Iceland's President backtracks on ban idea

Open Forum
1

With a 97% approval rating, Iceland’s President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson does not need to mince words.

Last week, at a high school in North Iceland, he told students that he is “fundamentally opposed” to pineapple as a pizza topping. And that he would ban it if he had the power.

The reaction on social media was swift forcing President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson to issue a clarifying statement in both Icelandic and English:

Yfirlýsing í stóra pítsumálinu - a statement on the pizza-controversy :slight_smile:

Mér finnst ananas góður, bara ekki á pítsu. Ég get ekki sett lög sem banna fólki að setja ananas á pítsuna sína. Mér finnst gott að hafa ekki þau völd. Forsetar eiga ekki að hafa alræðisvald. Ég myndi ekki vilja gegna þessa embætti ef ég gæti sett lög sem bönnuðu það sem mér mislíkar. Ég myndi ekki vilja búa í þannig landi. Ég mæli með fiskmeti á pítsu.

I like pineapples, just not on pizza. I do not have the power to make laws which forbid people to put pineapples on their pizza. I am glad that I do not hold such power. Presidents should not have unlimited power. I would not want to hold this position if I could pass laws forbidding that which I don´t like. I would not want to live in such a country. For pizzas, I recommend seafood.

In a survey, most people in Iceland said that such a ban would be justified. Though there were some who opposed any food related ban.

What are your thoughts?

2

I’m glad they don’t have any more important issues to deal with. That said, skateboards were banned in Norway in the 80’s and so was the Segway and the boxing sport until recently when the conservatives lifted the bans so it’s not like our politicians are particularly known for their high ethical standards in applying political power and spending tax payer money. I like the Icelandic linguistical purism though and I would like to see a ban on the media’s use of English words in the Norwegian language when such use is unnatural.

I’m sure it was a joke however.

3

“…What are your thoughts?..”

I really have to protest!

It’s just not okay for you to go posting some Icelandic, and thereby to remind me how very much I would like to learn that fascinatingly complex Viking tongue!

I mean, I don’t have the freaking time! It’s debatable whether I will ever get around to mastering Russian.

Are you trying to kill me, Xuanfu?

:slight_smile:

4

BAD ENGLISH BELOW

Mér finnst ananas góður, bara ekki á pítsu
For me is found ananas tasty, only not on pizza

banna fólki að setja ananas á pítsuna sína
ban people from putting ananas on their pizzas

That’s pretty much all I can claim to grasp the meaning of. And the first example was only possible because of my Russian knowledge. I may be wrong of course but I’m imagining that Mér is dative such as the German ‘Mir’ or the Russian ‘Мне’. So ‘for me is found ananas tasty’. Fun!

5

I listened to my first Icelandic music this morning. I really liked this song. I think it is sad and beautiful:

English translation by James Hendin: Sins of the Fathers. The phone rang as the city slept. I sat paralyzed by the news. I was filled with anger - then came sorrow, some news never sounds right. I became sober when he was born, I never forgot that moment.

Time passed I tiptoed around the house ill tempered. And now I sit at this table so I can respond to you. And you tell me my son is accused of murder. My late father was a stern man, with a heart well hidden and a husky voice. Our home became his place for drinking, where we avoided his path.

So the years passed until I left, the world was so huge. But the tribal ghost I judged lead to drinking, it followed me where ever I went. As time went by my wife and I raised three children as best we could. If the children strayed from the right path the rod was the only defense we had.

I loved him from the first moment, the first minute of his life. But my son found the sins of the fathers, bringing him the gift of the wreath of misfortune. My son is not an evil man, no soul knows the course he took. As a small boy he was good - happy now I weep for his fate - tragically.

Er síminn hringdi þá svaf borgin.
Ég sat sem lamaður við þá frétt.
Ég fylltist reiði - síðan kom sorgin
sumar fréttir hljóma aldrei rétt.

Ég var orðinn edrú þegar hann fæddist
aldrei gleymi ég þeirri stund.
Sú tíð var liðin er ég drukkinn læddist
um húsið heima með svarta lund.

Og núna sit ég hér
á að svara þér
sit við þetta borð
og þú segir mér
að sonur minn
sé ákærður fyrir morð.

Faðir minn heitinn var harður maður
með hjartað vel falið og ráma rödd.
Okkar heimili varð hans drykkjustaður
við forðuðumst að verða á vegi hans stödd.

Þannig liðu árin uns ég fór að heiman
úti var veröldin svo risastór.
En ættardrauginn ég dæmdist að teyma
drykkjan fylgdi mér hvert sem ég fór.

Ég og mín kona ólum upp þrjú börnin
eftir bestu getu og tíminn leið.
Stundum var vöndurinn eina vörnin
ef villtust börnin af réttri leið.

Hann hef ég elskað frá fyrstu stundu
frá fyrstu mínútu í lífi hans.
En syndir feðranna drenginn minn fundu
og færðu honum að gjöf ólukkukrans.

Sonur minn er ekki illur maður
engin sál veit sinn lífs veg.
Sem lítill drengur var hann góður - glaður
nú græt ég hans örlög - hryggileg. (Lag og texti)

6

I think you have some talent in Icelandic.

7

Yes. It’s called being Norwegian.

8

Looking at this makes me want to learn Anglosaxon English or Old Norse. I wonder if Teach Yourself has completed their Old Norse course…

Disclaimer: I’m absolutely insane for even considering this.

9

are they people alive than can speak that?

10

putting fish on pizza should be a crime lol

11

Nah it was spoken in the early middle ages. You can read Beowulf with it. And old archive data from the middle ages. With Old Norse you can read Heimskringla.

12

wow

13

For an English speaker to read this must be approximately the same experience as it is for me to read Icelandic. Now I want to learn to pronounce middle English. It doesn’t look too difficult grammatically. But maybe I’m deluded?

859 Whilom, as olde stories tellen us,
Once, as old histories tell us,
860 Ther was a duc that highte Theseus;
There was a duke who was called Theseus;
861 Of Atthenes he was lord and governour,
He was lord and governor of Athens,
862 And in his tyme swich a conquerour
And in his time such a conqueror
863 That gretter was ther noon under the sonne.
That there was no one greater under the sun.

14

as an english speaker i cannot understand old english and middle english is stiff difficult but a little easier to guess look at the famous lords prayer translated in three forms of english

‘Fæder ure þuþe eart on heofonum
si þin nama gehalgod tobecume þin rice gewurþe þin willa on eorðan swa swa on heofonum
urne gedæghwamlican hlaf syle us to dæg
and forgyf us ure gyltas swa swa we forgyfað urum gyltendum
and ne gelæd þu us on costnunge ac alys us of yfele soþlice.’

old english

or this

‘Oure fadir þat art in heuenes halwid be þi name;
þi reume or kyngdom come to be. Be þi wille don in herþe as it is dounin heuene.
yeue to us today oure eche dayes bred.
And foryeue to us oure dettis þat is oure synnys as we foryeuen to oure dettouris þat is to men þat han synned in us.
And lede us not into temptacion but delyuere us from euyl.’

middle english

or

Our father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debters.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.’
modern english

15

I agree. I like all these forms of English. I read a few of the first books of the Bible in King James English and although it’s difficult to read the language is a great experience.

16

As we leave the EU, maybe we should lobby parliament to cleanse English of all non-Anglosaxon words?

(Hey, just kidding!! :-D)

17

I was hoping you meant it!

18

it’samazing the evolution of languages how english would look with out it’s latin and french vocabulary it’ would be probally more intelligible to other germanic languages

19

At least somewhat more.

20

If we went down this “Anglish” route, I think we would have to bring back case inflections too! :smiley:

(In our dumbed-down age, I fear there must be some doubts about the potential public support for doing that…!)