Re: LC_CTYPE locale category and character sets.

From: John Cowan (cowan@locke.ccil.org)
Date: Fri Jul 24 1998 - 16:34:44 EDT

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Werner LEMBERG scripsit:

> A nice German example is
>
> DER GEFANGENE FLOH
>
> which can either mean `the prisoner escaped' (Der Gefangene floh) or `the
> captured flee' (Der gefangene Floh)

Clever! In English we have:

BUFFALO BUFFALO BUFFALO BUFFALO BUFFALO

which is actually unambiguously "(Buffalo buffalo) buffalo (Buffalo
buffalo)": "Buffalo" is a city in western New York State, "buffalo"
as a noun is the well-known quadruped, indifferently singular
or plural, and "buffalo" is also a colloquial verb meaning "intimidate"
or "confuse". (AFAIK, there haven't been buffalo in Buffalo for centuries.)

Even longer versions of this are (marginally) grammatical, based
on the frame "(Buffalo buffalo [that] Buffalo buffalo buffalo [,])
buffalo (Buffalo buffalo [that] Buffalo buffalo buffalo)." This
can be extended ad nauseam by adding more dependent clauses.

-- 
John Cowan	http://www.ccil.org/~cowan		cowan@ccil.org
	You tollerday donsk?  N.  You tolkatiff scowegian?  Nn.
	You spigotty anglease?  Nnn.  You phonio saxo?  Nnnn.
		Clear all so!  'Tis a Jute.... (Finnegans Wake 16.5)

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