Leoncitos a mí?

[silopanna]

People,

Quijote said this, "Leoncitos a mí?"

I couldn't exactly figure out what it meant. The footnote said that the sentence had become proverbial in Spanish, so I feel that it is on topic for this forum.

Can anyone elucidate?

Silopanna/Dean

[Planet hopper]

The meaning is a very spanish attitude to life, it reminds me of someone (I think it was Unamuno) who said once 'Let them invent'

I can't find the matching proverb in English, it could be paraphrased as:

Even though life may put amazing difficulties in my way, I will never panic, I will take the difficulties as normal and face them, find out a solution.

It's a sentence nowadays barely used, but it will help you show off your Spanish in a speech or similar. Be aware you may have to explain the context to your listeners if you use it.

Hope that gives you some clues

PS: It is a fairly chilvarous attitude, as in 'looking surprised is unproper for a knight'. Think of the whole plot of the episode to understand it better.

[Tomisimo]

Good explanation. How exactly would you use that phrase in a conversation?

[Planet hopper]

Gosh! Usage and translation could be kinda biased depending on whether you (or your paper) share that attitude. I'll give you two examples, one positive, one negative:

+ (as in a tory / republican paper)

Cuando Zapatero entro en la cumbre del G20, se portó como un buen español y les dijo a todos: 'Leoncitos a mi'

-

Cuando los españoles van por ahi pidiendo leoncitos, no hay quien los entienda

(just thought that out, I personally think that trait is not the best one)

[sosia]

We spaniards love to show of, we are boastful and braggart.
Somebody sayed to Don Quijote that a pair of big lions where there and he sayed "come on with those lions, bring them to me"
They are speaking about really big lions, and Don quijote call them "leoncitos" (litte lions, puppy lions).
A literal translation can be ¿What can those little lions do to me? ¿(Que me pueden hacer esos) leoncitos a mí?
Saying the complethe sentence (¿leoncitos a mi?) it's not so used today, but you can still use "a mí" with all kind of difficult problems, saying they do not affect you/ you will victorius in that matter.
It's like "problem? to me? I do not have any problem, because......"
Examples:
¿crisis mundial a mi? (the global crisis it's not a problem for you)
¿suegras a mi? (your mother/father-in-law it's not a problem for you)
¿reservado el derecho de admisión a mi? (that the disco doesn't allow you to go in is not a big problem)
Usually comes with a bigger second sentence.
¿multas a mí? ¿es que no sabes que soy hermano del primo del alcalde?
A fine? to me? ¿don't you know I'm the brother of the cousin of the mayor?

Example:
a group of friends is in a tavern.
-Somebody says, Look, today it's the super-very-big-hamburger-day, 8 kg.
I don't think anybody can eat that.
-The next spaniard says: ¿Hamburguesitas a mi? traérla aquí, que me la como en 5 minutos (little hamburgers to me? Bring it here, I will eat it in 5 minutes)

saludos

[Tomisimo]

Gracias a los dos por los ejemplos. (Hamburguesas de 8 kg?! Alguien tiene hambre )

[poli]

Great explanation Sosia. There are so many sayings that come from Cervantes. He seems comparable to Shakespeare in that way. It's like Cervantes is to Spanish what Shakespeare is to English.

Incidentially a mi resembles what's it to me? in English.

[silopanna]

I thinkI've got it. It's like the MAD Magazine when it says "What, me worry?"

Or something general such as "Is that all?"

By the way, I am loving Quixote.

Silopanna Dean

[sosia]

Yes, silopanna, it's that way of thinking.
Like Poli says, "what's is two lions to me?" or your "Two puppy lions, is that all?".

Yes, poli, Cervantes is the spanish Shakespeare and Shakespeare is the english Cervantes.

Saludos