Un Saludo.Diego Saiz (New Jersey, Estados Unidos) se maravilla de la universalidad de la expresión “dar calabazas” para suspender en un examen o rechazar una proposición amorosa. Don Diego aporta el testimonio de un amigo ucraniano que también emplea esa frase para señalar que los padres no dan el permiso para que se ennovie su hija. Es más, entregan una calabaza al pretendiente rechazado para que no siga adelante.
No es extraño que el signo de la calabaza haya penetrado en varios idiomas. En latín la cucúrbita o calabaza se ve como un símbolo de lo falso, flojo, con poca sustancia. En efecto, se trata de un fruto muy aparente pero poco denso y poco sabroso. Es más, en la vida tradicional se vaciaba fácilmente y se utilizaba como recipiente. En el castellano de la época del Quijote, la expresión “echar a uno calabaza es no responderle a lo que pide, como el galán que saca a la dama en el festín a bailar, y ella se excusa, dando a entender que [el mozo] es liviano y de poco seso, por querer que salga a danzar con él, no siendo o su igual o de su gusto, o que le dejó en vacío hecho calabaza” (Tesoro de Covarrubias).
The meaning is "to reject somebody's amorous advances"Excuse my ignorance but what does the phrase mean? To give pumpkins to someone? Is it like to feed someone bull****? Just a guess?
That’s incredible, but now I remember the Ukrainian expression (“daty harbuza”). I heard it several times, when I lived in Ukraine as a child, and forgot it completely. I have searched for the phrase in Google and found the following information: originally, a hollow pumpkin was something of a consolation prize for unsuccessful matchmakers. By giving it to them, the bride meant to say: “my chest is empty, I have no dowry, so you don’t have to feel disappointed”.
In the social relationship sense, to "brush someone off", or to "give someone a/the cold shoulder" would fit the theme of this discussion (in US English).That is correct. "Dar calabazas a alguien" means that you refuse somebody's invitation, approaching, etc.
How is the English expression to define that behaviour?
The word's history is probably much longer. "Calabaza" traces back to the Arabic "qerabat" (water-skins), "harbuz" to the Turkish "karpuz". All of them seem to descend from an Old Persian word meaning "melon"...The history, going back to the Ukraine, was fun and interesting
En una entrevista reciente a Charlize Theron en la que el reportero le pedía matrimonio ella acabó diciendo algo como:
" I have something for you. I'm an axe"
¿Podría ser? No estoy segura de haberlo entendido bien pero lo han traducido como "Tengo algo para ti. Calabazas"
Sounds to me that she said "Ananas," meaning "f*** off."
"Para explicar la relación del rechazo amoroso con las calabazas, algunos aluden al carácter antiafrodisíaco que ya se les atribuía en la Grecia Antigua o durante la Edad Media. La calabaza simboliza lo falso o de poco valor, porque resulta engañosa: promete mucho por su tamaño, pero defrauda por ser poco densa e insípida."Hello everybody,
Could anybody explain me the expression "darle calabazas a alguien"? I understand its general meaning, but what is the logic behind it? Why pumpkins and not, say, watermelons?
Thanks in advance!
Correct.I think it is to reject somebody.
Yes.As was said earlier in this thread, there appear to be two meanings of dar calabazas:
To spurn his/her (often amorous) advances.
To flunk a student.
I couldn't say, "The government snubbed the opposition's proposed change to the law." "Snub" implies disrespect, but there's no disrespect involved in rejecting a proposal.It is also used more widely, in politics, economy, etc. For example;
'El gobierno les dio calabazas a los partidos de la oposición, en su propuesta de cambiar la ley.'
'La empresa le dio calabazas a este avance de sus competidores, y la OPA hostil quedó rechazada.'
It has a somewhat ironic or 'sneering' sense, meaning that it adds a connotation of 'emphasis' to the rejection, which goes beyond just being a mere 'rejection'.
It has an added sense of 'humilliation' of the person rejected, or of 'mocking' on the part of the speaker.
In English, it is just 'to say no' - perhaps with an emphatic 'no'. That is, 'to snub', or 'to shun':
- To snub
- To shun
- To say no
(To say NO!)
- To reject
- To turn down
- To rebuff
Pero ¿Valdría "snub" para expresar "dar calabaza" en el sentido de rechazar los avances amorosos de alguien?. Yo hubiera dicho que siI couldn't say, "The government snubbed the opposition's proposed change to the law." "Snub" implies disrespect, but there's no disrespect involved in rejecting a proposal.
I couldn't say, "The government shunned the opposition's proposed change to the law" either. "To shun" means "to keep away from"; this is not the same as "to say no".
I would say, "The government gave short shrift to the opposition's proposed change to the law."
As to your "empresa" example, I might say, "The company was dismissive of this move by its competitors, …"
Diría que no, ya que en eso no hay falta de respeto.Pero
Pero ¿Valdría "snub" para expresar "dar calabaza" en el sentido de rechazar los avances amorosos de alguien?. Yo hubiera dicho que si
Juan lleva tiempo tirandole los tejos a Ana, pero ella le da calabazas
Juan has long been making a play for Ana, but she snubs him
Gracias por la pronta respuestaDiría que no, ya que en eso no hay falta de respeto.
Thanks for your comments, Sound shift.A ti también, Ferrol.
Pero no creo que sea por la expresión en sí.However, I would point out that the Spanish expression doesn't involve 'disrespect', but rather a sense of 'disappointment', 'frustration', etc on the p