Vuvuzela" has been voted the word of the World Cup by global
linguists who said Monday the tournament will be best remember for
the name of South Africa's deafening trumpet.
"Long after individual matches and goals are forgotten, this
will be remembered as the Vuvuzela World Cup," said Jurga
Zilinskiene, managing director of London-based firm Today
Translations.
"Vuvuzela" was chosen by 75 percent of more than 320 linguists
from over 60 countries, who were asked to choose the word with the
biggest impact on the tournament.
"Thanks to the World Cup, vuvuzela has the entered the shared
language of the world and joined the ranks of words that need no
translation," said Zilinskiene.
The tuneless plastic horn blown by fans was a top World Cup
newsmaker and has been snapped up abroad. Experts have warned it
can damage hearing.
The much-debated official Jabulani ball, mascot Zakumi and the
Bafana Bafana national South African team each won four percent of
the votes.
