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L'enfant de gens

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  • 11-01-2010 6:47pm
    #1
    +Jim+
    Closed Accounts Posts: 28 ✭


    Hi all,

    I wonder could someone help me with the phrase "L'enfant de gens"

    I am aware that a literal translation would be something like "child of the people"

    I would like to ask what meaning can be derived from this phrase when used to describe a person - for example, when used as the caption of a photograph depicting one person, and where the caption is not reffering to an actual child or even family member.

    Is it a term of affection, or a more descriptive phrase?

    Thanks to anyone who might be able to help!


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    #2
    +Jim+
    Closed Accounts Posts: 28 ✭+Jim+


    Anyone got any input or ideas to share?


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    #3
    awanderer
    Registered Users Posts: 299 ✭✭awanderer


    I really can't imagine what " l'enfant de gens " can have been intended to mean as a caption. Are you sure it was written by a native French speaking person ?

    I would chose "enfant du peuple" to say "child of the people".


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    #4
    FLievre
    Closed Accounts Posts: 55 ✭✭FLievre


    awanderer wrote: »
    I really can't imagine what " l'enfant de gens " can have been intended to mean as a caption. Are you sure it was written by a native French speaking person ?

    I would chose "enfant du peuple" to say "child of the people".


    Absolument!! L'enfant du peuple is the proper way to translate this sentence;)


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    #5
    pog it
    Registered Users Posts: 2,912 ✭✭✭pog it


    Jim
    two suggestions for you. Let me know what you think!

    Could it be a metaphorical way of saying 'a people's person'?

    More likely, the other meaning could be the child of the people.. as in, something the people, world, humanity has created, and in that case it doesn't have to be literally a 'child', it could be anything, that people have caused to bring into being.


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    #6
    stwidgie
    Registered Users Posts: 13 ✭stwidgie


    Could you provide more context, please? Is this something hand-written on a photograph or is it something in print? Do you believe the person who wrote it was a native speaker? Is there any chance the phrase is incomplete, e.g. with paper torn away?

    I'm thinking it would be natural enough to say "l'enfant de gens qui habitaient le quartier" or something like that, but by itself, it's odd.

    If it's handwritten, is there any chance that "gens" could be some other word, perhaps a proper name?


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    #7
    Mountainsandh
    Registered Users Posts: 6,700 ✭✭✭Mountainsandh


    Hi Jim, it sounds odd to me too, I'm French and never heard/read that phrase. So I google.fr-ed it, and Amazon.fr-ed it, thinking it might be a reference to a book, film, or song, and I found this proverb :
    A pauvres gens, enfants sont richesse.
    http://www.proverbesfrancais.com/192-pauvres-gens-enfants-sont-richesse/proverbes-francais/40
    Maybe it's a reference to that ?
    On this same page, there is another proverb that goes :
    Enfants deviennent gens.
    Maybe it refers to this one ?
    Hope that helps :)


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