irony

[Do228]

What could it mean when an Englander says "Ah the irony"?

 

[Rover_KE]

Probably the same as when a Germaner says 'Ah, die Ironie'.:roll:

 

[emsr2d2]

And since you grew up in the Philippines, you will presumably recognise "Ah, ang kabalintunaan!"

 

[Rover_KE]

In Taiwan, you might hear "啊，具有讽刺意味", (A, jùyǒu fèngcì yìwèi).

That's easy for you to say.:-?

 

[probus]

We have told you before, Do228, that in English Englander does not mean what you think it means or want it to mean. To avoid making yourself ridiculous, use "English speaker" or if you want to emphasize Britishness, English person.

 

[Do228]

No, I've never heard somebody say that in German or Tagalog or other languages.

Btw, why is somebody from Boston a New Englander but somebody from England not an Englander? I don't understand that.

 

[jutfrank]

We have told you before, Do228, that in English Englander does not mean what you think it means or want it to mean.

To me, the word Englander sounds like someone could be from New Hampshire. Ah, the irony.

 

[probus]

Btw, why is somebody from Boston a New Englander but somebody from England not an Englander? I don't understand that.

It would make perfect sense for Englander to mean a person from England. But unfortunately it doesn't.

There is no rhyme or reason to it. As is so often the case with English, that is just how it is. We native speakers have the luxury of knowing these quirks. Others have no choice but to memorize them.

 

[GoesStation]

Sadly, there are no Michigeese, as both men and women from Michigan are Michiganders.

Residents of New Orleans are New Orleanians (pronounced "new orlinians").

When I lived in Los Angeles I was an Angeleno, but people in the northern California metropolis are San Franciscans, not Francisqueños. However, the lucky few who live in Taos, New Mexico are Taoseños.

 

[Tarheel]

Not Tacos?
;-)

 

[probus]

Natives of the Pittsburgh area are Yinzers.

Our own SoothingDave is a yinzer. The local dialect uses y'uns as a plural form of you, and I gather the pronunciation tends towards yins.

 

[Tarheel]

Y'all from the North talk funny.
;-)

 

[probus]

Y'all from the North talk funny.
;-)

Speaking of that, many northerners think that y'all is a plural form of you. But while y'all is usually plural, it can be singular. This is proven by the fact that it has its own plural, all y'all.

I enjoy the sneaky cattiness of the southern dialect. Bless your heart.

 

[probus]

Just to be absolutely clear I did not intend to say "Bless your heart" to Tarheel as an individual. I only wanted to call attention to the duplicitous nature of the expression. It often means something like: I intend to ignore the nonsense you just spouted. And that's why it can be considered ironic.

 

[probus]

Sadly, there are no Michigeese, as both men and women from Michigan are Michiganders..

That is sad indeed. It would be charming if there were both Michigeese and Michiganders. And it would please one of our members, who shall remain nameless��, who wishes English was more logical.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

No, I've never heard somebody say that in German or Tagalog or other languages.

By the way, why is somebody from Boston a New Englander but somebody from England not an Englander? I don't understand that.

Because that's what we call ourselves in New England. The English are free to call themselves whatever they like.

And speaking of New Englanders, people in the state of Connecticut still haven't figured out what to call themselves!

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Not Tacos?
;-)

Or Towsled?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

That is sad indeed. It would be charming if there were both Michigeese and Michiganders. And it would please one of our members, who shall remain nameless��, who wishes English was more logical.

If it were logical, it would be Spanish.

 

[Do228]

This thread has begotten several interesting replies, but the original question (In what situations do Englishmen say "Ah the irony"?) is still unanswered.

 

[probus]

Fair enough Do228. I may be failing to understand your question because the answer seems obvious to me, but here goes: I might say "Ah, the irony" whenever I heard, read or saw something I considered to be very ironic.

Does that help?
Probus (not an Englishman. Not even close actually) ��