- Cars – The Chevy Nova had to be re-named as in Mexican, “No Va” means “it does not go”.
- People names – English is the universal language of science, so foreigners have to be careful naming their children..
I remember a trade show booth at a convention that was advertizing a new hand-held computer from China. Oddly, the product name was taped-over, and when I snuck over and peeked under the tape, this is what I saw:
Not a good name for a hand-held computer
But the funniest are food naming errors!
- Dairy - The "Got Milk?" campaign in Mexico was translated as "Are You Lactating?".
- Soda - Pepsi translated the "Come alive with the Pepsi Generation" came out as "Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead". The name Coca-Cola in China was first rendered as Ke-kou-ke-la. Literally, this slogan means "bite the wax tadpole".
- Fast food names - Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan "finger-lickin' good" came out as "eat your fingers off".
This is what Europeans think of when they hear Linux and Microsoft
British Mums are not known for their nurturing warmth
Tastes like Ass: Fanny brand Tuna
Pee Cola?
Cat crap lens cleaner:
Um, yummy Crack:
Whack off those pesky bugs:
Something for the ladies:
Nothing like a Bimbo sandwich:
Use Barf to get it sparkling clean:
For more examples, I like the book The Joys of Enrgish, highly recommeneded as a gift!