History Main / TranslateTheLoanwordsToo

* In ''TwentyThousandLeaguesUnderTheSea'', Professor Aronnax recalls an expedition to the Nebraska [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands badlands]], which he gives in the original French as ''les mauvaises terres du Nebraska''. Some English translators have failed to recognise the term, resulting in translations like "the disagreeable territory of Nebraska".

* In the case of loanwords, they might remain untranslated even if they're used differently in the work's original language.
* The phrase might be reworded either because the translator fails to realise that its a word from their language or is determined to translate every part of the script whether necessary or not.
* If the word is a loanword or has roots in another language entirely (for example French phrases like "coup de grace" or Greek and Latin suffixes like "phobia" are both used in English often enough to be treated as a part of the language) then it's translated from that (for example phobia becomes "fears" and "coup de grace" becomes "blow of mercy"). This makes even less sense than the above, as it requires that the translator realise they're dealing with a word that's supposed to be foreign.
* Finally ([[{{Woolseyism}} and possibly more benevolently]]), the translator might translate words in the original script which are in the language being translated into the language of the original script to KeepItForeign or just apply a TranslationCorrection if the script's original implementation of the translator's language [[GratuitousForeignLanguage was badly done]].

When someone demands something be translated from a language they speak anyway it's CompletelyUnnecessaryTranslator, if they simply took something in the original language that would be [[DidNotDoTheBloodyResearch too rude for native speakers]] it's TactfulTranslation, if the "same" language actually does need translating it's SeparatedByACommonLanguage. ElNinoIsSpanishForTheNino is the [[InvertedTrope inverse]]; when a phrase from the first language is left untranslated because it's a loanword in the second.

* There is a fansub of ''{{Yu-Gi-Oh}}'' which humorously translates duro/draw (as in draw a card) as "pick."

** Not necessarily Celtic; they're probably hearing the Latin words as regular English, which they don't know, but sounds a bit similar to Celtic. (English is actually derived from Germanic words pronounced with Old French language rules, which is one of the reasons it doesn't sound much like anything else and borrows from everything.)

** Not necessarily Celtic. It could be just gibberish to them, and they simply assume it's Celtic, since they're not likely to actually know the language.

* Fansubs often do this because of the GratuitousEnglish trope and the fact that many loanwords aren't used by the borrower in the same manner as in the original language. Chances are, you've probably never heard 'diamond' shortened to 'dia,' ice cream merely called 'ice,' or a two-person team called a 'combi' if you're a native English speaker. There are even terms that are not immediately recognizable as English (such as portmanteaus of two words' katakana spellings. Dekotora = '''deco'''rated '''tru'''ck.)

* JorgeLuisBorges initially named one of the volumes of his collected works with the English ''The Maker'', which he then translated into Spanish as ''El hacedor''. The first English translators were unaware of Borge's intentions, and were unsure how to translate "hacedor" (which can mean either "maker" or "doer"), so they just sidestepped it and named the book ''Dreamtigers'' (after one of the stories from the book).

* A subset of Transformers fans, particularly prior to 2000 or so, was fervent about referring to characters by their "Japanese" names when talking about Japanese G1 series. You know, where the leader was actually "Comboi", not that crazy "Convoy" term other fans would use when talking about Optimus Prime's Japanese name. Another notable one is insisting on using "Minelba" instead of "Minerva".

* Parodied in ''ExcelSaga'': At one point there's an English text scroll, so there are Japanese subtitles. The English version then provides a hilariously inaccurate translation of those subtitles.

* [[TowerOfGod Baam's]] meaningful name (it means Night) and it's homonymity to chestnut in Korean can't be properly translated, so several puns and metaphores need translator notes to explain them.

* The translators who worked on ''MegamanNTWarrior'' somehow managed to mistranslate half the GratuitousEnglish. Not only was it in English to begin with, but the ''MegaManBattleNetwork'' games had already been released in English without any of the same errors. Yet somehow, many instances of "punch" became "thump", and many a "bomb" became a "boomer".

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[[folder: Film ]]

* ''RequiemForADream'' has a brief scene between Marlon Wayans and a deaf drug dealer. The drug dealer uses sign language while a member of his gang translates. At the end of the conversation, the drug dealer finally says something, "You fuck me, I kill you!". The translator begins to repeat it anyway but Marlons Wayans cuts him off and says, "I got that."
* A few old Soviet comedies used the inversion -- omitting at least one invective perfectly understood without translation or another conspicuous part absent in GagDub, as a parody of {{bowdlerized}} dubs. Foreigners shout expressive [[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign gibberish]] for which dub in the deadpan voice gives an implausibly laconic "translation", [[EvenTheSubtitlerIsStumped eventually giving up]] and saying "untranslatable wordplay using [[ForeignCussWord local idiomatic expressions]]".
** ''The Diamond Arm'' has a typical example
--->'''Gangster''' ([[ItaliansTalkWithHands wildly gesticulating]]): Porko madonna di umpesto per bako castala de me brano himaro enches sarvesting ham durala!
--->'''dub''': sorry, got worked up.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* JorgeLuisBorges initially named one of the volumes of his collected works with the English ''The Maker'', which he then translated into Spanish as ''El hacedor''. The first English translators were unaware of Borge's intentions, and were unsure how to translate "hacedor" (which can mean either "maker" or "doer"), so they just sidestepped it and named the book ''Dreamtigers'' (after one of the stories from the book).
* In ''TwentyThousandLeaguesUnderTheSea'', Professor Aronnax recalls an expedition to the Nebraska [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands badlands]], which he gives in the original French as ''les mauvaises terres du Nebraska''. Some English translators have failed to recognise the term, resulting in translations like "the disagreeable territory of Nebraska".

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''RequiemForADream'' has a brief scene between Marlon Wayans and a deaf drug dealer. The drug dealer uses sign language while a member of his gang translates. At the end of the conversation, the drug dealer finally says something, "You fuck me, I kill you!". The translator begins to repeat it anyway but Marlons Wayans cuts him off and says, "I got that."
* A few old Soviet comedies used the inversion -- omitting at least one invective perfectly understood without translation or another conspicuous part absent in GagDub, as a parody of {{bowdlerized}} dubs. Foreigners shout expressive [[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign gibberish]] for which dub in the deadpan voice gives an implausibly laconic "translation", [[EvenTheSubtitlerIsStumped eventually giving up]] and saying "untranslatable wordplay using [[ForeignCussWord local idiomatic expressions]]".
** ''The Diamond Arm'' has a typical example
--->'''Gangster''' ([[ItaliansTalkWithHands wildly gesticulating]]): Porko madonna di umpesto per bako castala de me brano himaro enches sarvesting ham durala!
--->'''dub''': sorry, got worked up.

[[/folder]]

* Brazilian former president Fernando Henrique Cardoso saw fit to explain to an English speaker interviewing him what "malaise" meant. All of that in a horrible pronunciation of English.

* JorgeLuisBorges initially named one of the volumes of his collected works with the English ''The Maker'', which he then translated into Spanish as ''El hacedor''. The first English translators were unaware of Borge's intentions, and were unsure how to translate "hacedor", so they just sidestepped it and named the book ''Dreamtigers'' (after one of the stories from the book).