Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Greek term or phrase:
άγγελος με το χαρτί
English translation:
like an angel from a Byzantine icon
Added to glossary by
Eleni Makantani
Jan 23, 2009 16:46
15 yrs ago
Greek term
United Kingdom
Native in: English (Variant: British) 
Works in: Greek to English, Czech to English, Slovak to English, and 1 more.
άγγελος με το χαρτί
Greek to English
Art/Literary
Folklore
Verse on a calendar:
Για ιδές τηνε πως περπατεί!
σαν άγγελος με το χαρτί.
Ζουμπουλάκι μου γαλάζο,
με διαμάντια δε σ' αλλάζω.
I can only imagine an angel holding a piece of paper. Surely I'm missing the point. There must be some other significance in these words. Can someone please explain?
Για ιδές τηνε πως περπατεί!
σαν άγγελος με το χαρτί.
Ζουμπουλάκι μου γαλάζο,
με διαμάντια δε σ' αλλάζω.
I can only imagine an angel holding a piece of paper. Surely I'm missing the point. There must be some other significance in these words. Can someone please explain?
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 | like an angel from a Byzantine icon |
Eleni Makantani
|
| 3 +1 | certified angel |
Philip Lees
|
| 3 +1 | angel with a scroll/angel bearing a scroll |
d_vachliot (X)
|
Change log
Jan 28, 2009 11:10: Eleni Makantani Created KOG entry
Proposed translations
1 day 18 hrs
Eleni Makantani
Greece
Greece
Native in Greek
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Native in: Greek
Works in: English to Greek, French to Greek, Italian to Greek, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
8
Selected
like an angel from a Byzantine icon
In certain Byzantine icons, angels are portrayed holding a piece of writing, symbolizing the triumph of the church, the certification of the coming of the Savior (see reference for an example, on the top right corner of the ref. page).
It is quite common in Greek popular songs to compare a woman with Christian figures, like σαν άγγελος με το σπαθί, that you mention above, or σαν Παναγιά ζωγραφιστή, in other cases.
It is quite common in Greek popular songs to compare a woman with Christian figures, like σαν άγγελος με το σπαθί, that you mention above, or σαν Παναγιά ζωγραφιστή, in other cases.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you, Eleni and everyone."
+1
2 hrs
certified angel
I'm guessing a bit here, but this is what it suggests to me. She's an angel and she has the paperwork to prove it.
Note from asker:
| Thank you, Philip. I can imagine με το χαρτί being used in this way. I just wonder if άγγελος με το χαρτί is an age-old stock phrase. I've only found one example of it (in a wedding song) on the web. |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
olgaproz (X)
: I like this translation, someone did something nice for you and you want to emphasize what an angel they are!
22 hrs
|
+1
2 days 19 hrs
angel with a scroll/angel bearing a scroll
The only thing that would favour the "scroll" interpretation is the article "το". In other words, I would tend to interpret "άγγελος με χαρτί" as a "certified" angel, and "άγγελος με ΤΟ χαρτί" as an angel bearing a scroll or a piece of paper of some kind.
Having said that, there is no hard and fast rule for this one and probably the only person that knows for sure, is the author!
Having said that, there is no hard and fast rule for this one and probably the only person that knows for sure, is the author!
Discussion