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Showing posts from January, 2017

How do you say ASCENSO DE TRABAJO in English?

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"The restroom...where is the restroom?" Well, it is definitely not Work Ascension. Though in Spanish we say Ascenso de Trabajo, it is not like that in English. The term is PROMOTION. You get a JOB PROMOTION, not a WORK PROMOTION. And you are PROMOTED to another position. True you are "ascending" or "going up", but still those are not the words to be used. As usual, you have to know not only the language but the culture as well. 

How do you say AHIJADO in English?

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Not a movie yet, but Hollywood can have the lousiest ideas. Part of the Catholic tradition, AHIJADO is GODSON in English.  A GODSON, or GODDAUGHTER (AHIJADA) is a child who at the moment of being baptized in the Catholic rite is sponsored by someone. Usually, that sponsor is a close friend of the child's parents, and there are usually two of those, a Godfather and a Godmother. In the past, Godparents were supposed to be responsible for their Godchild if his or her parents met their demise before time. That part of the Godparents' role is long gone, therefore, these days Godparents have lost their purpose greatly and are merely reduced to decorational figures, friends who are given a burden that is only ecclesiatical but not real. In some commuities, a Godfather's role is a bit sinister and different since the moniker is given to this person with power who does favors  in exchange of your working for him participating or supporting criminal activity.