Learn English – Is “terroir” never translated

loanwordsword-usage

It seems that terroir is always used in English as the original in French. Wikipedia proposes a somewhat vague translation:

Terroir can be very loosely translated as "a sense of place"

But is there another word/expression that is also used in place of terroir itself?

Best Answer

It appears there is no alternative 'English' term to terroir given its specific connotations:

  • If you ask a French person to translate the word terroir, their first response will likely be a long pause and a furrowed brow. Not because they’re unfamiliar with the term, but because there’s no word for it in English. Translating terroir requires the use of complete sentences.

  • First things first: the etymology of the word. Terroir comes from terra, Latin for earth. Three core components of terroir are the vine, soil, and climate that produce a grape. But these are only the material aspects.

  • As important is the abstract side of terroir, which is the belief that the combination of the vine, soil, and climate found in a particular plot of land will produce a grape that is unique to that plot.

(www.discoverbeaujolais.com)

  • Its usage has considerably increased in recent decades as shown in Ngram.

From: The Science of Wine: From Vine to Glass by Jamie Goode

  • "Terroir" is a concept that is rapidly emerging as the unifying concept of fine wine. Once almost exclusively the preserve of the Old World, it's now a talking point in the New World, too.
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