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Anyone Speak Japanese?

Mar 26, 2011#1

North_Ranger

And it's time for another installment in our series "NR asks stupid language questions"

As I've mentioned before, I'm currently in the middle of two Changeling: The Lost campaigns, and I've been tinkering a lot (both as a player and as an ST) with the mechanics of various things in that setting. Now... I'm considering having either my character or an NPC character in the other game forge a new kind of magic blade, a poisonous wakizashi (or possibly tanto) that delivers a potent venom with each cut.

Now, the character involved is likely interested in the Japanese culture, and seeing how the Lost have a tendency to name such magic items quite colorfully (eg. Blood Poppet, Glimpsing Mirror, the Jerusalem Mile, etc.), I thought giving a proper sobriquet for that blade in both English and Japanese would be perfect.

Thing is, my knowledge of Japanese is limited to a couple of words, ranging from 'banzai' to 'kawaii'.

So, any help from our Japanese-speakers would be quite welcome.

Possible names:
Serpent's Fang
Serpent's Kiss
Nightshade Blade

Mar 26, 2011#2

@Li3n

Google it up: http://translate.google.com/#auto|ja|Serpent's Fang Serpent's Kiss Nightshade Blade

Press the Read phonetically thing.

Mar 26, 2011#3

Espy

Sometimes I think I'm turning Japanese.

Mar 26, 2011#4

bhamv3

@Li3n said:
Google it up: http://translate.google.com/#auto|ja|Serpent's Fang Serpent's Kiss Nightshade Blade

Press the Read phonetically thing.

Oh no no no no no, machine translation is a BAD THING. Even Google's, which is one of the more advanced ones out there, will throw up nonsense more often than not.

Though I'm sure Ranger is aware of this, being a translator himself.

Mar 26, 2011#5

Mathias

I learned all sorts of asian language at UCLA.

OH ? CHING CHONG LOOOOWWWWW?

Mar 26, 2011#6

Allen who is Quiet

bhamv3 said:
Oh no no no no no, machine translation is a BAD THING. Even Google's, which is one of the more advanced ones out there, will throw up nonsense more often than not.

Though I'm sure Ranger is aware of this, being a translator himself.

In this case, the phrases are simple enough that at least two of them are accurate.

Mar 26, 2011#7

North_Ranger

bhamv3 said:
Oh no no no no no, machine translation is a BAD THING. Even Google's, which is one of the more advanced ones out there, will throw up nonsense more often than not.

Though I'm sure Ranger is aware of this, being a translator himself.

This, pretty much. I've yet to run into a translating engine that could interpret any human language properly. In fact, I sometimes have fun seeing the nonsense they spout.

Mar 26, 2011#8

Allen who is Quiet

Okay fine.

サーペントのきば (saapento no kiba) is serpent's fang.
サーペントのキス (saapento no kisu) is serpent's kiss.
ナイトシェイドブレイド (naitosheido bureido) is nightshade blade.

Mar 26, 2011#9

North_Ranger

Thank you! ^^

Mar 26, 2011#10

@Li3n

Allen who is Quiet said:
Okay fine.

サーペントのきば (saapento no kiba) is serpent's fang.
サーペントのキス (saapento no kisu) is serpent's kiss.

Might work better using the original word for snake instead of what's obviously a neologism for serpent imo.

North_Ranger said:
This, pretty much. I've yet to run into a translating engine that could interpret any human language properly. In fact, I sometimes have fun seeing the nonsense they spout.

Yeah, but two words will usually work...

Mar 26, 2011#11

Allen who is Quiet

He asked serpent, he got serpent.

Mar 26, 2011#12

North_Ranger

'Snake' will work, too.

Mar 26, 2011#13

Allen who is Quiet

In that case, it's

Hebi no Kiba (へびのきば）
Hebi no Kisu (へびのキス)

Snake's Fang is the only one of the three that doesn't involve any loan words, so if you want something that sounds completely Japanese, it would have to be that one.

Mar 26, 2011#14

North_Ranger

Okay, then I'll probably go with that.

Of course, if you have a suggestion as to the name for a short sword/dagger that delivers a virulent poison, I'm all ears

Especially if it can be somehow tied to anyone of these themes or emotions: Spring, renewal, desire, passion, deviousness (the person forging the blade is a member of the hedonistic/optimistic Spring Court, and he himself is a Darkling, a kind of witty boogeyman, a kinsman to night and darkness).