Hi Norma,

I'll give a little addition about the Dutch words. ;-)

When a mother is still pregnant or after the baby is born, she might be
asked: "Ga je borstvoeding geven?", which literally translates into: "Will
you give breastfeeding?", or: "Geef je borstvoeding?", meaning "Do you give
breastfeeding?", because 'borstvoeding' is a noun in Dutch, not a verb. The
verb is 'borstvoeden', but it is rarely used.
Once the baby is born, you might hear: "Voed je zelf?", literally: "Do you
feed (by) yourself?". This is somewhat funny, as 'zelf voeden' can also be
done with a bottle (ABM/EBM), as long as you are the one doing it/handing it
over to the baby, but 'zelf voeden' does mean 'breastfeed' somehow.

Bye,

Marianne Vanderveen IBCLC, Netherlands

----- Original Message -----
From: "Norma Ritter" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, December 03, 2008 4:55 PM
Subject: [LACTNET] the problem of language


> This is a great thread. I would love to learn more about the semantics
> of words for feeding babies in other languages because the insight it
> gives into other cultures.
>
> norma, ex-pat Brit, now in upstate NY

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