black and white cows

[ChrisGreaves]

So I’m chatting with the Tony, my dental technician about something or other and manage to segue into (see!) how I’m translating The Gingerbread Man from Spanish (El Hombrecito de Mazapán) and the little man runs past “una vaca blanca y negra”, and yes, you have already worked out that he runs past a black and white cow.

“Wow!” says Tony, “Yes, that’s weird; we say white and black in Italian too”.

So my question is this:-

In any language in which you are confident, how do you say the equivalent of “black and white cow”.
Your options must be, surely, black-and-white, white-and-black, or some other word or phrase. (N.B. “Grey” or “Gray” will not be accepted)

[HansV]

We'd say either "zwart-wit" (= "black-white") or "zwartbont" (literally "black-variegated, official translation "piebald").

[ChrisGreaves]

We'd say either "zwart-wit" (= "black-white") or "zwartbont" (literally "black-variegated, official translation "piebald").

OK. Thanks Hans.
So in Dutch (Nederlandese?) you go B&W rather than W&B, right?

[John Gray]

Someone nearby had lost a cat, and put up notices asking for someone to return their black-and-white cat if they found it.

However, a week or two later, a neighbour was found to have the cat, which fact she explained away saying that it wasn't a black-and-white cat, but a white-and-black cat!

Strictly speaking, I would thank that the preponderant 'colour' should come first - if more white than black then it's a white-and-black cat - but in practice the only phrase used is "black-and-white cat", regardless.

[Rudi]

Always black & white here; and we should know since we have ze bra's, sorry, I mean zebras.

[jonwallace]

Strictly speaking, I would thank that the preponderant 'colour' should come first - if more white than black then it's a white-and-black cat - but in practice the only phrase used is "black-and-white cat", regardless.

As always, the definitive answer is found in this Star Trek episode...

[HansV]

So in Dutch (Nederlandese?) you go B&W rather than W&B, right?

Indeed, we never use the equivalent of white&black.

[viking33]

Holstein.

Holstein.JPG

[Claude]

In Swiss German: Schwartz und wiss. In Swiss Romand: Noir et blanc, in Swiss Italian: in bianco e nero, in Australian english: Steak

[GeoffW]

Is the steak with pepper and salt, or salt and pepper?

[Rudi]

x1000

[Leif]

What I want to know is, if you put a Holstein in a windowless room, turned the light off and locked the door, what colour would it be then?

[StuartR]

What I want to know is, if you put a Holstein in a windowless room, turned the light off and locked the door, what colour would it be then?

Steak

[GeoffW]

What I want to know is, if you put a Holstein in a windowless room, turned the light off and locked the door, what colour would it be then?

If it was a cow it would get confused and turn around and around.

Eliminating one process in making butter.

[stuck]

What I want to know is, if you put a Holstein in a windowless room, turned the light off and locked the door, what colour would it be then?

Feel free to correct my logic here... Since a cow does not emit light, its colour is solely dependant on any reflected light but, unless there's some light leaking around the locked door, the room you describe has no light in it all which means the cow will be colourless.

Ken

[HansV]

cow.JPG

[stuck]

[BobH]

Strictly speaking, I would thank that the preponderant 'colour' should come first - if more white than black then it's a white-and-black cat - but in practice the only phrase used is "black-and-white cat", regardless.

As always, the definitive answer is found in this Star Trek episode...

I'm sorry to disappoint you, John; but the definitive answer is 42

[Rudi]

... but the definitive answer is 42

Can someone please find the post containing the famous (or infamous) Bob in his 42 T-Shirt (and the gnomes)....
I have tried 42 times to find it and it still eludes me.

The image is worthy of being retweeted reposted!

[ChrisGreaves]

...I would thank that the preponderant 'colour' should come first - if more white than black then it's a white-and-black cat ...

Think you for that thought, John.
But see also my reply in a different thread a few minutes ago.
In the example I quoted it's a picture of a cow in a book. I tried turning the page to see the other side, but there was none, so how am I supposed to be sure that there really is more black than white all over.

Sort-of back on topic: Since we are speaking of Latin roots here, I suspect that the flip is caused by one of two things:-
(1) There is a tongue-mouth-lip muscle thingo that makes it easier for (English) humans to say black-and-white but easier for Spantalians to say "White and Black" or
(2) It was an unstable situation, and by chance the B&W usage was settled in the UK and came to become the standard.

I know that the linguist Steven Pinker spends quite a few words explaining about how we (humans) make sounds, and why we join them the way we do. It's time to read his books again ...