So now we know why we should vote Labour! Ghax maghqud.
Published:
December 15, 2012 at 11:39pm
Ustja, Ang, tenkju.
For God’s sake somebody tell them that maghqud means thick or congealed, not united. Maltese doesn’t know the singular for united. That’s a transposition of the English ‘team’, which is treated as singular as in ‘a team’.
United, in Maltese, demands the plural (re the many people in that team) because one thing cannot be united with itself. You must have more than one.
Labour Maghqud.
Damn right: a congealed party.
And really thick, too.
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So there you have IT. The PN’s bright new hope is just gonziPN recycled.
What a damp squib.
[Daphne – And Labour’s is…what? A police inspector from the Mintoff years. Wow. Hold me back. Unbelievable.]
Martin, again!
And your lot? What about your Ang? What was he? His incompetence was embarrassing even to me, a PN voter (so far). For reasons you probably just don’t get, bearing in mind that he will almost certainly be the Deputy PM come March 10th.
It’s not an inconsequential game of football, jahasra.
And why is that, Martin? Because you mistake manners and a calm demeanour for weakness? You do not need to shout and scowl to get your message across, you know?
What message?
That hateful JPO has been interviewed for One News and he is spewing venom.
He, Frankie Tabone and some others just won’t fade away into the darkness.
Who cares what the demented dentist and the village lawyer think?
They’ve made themselves obsolete. Labour are just trying to flog a dead horse.
After Andrew Lloyd Weber’s sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies, here comes the third part of the story: The Phantom strikes again, starring Frankie Tabone as the Phantom.
This time he comes back from irrelevance and tries to hijack a TV station demonstrating his nasty behaviour and his narcissism.
”fight and argue in groceries?” WTF?
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20121215/local/have-your-say-the-deputy-leaders-debate.449691
Victor Vella
Today, 23:28
If the GonziPN has performed as Busutill showed us Why Gonzi goes for elections? Why he is so frighten? If he has done so much extraordinary things Why he is loitering and continue to cling to power whilst now he is a caretaker government? Why continue to extend harm to the country ? If Gonzi has a coherent party why not goes to election instead sending people to fight and argue in groceries?
Perhaps because he has a grasp of the English language better than yours. Go and learn some grammar and how to structure a proper sentence before you post.
Frankie Tabone is a full time blogger. He forgot what the criminal code is all about.
Anglu can’t even read basic statistics in a report.
See Transparency International Report below on corruption. Malta 43, Zambia 88 and Colombia 94. The higher the number the more corrupt the perception is, and not the other way round. Anglu said that Malta is more corrupt than Zambia and Colombia. He should do us a favour and consider moving to Medellin.
http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2012/results/
Right, this takes the biscuit.
Even because I hated the way he referred to those countries. Imagine him at some reception.
Or is he still into the Philippines?
Hey this is important! The blithering idiot can’t read a report correctly and he placed a lot of emphasis on this report.
I was pleased to see Malta in the second column, although we still have a long way to go; all the civilised European countries are above us.
In 1987 we were probably closer to the Soviet east that Western Europe. In that respect Malta’s done well to beat the Eastern Block + Italy.
Not good for the democracy having inadequates in opposition.
The amateurish way they play to their hardcore gallery like a badly written melodrama.
Is there anyone in the PL who will make a decent leader of the opposition after their defeat in March?
So, how do we say in Maltese “a united group or family”?
http://www.attmalta.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=132:nemmnu-fi-wie-nisrani&catid=59:familji&Itemid=110
[Daphne – You have to use the plural adjective. You’re using non-Semitic nouns (familja, grupp) with a Semitic adjective (maghqudin). One thing cannot be ‘maghquda’ unless the meaning is ‘congealed’ (united with itself). I might be a language pedant, but these things really annoy me. And believe me when I say I don’t care what the the Ghaqda tal-Lingwa says is the rule. Reason is the cornerstone of language.]
To resolve the issue is easy: in English a group, a collective, demands a singular subject. Conceptually, individuals within the team collaborate or the individual within the team collaborates.
Therefore, the team does something rather than the common literal translation from Maltese, the group ‘do’ something.
In Maltese the subject is not on the collective noun. Rather it is the people who make up the group. “Grupp ta’ nies maghqudin”. In-nies huma maghqudin mhux il-grupp.
Well done, Daphne!
I’ve often thought that the foundation of a lot of our troubles in Malta is the fact that we don’t really understand what other persons really wish to communicate because the language of communication chosen is either ill-expressed or the listener is not fluent enough in register to understand the inherent subtleties of the language.
The problem these days is that so many people THINK they’re communicating in English, or Maltese – as in this case – and any perceptual defect in the logic or reasoning that should become apparent or be picked up upon expression of this reasoning by the recipient of communication is lost: it goes unheard and uncensored, and in many cases becomes the new foundation of just more nonsense.
How far back would one need to go to correct expression of idiom? understanding of register? logic and the make up of reason?
It’s not just two parties, it’s two totally different frames of mind – perceptually speaking. Language is a critical element of cultural development. The Maltese language is on development path which has perhaps been guided by faulty or incomplete criteria.
It is, I think, comparatively easier to properly understand the subtleties and registers of both English and Maltese, than to properly understand – if one does that – the Maltese language and then purport to understand the English. Where is the reference by Ghaqda tal-Lingwa to the etymological roots that should be serving as safety net for the reasoning activity? I fully agree with you re the ridiculous rules of the Ghaqda tal-Lingwa.
I have read the words of concern of a very notable Professor on these lines with regards to the English language: “the whole world is speaking it, but we’re not speaking the same language”. This was Professor Rubik.
In Malta especially, where there is also the strong influence of Italian etc. and where the cultural benefits derived from such diversity should be plentiful, there should be more language pedants, not less.
Didn’t like the ‘debate’ at all. Simon should have gone on the offensive, reminding viewers of all the achievements of the past five years notwithstanding the crisis.
Employment, new schools, roads, ICT, financial services, igaming, aviation , university, sewage treatment, engineered landfill, Valletta regeneration, transport liberalization, shipyards, taxation.
The PN must be positive also about new projects like MCAST, Life Science Park, oncology hospital.
PN has transformed this country and people easily forget. We need to get this message across rather than getting bogged down in silly nonsense.
No they don’t. All they need is more votes in March. End of.
It’s like the joke: two blokes meet an escaped Lion, one of the blokes starts running, the other says ‘what are you doing you cannot outrun a Lion’, to which his mate replies, ‘I dont have to outrun the Lion, I only have to outrun you’.
It-tigrija sal-barkun u l-kampanja elettorali ghadha se tibda. Simon taghna biss “a taste of things to come”. Proset Simon.
Thank god for this idiot, it should make our job easier next March.
How can’t we perceive our country as corrupt when we have lawyers in the criminal court like Anglu Farrugia who will vote against the impeachment of a judge who does not follow the basic ethical rules and is caught negotiating to get a good price for the Olympic Games’ seat tickets?
Were the monies from such deals registered on the annual accounts of the Malta Olympic Committee?
How can Judge Farrugia Sacco’s defence lawyer Jose’ Herrera who will be our future Justice Minister, vote for his impeachment?
How can any lawyer/MP vote against a judge in front of whom they will be defending their client in three month’s time if the impeachment is not passed through parliament?
Can anyone blame me in perceiving our country as corrupt?
My ray of hope for the future is Simon who yesterday showed one and all how a truly incorruptible politician should behave: Simon calls a spade, “a spade” and doesn’t beat around the bush.
Thank you, Anglu, for providing statistics (in blue cylinders) that Gonzi delivers, under him VAT income (indirect taxes) increased, that shows that people are spending.
Am I the only one who notices that invariably ALL PL speakers interrupt their PN counterparts?
It’s nauseating how they don’t let the PN speakers put through an argument to their listeners.
Only yesterday on RTK Joe Cilia (yes, he’s back in the fold) interrupted Karl Gouder each time the latter opened his mouth.
Can we have an interruption score board during these debates?
I say Daphne what is the opposite of ‘maghqud’ ?
That’s right…’mahlul’.
Labour Mahlul. Sorry that’s a disgusting thought at breakfast.
Oh my God….is this the New Labour? Can you please explain to us one more time, Dr Anglu Farrugia, how would the Living Wage work – because yesterday we understood nothing about it.
You were totally confused, Anglu. If you are to become Malta’s Deputy Prime Minister, then Dr Lawrence Gonzi could easily become President of USA.
I never ever thought that there would be a day in my life that I would feel sorry for Anglu Farrugia.
Yesterday, when I watched him fumble and sweat like a pig, I had, for a few seconds a slight feeling of remorse, but then at the end this feeling quickly disappeared.
He deserved to be humiliated on that programme.
I have my doubts whether the PL would dare propose him again to appear on a discussion programme.
Ditto
That’s the underlying message.developed over these four years.
Meritocracy a’ la Labour as the antidote to Franco’s oligarchy. Why everyone deserves a chance in life.
Franco barely hides it, the prototype of Joseph’s target.
Still, Franco refuses the movement.
Il-Partit Laburista bozza li titfa id-dlam.
In my neck of the woods, maghqud refers to someone who is, how shall I say it, robust.
Kemm hu maghqud, as in x’gisem ghandu.
I’ve heard the youngsters now replace the word maghqud with mazza, for someone nicely built they say kemm hu mazza.
The more they spin, the thicker they become.
Unjoni Haddiema Maghqudin.
[Daphne – Ghidilhom mela. Injoranti.]
What happened to the photo of Anglu Farrugia giving the “toqbi” hand sign ?
Reading Page 4 of The Sunday Times while having breakfast this morning.
Have I read it right? Ex Labour Party general secretary Dr Dominic Fenech has compared Franco Debono to the “the village idiot”.
@Anthony III
Yes exactly that. In black and white.
Kompetizjoni ghall-akbar Nazjonalist bhal Franco Debono –
Biex ikollok cans tirbah lil Franco trid:-
1. tivvota kontra il-gvern tieghek stess fil-Parlament (ghax issa Franco ma jistax);
2. tirraprezenta lil partit l-iehor fuq Xarabank kontra il-Vici kap tal-Partit tieghek stess;
3. tippretendi li int Roberto Baggio taghmel xaghrek HORSETAIL u toqod tigri b’xi ktieb tal-Buddha (l-ewwel wahda difficli ghal Franco);
4. tkun minghalik l-isbah wiehed biex tkun tista tghajjar lil xi ministru ikrah;
5. tkun L-aqwa wiehed u kull min immerik ikun hazin u allura tiggielidlu;
6. thalli lil min ma jaqbilx mal-PN ikesksek qiesek kelb tal-glied;
7. u meta ma tiehux dak li trid, trid tarmi it-toys u l-gazaza min gol-pram u toqod titbaqbaq u twerzaq.
Maghqud equals thick.
[Daphne – That’s what I keep telling them Cicero. It doesn’t mean united in the singular, because one thing by definition can’t be united with itself.]
Thick as in a short plank?
What about “Il-Gnus maghquda”? And how would one say “a united country” in Maltese, then?
[Daphne – Gnus Maghquda is the plural form. You can’t say ‘a united country’ in English, either. It doesn’t make sense.]
On second thought, I just realised that ‘gnus maghquda’ is already referring to the plural ‘gnus’ and could very well have been written as ‘gnus maghqudin’. Above, you did say “One thing cannot be ‘maghquda’ unless the meaning is ‘congealed’ (united with itself) ” though, which clearly doesn’t hold here.
That being said I still believe that ‘pajjiz maghqud’ is the best way to say ‘united country’. It might not be strictly correct grammatically speaking, but language evolves, and I’m sure the former is understood perfectly well by all Maltese speakers.
I’m only posting this because I’m interested in the argument, knowing full well that, at this point, most probably no one else will see this.
You said you can’t say ‘United country’ in English. By that logic, you can’t say ‘United Kingdom’ either since ‘Kingdom’ is a singular noun. I think it’s clear that it’s the entities of the Kingdom which are being described as United, as would be the case for a ‘United country’.
Also, in Maltese, we say ‘Renju Unit’; However, searching for “Renju Maghqud” on Google shows that those exact words were used in various official EU law translations as “Renju Maghqud tal-Gran Brittanja”. That would be incorrect according to you (Not sure who is right though, because I’m sure there are mistakes in the Maltese EU law translations.)
I admit that I was wrong in the ‘Gnus maghquda’ case. I didn’t realise you’d said that “*One thing* cannot be ‘maghquda'”.
Ghall Milied hawwadt kejk u aqta kemm gie tajjeb ghax uzajt bott ‘united milk’ u ghaqqadli kollox sew.