Untranslatable Words: #13
A weekly series exploring beautiful words around the world whose essence cannot be conveyed by language alone.
"Mamihlapinatapai" — Yaghan
This word from the indigenous language of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego describes the distinct look shared between two people communicating some form of mutual desire but holding a mutual reluctance to initiate said desire. Imagine two young middle schoolers with their first crush, for example. “Mamihlapinatapei” is considered one of the most specific and hardest-to-translate words in the world.
For the rest of the weekly “Untranslatable Words” series, visit the Overture archive here.