31.01.18  Ambivalence is always a challenge  to a translator.  Ambiguities are mostly unintentional – in most cases we are interested in the message to hit the target audience straight. “The Slut-Shaming of Nikki Haley” contains a number of allusions that are matter-of-fact for the English language natives, but empty cognates for foreigners. “the blue dress” is an example of such an empty cognate for those people to whom English is a foreign language.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/29/opinion/nikki-haley-slutshaming-clinton-grammys.html

27.01.18 ‘Whoso desireth a peacock must endure the trials of Hindustan’, says a popular Persian proverb. Literally:

Кто хочет иметь павлина, должен снести тяготы поездки в Индию.

Peacock  is a symbol of unhappiness in many cultures. The Persian proverb is an example of a good chance for  a cognitive dissonance triggered by translation.  

The “dynamic equivalent” (Nida’s term) is:                                 

Без труда не выловить рыбки из пруда.

25.01.18 We used to sing the great Gaudeamus on this day. "Gaudeamus Igitur" ("So Let Us Rejoice") or just "Gaudeamus", is a popular academic song in many European and American countries, mainly sung or performed at university graduation ceremonies. Despite its use as a formal graduation hymn, it is a jocular, light-hearted composition that pokes fun at university life. 

23.01.18 Hereafter = afterlife, but the latter is closer to the Russian mind-set. Even in the 21st century the idea of hereafter is tempting to many people, unlike the great Persian poet whom Oscar Wilde compared to Shakespeare. Khayyám valued three things most of all: women, wine and science.

Owing to his inquisitive nature, Khayyám questioned things most around him took for granted: faith, the hereafter, and the meaning of life itself. He had little confidence in the promises of religion, with its talk of Heaven and Hell, and even expressed doubts regarding the logic of God. There was only one thing Khayyám was certain about, and which he cherished: this life.

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20180111-the-rubaiyat-historys-most-luxurious-book-of-poetry

21.01.18 Millennials killed a lot of things last year. Almost daily, it seemed, a headline would appear with news of an industry or institution falling victim to Gen Y disruption. This trend has become so pervasive that the very phrase “millennials are killing” will now live on forever as a meme. http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20180118-what-will-millennials-kill-this-year

17.01.18 "hygge" is a word that roughly translates to a cosiness shared among friends. “Having a movie night or a dinner night and inviting Danish friends over is a perfect way of blending into the Danish culture. Danes love to talk, to mingle and to simply sit together, enjoy the candlelight, good food and interesting talks. The Danish word "hugge" is a cultural term that translates into English as "fun" and into Russian as "уютность". Denmark turns out to be the happiest nation in Europe. http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20180107-what-its-like-to-live-in-a-well-governed-country?ocid=ww.social.link.twitter

11.01.18  FOMO - at times, we fill our schedule simply out of fear of missing out (FOMO), an inability to say no, but also as a sneaky way to procrastinate or shift focus away from work. For some reason the English-speaking people are obsessed with creating abbreviations no un-English culture would have ever come up with!!!

3.01.18 “And Gloria cackled, let there be sparkle; and there was sparkle.” It’s a passage from the Bible, but not as we know it: this is a familiar line from the Book of Genesis as spoken in Polari. The secret language became a kind of verbal wink between gay men in Britain during the early 20th Century – allowing them to hide and to reveal at the same time.