Found in Translation

Fly in the Ultimate Comfort
In 1977, Braniff International Airways put out an advertisement to promote the leather seats they’d
installed in their new first-class cabins. However, the campaign’s slogan, “Fly in leather,” was
translated for Spanish-speaking markets as Vuela en cuero. In Spanish, this was equivalent to saying,
“Fly naked,” implying a more comfortable flight for some travelers, not to mention a much easier
job for airport security screeners.
Ice(landic), Ice(landic), Baby
When you think of Iceland, what comes to mind? Perhaps you think of Björk
or Sigur Rós, some of the country’s musicians who have risen to international
fame. Or maybe you call up a mental image of some of its famous glaciers,
geysers, and volcanoes, such as Eyjafjallajökull, whose pronunciation stumped
news commentators around the world after its infamous eruption in April
2010, which caused nearly a week of delays in air travel across western and
northern Europe. Iceland is considered by many travelers to be an exotic and
mystical destination. But its language is perhaps even more mysterious and
elusive.
Perhaps that’s why it’s so interesting that Icelandair puts the Icelandic
language front and center on all of its flights. Rather than shying away from its
native language, which many people find daunting, the airline dares its
passengers to give the difficult tongue a try. It isn’t just the fact that the flight
attendants make announcements in Icelandic; hearing the language of a local
air carrier is something you expect no matter where you travel in the world.
No, Icelandair takes its language presence to a new level entirely, integrating it
into the complete experience.
As you board the plane, you’ll notice a translation on every single seat. The
company uses the headrests to teach passengers how to say basic phrases like
thank you and good night in Icelandic. Get to your seat, and you’re greeted by
yet another translation, which is stamped on your pillow. It’s an Icelandic
lullaby, written in Icelandic, with the translation next to it in English:
Bye, bye and hushabye

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Can you see the swans fly?
Now half asleep in bed I lie
Awake with half an eye
Heyho and welladay
Over hills and far away
That’s where the little children stray
To find the lambs at play.
Bí, bí og blaka
álftirnar kvaka.
Ég læt sem ég sofi
en samt mun ég vaka.
Bíum, bíum, bamba,
börnin litlu ramba
fram á fjallakamba
ad leita sér lamba.
After you sit down, check out the in-flight entertainment, which features a
language-learning program for Icelandic. Plug in your headphones, and you’ll
hear Icelandic music. Turn on the television, and you’ll see an entire category
of movies in Icelandic (with English subtitles, of course).
Open up the airline’s magazine, and you’ll see a letter from the CEO in
which he talks with pride about the Icelandic language. Order a children’s
meal, and you’ll see an Icelandic story on the lid, written in Icelandic and
accompanied by an English translation. Even the airline’s coffee cup promotes
Icelandic phrases. In other words, Icelandair does not miss a chance to
showcase its language in front of the 1.5 million passengers it transports each
year.
“Iceland and Icelandic are what Icelandair is founded on,” says Guðmundur
Óskarsson, director of marketing and business development at Icelandair.
“Everything from our route network to the way we address our customers in
written or spoken language has a strong connection to Icelandic culture and
heritage.” He goes on to explain, “The Icelandic language is one of the tools
we use to differentiate ourselves from the competition.”
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Why is promoting the Icelandic language so important? There are many
reasons. It’s one of the oldest living languages in Europe, dating back to the
Viking times. Rather than adopt words from other languages, Icelandic has a
policy of reappropriating old words and giving them new meanings. For
example, the term rafmagn (electricity) means “amber power.” The word sími
(telephone) originally meant “cord.” Icelandic has only about three hundred
thousand speakers, so ensuring its survival is important. Iceland even devotes a
special day to the language, Dagur Íslenskrar Tungu (Icelandic Language
Day), each year on November 16. But most important, encapsulated within the
Icelandic language is a unique way of viewing the world. Most airlines use

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translation to reach customers in other parts of the world. Icelandair uses
translation to bring its world to the customer.