Peppa Pig

At Atlas we often get asked about Google Translate (no, we don’t use it, we use real people for translation work!). Recently one of my Italian friends posted on Facebook in Italian about Peppa Pig. This got my interest, as I love Peppa Pig  my children love Peppa and her friends! A few years ago my daughter was singing “Peace and Harmony, in all the World” in the supermarket and this drew admiring glances and comments from many shoppers. I didn’t have the heart to tell them she wasn’t up for the Nobel Peace Prize, she’d just been watching Peppa on TV again.

If you haven’t heard the song, you’ll find it on YouTube, from the International Day episode. On International Day the school celebrates all the countries in the world. The children are dressed in different international costumes. Peppa Pig is dressed as France and George (her brother) is dressed as Russia. Everything is going well until all the countries start fighting over the sand pit. Perhaps I should stop there.

So what my friend said was:

Voglio spezzare una lancia per Peppa Pig. Ho visto in questi giorni tante mamme che dichiarano guerra ed esprimono odio per quel maialino indifeso…ma dico, mamma e papà pig non sgridano i bimbi, giocano con loro, incluso saltare nelle pozzanghere e buttarsi a terra dalle risate, fanno fare il bagno ai bimbi con le scarpette nuove perché i bimbi non se le vogliono togliere, sono tutti educati e gentili, i fratellini si amano e non litigano…ma insomma che volete di più da un cartone?? Meglio la roba che vedevamo noi, Georgie, Candy e le altre sfigate senza famiglia in preda a crudeltà inumane perpetrate dai genitori adottivi???

And here’s what Google Translate suggested this meant.

I want to break a lance for Peppa Pig. I’ve seen these days many mothers who declare war and express hatred for the helpless little pig … but I say, Mom and Dad pig not scold the children, play with them, including jumping in puddles and jump to the ground with laughter, they do bathroom with new shoes to children because the children did not want to take away, they are all polite and friendly, the brothers love each other and not fight … but anyway that you want from a cartoon? Better than the stuff you saw us, Georgie, Candy and other losers with no family in the grip of inhuman cruelty perpetrated by the adoptive parents??

? I want to break a lance for Peppa Pig? I got the gist of some of it! But some of it is nonsensical. This is just a bit of fun, but clearly if you want your website or company blurb to be understood, look professional, and not stick out (or lance out) for all the wrong reasons please, please don’t rely on an automatic translation.

So what did the Italian actually say?

I want to stick up for Peppa Pig. These days lots of mums declare war on this defenseless little pig, but actually, what’s not to love? Mummy and Daddy Pig don’t scold the children, they play with them and even jump in puddles with them, they roll on the ground laughing with them, they let them go in the bath with new shoes on because the children didn’t want to take them off. They’re all polite and friendly, the siblings love each other and don’t fight- what more do you want from a cartoon? Better than the stuff we used to watch – Georgie, Candy and other losers with no family and only cruel carers.*

*I have checked this with my Italian friend, and the programmes they watched were apparently about children abandoned to cruel carers!

CS