Glossary entry

Spanish term or phrase:

el gigante de siempre

English translation:

the towering figure he has always been/the grand old man

Added to glossary by Marcelo González
Jul 1, 2011 11:19
13 yrs ago
4 viewers *
Spanish term

El gigante de siempre

Spanish to English Social Sciences Government / Politics Statement to the Press
On his trip to Cuba, explaining the reasons for his absence from Venezuela, President Hugo Chávez---in a string of flowery compliments---used these words in reference to (his friend/mentor) Fidel Castro. During CNN's (English-language) report, an interpreter missed the mark entirely (IMO), translating this (too literally) as "The giant of ever."

Since "de siempre" is used to underscore that Castro has always been around (politics) "forever," what do you think of something like "The ever-present great one" (with "gigante" as "gran" in this context, used by Chávez here to "elogiar a su gran amigo")?
Change log

Jul 3, 2011 00:19: Marcelo González changed "Edited KOG entry" from "<a href="/profile/103641">Marcelo González's</a> old entry - "el gigante de siempre"" to ""towering figure he\'s always been/the grand old man""

Proposed translations

+5
4 mins
Selected

the grand old man

A common expression conveying respect.
Peer comment(s):

disagree Jaime Hyland : He means Castro used to be a giant and remains one. This translation does not carry that meaning.
14 mins
See e.g. "Joan Manuel Serrat, at 64, is the grand old man of popular music and ballad in Spain."
agree AllegroTrans
44 mins
Thanks AllegroTrans.
agree Charles Davis : I've pondered on this for a while and I don't think I can improve on your suggestion. It does imply "still great after all these years".
54 mins
Thanks Charles. If you can't improve on it, then it's pretty good :-)
agree Thayenga
1 hr
Thanks Thayenga.
agree James A. Walsh : Yes, this works for me too.
1 hr
Thanks James.
agree Michael Powers (PhD) : Another option would be "grand old figure"
1 hr
Thanks Michael.
agree Yvonne Gallagher
2 hrs
Thanks gallagy2.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "This is an excellent option. :-) Thank you!!"
8 mins

The greatest president/person ever

This could be an option.

President, person, colleague, etc... This is your choice!
Peer comment(s):

neutral Jaime Hyland : this is not the correct sense, imo. He means Castro's the great person he has always been.
8 mins
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+2
15 mins

the same giant as ever (or 'as always')

I think he's saying that Castro is every bit the same great statesman now as (in the speaker's opinion) ever was.
http://what-happened-to-awk.weebly.com/steev-mike--andrew-wk... - "Andrew WK is the same person as ever"
http://www.wordmagicsoft.com/dictionary/en-es/the same thing...

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Note added at 19 mins (2011-07-01 11:39:00 GMT)
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If this structure doesn't work in AE, you could also say "the same giant he ever was"
Peer comment(s):

agree Salloz : Es lo que pensé: the same giant he ever was...
2 hrs
Thanks Salloz. Looking at it now, your preference for "... he ever was" looks better in writing than " ... as ever"
agree Muriel Vasconcellos
5 hrs
Thanks Muriel
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1 hr

The last of the great giants (still among/amongst us)*

I heard Chavez speak years ago in Washington, an event that left me with an eternal respect for simultaneous interpreters. This is my shot at what he meant to say. References:1 Jul 2011 – “Desde que el mismo Fidel Castro en persona (...) el gigante de siempre vino a anunciarme la dura noticia del hallazgo cancerígeno comencé a ... *THAT STEMS FROM AN EARLIER QUOTE:nforme21.com/...castro/chavez-maldeie-israel-ac... - Venezuela - En cachéEl presidente venezolano, Hugo Chávez, acusó a Estados Unidos de ... "Lula me dijo: 'Fidel es el último gigante que nos quedará para siempre'". Fidel Castro ...;Sin embargo, ya en La Habana, cuando caía la tarde del miércoles 8 de junio, allí estábamos de nuevo con Fidel, con aquel gigante que ya superó todos los tiempos y todos los lugares. . Ahora, en este nuevo momento de dificultades, y sobre todo desde que el mismo Fidel Castro en persona, el mismo del Cuartel Moncada, el mismo del Granma, el mismito de la Sierra Maestra, el gigante de siempre,http://www.diariouniversal.net/2011/06/30/chavez-evoluciona-... I would keep the literal "giant" as it is a frequently used poetic device:Growing Up in Castro's Cuba | c2c Journal -
www.c2cjournal.ca/blog.../growing-up-in-castros-cuba - En caché18 Jun 2009 – Trudeau's son, Alexandre, wrote a piece on Fidel Castro last summer in ... He argued Castro was a “great adventure . . . a great scientific mind,” ... that Castro's “monumental intellect makes Fidel the giant that he is. ... although I would like to have the luxury of saying "the giant of history, or some other qualification.
Peer comment(s):

neutral Jaime Hyland : I agree about the use of "giant" but what Chavez primarily seems to be suggesting (apart from the compliment) is that Fidel is as hale and hearty as he ever was.
2 hrs
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3 hrs

The age-long (political) giant

I think giant should be kept as a "political giant" is a sound term.
"the long-standing (political) giant" could work also
Peer comment(s):

neutral Jaime Hyland : "long-standing" is fine (but doesn't carry the primary meaning) "age-long" is not standard AE or BE//I stand corrected on "age-long". I have honestly never heard the expression before, and I must admit it jars on my ears.
44 mins
point taken but: age-long http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/age-long
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