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In 1955, the French proposed translation for computer was 'calculateur' and IBM France asked for a name giving a broader idea of the possibilities of its machine. A French professor proposed the term 'ordinateur' ('who gives orders').

But why did the French not simply take the English word into their language, as with "Le Weekend" and "Le Picnic"? That's almost certainly because the word "computer" sounds like two rude French words: "Con" and "Putain", or "C*ntwhore", as it would sound to many Frenchmen. Perhaps it is unsurprising that this word did not assimilate into the French language.

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11y ago

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