!!-- Vocabulary
1. [lO_gyo-] pickled shallot bulbs; 2.[lO_gyo_tsaNg=(-)] shallot; 3. [bput" si(E)Ng-(_)swan'] also [bput"syONg_swan']* worthless; 4. [swan'] a morpheme meaning either 'to count' as in [swan"sut+(=/-)] 'arithmatics 'or 'garlic' as in [swan"tau+] garlic bulb; 5. [t(/y)en-t(/y)en=] 'day and day'; 6. [Ri_ si'] twenty-four; 7. [dtyam+(=)tzi(E)Ng-(=)] hour; 8. [gu+] cow/ox/bull; 9. [u-] to have/be; 10.[u_/lyau-] to have feed; 11. [laNg+] person/people; 12. [bo+] to have not; 13. [bo_lyau-] unpredictable; 14. [lyau-] a morpheme meaning 'material' as in [tsi_lyau-] feed or 'to estimate' as in [lyau_ syONg"] to imagine; 15. [hwan_se'] perhaps.*Carstairs Douglas 1873 Dictionary p. 456. --!!
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Quoted below are three Hoyloy sayings that survive for their puns.
1. [lO_gyo_tsaNg=(-) bput"si(E)Ng-(_)swan'] Shallot for pickled bulbs 'grows no garlic'/'does'nt count'.
Explanation:
Shallot, a different species of the same genus Allium as garlic, yields bulbs of about the same size. The pungent and strong scented garlic bulbs are often used for preparing spicy sauce or fragrant food and the mild flavored shallot bulbs for the pickle named in Hoyloy as [lO_gyo-] (literally 'raw bulb'). Tasty and crisp this pickle is a traditional appetizer for Taiwanese kitchen.
The pun in this saying comes from the syllable of the last word [swan'] for 'garlic' serving also as the last part of the phrase [bput=si(E)Ng_swan'] for 'does'nt count' or 'worthless', which should be taken as the intended meaning. By virture of the pun, a disparagement to someone or something regarded as worthless becomes colorful and amusing.
2. [t(/y)en-t(/y)en=(-) Ri_si"dtyam=(+)tzi(E)Ng=(-)]
'Fooling around'/'everyday' (for) twentyfour hours.
Explanation:
[t(/y)en-t(/y)en=], a word borrowed from Mandarin for 'everyday (day and day)', with the same pronunciation as the Hoyloy word meaning 'light-minded'. Both words are formed with reduplication of [t(/y)en=] for either 'day' or 'frivolous'.
3. [gu+ u_/lyau-//laNg+ bo_lyau-]
(While) cows have (their) feed, human beings have no 'prediction'/'feed'.
(Compare with 'Nothing is certain except for death and tax'.)
Explanation:
The word [lyau-] in the first clause of the sentence means 'feed' and in the second clause it is meant for 'prediction' but subject to confusing with 'feed'.
The kanji for this word, which is composed of a symbol on the lefthand side for rice grains and another on the righthand side a dipper or measure, called [dtau"], suggests its original meaning as checking the quantity of rice*. As time went by, extended usages of the word brought about other senses including 'estimation' and 'prediction' as well as 'food for animals' and 'material'. The phrase [bo_lyau-] in this saying means 'unpredictable'.
*Bernhard Karlgren 1923: Analytic Dictionary of Chinese and Sino-Japanese pp. 291, 292.
Puns with Flawed Homonyms
Puns for the above mentioned sayings make use of proper homonyms. Quite often we also hear flawed homonyms used for puns in Hoyloy sayings. For example, here is a saying well known to the older settlers in Taipei : [hwan-se' li=a=tsun-siNg=]. The first word [hwan-se'], a term referring to powerful support from foreigners especially the Western world people, is a flawed homonym of [hwan_se'] meaning 'perhaps'. Lee'a-Tsunseng, [li=a=tsun-siNg=], formally Lee-Tsunseng, was one of the most successful Taiwanese merchants, a tycoon tea exporter, flourished in the late 19th century. All his big custmers were foreigners. When someone in a casual talk says [hwan_se'] meaning something might happen, the other party in the talk may remark with this saying confusing [hwan_se'] with [hwan-se'] for fun -- the only difference being the tone of the first syllable. The allusion in this saying is also key to the joke.
Incidentally, for translating the English word 'pun' into Hoyloy the newly coined term [bpun-ni"] (literally 'dividing ears') is recommended.
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