — Mwepu Ilunga (born August 22, 1949) is a former football defender from Zaire (now DR Congo). His name is also written as Alunga Mwepu .1974 World CupHe played for his country during the 1974 FIFA World Cup, where he became famous for running out… …   Wikipedia

  • Ilunga Shamamba — Celestin Ilunga Shamanga Le Général de Brigade Célestin Ilunga Shamamga est né le 4 février 1954. Diplômé de l École spéciale militaire de Saint Cyr à Coëtquidan , et de l Ecole d Application du Génie d Angers en 1973. Il a été à l… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ilunga Shamamga — Celestin Ilunga Shamanga Le Général de Brigade Célestin Ilunga Shamamga est né le 4 février 1954. Diplômé de l École spéciale militaire de Saint Cyr à Coëtquidan , et de l Ecole d Application du Génie d Angers en 1973. Il a été à l… …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”