the_marq

What is the deal with Ikea product names?

Are they real words or just "Swedish-sounding-gibberish?"

I epecially like the chair called "poang." It's like the sound a boner would make in a cartoon.

But seriously... are these real swedish words?

__________________
The Truth:

Johnny Cash could have kicked Bruce Lee's ass if he wanted to.

#3 in a series

Demeter

I dunno, but the name sure makes a lame piece of furniture more interesting. There's a lot in a name I suppose.

__________________

I am not bound to please thee with my answers.
William Shakespeare

maleficent

http://www-lexikon.nada.kth.se/skolverket/swe-eng.shtml

Swedish entry word
poäng [po'eng:] poängen poänger noun
(avslutande) komisk höjdpunkt i en historia

English translation
point, punch line

__________________

BigBen

Isn't there some kind of "try to sound like english" thing going on here,

Like a Lamp having the Swedish name "Laampe" and so on?

It was certainly proper before IKEA became a multinational, and then when they expanded into North America, they kept it for Marketing / Simplicity sakes.

I think it is because people will pay more for a Laampe instead of a fucking lamp.

I just take the cataloge and point to the pictures to the salesperson. They reply "Oh, sorry, we are all out of Fluukenstiekies, but there are some discontinued red Daeimmplingonl over in isle 1657..."

"Is that thing the same kind of lamp as this thing?"

"Yes"

"Okay, you pretentious snob. Stop pretending you are swedish."

__________________
3.141592654
Hey, if you are impressed with my memorizing pi to 10 digits, you should see the size of my penis.

connyosis

Heh, yeah IKEA have a way of coming up with some pretty weirdo names for their products. I do believe though that all (Atleast most) of them are real swedish words. Not that I'm going to spend time going through their catalog to check.

__________________
If atheism is a religion, then not collecting stamps is a hobby.

connyosis

That sound more like dutch words don't you think?

__________________
If atheism is a religion, then not collecting stamps is a hobby.

skier

I like to think to myself that someone in charge of stocking shelves knows swedish and makes up disturbing sentences with the product names.

__________________
"Asking a bomb squad if an old bomb is still "real" is not the best thing to do if you want to save it." - denim

maleficent

Start putting some creative words into the dictionary and see if you can find a product that exists int he IKEA Catalog .. ya know someone had fun.

__________________

Charlatan

http://www.margaret-marks.com/Transb...es/000302.html

A blog that links to a German article about the IKEA product names...

My favourite was a light fixture with the name FARTYG probably pronounced FAR TIG but as my son's name starts with a G we started calling him Farty G...

__________________
"My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars."
- Old Man Luedecke

Pip

Many a bad pun has been based on IKEA product names, yes indeed. They are as far as I've seen, real Swedish words or names.

Consider it a small payback for all the North American cultural imperialism.

Pacifier

my favorite is the bed "gutvik" in german that sounds like "good fuck"
an appropriate name for a bed.

__________________
"It seems to me that the idea of a personal God is an anthropological concept which I cannot take seriously. I also cannot imagine some will or goal outside the human sphere. Science has been charged with undermining morality, but the charge is unjust. A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death
— Albert Einstein

MsNobody

I don't really care what they call it, I love Ikea.

the_marq

So using Mal's link I did a few searches on Ikea things and while most (about 80%) of the product names are Swedish words, almost none of them describe the product they represent.

EX:

Jules is a chair -- translation: Christmas
Frosta is a stool -- translation: verb; to defrost
Slutlig is a candle snuffer-- translation: ultimate
Raket is a picture frame -- translation: rocket

Well now I know. Thanks Mal

__________________
The Truth:

Johnny Cash could have kicked Bruce Lee's ass if he wanted to.

#3 in a series

Janey

I can't stand the stuff. I'm not going to buy another piece of furniture that I have to assemble, after fighting crowds and parking for the honour of shopping there in the first place, and then really finding out that Ikea IS the Swedish word for 'Out of Stock' !!!!


uhuh. I don't care how much delivery costs, It's Boers or Leons for me from now on. (why do their dresser drawers always cave in???)

connyosis

One of the worst things one might do is to go to IKEA during the weekend. Do that and you can count on standing in line for hours.

Personally I like IKEA, they're cheap, make pretty decent furniture and their customer service has always been nice to talk to. Of course, more than once you've sat there with their instructions swearing "Where the hell does this piece go, and why aren't there enough screws?"

__________________
If atheism is a religion, then not collecting stamps is a hobby.