“Τα μάτια σου τέσσερα.”

Nationality: American
Age: 21
Occupation: student
Residence: USC
Performance Date: 2/20/21
Primary Language: English
Language: Greek

This proverb comes from my friend LP who is Greek. 

Text:

“Τα μάτια σου τέσσερα.” The translation roughly means “use four eyes.”

“Τα μάτια σου δεκατέσσερα.” The translation roughly means “use fourteen eyes.”

Context:

“My mom and my yia-yia (a.k.a. grandma) will use the first saying whenever I go out somewhere they consider somewhat dangerous,” LP said. “For example, if I got dinner in the city with my friends, my mom would use that saying as I was walking out the door. It essentially means be careful and keep a lookout for danger. If I’m going somewhere that my mom considers to be super dangerous, she’ll use the second phrase. This just means be extra careful — hence the fourteen eyes instead of four.”

Analysis:

When LP told me the first saying, I thought it was interesting and that the number four made sense as I’ve heard things like “I have a pair eyes on the back of my head.” When she followed it up with the second saying about fourteen eyes, I was surprised at the huge jump in numbers and it got me curious about the number four itself since it was found in both sayings. I found that in Greek mythology, four is the number of Jupiter who is the “master of the protection and the justice,” which fit along perfectly with the context Leia provided for the phrase. The phrases are sweet and endearing as they imply caring about the wellbeing of loved ones. 

Θα το πάρεις κόκκινο.

Nationality: American
Age: 21
Occupation: student
Residence: USC
Performance Date: 2/20/23
Primary Language: English
Language: Greek

This proverb comes from my friend LPwho is Greek. 

Text:

“Θα το πάρεις κόκκινο.” The translation roughly means “I’ll give you the red one.” 

Context:

“This is a sarcastic saying that we use when someone asks for something ridiculous,” LP said. “For example, when I was a kid and I asked for a fancy toy, my mom would respond with that saying. She’d respond with the saying to show that 1) I wasn’t getting the toy and 2) it was a bit ridiculous of me to ask. It’s kind of a funny phrase because it’s pretty sarcastic.”

Analysis:

When I tried to research this one, I didn’t have any luck finding anything which surprised me and makes me curious about how common it is. This sort of reminds me of the popular phrase “you get what you get and you don’t throw a fit,” because both are used to lightly ridicule children who may be asking for too much. After not finding anything directly tied to this phrase, I tried to see what different symbolism the color red had in Greek culture to see if I could find a connection there. In doing this, however, I mostly found red as being a symbol for blood and cycles of life, which doesn’t particularly fit with this proverb. Overall, it’s a pretty straightforward and charming phrase and I would be very interested in talking to more Greek people about if they’ve heard of it and/or use it.

The Indian Head Wobble

Nationality: American
Age: 22
Occupation: student
Residence: USC
Performance Date: 2/21/23
Primary Language: English

This gesture comes from my roommate, NH, who is half Indian and participated in Bharatanatyam dance for 14 years.

Text:

“In Indian culture, instead of an up and down head nod that is common in American culture, a  side to side tilt is more common. It is used often when answering ‘yes’ to a question or to indicate that you understand what someone is telling you,” NH said.

Context: 

“I encountered it the most when at dance practice, as my dance teacher would often use it. My grandmother also uses it,” NH said. She also mentioned that as a kid she would sometimes use this gesture after being around her grandmother, but as she grew older, the American up and down nod became more second nature.

Analysis:

After some research, I discovered that this gesture NH described to me is often called the “Indian head bobble/wobble” and can be used to express a range of emotions. One website described an array of bobble subgroups such as “The Hello Wobble,” “The Acknowledgment Wobble,” “The Sign of Respect Wobble,” “The No / Yes / Maybe Wobble,” “The Not Sure / Maybe / Perhaps Wobble,” and “The Got it! Wobble.” I find it very interesting that NH only described “yes wobble” and “the got it wobble.” I’m sure it just takes conversational context to figure out what someone’s wobble means, but it is very fascinating that the same gesture can mean so many things. 

Tumbang Preso

Nationality: American
Age: 54
Residence: San Gabriel, California
Primary Language: English
Language: Tagalog

M is 54, and grew up in Manila, Philippines, and currently resides in San Gabriel, California.

M described to me a game that was played among the children in his neighborhood called tumbang preso. The rules as he recalled them were, that someone “guards the can” while the other kids take turns ‘“trying to hit the can with their slipper.” And that the object of the game was the “knock down the can” and avoid getting tagged by the “can guardian.” This game was corroborated by M (50) who said that she also grew up playing the game. I asked them both why slippers were utilized specifically. M replied that it was the “only thing they had” and that it was easier to play games with household objects.

Upon further research, I learned that the game name, tumbang preso, is also known as Kick the Can. It has a lot of similarities in its rules and the way that it is structured, compared to other tag-based games, like capture the flag. I find it interesting that most countries have some sort of variation of tag, albeit with different items used, according to where the children grow up.

Coins for the New Year

Nationality: American
Age: 54
Residence: San Gabriel, California
Primary Language: English
Language: Tagalog

M is 54, and grew up in Manila, Philippines, and currently resides in San Gabriel, California.

M always says that during the New Year, “you must always have money in your wallet or carry coins in your pocket”. He said that this would ensure that you “always have money during the New Year.”

A saying commonly passed around Filipino families, this is a tradition that has been practiced in my family for as long as I can remember. Even if we were not carrying money throughout the day, my brother and I were each given a handle of coins to have as the New Year clock counted down. It appears that Filipino people, and other cultures and ethnic groups, regard the New Year as a deeply momentous and symbolic time. This can be seen in copious amounts of traditions practiced around that time. 

In fact, the coins in the pocket tradition are performed in tandem with other New Year’s traditions my parents have passed down, including eating noodles (for a long life), and jumping when the clock strikes midnight (to grow taller in the new year).