ECSTRA/Compliments
Typical situations and forms to be focussed on:
1. things that people can make compliments on in a nation, e.g.
- 1.1. clothes
- 1.2. looks
- 1.3. possessions
- 1.4. intellectual abilities
- 1.5. physical abilities
- 1.6. intellectual achievements
- 1.7. physical achievements
- 1.8. language competence
- 1.9. the meal one was invited to
- other things
2. ways of reacting to a compliment, e.g.
- 2.1. pure thanking ("Thank you")
- 2.2. agreeing ("Yes, I also think it's good")
- 2.3. (thanking and) expressing gladness ("I'm glad you like it")
- 2.4. (thanking and) returning the compliment ("You look nice, too")
- 2.5. (thanking and) offering (materialistic) object of compliment ("You can borrow it if you like")
- 2.6. (thanking and) encouraging ("I'm sure you can achieve this as well")
- 2.7. (thanking and) explaining ("My mom gave it to me")
- 2.8. (thanking and) doubting ("You really think so?")
- 2.9. rejecting and denigrating ("Oh no, that's nothing")
- 2.10. thanking and denigrating ("Thank you, but that's nothing")
- 2.11. expressing embarassment ("Oh no, you embarass me")
- other forms
3. things that people don't, or are forbidden to, compliment on, e.g.
- 3.1. clothes
- 3.2. looks
- 3.3. possessions
- 3.4. intellectual abilities
- 3.5. physical abilities
- 3.6. intellectual achievements
- 3.7. physical achievements
- 3.8. language competence
- 3.9. the meal one was invited to
- 3.10. the host's wife's appearance
- other things
On this question, cf. Taboo (ECSTRA).
(Please remember our guidelines.)
AT: Austria
[edit | edit source]Vienna, Lower Austria (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 2, rarely 4, 6 (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: often: 11, 10, 4, 7, 8; sometimes 1, 3, 5 (ECSTRA-Q)
informand without indication of her home region (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, and especially 9, also 2
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, also 6 and (among elderly people) 9
BE: Belgium
[edit | edit source]Brussels (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 8, 9, also 3, 4, 5
- 2.: 1, 3, 4
CH: Switzerland
[edit | edit source]Lausanne (French-speaking area) (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1-9
- 2.: 1, 4, 6, 9, 10
CZ: Czech Republic
[edit | edit source]Bohemia (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 6, 9
- 2.: 1, 4
DE: Germany
[edit | edit source]Bremen
- 1.: 1-9 (ECSTRA-Q, PO)
- 2.: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
south
- 1.: 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 5, 6, 7, with respects to children also 4 (ECSTRA-Q, PO)
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, (6), 7, 8, (9) (ECSTRA-Q, PO)
Saxony (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1-9
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
DK: Denmark
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EE: Estonia
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ES: Spain
[edit | edit source]Andalucía (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11
Castilia y León (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1-9
- 2.: 3 (all ages), 4 (women), 5 (teenage friends), 7 (women), 10 (old women)
FI: Finnland
[edit | edit source]Finnish-speaking area (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1-9
- 2.: 1, 2, 3 (for presents), 4 (rare), 5 (very rare), 6 (rare), 7-10 (common)
Swedish-speaking area (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1 (especially to women), 6, 7, 9, haircut
- 2.: very common: 1; common: 2, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10; sometimes: 11; not so usual: 3; very unusual: 5, 6
FR: France
[edit | edit source]Aix-en-Provence (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
- 2.: 1 (frequent), 3 (frequent), 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Indre et Loire (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: basically for everything, esp. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9
- 2.: 1-7
Montargis (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1 (very frequent), 2 (very frequent), 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 (very frequent), 9 (very frequent)
- 2.: 1 (very frequent), 3, 4 (very frequent), 6, 7, 8 (very frequent), 9, 10, 11
Fontainbleau (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 8, 9 (very frequent)
- 2.: 3 (very frequent), 4 (very frequent), 6, 7, 9, 10
Paris (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: everything, maybe except for possessions and maybe intellectual abilities
- 2.: 1-11, broad range of individual variation, but 1, 3, 4, 8 seem especially prominent
HR: Croatia
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HU: Hungary
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, home (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1, 3 (with equipment, food), 4, 7, 9 (with achievements, linguistic competence) (ECSTRA-Q)
IE: Ireland
[edit | edit source]Dublin (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1-9
- 2.: 1, 6, 8, "This old thing!"
IT: Italy
[edit | edit source]Lombardy (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 3, 4, money, cars, raise of salary
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 5, (6), 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Friuli Venezia-Giulia (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1 (frequent), 2, 5, 6, 7, 9
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 2 (i.e. "Yes, you're right")
LT: Lithuania
[edit | edit source]- 2.: 1, 2 (in certain situations), 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
LU: Luxemburg
[edit | edit source]- 1.: practically everything can be made compliments on, esp. clothes and looks, possessions (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1, 3 (very frequent), 4, 5 (rare), 6, 7 (very frequent), 8, 9, 10, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
LV: Latvia
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MT: Malta
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1, 2, passed exam, job, birth of a child (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1 (very frequent), 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
NL: Netherlands
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NO: Norway
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PL: Poland
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, children and their talents/achievements, grandchildren (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
PT: Portugal
[edit | edit source]Alentejo (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 3, 4, (5, 6, 7, 8), 9, success
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
SE: Sweden
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1-9 (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1 (very frequent), 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
SI: Slovenia
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SK: Slovakia
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UK: United Kingdom
[edit | edit source]Cambridgeshire, England (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 4, talents, personal qualities
- 2.: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 10, 11
Scotland (ECSTRA-Q)
- 1.: 1, 2, 4-5 (ok with respect to children, less common with respect to adults), 6, 7, 9, success of any kind
- 2.: a Glasgow informand writes 2-11 (i.e. excl. 1), another Scottish informand writes that 1 is the most common, 3 4 7 8 9 10 11 are common, 5 quite common, and 2 and 6 very rare.
Non-European Nations
[edit | edit source]Australia
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1-9 (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1-11 (ECSTRA-Q)
Colombia
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1, 2, 9, 6, professional achievements, well done job (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1, 3 (when replying to a compliment about clothes, a meal, a piece of artistic work), 4 (when replying to a compliment about clothes or appearance), 5 (sometimes when replying to a compliment about possessions), 7, 8, 9 and 10 (when you are happy to have helped somebody); 2, 6, 11 not so usual (ECSTRA-Q)
Greece
[edit | edit source]- 1.: intelligence, looks, knowledge on various topics, professional achievements, being a good cook or housekeeper (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 (frequent), 10, sometimes 2 and 11 (ECSTRA-Q)
Lebanon
[edit | edit source]- 1.: 1-9 (ECSTRA-Q)
- 2.: 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 (ECSTRA-Q)