foreign vocatives

   Novels and plays written in English often introduce characters of other nationalities and give conversations in English that supposedly take place in other languages. A favourite way of indicating the latter is to throw in a few vocative expressions in the language concerned, Monsieuror Señor for ‘sir’, for example. Foreigners who are speaking English are also assumed to leave certain vocatives untranslated. It is thought that a Frenchman speaking fluent English will nevertheless address a male friend as mon vieux, not being able to cope with ‘old man’.

   Native speakers of English who are addressing foreigners in English seem to feel that they must show willing by using social titles in the language of the hearer, though Herr Schmidt would probably prefer to hear himself called ‘Mr Schmidt’ rather than hear the mispronunciation of Herr. Some foreign vocatives have been dealt with separately in this book because they have a definite function in English. Madame + last name, for instance, is the accepted way of addressing a woman visitor of some importance from a country like China. Amigo may well be thrown into a conversation between two native speakers of English, it being assumed that the hearer will understand the word. It is now used so frequently by speakers who know no other words in Spanish that it might almost be counted as an English word. In some entries comments have been made on calques, or loan translations.

   When a Welsh speaker uses the vocative ‘little pig’ in English, for instance, he is clearly influenced by Welsh mochyn bach. Other foreign titles and vocative expressions have been ignored, unless special circum stances applied. Mein Kapitän, for instance, occurs in a text as an allusion to The Goon Show, not merely as a foreign professional title. Monsieur + first name, used to a hairdresser, can be classed as a professional title in English.