"When pigs fly" is an idiomatic way of saying that something will never happen.
* In German "Wenn Schweine fliegen können!" ... [or] "Wenn Schweine Flügel hätten, wäre alles möglich" (if pigs had wings, everything would be possible)...
* In Finnish... "sitten kun lehmät lentävät" (when cows fly)...
* In Spanish... "cuando las vacas vuelen" ("when cows fly"), ... "cuando las ranas crien pelo" (when frogs grow hair) and "cuando San Juan agache el dedo" (when Saint John bends his finger)...
* In French... "Quand les vaches auront des ailes" ("when cows have wings"), [and] "quand les poules auront des dents" ("when hens have teeth").
* In Portuguese... "quando a cobra fumar " ("when snakes smoke"). The sentence was used by Getúlio Vargas, Brazilian president during World War II, to reaffirm Brazil's neutrality in the conflict: "Snakes will smoke before Brazil enters the war". When Brazil eventually declared war on Nazi Germany... the Brazilian force called themselves Cobras Fumantes (literally, Smoking Snakes). ..
* In [Hindi] ... "Na no mann tail hu gaa naa radhaa naachay gee" that means that neither there will be 9 tons of oil nor Radhaa (a dancer) will dance...
Text from Wikipedia. photo credit WSJ.
I like hearing about the same expression in different languages (event though I had never heard about cows having wings, i tend to use quite extensively the one about the hens). The "hens" locution was already in use during the 18th century, but I don't know where it comes from.
ReplyDeleteThere's a book by Stephen Jay Gould which is called "quand les poules auront des dents" in french, which is, I think, the translation of his book "Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes".
several years ago there was a 'flying pig' celebration here in cincinnati, hundreds of life size ceramic statues of flying pigs, or should I say "pigs on the wing.
ReplyDeleteJust for the record, in European Portuguese, we say "Quando as galinhas tiverem dentes" – When chicken have teeth :D
ReplyDeleteThe credit for "Na no mann tail hu gaa naa radhaa naachay gee" is erroneously given to Urdu. It is actually a Hindi saying. This is very clear based on the use of Hindi units (mann) as well as reference to a Hindu mythological character (Radha).
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you're right. Text updated. Thanks for the correction!
ReplyDelete