direct Japanese translation?

[Tenshi no Ai]

Yeah, I know I'm one of the people here that knows quite a bit of Japanese here and even helped out with translations and stuff on here, but even sometimes I can get a bit stumped^^ Easy phrase here, but just trying to fit the word together properly:

"Yume o Miru Shima"

"dream" "to do" "to watch" "island"

What is the proper way of putting this together?

(If anyone's curious to what it's from, it's the orginal Zelda title of "Link's Awakening")

Hmm on second thought I guess this would go in the tutorial section, but I always see people's topics on Japanese translation help in general^^

[Lady Macbeth]

Yeah, I know I'm one of the people here that knows quite a bit of Japanese here and even helped out with translations and stuff on here, but even sometimes I can get a bit stumped^^ Easy phrase here, but just trying to fit the word together properly:

"Yume o Miru Shima"

"dream" "to do" "to watch" "island"

What is the proper way of putting this together?

(If anyone's curious to what it's from, it's the orginal Zelda title of "Link's Awakening")

Hmm on second thought I guess this would go in the tutorial section, but I always see people's topics on Japanese translation help in general^^

"Dreaming Island"? That's what I've seen other sites translate it as. That's the best 'literal' translation I can come up with as well, because the phrase encompasses an idea rather than actual 'words', which is why (I'm guessing here) the American translators went with "Link's Awakening" for the title - it was still appropriate and fitting, but it wasn't as awkward as trying to convey an idea of 'an island where dreams are experienced'. XD

[Tenshi no Ai]

"Dreaming Island"? That's what I've seen other sites translate it as. That's the best 'literal' translation I can come up with as well, because the phrase encompasses an idea rather than actual 'words', which is why (I'm guessing here) the American translators went with "Link's Awakening" for the title - it was still appropriate and fitting, but it wasn't as awkward as trying to convey an idea of 'an island where dreams are experienced'. XD

Yes that would work (never thought of that one). Cept not sure why they would change "Kamigami no Triforce" (Triforce of the Gods) into "A Link to the Past" :/
*shrugs* seem like the only 2 with unliteral translations.
Thanks for the help^^

[Arnobius]

Miru (見る) is more literally "to see", but in context watch works

Yume= dream
O= particle signifying the direct object
Miru= to see
Shima= Island or Stripe

It's bad grammar though, unless it was Yume o mirujima, in which case The Watching/Seeing Island Dream is the most literal translation I can do.

More than that, I'd need context

[Lady Macbeth]

Yes that would work (never thought of that one). Cept not sure why they would change "Kamigami no Triforce" (Triforce of the Gods) into "A Link to the Past" :/

Political correctness? Or perhaps not wanting something lost in translation - "kami" and "kamigami" as "god" or "gods" has a slightly different connotation in Japan than here - it's why I have some (small) issues with anime always translating "youkai" as "demons", even though that's probably as accurate of a translation as we can get. (Saiyuki's color inlays translate "youkai" as "ghosts", which again is problematic for cultural understanding.)

[Tenshi no Ai]

Political correctness? Or perhaps not wanting something lost in translation - "kami" and "kamigami" as "god" or "gods" has a slightly different connotation in Japan than here - it's why I have some (small) issues with anime always translating "youkai" as "demons", even though that's probably as accurate of a translation as we can get. (Saiyuki's color inlays translate "youkai" as "ghosts", which again is problematic for cultural understanding.)

So "youkai" is more a ghost? I know they have a hard enough time with "mononoke" (vengeful spirit), "borei" (ghost, but close enough to zombie), "oni" (ogre), and "youma" (...I assume a more feminine demon?).

[Lady Macbeth]

So "youkai" is more a ghost? I know they have a hard enough time with "mononoke" (vengeful spirit), "borei" (ghost, but close enough to zombie), "oni" (ogre), and "youma" (...I assume a more feminine demon?).

I think the word that the translators (probably Japanese-oriented) were looking for was "spirit" not "ghost". "Youkai" encompasses a large diversity of natural and supernatural spirits - that's why both the Mu-Onna and the Tanuki can be classified as "youkai".

"Youma", from my understanding, are similar to youkai but tend to have more yin characteristics (while youkai often - but not always - have yang characteristics). I see "youma" frequently translated as "monster".

[Arnobius]

So "youkai" is more a ghost? I know they have a hard enough time with "mononoke" (vengeful spirit), "borei" (ghost, but close enough to zombie), "oni" (ogre), and "youma" (...I assume a more feminine demon?).

It depends. I've seen youkai translated as "goblin" for that matter. Oni as anything from ogre to devil (most properly Akuma would be a devil/demon), and youma frequently translated as monster, the definition I have is [size=100]妖] (n) ghost; apparition. Technically "Elf Princess Rane" is "Fairy Princess Reen" and Kik's Delivery Service is "Witch's Express Delivery" (Takkyubin is actually a copyrighted term, so it could be "Witch's Fed-Ex Delivery")

I don't think the differences in words is because of PC so much as it is for style. If it's an ultra violent movie, they're going to choose the most malevolent meaning, while for kids shows, the more benign meaning.

As for videogames and the like they just choose names they think will sell, regardless of translation

http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/wwwjdic.html

This is an excellent site for translations

Edit: Not translation, looking up words I meant

[shooraijin]

Yookai is a large term. They're a class of obake, referring to any sort of supernatural creature; however, yookai means something more terrestrial and corporeal rather than purely spirit. Kitsune, kappa and tanuki in their mythological senses are part of this class. However, oni are also considered yookai (probably because of their ability to assume a physical incarnation, or their historical presence as benevolent protectors (!)).

So I don't think yookai is even well translated as 'spirit' even. Maybe 'the enchanted' or 'the bewitched'? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yokai is a nice article.

[Arnobius]

What I have for dictionary for Youkai is:
妖怪 【ようかい】 (n) ghost; apparition; phantom; spectre; specter; demon; monster; goblin

I think a number of these terms tend to be used interchangeably in Japanese

[Aka-chan]

"Yume o miru" in itself means "to dream" and shouldn't be translated as "to see a dream", though that's what it initially seems to be. You have a noun modifying phrase here (modifying "shima"), making it "The Island that Dreams" or, as Lady Macbeth put it, "Dreaming Island". The "shima" in this case should not be turned into "jima" as it is not a compound but a phrase.