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Inu
Peasant
Member for 3 years
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Joined: 13 Jul 2009
Posts: 13
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 Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 12:57 pm Post subject: I Am a Cat |
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Has anyone read this book in the original Japanese? I ask because in the English translation, all of the main characters have very English names- Sneaze, Coldmoon, Waverhouse, Goldfield, etc.- though they are quite obviously Japanese. So, is the flavor of this in the original similar to Trevor being called Toraba or are the names in the English version the fancy of the translator? Btw, I don't read or speak Japanese.
Many thanks,
Don
ps. This is an amazing book if you haven't read it. |
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Sophia
Peasant
Member for 3 years
Joined: 12 Jul 2009
Posts: 17
Location: Budapest, Hungary
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| Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2010 8:18 am Post subject: |
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It must be the translator's idea to turn the names into English; I've read the book in Hungarian and in that version the names were left Japanese - Kushami, Kangetsu, Kaneda etc.
And I agree with you, it's an amazing novel. |
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Bethetsu
Izu no Kami
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Joined: 14 May 2006
Posts: 1273
Location: Center of Musashi
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| Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2010 11:09 pm Post subject: Re: I Am a Cat |
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| Inu wrote: |
| I ask because in the English translation, all of the main characters have very English names- Sneaze, Coldmoon, Waverhouse, Goldfield, etc.- though they are quite obviously Japanese. So, is the flavor of this in the original similar to Trevor being called Toraba or are the names in the English version the fancy of the translator? |
To directly answer your question, he translated the Japanese names. Kushami means "sneeze" and Kangetsu 寒月 means "cold moon." These are as strange in Japanese as in English. Goldfield is Kaneda 金田.
One character is Hanako. That is a common name meaning flower, but he uses the character read the same way meaning "nose." My guess is that her real name is 花子 "flower," but that the cat has never seen her name written (or cannot read), so assumes it is 鼻子 "nose." |
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Inu
Peasant
Member for 3 years
2009 Benefactor
Joined: 13 Jul 2009
Posts: 13
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| Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 11:56 am Post subject: |
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Thank you both. That pretty much answers my question.
Don |
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