lost in translation

Toska (Russian): "No single word in English renders all the shades of toska. At its deepest and most painful, it is a sensation of great spiritual anguish, often without any specific cause. At less morbid levels it is a dull ache of the soul, a longing with nothing to long for, a sick pining, a vague restlessness, mental throes, yearning. In particular cases it may be the desire for somebody of something specific, nostalgia, love-sickness. At the lowest level it grades into ennui, boredom.” - Vladimir Nabokov

(jim goldberg)

Mamihlapinatapei (Yagan, an indigenous language of Tierra del Fuego): “The wordless, yet meaningful look shared by two people who both desire to initiate something but are too reluctant to start.”

Tartle (Scottish): "The act of hesitating while introducing someone because you've forgotten their name."

Cafuné (Brazilian Portuguese): “The act of tenderly running one’s fingers through someone’s hair.”

(hedi slimane)

Hyggelig (Danish): “Cozy, welcoming, and enticing.”

Duende (Spanish): “The mysterious power that a work of art has to deeply move a person.”

 

Ya’aburnee (Arabic): Literally translated as "'You bury me,' a declaration of one’s hope that they’ll die before another person because of how difficult it would be to live without them.”

(rene magritte)

Saudade (Portuguese): “The feeling of longing for something or someone that you love and which is lost.”