As Leah and I are off to Madeira for 12 days from tomorrow morning there may be a longish delay in any responses.
I'm listening to The Beatles' Here Comes the Sun. Written and sung by the under-valued George Harrison. You can listen here!
Friday, 22 November 2019
Tu You You
As Leah and I are off to Madeira for 12 days from tomorrow morning there may be a longish delay in any responses.
I'm listening to The Beatles' Here Comes the Sun. Written and sung by the under-valued George Harrison. You can listen here!
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8 comments:
Hello Bazza, It is not as bad as all that! The Chinese syllable "you" is pronounced "yo". Her name in Chinese is 屠呦呦, (pronounced more-or-less Tu Yo-Yo); the surname Tu means butcher or slaughter, both words also used as English surnames. The "you" in her name is an exclamation, and my dictionary says that two together (yo-yo) is the sound that deer make, although despite having many deer in my Ohio yard, I have never heard them produce a sound. Perhaps Chinese deer are more loquacious.
Another famous Yo-Yo is Yo-Yo Ma, the cellist, although the "you/yo" in his name is different and means "friend".
--Jim
Jim: Ha ha! I stand corrected but should one let the true facts get in the way of a good gag!
As long as it isn't offensive, I'm OK with it. I'm sure that, if I knew her, she would be a deer friend...
Thank you bazza! I haven't heard of Tu Youyou but that may be because she is not European and not a male.
Apparently she won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2015) for her discoveries concerning a new therapy against Malaria. I hope her therapy turns out to be hugely successful.
Despite the pronunciation of her name not being as it looks, I think your joke is a hoot. :)
I hope you and your bride have a lovely trip. Take care!
H: Yes,work has saved very many lives. Sadly you are right about her ethnicity and gender rendering her less well-known in the West. See Jim's remark, above.
Susan: Yes the joke always trumps the facts! Thanks for your good wishes.
It is nice that she did well in life despite her name.
I am sure you and Leah will have a wonderful trip. Safe travels.
Arleen: I don't suppose her name is much of a problem in China!
We just got back from a wonderful time in Madeira, thanks.
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