Hokkien Jokes
tng-kha-chuinn / tng-kha-chng
Well, this isn't a joke, but an amusing expression I remembered from my youth.
My parents would have visitors (friends of theirs), and they would sit chatting to my parents in the living room. And then after a few hours, it would be time for them to go home, so that would say "Oh, I suppose it's time to go". And my parents would get up and see them to the door. At the door, they would think of something else to talk about, and stand in the veranda and talk for another 10-15 minutes. And then they would say "Oh, we really must be going", and they would get into the car. Sitting in the car, with the windows wound down, they would think of something else to talk about, and spend yet another 10-15 minutes talking.
When they FINALLY drove off, my parents would say: "a yo! ci-le lang, anE tng-kha-chuinn e!", in Amoy: "a yo! cit-e lang, ani tng-kha-chng e!" (= "o dear, those people have such long backsides!").
I suppose the image is derived from the fact that even though they are standing on the veranda, mentally, their backsides are still on the seats in the living room, and even after they have got into the car, their backsides are *still* on the seats in the living room. Hence the term "long backsides"!
Did anyone else use this expression?
Cheers,
Sim.
My parents would have visitors (friends of theirs), and they would sit chatting to my parents in the living room. And then after a few hours, it would be time for them to go home, so that would say "Oh, I suppose it's time to go". And my parents would get up and see them to the door. At the door, they would think of something else to talk about, and stand in the veranda and talk for another 10-15 minutes. And then they would say "Oh, we really must be going", and they would get into the car. Sitting in the car, with the windows wound down, they would think of something else to talk about, and spend yet another 10-15 minutes talking.
When they FINALLY drove off, my parents would say: "a yo! ci-le lang, anE tng-kha-chuinn e!", in Amoy: "a yo! cit-e lang, ani tng-kha-chng e!" (= "o dear, those people have such long backsides!").
I suppose the image is derived from the fact that even though they are standing on the veranda, mentally, their backsides are still on the seats in the living room, and even after they have got into the car, their backsides are *still* on the seats in the living room. Hence the term "long backsides"!
Did anyone else use this expression?
Cheers,
Sim.
I seem to be having a fit of "off-topic posting madness" 
.
Well, it's related to Chinese language, and I'm putting it in the "Jokes" topic, so I guess I can be forgiven:
http://www.yellowbridge.com/onlinelit/stonelion.html
Cheers,
Sim.
.Well, it's related to Chinese language, and I'm putting it in the "Jokes" topic, so I guess I can be forgiven:
http://www.yellowbridge.com/onlinelit/stonelion.html
Cheers,
Sim.
That essay was funny, thanks Sim.
With the first pronounciation of the phrase you gave, was it Penang Hokkien? If so I would have thought it would have been pronounced "an e" in PH, not "anE" with the "er" sound. I don't speak Penang Hokkien so I'm not saying you're wrong, I'm just wondering about the pronounciation.When they FINALLY drove off, my parents would say: "a yo! ci-le lang, anE tng-kha-chuinn e!", in Amoy: "a yo! cit-e lang, ani tng-kha-chng e!" (= "o dear, those people have such long backsides!").
Jilang, you are always so *careful* when you query someone, in order not to give offense . Rest assured, your queries - with the prefaced remarks - never come across as challenging or disagreeable!
I say "a-nE", and use the "E" to mean "open-e". This sound is written in IPA as [ε] (looks like a Greek epsilon, in case your browser won't display the character), and in SAMPA (ASCII-IPA) as [E]. It sounds like the -e- in British English "get", "let", "set", "ben", etc. [I think that it's the same sound as Malay "sen", as in ringgit & sen, or "Sentosa" in Singapore.]
Penang Hokkien uses this sound a lot, for where Amoy has [e] or .
Amoy = Penang Hokkien [E]:
'a1-nE1' (like this), 'cE~2' (a well), 'chE~1' (green), 'chE~2' (awake), 'mE5' (night-time), 'mE7' (to scold), 'pE~7' (sickness), 'sE~1' (to be born, to give birth), 'tE~2' (to pretend).
Amoy [e] = Penang Hokkien [E]:
'bE2' (horse), 'gE5' (teeth), 'hE7' (to put), 'kE2' (false).
Well, after writing out these two lists, I see a pattern! If it's a nasal sound in Hokkien, then Penang Hokkien [E] corresponds to Amoy , and if it's a non-nasal sound, then Penang Hokkien [E] corresponds to Amoy [e].
The only other one I can think of is 'lEh4' (to drive over someone/something with a vehicle on wheels). I don't know how this is said in Amoy.
Cheers,
Sim.
. Rest assured, your queries - with the prefaced remarks - never come across as challenging or disagreeable!I say "a-nE", and use the "E" to mean "open-e". This sound is written in IPA as [ε] (looks like a Greek epsilon, in case your browser won't display the character), and in SAMPA (ASCII-IPA) as [E]. It sounds like the -e- in British English "get", "let", "set", "ben", etc. [I think that it's the same sound as Malay "sen", as in ringgit & sen, or "Sentosa" in Singapore.]
Penang Hokkien uses this sound a lot, for where Amoy has [e] or .
Amoy = Penang Hokkien [E]:
'a1-nE1' (like this), 'cE~2' (a well), 'chE~1' (green), 'chE~2' (awake), 'mE5' (night-time), 'mE7' (to scold), 'pE~7' (sickness), 'sE~1' (to be born, to give birth), 'tE~2' (to pretend).
Amoy [e] = Penang Hokkien [E]:
'bE2' (horse), 'gE5' (teeth), 'hE7' (to put), 'kE2' (false).
Well, after writing out these two lists, I see a pattern! If it's a nasal sound in Hokkien, then Penang Hokkien [E] corresponds to Amoy , and if it's a non-nasal sound, then Penang Hokkien [E] corresponds to Amoy [e].
The only other one I can think of is 'lEh4' (to drive over someone/something with a vehicle on wheels). I don't know how this is said in Amoy.
Cheers,
Sim.
Jilang
About Hokkien jokes, did you notice these two sites:
viewtopic.php?t=1549
viewtopic.php?t=1574
casey
About Hokkien jokes, did you notice these two sites:
viewtopic.php?t=1549
viewtopic.php?t=1574
casey
Tai Ke Lai O Ban Lam Oe