# snowman



## rusita preciosa

How do you say it in your language? 
What gender is it?

Russian: *снежная баба* /snejnaya baba/ – snow matron (fem.)
French: *bonhomme de neige* – snow fellow (masc.)


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## ThomasK

In Dutch: *sneeuwman,* never any women around...


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## rusita preciosa

ThomasK said:


> In Dutch: *sneeuwman,* never any women around...


So, "snow*man*" then?


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## ThomasK

Yes, quite so !


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## Agró

*Spanish*: Muñeco de nieve.
*Basque*: Elur panpina.
*Catalan*: Ninot de neu.

muñeco, panpin, ninot: (boy) doll.
nieve, elur, neu: snow


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## bibax

Czech:

*sněhulák* (snow + -ulák, a rare masculine suffix);

(sněžný muž = yeti, lit. snow man);


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## rusita preciosa

bibax said:


> Czech:
> 
> *sněhulák* (snow + -ulák, a rare masculine suffix);
> 
> (sněžný muž = yeti, lit. snow man);


How interesting... I didn't think about it. In Russian,
*снежный человек* /snejnyi tchelovek/ - snow person / snow man (masc.) = *yeti or bigfoot*
*снежная баба -* snow matron/woman (fem.) *= snowman*

EDIT: I just remembered that we also have *снеговик */snegovik/ that is formed exactly like the Czech word (snow + a masculin suffix), but I don't remember using this word very often.


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## sakvaka

*Finnish*: _lumiukko, -n, -a_

lumi = snow
ukko = old man


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## Orlin

Bulgarian: снежен човек. (Rusita, я считаю, что нет необходимости Вам объяснять, что это буквально значит, и какого рода это выражение.)


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## olaszinho

*Italian:*
*Pupazzo di neve* =  Snowman
Pupazzo = puppet


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## apmoy70

In Greek:
«Χιονάνθρωπος» (ço'nanθropos _masculine noun_) lit. _snow-human_. Compound formed with the joining together of the neuter noun «χιόνι» ('çoni)*-->_snow_ + masculine noun «άνθρωπος» ('anθropos)**-->generic term for human being

*«Χιόνι» ('çoni _neuter noun_) derives from the Classical feminine noun «χιών» (xi'ōn)-->_snow_; from PIE Base *ǵʰéi-mn̥-, _winter_.
**«Άνθρωπος» ('anθropos _masculine noun_) derives from the Classical masculine noun «ἄνθρωπος» ('ăntʰrōpŏs), with obscure etymology. Some philologists suggest it's a compound formed with the joining together of the masculie noun «ἀνήρ» (a'nēr)-->_man_ + productive suffix «-ωπός» (-ō'pŏs) or «-ώπος» (-'ōpŏs) which actively forms words that declare characteristics, from PIE Base *okw-, _to see_; initially «ἄνδρωπος» ('ăndrōpŏs)-->_manlike_, later «ἄνθρωπος» ('ăntʰrōpŏs) 

[ç] is a voiceless palatal fricative
[x] is a voiceless velar fricative, known as the hard ch
[θ] is a voiceless dental non-sibilant fricative


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## rusita preciosa

Orlin said:


> Bulgarian: снежен човек. (Rusita, я считаю, что нет необходимости Вам объяснять, что это буквально значит, и какого рода это выражение.)


Just one question: does *човек* mean "man" or "human/person"? Sometimes these false friends in Slavic languages could be misleading.


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## Orlin

rusita preciosa said:


> Just one question: does *човек* mean "man" or "human/person"? Sometimes these false friends in Slavic languages could be misleading.


 
Здравствуйте, Rusita! Во-первых, Вы можете мне писать по-русски.
В болгарском языке "човек" не обязательно лицо мужского пола (совсем как русское "человек"), но в некоторых контекстах мужской пол обычно подразумевается. Об этом есть интересная дискуссия на славянском форуме:http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1257839&highlight=%D0%A7%D0%9E%D0%92%D0%80%D0%9A.


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## rusita preciosa

Orlin said:


> Вы можете мне писать по-русски.


Well, I opened this forum for everyone, that's why I am responding in Eng.


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## phosphore

Serbian: *Sneško Belić* (from _sneg_=snow and _beli_=white, to which we applied the common suffixes -_ko_ for names and -_ić_ for surnames, compare for example with a real name _Slavko Krstić_, from _slava_=glory and _krst_=cross) or just *sneško*


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## Frank78

In German:

"der Schneemann" 

Schnee - snow
Mann - man

So "Mann" is also a human male individual.


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## Black4blue

Turkish: *Kardanadam*
_Kar - Snow_
_"-dan" - Here it means something like "made of"_
_Adam - Man_

So it's like *man who is made of snow* or literally *"made of snow" man*.
It has no gender naturally, like all other Turkish words.


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## Outsider

Portuguese: *boneco de neve* (puppet/doll of snow)

This is the usual form, which is masculine, but if for some reason you wished to assign the female gender to it you could readily convert it into _bonec*a* de neve_.


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## bibax

In Czech you can create a complete snowy family:

sněhulák (masc.)
sněhulačka (fem.)
sněhuláče (neuter)


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## silver frog

In Italian (as somebody mentioned) a snowman is called *pupazzo di neve*. 

It is worth noting that it does not really mean "_man_ made of snow", but "*puppet made of snow*". 

So, even if the grammatical gender is masculine in Italian, the thing itself is "neuter", so to say.


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## rusita preciosa

It would be interesting to hear from foreros who speak languages of the areas where snow is not common (Hebrew, Arabic, Thai...).


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## Istriano

*பனிமனிதன் in Tamil. 
*


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## rusita preciosa

Istriano said:


> *பனிமனிதன் in Tamil. *


Thank you. Could you please indicate the pronounciation and the literal meaning.


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## Lars H

In Swedish he is called *Snömannen*, exact meaning: The Snowman


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## Hakro

Lars H said:


> In Swedish he is called *Snömannen*, exact meaning: The Snowman


In Finland's Swedish (I think) it's called *snögubbe* which is a direct translation from the Finnish _lumiukko_ (see Sakvaka's post #8).


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## galaxy man

Hungarian:   *hóember* = snow man 
hó = snow; ember = man;
 
Although Hungarian has no genders, and the word *ember* carries the same double meaning as its English counterpart *man* = (1) human; (2) male, the word is unquestionably masculine. Also: Hungarian snowmen wear man's headgear.


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## ThomasK

I'd really love to know why about all snowmen are masculine..


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## Lars H

Hakro said:


> In Finland's Swedish (I think) it's called *snögubbe* which is a direct translation from the Finnish _lumiukko_ (see Sakvaka's post #8).



You are absolutely right.
I was thinking of the "Yeti", the snowman of the Himalayas 

What kids would build at home in the garden is a "*snögubb*e", same meaning as in Finnish and Finlandswedish. From time to time they could also build a "*snögumma*" (feminin)


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## rusita preciosa

ThomasK said:


> I'd really love to know why about all snowmen are masculine..


Which I think does not make snese. I think Russians got it right: the snowman (done properly) has feminine shape rather than masculine .


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## ThomasK

Does it really ??? Around here it got a hat, a pipe, and so far those have been symbols of masculinity (in this area at least). And don't most contributors here refer to a masculine person? _(Good Lord, am I being sexist with regard to snow(wo)men already ?) _

By the way I have never seen a 'breasted' snow(wo)man around here... ;-)


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## Pierre Lucien

_Boneka salju_, en indonésien, signifie littéralement "poupée de neige". Une poupée, c'est féminin, non ?


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## amikama

Hebrew: *איש שלג* (_ish sheleg_, lit. "snow man").


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## kusurija

In Lithuanian:
snowman (not Yetti): senis besmegenis (literally: old-man without brain  both words masculine)
Yetti - Jetis

In Japanese:
雪達磨 [yukidaruma]


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## elirlandes

In Irish - 
*Fear sneachta*
Man of-snow


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## Nizo

In Esperanto, the word is *neĝhomo*, which is a snow person (no gender), or *neĝviro*, which is literally "snowman."


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## nooij

ThomasK said:


> In Dutch: *sneeuwman,* never any women around...


 
Here in the (northern) Netherlands, we usually refer to one as _'sneeuwpop'_ (snow doll/puppet). But _'sneeuwman'_ is heard here as well, sometimes.


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## 810senior

In Japanese:
雪だるま(yuki-daruma) snow-tumbler

It's not primarily because it's easy for its head to tumble down but resembles the Japanese tumbler.


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## Encolpius

bibax said:


> In Czech you can create a complete snowy family:
> sněhulák (masc.) sněhulačka (fem.)  sněhuláče (neuter)



The same in Hungarian. 
sněhulák - hóember
sněhulačka - hóasszony
sněhulče - hófiú (m.), hóleány (f.)
and their pets: hócica (snow-cat), hókutyus (snow-puppy)


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## Red Arrow

ThomasK said:


> In Dutch: *sneeuwman,* never any women around...


For some reason Dutchmen prefer to say *sneeuwpop*. I guess it's more gender equal


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## 810senior

Same here in part. We would say yuki-usagi(lit. snowrabbit) that refers to a rabbit made from snow. Maybe we could adapt to others in a same way, but I haven't heard of.


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## elroy

rusita preciosa said:


> It would be interesting to hear from foreros who speak languages of the areas where snow is not common (Hebrew, Arabic, Thai...).





amikama said:


> Hebrew: *איש שלג* (_ish sheleg_, lit. "snow man").


 I'm afraid Arabic is just as boring : رجل ثلج (_rajul thalj_, lit. "snow man").  

(In Palestinian Arabic, the second word is pronounced _talj_.)


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## MyriadLeaves

Snemand (sne = snow + mand = man) So pretty much close to the English one. Finally, its gender is utrum.


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## Encolpius

elroy said:


> I'm afraid Arabic is just as boring : رجل ثلج (_rajul thalj_, lit. "snow man").
> 
> (In Palestinian Arabic, the second word is pronounced _talj_.)



Just out of curiosity. Don't you have a specific term for "sand-man"? Like this. There is more sand than snow in many Arab countries.


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## merquiades

@rusita preciosa   Would the Abominable snowman also be the Abominable snow matron in Russia?  Same as the Чучуня?  Also feminine I assume


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## rusita preciosa

The Abominable snowman in Russian is снежный человек (snow man / snow human) or Йети (Yeti).

I was not familiar with Чучуня, had to look it up - it seems like it is the Russian equivalent of Yeti and Bigfoot. It is masculine despite the -a ending (like мужчина, дедушка etc...)


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## SuperXW

Chinese (simplified characters):
雪人 - snow person


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## nimak

Macedonian


снешко (sneško) [`snɛʃkɔ] _masc., lit._ "snowy-one"; _pl._ снешковци (sneškovci) [`snɛʃkɔvt͡si] _or_
дедо снешко (dedo sneško) [`dɛdɔ `snɛʃkɔ] _masc., lit._ "grandfather snowy-one"
In some regions it is also known as снешко белчо (sneško belčo) [`snɛʃkɔ `bɛɫt͡ʃɔ] _masc., lit._ "snowy-one white-one"

_snow = снег (sneg)_


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