Even the media keep on tsunaming now. Arigato gozaimasu...!
2007-05-22 15:59:39 · 6 answers · asked by siagnon 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
Tsunamis are typically used for those tidal waves around the Japanese Islands. Just as it become a typhoon or hurricane depending on where it is occurring ...
By the way, there is a great song by the same name by Manic Street Preachers.
It's a nice song. Listen to it, and chill out...
Moshimo!
2007-05-22 17:34:23 · answer #1 · answered by afflatus 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The word was borrowed into English from Japanese as early as 1897. The Japanese word is a compound of tsu "harbor" and nami "wave" (according to "Online Etymology).
Today, it has been borrwed by every major European language. A few years ago I saw Tsunami-Opfern (Tsunami victims) in a German publication.
The word became extremely popular like never before after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake of 9.0 which sent high waves crashing into Sri Lanka, India, Thailand and Indonesia.
You are right that English does have other words for it like huge tidal wave, seaquake, megawave and ginormous wave. It's scientific name is "Seismic sea wave." I like "seaquake" myself.
I also admit that I am biased against this word not so much because its Japanese as because it has an intial 'ts' sound which is foreign to English. I've heard many Americans mispronounce it as soo-næ-mee and tot-soo-mee.
Words are often not borrowed for rational reasons. English has borrowed "mosquito" from Spanish even though it has several native words for this insect like midge, gallynipper and cranefly. Shakespeare used "midge." It has also borrowed "tornado" from Spanish despite native words for it like twister, whirlwind and funnel cloud. "Tsunami" is a similar type loanword.
I wouldn't mind it being completely replaced with an English word but only time will tell if that happens. Furthermore, there's really no sense in retaining a word that most English speakers mispronounce anyway.
2007-05-22 18:39:31 · answer #2 · answered by Brennus 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Although English speakers could continue to use the word "tidal wave", the English language has always readily accepted words of foreign origin and made them part of the vocabulary. Thus, such words as "bungalow", "compound", "umbrella" and "kindergarten", to mention just a few, are all relative newcomers.
2007-05-22 17:52:40 · answer #3 · answered by Dennis J 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
American English is made up of all languages.We use words from different languages as well as our well known slang.We`re not hooked on the word tsunsmi we hear it in the news and that is what is known so that is what we say.
2007-05-22 16:20:51 · answer #4 · answered by greenstateresearcher 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Why do you keep posting this same lame question? Read the answers from the last time you asked it...
2007-05-22 16:10:44 · answer #5 · answered by DontPanic 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I didn't realize it was a pervasive problem. Or a verb...
Mina unchi!
2007-05-22 16:06:57 · answer #6 · answered by jake78745 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋