Thursday 16 August 2007

Even more about angels - in translation

I suppose this should be called "la part des anges - le retour"

Kajsa also wrote questioning my translation of "La part des anges" saying:
"I thought that the expression "la part des anges" referred to the quantity of cognac or armagnac that evaporated during the maturing process. My French is not particularly good, but I am very interested in things potable..."
http://www.armagnac.org/htm/francais/vieillissement.htm

As someone who considers myFrench to be pretty good and my interest in things potable as fairly high too, I am duly humiliated. We translators are used to this, sometimes we get things wrong. I got so carried away with blogging and my own thoughts that I didn't even think to check online. I suppose the evaporating spirit is seen as nearer to heaven, nearer to the angels. I've just checked in my petit Robert and can't find la part des anges either under angels or under part, although there is I now see la part du lion in French too.
So perhaps it is the lion's share of the armagnac which evaporates to be part of the angels. Anyway there seem to be numerous bars and wine cellars throughout France with this angelic name - to be aux anges (on top of the world) would presumably be where some of us would be if we visited these establishments!

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