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Nov 27, 2008 11:12
15 yrs ago
German term

Wenn einer eine Reise tut, dann kann er viel erzählen

German to English Art/Literary Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
Hello all,

My aim is to find an appropriate English equivalent for the above saying. Though I can make my own translation of it, I would prefer a more formal version if there is one to be had. The only travel-related maxim that I can come up with right now is "travel broadens the mind", which I do not feel is appropriate here.

I have trawled the glossary, but was unable to find what I was looking for.

A grateful thanks in advance for your replies.

Sara
Proposed translations (English)
4 +9 widely travelled people are never short of stories
4 Someone who travels can really tell a story!
3 Strange things happen when you're abroad
3 Travel broadens the mind

Discussion

Sara Noss (asker) Nov 30, 2008:
Additional thanks to Ken Cox, Alison MacG, MrsHoward, and the fabulously monikered hazmatgerman for your input.
hazmatgerman (X) Nov 27, 2008:
O.k., with this added information the focus has turned around towards something playing on "armchair traveller" I'd say. Regards.
Sara Noss (asker) Nov 27, 2008:
Further context Hi Ken,

Of course, it was a bit remiss to leave it out in the first place. The excerpt is taken from a brief study on the works of Karl May and Emilio Salgari whose adventure stories were set in countries they had never visited:

"Wenn einer eine Reise tut, dann kann er viel erzählen", lautet ein bekanntes deutsches Sprichwort. Mit Emilio Salgari und Karl May begegnen wir zwei Schriftstellern, die nie in die Gebiete gereist sind, die sie beschreiben oder nur annähernd das erlebt haben, was sie uns erzählen. Dennoch gehören ihre Bücher zu den meistgelesenen in der Welt und die Auflagen erreichen Zahlen, die selbst die Klassiker in den Schatten stellen könnten.

Thank you.
hazmatgerman (X) Nov 27, 2008:
With Cox; even Mark Twain's two book titles might be utilised in the right circumstances.
Ken Cox Nov 27, 2008:
Do you have a specific context in mind? The intended meaning of anything used figuratively or metaphorically usually depends on the context.

Proposed translations

+9
3 mins
Selected

widely travelled people are never short of stories

I dont know the corresponding idiom - in case there is one - but if the worst comes to the worst this suggestion will manage to bring the message across
Peer comment(s):
agree Ingeborg Gowans (X) : this would do fine!
18 mins
thank you, Ingeborg
agree Ivan Nieves : I liked that too!
23 mins
thank you !
agree Nesrin : And if the translation is going to retain the "famous German proverb" bit, then you might as well go for a literal translation, rather than an English idiom which isn't an exact equivalent.
1 hr
thank you !
agree casper (X) : "widely travelled people are never short of stories to narrate" is what I would suggest, keeping in mind that the "erzählen" coming up again in the 3rd line of the source para also needs to be tackled
2 hrs
agree Birgit Mann
2 hrs
thank you ! if is added the sentence construction is to be changed, too.
agree Ken Cox : With Nesrin -- this would work if the translation retains the information that it is a German saying, since it's not a common English saying. Of course, it is used here to set the stage for a discussion of two authors who violate this precept...
2 hrs
thank you !
agree Inge Meinzer
5 hrs
thank you !
agree franglish : nicely put!
5 hrs
thank you !
agree Rebecca Garber
9 hrs
thank you !
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thank you for providing me with a great solution. I am not sure what I was thinking in looking for the "nearest English equivalent" for a well-known German saying, but we all have off-days, I suppose. ;o) Anyway, thank you very much! Sara."
19 mins

Strange things happen when you're abroad

This is the translation given in Collins.

See also this previous KudoZ question for some other ideas:

http://www.proz.com/kudoz/german_to_english/tourism_travel/2...
Peer comment(s):
neutral Ingeborg Gowans (X) : event hough this was already answered in Kudoz, I feel it is slightly off the mark and does not quite convey the same meaning
2 mins
Something went wrong...
1 hr

Travel broadens the mind

A common English saying and one of several option that would fit with the context.

Obviously, if your audience isn't academic you will have to do a fair amount of adaptation for the target audience.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2008-11-27 12:30:34 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Sayings, even (or especially) common sayings, often translate poorly or not at all, and in such cases you have to find something else in the target language that sounds natural and creates more or less the same effect.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2008-11-27 12:33:44 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

At the risk of belaboring the point: if you want to retain the 'common saying' idea you have to use something that is truly a common saying; if you want to retain the specific meaning of the source saying, you may have to abandon the 'common saying' idea.
Something went wrong...
2 days 22 hrs

Someone who travels can really tell a story!

This expression came to me at first glance of the source text, and it feels more natural and colloquial to me than the other suggestions.
Something went wrong...
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