# Ennyi ''fanyalgó'' kritikát



## LeBro

Jó estét kívánok!

Could you please tell me what this "fanyalgó" (possibly "fanyalog"?) means in the following sentence? I couldn't find anything in online dictionaries which would let me make sense of this sentence.

Ennyi _fanyalgó _kritikát rég olvasott Budapestről.

Előre is köszönöm a válaszokat!


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## Zsanna

Hello LeBro,
I have found _dismissive_ or _contemptuous_ which are not bad but the Hungarian word has more in it. I can also feel some sort of a "lack of enthusiasm" in it as well, although it won't help you much here unless something positive was expected. 
Maybe some more context would help for more explanation.


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## LeBro

Hello Zsanna,

It's actually the heading of a news which you can find here.

Google Translate gave me the following translation from which I inferred that "fanyalog" might mean "to linger, to continue for some/a long time" but I could not confirm that it is a correct translation.

Google Translate: He had read so many lingering criticisms of Budapest for a long time.

On second thoughts, can it be that it means "he has not read such/so many contemptuous criticism about Budapest in a long while?

What made me think in this way (apart from your suggestion about its meaning) is what is written under this heading in the first paragraph. If I didn't get it wrong, it is said that the city that we admire today (with its buildings, bridges, etc) was a subject of criticism around at the dawn of 20th century. So I think "fanyalgó kritika" refers to these criticisms, am I right?

Thank you for your time!


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## numerator

@LeBro No, "fanyalog" definitely does not mean "to linger, to continue for some/a long time".

To me, the basic meaning is something like this: Imagine someone puts a plate of perfectly good food in front of you. You do start eating it but keep making faces and saying things like "I wish it was a tad hotter", "Too bad you overcooked it", "My mom used to make it differently" and so on.

The same in contexts not related to food: "to turn your nose up at something", to be unreasonably picky, dismissive.

I do not have access to a dictionary that would give a good English equivalent, but I hope this explanation helps.


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## numerator

The article is very interesting, by the way! It shows you can never please everyone, especially in matters of taste.

The title is indeed in third person but it's not clear who it refers to. It may be referring to the reader by the third-person polite form. So the translation would be:
_You have not read so much contemptuous/dismissive/pouting criticism about Budapest in a long while!_

(I found the word _pouting _in one dictionary but to me that's closer to _duzzogás _than to _fanyalgás_...)


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## elroy

numerator said:


> _contemptuous/dismissive/pouting criticism_


None of these work for me based on your description of the meaning.

I suggest translating the whole phrase (“fanyalgó/fanyalog kritikát”) as “*fault-finding*.”

(Is it “fanyalgó” or “fanyalog”?)


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## LeBro

numerator said:


> To me, the basic meaning is something like this: Imagine someone puts a plate of perfectly good food in front of you. You do start eating it but keep making faces and saying things like "I wish it was a tad hotter", "Too bad you overcooked it", "My mom used to make it differently" and so on.
> 
> The same in contexts not related to food: "to turn your nose up at something", to be unreasonably picky, dismissive.



I think your explanation makes it perfectly clear to get the basic meaning. Thank you very much!



numerator said:


> The title is indeed in third person but it's not clear who it refers to. It may be referring to the reader by the third-person polite form.



How come I overlooked the fact that it could be "Ön" . I agree wih you that it (Ön) refers to the reader.



elroy said:


> None of these work for me based on your description of the meaning.
> 
> I suggest translating the whole phrase (“fanyalgó/fanyalog kritikát”) as “*fault-finding*.”



It sounds good to me for its tranlation into English 



elroy said:


> (Is it “fanyalgó” or “fanyalog”?)



"fanyalog" is the dictionary form (it is actually the 3rd person singular present tense form)

"fanyalgó" is the present participle form of "fanyalog".

Lastly, I would like to ask if "fanyalog" is just the act of fault-finding or the actual facial expression that you wear by pouting your lips (or most probably both). 

Thank you for all your contributions so far, really appeciated


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## AndrasBP

elroy said:


> I suggest translating the whole phrase (“fanyalgó/fanyalog kritikát”) as “*fault-finding*.”


For me, "fault-finding" seems too specific. 
I think the most common meaning of the verb "fanyalog" is "to show dislike with a facial expression".


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## elroy

AndrasBP said:


> For me, "fault-finding" seems too specific.


Hm... can you elaborate?  I suggested "fault-finding" for the whole phrase, which includes "kritikát."  The beauty of "fault-finding" (or so I thought ) is that it simultaneously includes the idea of "criticism" (finding fault (with somebody or something)) and the attitude described by @numerator (never being satisfied, always finding _something_ to criticize).


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## AndrasBP

elroy said:


> I suggested "fault-finding" for the whole phrase, which includes "kritikát."


Yeah, okay.  
I just meant that the verb itself didn't necessarily imply the naming of specific faults.


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## Zsanna

Lots of good ideas  so far but I think we cannot get away without going a bit further. eek

The word _fanyalgó_ (adj.) is not used totally in its original meaning in the article in my opinion, this is partly why it is difficult to translate.
My Hungarian one language dictionary (MÉK) gives the following definition to _fanyalog_ (the verb giving the base for the adjective in question): Kényeskedően, húzódozva, kelletlenül mond, tesz valamit. (In English, more or less: somebody says or does something with airs and graces, being over-squeamish, reluctant *and* unwilling/hesitant, so, lacking enthusiasm, willy-nilly, without his heart being in it.)
 (See also its synonyms: _fintorog_/ pull faces, _idegenkedik_/be averse to something, _húzódozik_/feel reluctant to do something... See why I was talking about the 'lack of enthusiasm' above?)

To me the listed criticisms were fairly objective in the article, at least as much as it is possible when talking about taste (for style, look, materials used, etc). They were surely not appreciative about the buildings (statues, bridges, etc.) new at the time but they were not particularly emotional or _sniffy_. (Another possible translation for_ fanyalgó_ together with _over-squeamish.)_

I think the adjective was used mainly in the light of how we look at these buildings nowadays: most of them are considered to be a 'great feature' in Budapest and, from this angle, those old criticisms may be interpreted as _fanyalgó_ (unwilling to accept something with a sour/wry face...  ).

All in all, I think, the easiest way out is _dismissive_ (in a particular way).


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## Fredsky

I think "fanyalog" has a combined meaning of "whiny and dismissive with a sour face"


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