Your English dictionary
Do you speak Doric?
Hvis du kommer fra Om Poe-siden, ved du allerede, hvad doric er. Hvis ikke tænker du måske, at det er et intergalaktisk sprog, som jeg har opfundet (jeg forestiller mig, at det er et sprog, man godt kunne finde i Star Wars).
I'm not that creative, though, but thank you for believing in me!
Doric is the dialect spoken in Aberdeen, Scotland - a weird and wonderful accent, which sounds like absolute gibberish and yet familiar. How? Because there are little bits of Denmark hidden in the gibberish:
Quine
is a kvinde in Danish and is pronounced qvini.
Ta
means tak or thank you.
Ken
is a name, yes, but it also translates to at kende or to know.
And then there's my absolute favourite greeting in Doric: Foos yer doos?
If you've not already seen this one in action on my digital platforms, trust me, you will! It doesn't sounds Danish at all, but actually translates to: Hvordan har dine duer det? or How are your pigeons?... Yes, pigeons.
Doos, duer... Can you hear it?
Essentially, it's just a different way of asking how someone's doing.
But why, Anne-Kathrine?
Why are you telling me about pigeons, Ken and Doric? For two reasons:
- because Poe is as Scottish as it's Danish.
It's the love child of my many years in Aberdeen and my Danish roots so, obviously, we can't just ignore Doric.
- because (are you ready for the sales pitch?) no one - not even your target audience - just speaks English.
Ligesom vi på dansk heller ikke ’bare’ taler dansk, men taler fynsk, vestjysk, sønderjysk, bornholmsk, osv., så taler dine internationale kunder heller ikke ’bare’ engelsk. De taler britisk-engelsk eller amerikansk-engelsk, australsk-engelsk, canadisk-engelsk. Og hver enkelt har deres særheder.
No doubt you heard the word y’all on your holiday in Texas; when you went to Australia, you probably went to a barbie with your mate; and at that pub in England, you definitely had a pint or ten and got sloshed.
Each country has its own dialect, slang and sayings.
Obviously after having lived in the UK for eight years, everything I write for Poe is in UK English. But have you ever wondered how you write? Or do you just wing it? Sometimes you write behaviour (UK English) and other times behavior (US English)? Now, you might even start using Foos yer doos? because what a great little phrase that is.
And in the big picture, it really doesn't matter how you write in English; we all understand you, whether you write behaviour or behavior.
But – because I obviously have to make a case for proper language usage – English is so much more than a method of communicating; it is part of your international image, how the world sees you. So, it does matter if you jump between dialects. Before for a Brit, behavior is spelled wrong, just like metre is for an American, and if you don't even know how to spell, how can your client expect you to help them with their problem?
Maybe that's an exaggeration but think about the impression you'd be left with if you went on a website full of spelling mistakes.
And it doesn't have to take ages figuring out what dialect you use. Du kan tage 10 minutter lige nu og hoppe over på din hjemmeside eller scrolle igennem dine nyhedsbreve – hvad ser du?
Not sure what to look for? I'm putting together a quick-guide which shows you the primary differences between US English and UK English, so keep your eyes peeled!
If you still can't quite make sense of it, send me a message or take advantage of the offer I've got on just now! I'm here to help you establish a professional English tone of voice so you can reach your international customers.
Ikke helt færdig med at nørde?
I’ve got you!
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Poe | Proof & Edit
English proofreading, copywriting & translations
CVR DK43254790