Probably a question for Robb K...

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I'm watching the WJC and it's Latvia vs Finland currently and it got me thinking...

Does one ref speak Latvian and one Finnish to be able to communicate to the players/coaches?

Or is (this I doubt) english somehow the spoken language? I know foreign countries tend to learn english/other languages alot more often than the USA...

Currently watching at a bar with no sound but I'd probably only hear the announcers anyways so I was just curious/wondering...
I hope Snuggerud beats the shit out of Kyrou

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Ozzies09tc wrote: Tue Aug 09, 2022 7:29 pm I'm watching the WJC and it's Latvia vs Finland currently and it got me thinking...

Does one ref speak Latvian and one Finnish to be able to communicate to the players/coaches?

Or is (this I doubt) english somehow the spoken language? I know foreign countries tend to learn english/other languages alot more often than the USA...

Currently watching at a bar with no sound but I'd probably only hear the announcers anyways so I was just curious/wondering...
Obviously, I’m not Robb ;) , but as a European I can give an answer to your question though:
In general, in the most countries of Europe we talk in English with the people from that country, if not at least one side can speak the other language. So, English is for the most people in Europe the first foreign language. We in Switzerland are special case. Our country has for languages (Swiss-German 62%, French 23%, Italian 8%, Rhaeto-Romance 0.5%). Our first foreign language we learn in school is one of the other national languages. Second foreign language we learn is always English. If I travel to another country and cannot talk in that language and the people there can not talk German, we talk in English.

For Hockey: As much as I know, the common language in the pro-leagues in Hockey in Europe is English. That’s because of the mix of players from different nations and a lot of north American coaches in those leagues. Furthermore Hockey has a lot of terms we also use talking about hockey and do not translate to German => Powerplay, Offside etc. Therefore, English is absolutely the standard language in the top European Leagues and in international games.
Sidenote: This always leads to funny interviews of Swiss players. Because of the fact, that they always talk English in the locker room, they use all the hockey relevant phrases and translate it to German in the German-spoken tv-interviews: “We have to keep our feet moving” for example. This phrase does not exist in German in this context.

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Harri McBain said it all. The two probably would have spoken to each other in English, because it is the International language of Ice Hockey, and most of the specialised hockey terms come from English. A Finn and a Latvian ref could, possibly speak Russian to each other as well. But, as they would need to use their English skills in most other tournament games, they might as well use English in ALL games, as a rule, just to keep from slipping into Russian by accident, in the wrong game. Keep in mind that they don't need to be perfectly fluent in English in colloquial language. They only need to have a limited basic vocabulary and knowledge of grammar from a few-year school course, in addition to knowing all the hockey terms.

In The Netherlands, English has been the second language for many years. But everyone also learns German and French in school. Most Dutch people I know speak English and German absolutely fluently, and can get along pretty well in French. In Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Denmark & Iceland) and Finland, everyone except hermits and people over 100 years old is absolutely fluent in English (which has been the 2nd language since WWII. Norwegians, Danes and Swedes would speak their own language to people from the other 2 countries and everyone understood the other (as they are basically just dialect differences). But it is interesting, that now, because English is the Lingua Franca of computers, and dominates the Internet, TV shows, films, gaming, and all media, many Scandinavians I know (especially the young ones) just speak English to each other, because the subjects they talk about are chocked full of English terms. Norwegians and especially Swedes want Danes to speak English to them because Danish has gotten weirder and weirder (and so, more difficult to understand) over the past 100 years or so, because of slurring, glottal stops, dropping of sounds, gagging and chocking sounds, etc. It seems really bizarre to me to see a swede and Dane speak English to eachother, because for my first 60 years, or so, I could never imagine that happening. In Germany, English has been the second language since computers started becoming a part of everyday life in the late 1980s or early 1990s. When I was young, and visited Germany, virtually nobody spoke English, except people who dealt with the US military bases, and a handful of people in the tourist industry. Now, all highly educated people there are fluent in English, and most people under 30 years old can get along in t pretty well because of computers, gaming, etc. that don't get translated before they start being brought into Germany and start getting popular. Normally, all films are dubbed into German, which , along with English not having been a required subject in school (until recently) were the reasons Scandinavia's, Finland's and The Netherlands' basic populations were much, much better at understanding and speaking English, until that gap has been starting to narrow, very recently.

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Dread_Pirate_Westley wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:47 pm I’ve thought about this too when watching something like the World Cup when you have German ref calling a game between Spain and Japan
Yes, the German Ref would need to use English in that game, as neither team would likely know any German. And furthermore, if The Spanish (does Spain really have a an ice hockey team???) team wanted to swear at The Japanese team, or vice versa, they would use English, too. Otherwise there would be no point, as no one would understand. I suppose both teams understand "the finger" (which probably has been around since Neanderthal times). :mrgreen:
The Spanish team must be all Basques from The Pyrenees Mountains, just like The Italian team is made up mainly of Frenchies from Val d'Aosta (northwestern Italian Alps French border area), and Tyrolians from their northeastern Dynamic Alps South Tyrol area (part of Austria for over 1000 years, given to Italy after WWI). Do Malta, Monaco, Portugal, Greece, San Marino, and Vatican City also have ice hockey teams? This reminds me of The Jamaican bobsled team.

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Robb_K wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 10:33 pm
Dread_Pirate_Westley wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:47 pm I’ve thought about this too when watching something like the World Cup when you have German ref calling a game between Spain and Japan
Yes, the German Ref would need to use English in that game, as neither team would likely know any German. And furthermore, if The Spanish (does Spain really have a an ice hockey team???) team wanted to swear at The Japanese team, or vice versa, they would use English, too. Otherwise there would be no point, as no one would understand. I suppose both teams understand "the finger" (which probably has been around since Neanderthal times). :mrgreen:
The Spanish team must be all Basques from The Pyrenees Mountains, just like The Italian team is made up mainly of Frenchies from Val d'Aosta (northwestern Italian Alps French border area), and Tyrolians from their northeastern Dynamic Alps South Tyrol area (part of Austria for over 1000 years, given to Italy after WWI). Do Malta, Monaco, Portugal, Greece, San Marino, and Vatican City also have ice hockey teams? This reminds me of The Jamaican bobsled team.
I was more so referring to Soccer(futbol) matches.
Just a Russian propaganda account

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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JMC-STL wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 9:46 am
Robb_K wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 10:33 pm... I suppose both teams understand "the finger" (which probably has been around since Neanderthal times). :mrgreen: ...
If anybody around here knows, it'd be you, Robb. ;)
How pissed off must the first person to ever give the finger have been to just randomly stick up a finger at another person? And how confused must that person have been
Just a Russian propaganda account

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Robb_K wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 10:33 pm
Dread_Pirate_Westley wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:47 pm I’ve thought about this too when watching something like the World Cup when you have German ref calling a game between Spain and Japan
Yes, the German Ref would need to use English in that game, as neither team would likely know any German. And furthermore, if The Spanish (does Spain really have a an ice hockey team???) team wanted to swear at The Japanese team, or vice versa, they would use English, too. Otherwise there would be no point, as no one would understand. I suppose both teams understand "the finger" (which probably has been around since Neanderthal times). :mrgreen:
The Spanish team must be all Basques from The Pyrenees Mountains, just like The Italian team is made up mainly of Frenchies from Val d'Aosta (northwestern Italian Alps French border area), and Tyrolians from their northeastern Dynamic Alps South Tyrol area (part of Austria for over 1000 years, given to Italy after WWI). Do Malta, Monaco, Portugal, Greece, San Marino, and Vatican City also have ice hockey teams? This reminds me of The Jamaican bobsled team.
I've always been interested in the lower tiers of the IIHF.

https://www.iihf.com/en/worldranking

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Dread_Pirate_Westley wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 9:53 am
JMC-STL wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 9:46 am
Robb_K wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 10:33 pm... I suppose both teams understand "the finger" (which probably has been around since Neanderthal times). :mrgreen: ...
If anybody around here knows, it'd be you, Robb. ;)
How pissed off must the first person to ever give the finger have been to just randomly stick up a finger at another person? And how confused must that person have been.
I'm sure it was before language was invented. And "Mother F ' er" wouldn't likely be understood by just grunts. So symbolic "visuals" were needed! :mrgreen:

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:47 am I've always been interested in the lower tiers of the IIHF.

https://www.iihf.com/en/worldranking
Wow! Not only does Spain have an ice hockey team, but apparently, Mexico, Saudi Arabia (or was it United Arab Emirates?), Malaysia and Singapore do, as well. Had I pursued my hockey career past juniors, I might have ended up as a journeyman foreign professional ice hockey player, bouncing from The Arabian Gulf States, to Malaysia, To Singapore, and other hotbeds of hockey. As it turned out, I ended up working as an economics and environmental consultant in those countries. :o

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Robb_K wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:19 pm
BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:47 am I've always been interested in the lower tiers of the IIHF.

https://www.iihf.com/en/worldranking
Wow! Not only does Spain have an ice hockey team, but apparently, Mexico, Saudi Arabia (or was it United Arab Emirates?), Malaysia and Singapore do, as well. Had I pursued my hockey career past juniors, I might have ended up as a journeyman foreign professional ice hockey player, bouncing from The Arabian Gulf States, to Malaysia, To Singapore, and other hotbeds of hockey. As it turned out, I ended up working as an economics and environmental consultant in those countries. :o
I'm waiting for the Asian Cup tournament to come back to Manila. There are several shopping malls with ice rinks and I believe one of the major arenas here can do ice making.

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:36 pm
I'm waiting for the Asian Cup tournament to come back to Manila. There are several shopping malls with ice rinks and I believe one of the major arenas here can do ice making.
Kind of bizarre to go to a mall to attend an ice hockey game! -Especially in countries lying inside the greatest hot desert in The World, and sitting on The Equator! Many Canadian families used to despair about losing their sons and brothers to 20 years of playing hockey in USA. Now, they might lose them to 20 years of bouncing around in The 3rd-World, in the midst of wars, terrorist attacks, and revolutions! :o

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Robb_K wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:19 pm
BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:47 am I've always been interested in the lower tiers of the IIHF.

https://www.iihf.com/en/worldranking
Wow! Not only does Spain have an ice hockey team, but apparently, Mexico, Saudi Arabia (or was it United Arab Emirates?), Malaysia and Singapore do, as well. Had I pursued my hockey career past juniors, I might have ended up as a journeyman foreign professional ice hockey player, bouncing from The Arabian Gulf States, to Malaysia, To Singapore, and other hotbeds of hockey. As it turned out, I ended up working as an economics and environmental consultant in those countries. :o
Excellent book published in 2000 on the general topic, in my Top 5 of hockey reading ... "Tropic of Hockey: My Search for the Game in Unlikely Places" by Dave Bidini.

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Robb_K wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 4:04 pm
BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:36 pm
I'm waiting for the Asian Cup tournament to come back to Manila. There are several shopping malls with ice rinks and I believe one of the major arenas here can do ice making.
Kind of bizarre to go to a mall to attend an ice hockey game! -Especially in countries lying inside the greatest hot desert in The World, and sitting on The Equator! Many Canadian families used to despair about losing their sons and brothers to 20 years of playing hockey in USA. Now, they might lose them to 20 years of bouncing around in The 3rd-World, in the midst of wars, terrorist attacks, and revolutions! :o
It's really quite peaceful as megacities go. It's not really third world at all right in Manila. It does have it's problems but it's very modern now.

I feel quite safe in the area I live in.

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:37 pm
Robb_K wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 4:04 pm
BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 2:36 pm
I'm waiting for the Asian Cup tournament to come back to Manila. There are several shopping malls with ice rinks and I believe one of the major arenas here can do ice making.
Kind of bizarre to go to a mall to attend an ice hockey game! -Especially in countries lying inside the greatest hot desert in The World, and sitting on The Equator! Many Canadian families used to despair about losing their sons and brothers to 20 years of playing hockey in USA. Now, they might lose them to 20 years of bouncing around in The 3rd-World, in the midst of wars, terrorist attacks, and revolutions! :o
It's really quite peaceful as megacities go. It's not really third world at all right in Manila. It does have it's problems but it's very modern now.

I feel quite safe in the area I live in.
I was thinking more of The Arab countries and Malaysia, with that statement, rather than Singapore and Manila (although I'm guessing that being in the wrong part of Mindanao at the wrong time might be dangerous).

Re: Probably a question for Robb K...

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Robb_K wrote: Fri Aug 12, 2022 12:07 pm
BluesSK wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:37 pm
Robb_K wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 4:04 pm

Kind of bizarre to go to a mall to attend an ice hockey game! -Especially in countries lying inside the greatest hot desert in The World, and sitting on The Equator! Many Canadian families used to despair about losing their sons and brothers to 20 years of playing hockey in USA. Now, they might lose them to 20 years of bouncing around in The 3rd-World, in the midst of wars, terrorist attacks, and revolutions! :o
It's really quite peaceful as megacities go. It's not really third world at all right in Manila. It does have it's problems but it's very modern now.

I feel quite safe in the area I live in.
I was thinking more of The Arab countries and Malaysia, with that statement, rather than Singapore and Manila (although I'm guessing that being in the wrong part of Mindanao at the wrong time might be dangerous).
That is true. It can get pretty uncomfortable down there.