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baltra

English translation: Isle of enjoyment in free motion.

15:31 May 5, 2002
Norwegian to English translations [Non-PRO]
Tech/Engineering
Norwegian term or phrase: baltra
baltra is the name of an island in the Galapagos Islands. As some of the earliest colonists in the Galapagos were Norwegian I thought it might have some meaning in the Norwegian language
Greg Estes
English translation:Isle of enjoyment in free motion.
Explanation:
There is no word baltra in Norwegian, but there is a similar word boltre, a verb which is difficult to translate to English, but has something to do with freedom of motion, enjoyment of liberty in motion. Things you do in a playground, especially if it's spacious. The -a ending is common in Norwegian and may denote a past tense of a verb, or the definite singular form of a feminine noun. Many Norwegian islands have this feminine ending, examples: Senja, Hitra, Frøya, Vega.

So the name could be Norwegian. The colonists might have used the -a islands at home as a model for the naming, thinking of their new island as a fine playground all of their own.

An internet search doesn't give any clue of the origin. The name first was published in a map from 1936 by the US National Geographic Society, who can't tell today whence they got the name.

Norwegian isn't the only language ending its islands in -a. Probably you should look for a Spanish origin too, or a Native American. My Spanish dictionary doesn't give a clue. In Italian, balta is 'unease, make uneasy'. In Latin balteus is a belt or weapon belt. A different Norwegian origin should be a possibility too.
Selected response from:

Lars Finsen
Local time: 04:34
Grading comment
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +1Baltra
Richard Lawson
3Isle of enjoyment in free motion.
Lars Finsen


  

Answers


3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
Baltra


Explanation:
I have not heard of early Norwegian settlements in the Galapagos Islands, and have not been able to find out anything about any such settlements. More information would be useful. As far as I can establish the word "baltra" has no specific meaning in Norwegian derived from the name of an island in the Galapagos other than its meaning as the name of an island in the Galapagos. If you want to check yourself, you will find some useful links on the URL below.


    Reference: http://dmoz.org/World/Norsk/Referanse/Ordlister/
Richard Lawson
Local time: 04:34
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in pair: 1147

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Vedis Bjørndal: There has been no "early" Norw.settlement in G. It started as late as in 1925. My sugg. is "Balsatree Island" fr. Sp.balsa.
7 days
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4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Isle of enjoyment in free motion.


Explanation:
There is no word baltra in Norwegian, but there is a similar word boltre, a verb which is difficult to translate to English, but has something to do with freedom of motion, enjoyment of liberty in motion. Things you do in a playground, especially if it's spacious. The -a ending is common in Norwegian and may denote a past tense of a verb, or the definite singular form of a feminine noun. Many Norwegian islands have this feminine ending, examples: Senja, Hitra, Frøya, Vega.

So the name could be Norwegian. The colonists might have used the -a islands at home as a model for the naming, thinking of their new island as a fine playground all of their own.

An internet search doesn't give any clue of the origin. The name first was published in a map from 1936 by the US National Geographic Society, who can't tell today whence they got the name.

Norwegian isn't the only language ending its islands in -a. Probably you should look for a Spanish origin too, or a Native American. My Spanish dictionary doesn't give a clue. In Italian, balta is 'unease, make uneasy'. In Latin balteus is a belt or weapon belt. A different Norwegian origin should be a possibility too.

Lars Finsen
Local time: 04:34
Native speaker of: Native in NorwegianNorwegian
PRO pts in pair: 44
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