Det bedste er ikke for godt

[Skafte]

Hi all. I'd like to ask this to someone more Danish than me. I know Danish quite well, having worked on a EU project with people from Bornholm, but this one doesn't work for me:

The LEGO motto "Det bedste er ikke for godt" is usually translated into English as "Only the best is good enough".

If I translate the Danish phrase directly into Swedish (Det bästa är inte för bra) it means "The best is not too good", which of course sounds a bit silly as "too" might be interpreted in two ways. Could someone please help me translate this, getting the "proper" meaning across?

[Front]

Hi all. I'd like to ask this to someone more Danish than me. I know Danish quite well, having worked on a EU project with people from Bornholm, but this one doesn't work for me:

The LEGO motto "Det bedste er ikke for godt" is usually translated into English as "Only the best is good enough".

If I translate the Danish phrase directly into Swedish (Det bästa är inte för bra) it means "The best is not too good", which of course sounds a bit silly as "too" might be interpreted in two ways. Could someone please help me translate this, getting the "proper" meaning across?

My translation would be this very straight forward version (I don't like the official one):

----------------

Det bedste er ikke for godt

-------------------

The best is not too good

-----------------

The problem is that this is not "correct" English as I see it, or at least not something anybody would say in English.

I guess that's why somebody translated it into something you would normally say in English: "Only the best is good enough".

****Edit*****

Ok, I see you suggest the same translation as me

Edited November 15, 2010 by Front

[Brickdoctor]

I'm no expert in Swedish grammar , but in English the rules are simply much more strict than other languages. In English, for everything there is an exact and precise rule, and for every rule there is an exception that probably makes no sense whatsoever. Other languages like Greek, are more lenient. It's a common example that in Greek (?), the equivalents of 'Dog bites man,' and 'Man bites dog,' apparently mean the same thing. In Greek, a noun is a noun no matter where it is placed. In Spanish, an adjective is placed in a totally different place than in English. Maybe someone can elaborate on the differences between Swedish and English grammar.

[Skafte]

Thanks for your input.

What really bugs me is that the translation of the phrase is never (as I have seen it) described as a "loose" or "rough" translation, it looks as if "Only the best is good enough" is exactly what it means.

To get the proper meaning through, you might say "The best is not too good for kids" or maybe "The best is not luxury". Any better ideas?

[Tobbe Arnesson]

I'd say that the English translation should be "only the best is good enough". In Swedish I'd say the same thing as in English: "Endast det bästa är gott nog".

A more correct translation would be "The best is not too good" which don't work that well since you could easily get the feeling that; sure, this is the best out there but it's still pretty bad. It's a tad better in Swedish but still pretty confusing: "Det bästa är inte för bra". We're not used to that combination of the words.

Too see what they likely mean I think you have to consider why they say it: The price might be higher than other toys in the same store, but you'll get good quality and many years of play for the buck.

OT: Bornholmians don't speak real Danish - and Danes don't know their own language anymore:

[Front]

I just understood everything except all in that video. Please help me understand Danish.

[Colonel]

What about:

The best isn't good enough

[Clone OPatra]

The closest proper English phrase to 'The best is not too good' that is a little clearer would be 'The best cannot be too good' or 'The best is never too good.' Of course, those wordings could still be taken to mean that even the best wouldn't be very good, but they are likelier to be understood as the actual meaning than 'The best is not too good.' The second one of my options is probably the best, and if it was being spoken in English than the meaning could be made very clear by emphasizing the 'too.' Even written, the meaning should still be fairly clear.

Hope that helps!

[Skafte]

"The best is never too good"

Thank you, that is much better! That says the same as the Danish phrase, and you have to admit that there is quite a difference from "Only the best is good enough".

[Tobbe Arnesson]

Front:

Clone O'Patra: Great suggestion! Especially "The best is never too good".

[CopMike]

- Enough good isn´t the best?

Interesting language discussion! On this page on LEGO.com Kirsten Stadelhofer, a LEGO employee, says:

Quality was the watchword. Det beste er ikke for godt was his motto, or (roughly), Not even the best is good enough.

Maybe we need to have a poll on which translation is the best/funniest ?

[CMP]

- Enough good isn´t the best?

Interesting language discussion! On this page on LEGO.com Kirsten Stadelhofer, a LEGO employee, says:

Maybe we need to have a poll on which translation is the best/funniest ?

I've got my entry.

The best is never good.

[Tranberg]

The closest proper English phrase to 'The best is not too good' that is a little clearer would be 'The best cannot be too good' or 'The best is never too good.' Of course, those wordings could still be taken to mean that even the best wouldn't be very good, but they are likelier to be understood as the actual meaning than 'The best is not too good.' The second one of my options is probably the best, and if it was being spoken in English than the meaning could be made very clear by emphasizing the 'too.' Even written, the meaning should still be fairly clear.

Hope that helps!

As a Dane I would say "The best is not too good" would fit the most.

[Cobb]

The best isn't good enough?

[Lasse D]

Still interested in the real translation?

The motto contains a figure of speech from Jutland (the part of Denmark where Billund is located): "Ikke for godt".

This figure of speech simply means "not good" or "bad", thus making the motto "The best is not good", or more correctly: "Even the best is not good enough".

Source: The guide at the LEGO museum in the Idea House in Billund.

[Dan the Brickman]

Wow. This is extremely fascinating. I will not submit an idea(for a translation), as I do not speak either danish or Swedish...

I do remember seeing a couple variations between several books and articles on this issue. I suppose some things are hard to give a word for word translation with each language.

[Skafte]

Still interested in the real translation?

The motto contains a figure of speech from Jutland (the part of Denmark where Billund is located): "Ikke for godt".

This figure of speech simply means "not good" or "bad", thus making the motto "The best is not good", or more correctly: "Even the best is not good enough".

Source: The guide at the LEGO museum in the Idea House in Billund.

Thanks, Lasse D, that clarifys and explains everything!

"Even the best is not good enough" - wow, that is a standard to live up to!

[Superkalle]

In swedish "Godt" kan also mean "for good", i.e. something that has been terminated or ended forever.

Can it also mean the same in Danish? If so, the phrase "Det bedste er ikke for godt" can also become a fun play with words.

[Tobbe Arnesson]

Superkalle, you need the "for" in front of the "good" as well: För gott.

Gott on it's own can't mean that.

[Superkalle]

Superkalle, you need the "for" in front of the "good" as well: För gott.

Gott on it's own can't mean that.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean Tobbe. Naturally I know that it's "för gott" in swedish. My question was if it could have the same meaning also in danish. If so, the phrase "Det bedste er ikke for godt" can also mean something like "the best doesn't last forever".

[Lasse D]

"for god" in Danish can only mean "too good".

The word you are talking about in Danish is "forgangen" (as in "de forgangne år"/"the years that have passed"). This word does also only have one meaning.

[Brickdoctor]

Still interested in the real translation?

The motto contains a figure of speech from Jutland (the part of Denmark where Billund is located): "Ikke for godt".

This figure of speech simply means "not good" or "bad", thus making the motto "The best is not good", or more correctly: "Even the best is not good enough".

Source: The guide at the LEGO museum in the Idea House in Billund.

I guess I'm a little late here, since I forgot all about this thread until it was posted in today, but thanks, that clears everything up. The regional phrase thing never occured to me.

[Superkalle]

"for god" in Danish can only mean "too good".

The word you are talking about in Danish is "forgangen" (as in "de forgangne år"/"the years that have passed"). This word does also only have one meaning.

Ah, thanks for clearing that out

[CopMike]

So we have an official translation:

- Even the best is not good enough, source the guide at the LEGO museum in the Idea House in Billund (thanks Lasse D)

and maybe this:

- Not even the best is good enough, source this page on LEGO.com said by Kirsten Stadelhofer, a LEGO employee.

And some non-official ones :

- Only the best is good enough

- The best is not too good

- The best isn't good enough

- The best cannot be too good

- Enough good isn´t the best by

- The best is never good