If you're in need of a little online entertainment, I've got the perfect website for you. Honestly, I am such a fan of this site I can't believe I've never blogged about it before! The site is called Engrish.com, and it's definitely good for some laugh out loud hilarity!What is Engrish, you ask? As defined by this website, Engrish is "the humorous English mistakes that appear in Japanese advertising and product design." Engrish can be found in other languages as well, but apparently the most creative and funny Engrish comes from the Japanese. The Engrish.com website has hundreds of examples from signs, posters, menus, clothing, candy wrappers, and instructions. Just go to the drop down menu labeled "Easy Engrish Access" to view pictures of Engrish examples in each of the different categories.
I hadn't visited the site for a while, but a couple of weeks ago we found an example of Engrish in our own home that reminded me of this entertaining spot on the Web. Chad was trying to adjust the time on my cheap digital watch from Target, which had somehow gotten stuck on military time. When he checked out the instructions, this is what he read:
12/24 HOURS REVERSAL OPTION
You have the possibility to change from 12 to 24 hour system, when adjusting the hours of the normal time (description please see above) one after the other the hours are displayed in the 12 hour system, then in the 24 hour system and then again the 12 hour system, i.e. please push S2 so many times, that the hour is displayed in the required system.
While not nearly as funny as most of the stuff on Engrish.com, Chad and I still got a big kick out of the very unhelpful instruction to push the button "so many times."
Our friends Matt and Erika, who recently moved to Hong Kong, are great suppliers of first hand examples of Engrish they've found in the Far East. In honor of their visit home to Kansas this week, I thought it was about time I blogged about the very funny phenomenon that is Engrish!
1 comment:
Maybe we've talked about this, but I wonder if the reverse of Engrish is true. It seems like lately people in the U.S. are fascinated with Asian characters and they show up in decorative wall-hangings, tattoos, etc. I have to wonder what messages people are actually displaying on their walls and bodies and, like Engrish, if anything has been lost or distorted in the translation!
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