"soccer", "football", "zu qiu", or it depends?

[Fifty]

Is there a correct name for the sport Fifa calls "association football", regardless of linguistic context?

Or is it like nearly every other word on the planet, in the sense that the correct word for it depends on the langage and context of the speaker (so the correct word in American English for it is "soccer", the correct word in British English is "football", the correct word in Mandarin is "zu qiu" (or some Chinese character), etc.?

I have an extremely difficult time understanding the argument that any one of these terms is "wrong". How is it different than any other word, in that different languages have different words for the same thing???

I put zu qiu up there because if you wanted to argue that the correct term is the one used by the highest number of people, that would be the correct choice (since Mandarin is the most widely spoken language).

Edit for those who need everything spelled out for them very slowly: "language" in the context of this poll obviously intends to specify close linguistic context, which includes language and dialect.

 

[LightFang]

I think that it depends depending on the language you're using, which to me is not unreasonable.

 

[Airstrike92]

Fifty, you're back! Man did I miss you!

 

[azzaman333]

I didn't read through the whole poll before voting.

"It depends on the language of the speaker, like nearly every other word on the planet."

 

[ParadigmShifter]

Depends on the language.

If it's English though, it's football

If clarification is needed soccer is acceptable but you're normally better qualifying the word e.g. Rugby Football, American Football, Aussie Rules Football, etc.

 

[Arwon]

Association Football. Which can be legitimately abbreviated to either football or soccer, depending on the context.

Or I guess calcio works too.

 

[Marla_Singer]

I didn't know US English and UK English were two different languages.
That's news to me, and obviously what's implied in this poll.

 

[Bartleby]

I'm not fussy about what other people call it. Personally I don't call it soccer in much the same way that I don't call Rugby Football rugger.

 

[Tee Kay]

Screw the Chinese. I grew up using "football". "Soccer" is acceptable, too. (I call Australian Rules Football "AFL", same as the league)

 

[Arwon]

See that I find weird. Probably because my first contact with the sport was the SANFL.

 

[Zack]

It depends what dialect you're using.

 

[Fifty]

So

Akka, col, Marla_Singer, raketooy, taillesskangaru, Truronian, Weik

What is it about this sport that makes it a total linguistic anomaly, different than nearly every other word on the planet?

I really think that some of you are joking. There is no way that people as generally smart as col and Truronian have a view of language that your average grade school kid knows is false.

I didn't know US English and UK English were two different languages.
That's news to me, and obviously what's implied in this poll.

No, actually it isn't implied by the poll, although I can understand how somebody so shockingly uneducated in language to think that there is a "right" word for something regardless of linguistic context would think so.

The poll says "depends based on the language of the speaker", and the implicature in this conversational context implies that dialect is the level of precisification required. I'll edit in an explanation for people unable to understand conversational context.

 

[Airstrike92]

The proper term is soccer.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

Football is a term used because the sport is about feed and balls. The same goes for the German "Fußball" where "Fuß" means "Food" and "ball" means ball. So aha! There seems to be some kind of pattern. I suspect the same pattern applies on Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and French (correct me if I am mistaken).
What I find essential for this discussion is the linguistic background of "zu qiu". Does it go conform with the same pattern?

If so, it is obvious that football is the correct term, because it follows an in general accepted and used linguistic pattern and "soccer" is a freak appearance caused by the unique development of American sport culture.

However, it is of course not my nor anyone else's buisness except the American's if they prefer this name. But: Americans are ill-advised to assume that others will adress this sport as soccer in international conduct and it is sensible to bear that in mind.

 

[Akka]

I'm disappointed about the lack of wannabe macho-man posturing in the poll options. Hopefully it's made up for in the posts thereafter - though I'm longing for some "girly" adjective, come on, you can do it Testosterone Guy, show them all !

Moderator Action: Trolling.
Please read the forum rules: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=422889

 

[Fifty]

Football is a term used because the sport is about feed and balls. The same goes for the German "Fußball" where "Fuß" means "Food" and "ball" means ball. So aha! There seems to be some kind of pattern. I suspect the same pattern applies on Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and French (correct me if I am mistaken).
What I find essential for this discussion is the linguistic background of "zu qiu". Does it go conform with the same pattern?

If so, it is obvious that football is the correct term, because it follows an in general accepted and used linguistic pattern and "soccer" is a freak appearance caused by the unique development of American sport culture.

You are making a basic confusion between the etymology of a word and whether it is 'proper'. What makes a word correct is the linguistic context of the speaker, not its etymology. And it is just false that words are supposed to "give information" about what they refer to.

I'm disappointed about the lack of wannabe macho-man posturing in the poll options. Hopefully it's made up for in the posts thereafter - though I'm longing for some "girly" adjective, come on, you can do it Testosterone Guy, show them all !

I don't understand why you are so hostile, unless its in lieu of your having any coherent argument.

I noticed that most of the people who are voting "football" came from Europe. Maybe this reflects the cultural, linguistic, and racial homogeneity in individual European nations. I'm guessing less Europeans will make such a basic confusion as more and more people from other cultures continue to immigrate to Europe.

 

[Bill3000]

I call it soccer because I am an American, and it would cause confusion to my peers otherwise, because Americans uses the word "football" for a different sport. See? It's not that hard, people.

Words aren't based on their etymology, and compound words certainly can have non-transparent meanings. "White-collar" isn't a collar which is white, but that doesn't mean that the term is wrong to use. The common meaning of words isn't based on how "logical" the term might be.

 

[Akka]

I don't understand why you are so hostile, unless its in lieu of your having any coherent argument.

Dude, seriously, read your own posts. I couldn't caricature you even if I wanted to.
I made a slight tongue-in-cheek jab at the use of "soccer" in another thread, and you've gone on a condescending rampage ever since.
I would be offensed if I wasn't laughing so hard

And if you think I'm being hostile... Well, again, maybe you should read your own posts

 

[Fifty]

I made a slight tongue-in-cheek jab at the use of "soccer" in another thread, and you've gone on a condescending rampage ever since.

I gave you many opportunities to admit that it was a standard little regional pride thing, which you did not avail yourself of until now.

I'm very glad to see that you are not shockingly ignorant of basic properties of human language!


PS: Is there a thread about this thread on speakeasy!? I see lots of speakeasy peeps voting for 'football", and I don't want to bother seeing for myself.

 

[warpus]

I grew up knowing the sport as piłka nożna, which literally translates to "ball of the foot". Most people in Poland just get rid of the "of the foot" and call it piłka - ball. There is never any confusion with any other sports - the only sport I can think of that has a similar name is handball - piłka ręczna. So, if you don't specify what kind of sport it is and just say 'ball', it always means soccer.

American Football, for those who are interested is called 'Futbol amerykański' - the Polish word 'ball' doesnt appear anywhere in the name - the word futbol being a Polishized 'football'.

In any case, for those of you who don't know, the sport is called by whatever the world champions call it. Right now the champions are Italian, so we have to all call the sport CALCIO or risk being wrong.