To most of the world,Texas is known as a big state in southern America.
世界上大多數人都知道德克薩斯州是位于美國南部的一個大州。

But to Norwegians, it is also a word that frequently crops up in everyday conversation - often in the phrase "Der var helt texas!" [That was very completely/totally texas!].
但是，對挪威人而言，它也是日常交談時常說的一個詞，經常是這樣說的“Der var helt texas!”(這實在是太瘋狂了！)

The word is slang for "crazy" or "wild" and is used to refer to a chaotic atmosphere, Texas Monthly first reported.
據《德克薩斯月刊》報道，這個詞是個俚語，指“瘋狂”或“狂熱”，用于指一種混亂的氛圍。

It became part of the language when Norwegians started watching cowboy movies and reading Western literature, according to Daniel Gusfre Ims, the head of the advisory service at the Language Council of Norway.
挪威語言學會首席顧問埃米斯表示，當挪威人開始觀看牛仔電影、閱讀西方文學時，這個詞就成為了當地語言中的一部分。

"The genre was extremely popular inNorway, and a lot of it featuredTexas, so the word became a symbol of something lawless and without control," he says.
他說：“當時，那種西部文學在挪威很受歡迎，而且多數都講的是“德克薩斯州”的故事，因此“texas”這個詞就變成了無法無天、缺乏秩序的指代詞。”

Its first usage dates back to 1957, when it appeared in a novel by Vegard Vigerust called The Boy who wanted to buy Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. The author writes "he would make it even more texas in the village?".
1957年，挪威小說家維吉爾斯特在《男孩》（The Boy ）一書中首次使用了這個詞，書中的男孩想要買下挪威廣播公司，他在書中寫道，“他會把整個村弄得更加“texas”嗎？”。

Nowadays, the word is widespread all overNorway. It's frequently used in the phrase "helt texas" [completely crazy], which has appeared in Norwegian newspapers 50 times this year, he says.
現在，這個詞在挪威各地廣泛使用。它常見于短語“helt texas(完全瘋狂)”中，埃米斯表示，今年這個詞已經在挪威的報紙上出現50余次了。

It's often used negatively, but not always. "It could be a party out of control, a class out of control, or traffic. It could also be used by someone who had sold many products," he says.
它常見于負面含義，但不總是如此。埃米斯說：“它可以指場面混亂的派對、失控的課堂或混亂的交通。而它也可用于描述銷售人員業績長虹”。

Gusfre Ims says this language phenomenon - metonymy, where a thing or concept is called not by its own name, but by another name which is associated with it - is pretty common in Norway, and language generally.
埃米斯表示，這種語言現象是轉喻，指人們把一個事物或概念換至另一個與之相關的名稱，這在是一種普遍的語言現象，在挪威很常見。

Norwegians also use the term "hawaiifootball" to describe an "out-of-control" match, he says. The word "klondike", a region inCanadaassociated with the gold rush, is used to describe economic expansion, and also has a hint of something going out of control.
埃米斯表示，挪威人還用“夏威夷美式足球（hawaii football）”表示一場失控的比賽。“克朗代克（klondike）”原指加拿大以淘金熱聞名的地區，而現在，挪威人用它來描述經濟蓬勃發展，或是有一點點失控。

He also points to terms such as "Armageddon" and "champagne".
埃米斯還談到一些詞匯，如“末日審判（Armageddon）” “香檳（champagne）”。

"People don't mean the place in the Bible, or the area inFrance," he says.
他說：“人們用到這些詞時并不是指《圣經》中世界末日善惡決斗的終極戰場；說香檳也不是指法國的一個地區”。

Erin McKean, the founder of the online dictionary Wordnik, agrees that words are often adopted into language in this way.
線上字典Wordnik的創辦人麥克金表示，詞匯常以此方式被用于語言。

"I'm not surprised Norwegians would use this kind of geography to convey a quality. This is how we make language - emphasing one aspect of the word, or using metaphors," she says.
她說：“我不訝異挪威人用地名來表示代替該地的某種特質。因為，這就是我們創造語言的方式，即強調詞的一方面或使用隱喻”。

McKean says there are plenty of examples of the English language using perceived characteristics of people from other places, which is a common occurrence with neighbouring countries.
麥克金表示，有很多例子表明，英文也常用一些其他地方的民族特色詞匯，周邊國家這樣的現象也很常見。

"Dutch courage is associated with having to drink to be courageous. A Dutch treat [when people pay for their own share of an expense] isn't exactly a treat. We talk about taking French leave, or an Irish goodbye.
“荷蘭人的勇氣（Dutch courage）”與喝酒壯膽有關，而“荷蘭人請客（a Dutch treat）”真正指的不是一頓免費大餐，而是各付己帳。還有，我們會用French leave或an Irish goodbye表示不辭而別。

"The closest thing to we probably have to 'texas' inAmericais berserk from the Norse warriors, but that's apparently Icelandic, although disputed," she says.
麥克金說：“在美國，語言借用中跟挪威人用texas最接近的可能是berserk，這個詞來源于古代挪威戰士，但很顯然是冰島語，不過還有爭議”。

McKean says people tend to take these expressions with a pinch of salt.
麥克金表示，人們往往對這些說法半信半疑。

"I think Americans think the Norwegian texas thing is quite funny. Texans like to think of themselves as larger than life and extreme in some way - and it's a short hop from extreme to crazy," she says.
她說：“我認為美國人會覺得挪威人用texas這事兒挺有趣的。德克薩斯州人認為自己都很出眾、在某些方面走極端，而極端與瘋狂也相去不遠”。

Anne Ekern, of the Norwegian consulate inHouston, agrees.
挪威駐休士頓領事愛克兒同意麥克金的說法。

"The reactions we have had, have been on the positive side," she says.
愛克兒說：“據我們所知，迄今為止，（美國人）的反應都是正面的”。

But Gusfre Ims wants to reassure any Texans in doubt.
然而，埃米斯還是想消除德克薩斯人的疑慮。

"What Norwegians think aboutTexashas nothing to do with the expression. We knowTexasis not a lawless society. It's just a fixed phrase," he says.
埃米斯說：“挪威人對德克薩斯州的看法與這個詞的用法無關。我們知道德克薩斯州不是缺乏法制之邦，這只是一個慣用語而已”。

Language tips：

英語中跟國家相關的短語

Indian giver 送東西給人日后又討回的人

Spanish castle 空中樓閣；不切實際

Spanish athlete 愛吹牛的人

Italian hand 幕后操縱；暗中干預

Irish bull 自相矛盾，荒唐可笑的說法

Greek gift 害人的禮物

英文來源：BBC

譯者：BISTU宋軍

編輯審校：馬文英