Talk:Long time no see

Linguistics Low‑importance

	Linguistics portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Linguistics, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of linguistics on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.LinguisticsWikipedia:WikiProject LinguisticsTemplate:WikiProject LinguisticsLinguistics articles
Low	This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.

Etymology

The etymology section in this article is within the scope of the Etymology Task Force, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of etymology on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.EtymologyWikipedia:WikiProject Linguistics/EtymologyTemplate:Etymology sectionEtymology articles

Wrong to compare it with "no can do"[edit]

Whoever has written this seems to be assuming "no can-do" is grammatically or syntactically messed up or broken English, while "no can-do" is perfectly alright, just short for "there is no 'can-do'", meaning "there is no chance this could happen".

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/can-do — Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.17.238.85 (talk) 15:05, 26 May 2018 (UTC)[reply]

This is incorrect. The linked definition is for "can-do", which refers to a hardworking, optimistic character. It's possible that someone might say "He has no 'can-do'" to describe someone who was lazy or pessimistic about their work, but I've never actually heard this and it does not have the same meaning as the much more common expression "No can do". CKarnstein (talk)

Chinese Origin?[edit]

I keep on hearing that this phrase has Chinese (Language) Origin. Although it does sound like Chinese & I have seen tons of Chinese Refs saying it is so, I don't see any solid (English) ref agreeing to its Asian origin. TheAsianGURU (talk) 06:12, 12 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Native American source[edit]

Isn't it possible that the Native American pidgin English speaker mentioned in the source here may have picked up the phrase from a Chinese pidgin English speaker? I don't think it's entirely beyond the bounds of reason that Chinese immigrant workers and Native Americans may have spent some time with each other, and they would naturally have used their second language of English to communicate. --86.164.119.186 (talk) 03:32, 11 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

好久不见：好久=long time, 不=no, 见=see —Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.90.51.87 (talk) 02:27, 4 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Possible German origin[edit]

I posted the following section, which however was deleted because it was "unsourced":

Another, however quite hypothetical, origin is that the phrase may be a shortened rendition of the German sentence: (Ich habe dich) lange Zeit nicht gesehen, literally: "(I have you) long time not seen!" This word order is standard in German. In fact, a common German greeting is: Lang nicht gesehen, literally: "Long not seen!"

Well, technically it really is unsourced. But the article itself says that there is no proof where the phrase really comes from. And this is a legitimate hypothesis given the clear analogy of the American phrase with the German one and with German word order in general. And of course also given the fact that Germans are the greatest group of immigrants in America.

So if anyone who has the power, wants to put it back on, I think it would add an aspect worth considering to the article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.83.220.190 (talk) 00:31, 4 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]

This was my first impression, too. I am german and it sounds like a word to word translation from the commom german greeting "(Hallo,) lange Zeit nicht gesehen" - "(Hello,) long time no(t) see(n)". — Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.153.60.74 (talk) 13:55, 3 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I am a native German speaker and I also think that "Long time no see" is the translation of the German greeting „Lange Zeit nicht gesehen“. 77.1.79.111 (talk) 19:45, 7 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe there is no single origin. Perhaps "Long time no see" is a natural word to word translation of many languages. wshun (talk) 03:19, 15 August 2019 (UTC)[reply]

No Chinee?[edit]

So what’s the origin? How about a probability?

It’s 2018 and “all” the world’s books, newspapers and journals are on computer – or at least the American ones. But there’s been only one find of the phrase before 1901? And no Chinese connection at all?

Where are the boffins!

(I have to agree; the German [or Dutch] origin sounds [fairly] likely – but the Chinese sounds more likely.) Was the Ceylonese-book quote made by (or for) a Chinese or a Ceylonese person?

MBG02 (talk) 19:15, 2 October 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Chinese origin?[edit]

I grew up in Hong Kong, learn to speak Chinese and formal English at school. Hong Kong people like to make fun by using English to speak Chinese idioms, something like "Man mountain man see" (i.e. too many people) and "Open the door see mountain" (i.e. let's speak straightforwardly). I once believed "Long time no see" also falls into this category. It is much amusing to me to hear this phrase in an English soap opera.

In my opinion, the phrase "Long time no see" used in America may not be originated from Chinese. However, it is sure that many Chinese "invented" this phrase on their own. wshun (talk) 02:58, 15 August 2019 (UTC)[reply]

Multiple origins[edit]

The article is written as if there were two competing explanations/origins, but shouldn't a statement be made that it might have two independent origins (rather than there existing only a single possible origin)? --216.15.48.194 (talk) 19:24, 11 November 2022 (UTC)[reply]