Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
> On Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:01:41 -0400, Warp wrote:

> > clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> >> For instance they name a car "Nova", though in some language it happens
> >> to mean "doesn't go".
> > 
> >   Urban legend which isn't true.
> > 
> >   "Nova" in Spanish means exactly the same thing as it means in English,
> > and isn't confused with anything else.

> But "No va" does in fact mean "it doesn't go".  That's where the joke 
> comes from, and when you say "nova" or "no va", in most Spanish-speaking 
> countries, it sounds the same.  (That's based on my both having been to 
> Mexico *and* Spain, BTW).

  But the urban legend explicitly states that the car sold poorly because
it was named "Nova", not that people were joking about the name.

> So in fact it *is* true except for those who are pedantic and pronounce 
> the space in between "no" and "va".

  There's a clear difference in which syllable is stressed.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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