# Price Of Bacon



## elpoderoso

Hola a todos
In English when someone makes a point which has nothing or very little to do with the preceding conversation, the other person could say
''What's that got to do with the price of bacon?''

Are there similar idiomatic expressions in your languages which are used for questioning the relevance of a point? 
Gracias E.P


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## Hakro

In Finnish we say "Hyvää päivää - Kirvesvartta" (How do you do - Axe handle). 

It's based on a story about a man who was carving an axe handle when a visitor came in. The man thought that the visitor is going to ask what is he doing, so when the visitor said "How do you do" he answered "Axe handle".


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## Chazzwozzer

*Ne alaka? Kelalaka. *_(lit. What relation? Bald relation.)_


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## Lemminkäinen

Haha, we do the exact same thing as the Finnish  I didn't know you had the same story in Finland.

Anyway, it's "*god dag mann - økseskaft*", which means the same.


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## Marja

In Holland we would say "slaat nergens op"

InSouth Africa we would say "that went srait over your head


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## Conchita57

The word 'bacon' is also used in a similar Spanish expression:

_¡No confundamos la velocidad con el tocino!_
_¿Qué tiene que ver la velocidad con el tocino?_

(What's speed got to do with bacon?)


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## olivinha

In Brazilian Portuguese:
O que que tem a ver o cu com as calças?
What does the ass has to do with the pants?
O


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## linguist786

elpoderoso said:


> Hola a todos
> In English when someone makes a point which has nothing or very little to do with the preceding conversation, the other person could say
> ''What's that got to do with the price of bacon?''


I actually say the same thing but with "..price of chips?" instead. Must be a British thing 

In *Hindi/Urdu/Gujarati*, we don't have an idiomatic expression, but we express it like this:

*Urdu/Hindi:*

"..maiN kyaa lenaa denaa?"

E.g. 
English: _What's a book got to do with __glasses?_ (sorry, random example!)
Hindi/Urdu: _Kitaab aur chasme maiN kyaa lenaa denaa?_

*Gujarati:*

"..maa shu levaa devaa?"

E.g. 
English: _What's a book got to do with glasses?_ 
Gujarati: _Chopdi ane chasmaa maa shu levaa devaa?_


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## OldAvatar

There are a few expressions in Romanian. I mention one of the most used:

Ce are (de-a face) sula cu prefectura? = What's an awl got to do with the prefecture?


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## Thomas1

elpoderoso said:


> Hola a todos
> In English when someone makes a point which has nothing or very little to do with the preceding conversation, the other person could say
> ''What's that got to do with the price of bacon?''
> 
> Are there similar idiomatic expressions in your languages which are used for questioning the relevance of a point?
> Gracias E.P


Interesting expression. 

At this moment I think that the closest Polish translation would be:
_co ma piernik do wiatraka _(what does gingerbread have to do with a windmill).

Tom


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## gao_yixing

In Chinese we have 牛头不对马嘴(the face of bull doesn't fit the mouth of horse)


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## elpoderoso

linguist786 said:


> I actually say the same thing but with "..price of chips?" instead. Must be a British thing
> 
> In *Hindi/Urdu/Gujarati*, we don't have an idiomatic expression, but we express it like this:
> 
> *Urdu/Hindi:*
> 
> "..maiN kyaa lenaa denaa?"
> 
> E.g.
> English: _What's a book got to do with __glasses?_ (sorry, random example!)
> Hindi/Urdu: _Kitaab aur chasme maiN kyaa lenaa denaa?_
> 
> *Gujarati:*
> 
> "..maa shu levaa devaa?"
> 
> E.g.
> English: _What's a book got to do with glasses?_
> Gujarati: _Chopdi ane chasmaa maa shu levaa devaa?_


I've never heard anyone use ''price of chips'' in this expression, though I'm not in any way saying it doesn't occur. In BE I am pretty sure ''price of bacon'' is the most common form of this expression.


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## Gilmesh

In Hebrew it's quite interesting - "מה עניין שמיטה אצל הר סיני?" - meaning- "What does Remission [in Hebrew - Sabbatical year] have to do with Mount Sinai?".
Rashi, one of the most famous rabbis and Bible interpretors in the history of the Jewish people, asked that question concerning a phrase in the bible, while Moses stood on Mt. Sinai (it's pretty long and complicated, and my English is not good enough to explain).


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## badgrammar

Wow, in English I have always heard it as "What's that got to do with the price of tea in China?".  Never ever heard it with the bacon bit...  Interesting


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## Binapesi

In addition to Chazzwozzer's reply, in Turkish we also say;

"Dam üstünde saksağan, gel bana bazı bazı."

means probably, 

"Magpie on the roof, come to me now and then."

xxx


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## Binapesi

badgrammar said:


> Wow, in English I have always heard it as "What's that got to do with the price of tea in China?".  Never ever heard it with the bacon bit...  Interesting



If you google  .. you'll see many versions of this idiom. People add whichever word they want,  i think.
..the price of coffee, the price of cheese, the price of the bicycle that is in Uncle Bill's market ..


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## Petrucci369

In Danish we have as in Norway

_"*Goddag mand økseskaft*"  -_Same as the finnish and norwegian ones.

Another more harsh option is to say:

_"*lort og lagkage*" _or _"*det er lort og lagkage*" _-Thats shit and cake.   

(_lagkage: _Birthday cake in layers with whipped cream)


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## Venezuelan_sweetie

Conchita57 said:


> The word 'bacon' is also used in a similar Spanish expression:_¡No confundamos la velocidad con el tocino!_
> _¿Qué tiene que ver la velocidad con el tocino?_(What's speed got to do with bacon?)


Actually, that was the third time I ever heard/saw that expression! This was the first one: click!

In Venezuela (Spanish), we say:
- ¿Qué tiene que ver la gimnasia/amnesia con la magnesia? => What does gymnastic/amnesia have to do with magnesia?
- ¿Qué tiene que ver el culo con las pestañas? => What does the arse have to do with the eyelashes? (sorry about the 'curse' word  )
- No hay que mezclar (las) churras con (las) merinas => Erm... It has no equivalents in English, I think.


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## .Lola.

In Czech we say: Ty o voze, já o koze. 
You (_are talking_) about the wagon, I (_am talking_) about the goat.


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## elroy

In Palestinian Arabic, we say تخلطش شعبان برمضان (_tikhliTesh sha`baan ibramaDaan_), which literally means "Don't confuse Shaban with Ramadan" (Shaban and Ramadan are two of the months in the Islamic calendar).


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## sapphira

In *Chinese*, we have sayings like 风马牛不相及(wind, horses and cattles, all totally unrelated), 牛头不对马嘴(a cattle's head does not fit a horse's mouth),鸡同鸭讲(a chicken talks to a duck),etc..


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## elpoderoso

Venezuelan_sweetie said:


> Actually, that was the third time I ever heard/saw that expression! This was the first one: click!
> 
> In Venezuela (Spanish), we say:
> - ¿Qué tiene que ver la gimnasia/amnesia con la magnesia? => What does gymnastic/amnesia have to do with magnesia?
> - ¿Qué tiene que ver el culo con las pestañas? => What does the arse have to do with the eyelashes? (sorry about the 'curse' word  )
> - No hay que mezclar (las) churras con (las) merinas => Erm... It has no equivalents in English, I think.


Gracias a todos por sus respuestas, pero lo que mas me gusta es el de Venezuelan sweetie. Me suena muy bueno en ambas lenguas.


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## Venezuelan_sweetie

elpoderoso said:


> Gracias a todos por sus respuestas, pero lo que mas me gusta es el de Venezuelan sweetie. Me suena muy bueno en ambas lenguas.


Glad you liked them!  My mother wouldn't have said the same, though...


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## Lilla My

In french :
*
"Quel est le rapport avec la choucroute ?"*
What's the link with the sauerkraut ?


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## Chazzwozzer

Keyt said:


> In addition to Chazzwozzer's reply, in Turkish we also say;
> 
> "Dam üstünde saksağan, gel bana bazı bazı."


Must be somehow regional. The idiom normally goes as *"Dam üstünde saksağan, vur beline kazmayı." *which literally means* "Magpie on the roof, clip the pickaxe onto your waist."
* 
xxx


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## Arrius

I am native British, born in London, but I can't remember ever having heard "What has that got to do with the price of bacon?" I do not dispute its existence but tend to think its use must be limited by class/and or region, or perhaps it came into use, like so much else, after I had ceased to live permanently in England.
I do recall however the non-sequitur "Whatever happened to the crispy bacon we used to get before the war(WW II)?"  also bespeaking total irrelevance, which was frequently heard on the BBC Goon Show and quoted by listeners. 
   The French equivalent I know to be the rather fine  "À propos de bottes, à quel prix se vendent les choux?" (Talking of boots, how much are cabbages going for these days?). This is somewhat reminiscent of Lewis Carrol's "Of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings, and why the sea is boiling hot and whether pigs have wings" - the quintessence of confused irrelevance that has gone into everyday English.


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## Binapesi

Chazzwozzer said:


> Must be somehow regional. The idiom normally goes as *"Dam üstünde saksağan, vur beline kazmayı." *which literally means* "Magpie on the roof, clip the pickaxe onto your waist."
> *
> xxx



Many Turkish uses the idiom as I say. I know what the poem is all. But It may change. "Dam üstünde saksağan, gel bana bazı bazı." "Dam üstünde maydonoz, gel bana bazı bazı."

xxx


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## Chazzwozzer

Keyt said:


> Many Turkish uses the idiom as i say.


Many? How many?

A Google search:
*Dam üstünde saksağan, gel bana bazı bazı. 11 results
Dam üstünde saksağan, vur beline kazmayı. 489 results*



Keyt said:


> "Dam üstünde maydonoz, gel bana bazı bazı."


Sure you don't mean *"alakaya maydanoz"* by this one?

xxx


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## Honour

Keyt said:


> Many Turkish uses the idiom as i say. I know what the poem is all. But It may change. "Dam üstünde saksağan, gel bana bazı bazı." "Dam üstünde maydonoz, gel bana bazı bazı."


 
I am quite sure about that the only correct version of this expression is *dam üstünde saksağan vur beline kazmayı*. I've even check it on Ömer Asım Aksoy's , who is a very credible linguist, Deyimler ve Atasözleri sözlüğü. I think the other corrupt versions should be local.


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## Flaminius

Moderation Note:

The discussion about references to pigs in Turkish has been branched to this new thread.


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## Krc

Here in Spain, we say "Que tienen que ver los cojones para comer trigo?". 
Cojones--> Balls, duts
Comer trigo--> Eat wheat


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## ILT

In México we use one that has already been mentioned by Venezuelan_sweetie:

¿Qué tiene qué ver la gimnasia con la magnesia?


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## divina

badgrammar said:


> Wow, in English I have always heard it as "What's that got to do with the price of tea in China?".  Never ever heard it with the bacon bit...  Interesting



Ha! I've heard "What's that got to do with the price of eggs in China?". Funny.


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