Jaimito in Spain, Toto in France, Pikku-Kalle in Finland, Jantje in the Netherlands, Oin-Oin in Switzerland and Pierino in Italy... In almost every single European country, there is an equivalent for the Little Johnny jokes.
‘Anticonstitutionnellement’, ‘Antidisestablishmentarianism’, ‘Menneskerettighetsorganisasjonene’ Did you know that a German 79-letters word is the European longest word? Or that the Irish Gaelic one is the shortest (longest) word in Europe?
Once upon a time, there was an old continent inhabited by fairies, witches and all sorts of creatures. In this magnificent kingdom that wise men called Europe, adventurers shaped their fate as they formed new friendship.
“Mayfair”, “Rue de la Paix”, “ Schloßallee”. Every European knows the name of the most expensive lot on its Monopoly board. But did you know that in Italy and Germany the street names are fictive?
Have you ever experienced saudade in Sintra? Or German Schadenfreude? Was it better or worse than the hygge you felt in Denmark? Untranslatable words are actually the essence of European diversity…
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