|
|
 Words of Truth and Wisdom: Shinso
Written by Alethea and Athena Nibley
Recently, a fan asked us if we were planning on keeping the term “shinso” in future Negima! translations. We didn't know what the term was referring to (apparently it was used once in past English-language versions of Negima!, but obviously we didn't remember it), and looking it up in a dictionary, it could be so many things that we assumed that we probably wouldn't keep it. Upon further discussion, we learned that this particular use of “shinso” refers to the specific category of vampires Evangeline belongs to. (For the non-Negima! readers in the audience, Evangeline is a vampire character, but you probably figured that out.)
I think we've gone into this before, but our general policy on Japanese terms is that it's our job to translate them, and if that's possible, we will. The policy is a little more complex than that, and of course we didn't used to have such a policy. Back when we were starting out, it felt wrong to use anything but “onsen,” but now we're like, “Why not call a hot spring a hot spring?”
To be honest, part of the development of this policy is related to translation notes. We think translation notes are wonderful things that are very helpful in getting ideas across when they just don't fit in the dialogue. But on the other hand, it takes a little more work to write a translation note, and if we can fit something into the dialogue, why not do it? Especially with something like “onsen.” The translation note would be something like this: “Onsen is Japanese for hot spring.” That's it. We'd read that note and think, “Okay, why not call it a hot spring?”
“Shinso,” on the other hand, is a little more complex. We were still pretty determined to translate it for a few reasons. 1) We're stubborn and egotistical. 2) Evangeline is not originally from Japan, so why would she belong to a Japanese category of vampires?
There's a third reason that has only recently come into our translation style and that's the idea of not wanting to slow the readers down with too many foreign words. So we developed a new style of giving an English equivalent but still having a translation note to better explain what we meant. Unfortunately, I can't think of any example of when we did this, but we think it started when we were working on Nabari no Ou. Ninjas use a lot of techniques with Japanese names, and our personal preference is that it sounds cooler to know what they're saying. For example, hagakure might sound cool, but leaf veil sounds pretty darn cool, too, and has the added bonus of me (and in this case “me” means “readers who speak English”) knowing what it means.
Anyway, back to this “shinso” business. We finally decided that hey, maybe we should figure out exactly what category of vampire this is. So off we went to Wikipedia! Here's a really neat trick that I may or may not have mentioned before: If there's something in a manga that's like a scientific term, or a literary term, or a specialized term of some sort that seems like there would already be an English term for it, we go to Wikipedia and look up the Japanese article. Then we click on the link to the English article on the left, and bam! instant English translation. (This is important because there can be so many different ways to translate a single word that we need to make sure we're consistent with whatever lingo the term falls under.)
I'm sure there are a bunch of you out there who already know, but for those of you who, like us, were unaware, you know how most vampires are made into vampires by other vampires? “Shinso” literally means “true ancestor” or “true founder,” which would make a “shinso” the first vampire of a... um... “coven”? Do vampires have covens? Or do they have orders? Anyway, they're the first one of the “family tree” of vampires, after becoming a vampire through magic or some other not-by-another-vampire means.
We couldn't find an English Wikipedia article on this, so we're not sure there really is an English term for it. That doesn't make a whole lot of sense, though, unless in Western vampire lore all vampires come from one king of all vampires or something. So if anyone out there happens to know an English term for this, we're very curious to hear it now! Please let us know!
As for whether or not we'll keep it... that's still up in the air, but we're leaning towards no (see reason #1). But we have a reason! We decided to look up the Japanese Wikipedia article on Evangeline, and that referred us to a line in volume six of Negima! that equates “shinso vampire” with “High Daylight Walker,” so it would seem that Ken Akamatsu has provided an English equivalent for us already. Personally, we think High Daylight Walker sounds a lot cooler than “shinso” anyway. And who are we to argue with the author?
: :
|
29 July 2010
Words of Truth and Wisdom: Translation Notes
Share 28 July 2010
AFFD 2010 Review: The People I've Slept With
Share 27 July 2010
AFFD Review: Ip Man 2
ShareAFFD Review: Summer Wars
Share 21 July 2010
MangaLife: Why We're Living It
ShareAFDD REVIEW: Au Revoir, Taipei
Share 14 July 2010
Words of Truth and Wisdom: Notes Revisited
Share 13 July 2010
DVD REVIEW: Kaji: The Ultimate Gambler
Share
|
