> > > > Also, to give this post a better raison d'etre (that's "raisin to eat" for all you French-challenged folks out there)
> > >
> > > What has this to do with the rest of your post? I expected you starting to talk french!
> >
> > The parenthetical was just a throwaway gag (well, I shouldn't say "just" -- I cracked up), but "raison d'etre," French though it may be, is actually a commonly used expression in *English*, which means, literally "reason for being" and refers to the justification of the existence of something. English actually has quite a few French expressions (and a few from other languages, but mostly just French) that are commonly used in English.
> >
> > My guess is that your confusion, not being a native English speaker, is based on Issachar's use of "raison d'etre" in the main text of his post, not the parenthesized comment,...
> >
>
> I hadn't even considered that loan-words might not be such a common occurrence in Jommeke's experience. Sorry, Jommeke -- you even asked me about it and I replied with a flippant answer. Mea culpa. (oops, did it again!) Seriously, though, Sam's explanation is on target.
>
> > ... which is why I'm explaining this -- pardon me if I'm mistaken.
> >
>
> S.A.M. is never mistaken, of course.
>
> > So does this kind of thing happen in your language? Do foreign words or expressions get adopted by the language unchanged, as happens in English from time to time? It's an interesting phenomenon, actually.
> >
>
> I'd be interested to hear about this, too.
>
> Iss "heritage-lacking mongrel though I may be" achar

Well, actually, i kinda knew what Issachar was talking about, i only wanted to jump into the "lets-talk-french"-part. Nevermind.

Anyway, we have a lot of 'foreign' expressions and words too. Its also a fact that some people (they are called language-puritists) are fighting to get our language (=dutch) purified from all foreign influences. Therefor they 'translate' those expressions or words in a dutch word, which may be funny from time to time. Luckily they dont succeed all the time, cos i like those 'strange' influences. In France the language-puritists are even worse, they exband really every english-sounding expression or word in their language.

Personally, i'm influenced a lot by english, its kinda weird. But since i was a kid i used to 'talk' english with my bro, and nowadays i still have that, with my friends, girlfriend, bro, ... Not with 'older' people, but only with the youngsters. Well, its not that we make whole conversations in english, but we drop a sentence or a word in english, just "because that sounds better and cooler".

Examples of english words commonly used in dutch? We all use a "CD-ROM"(which is a very english word, lol, they translated that in dutch as "leesschijfje" or "little-readable-plate", lol). I cant think of an expression right now...except the *bad* words, beginning with 'f' and ending on 'uck you', and so on....
Actually its quite intrigueing. I went to Austria this summer with a family (related to a friend), and they have a kid of 10 years old. And he was also talking english all the time, words like "Damn" and "Fu...". A lot of the youngsters here, use english as a 'popular' language.

Jommeke