Question Murim glossary?

Discussion in 'Translator's Corner' started by nienienie, Jun 19, 2021.

  1. nienienie

    nienienie Well-Known Member

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    I enjoy reading murim webtoon and I find out there is no standardized(?) translation of some words in there.

    The reason I think so is because I read a webtoon I like in Korean but when I tried to find the English translation, starting from the title the translation is already wrong so I don't bother to read more. Then, I tried to look for other translations, webtoons and novels, and the translation from each groups is different.

    The words I'm talking about is 구대문파, 오대세가, whatever 문파 and clans there, 사형, 대협, 소협, etc.
    I can understand these words in Korean, but if I have to translate them, I can't. Like, should I translate it literally(e.g. 화산 to mount hua/flower/volcanic), or should I just type the romanized word (e.g. 무당 to mudang), or should I translated it just like the China wuxia(?) (무당 to wudang/wutang). I heard that murim originally from wuxia, so is there any standardized translation of these in wuxia?

    I can't read Chinese and never read any wuxia or xianxian novel/manhua because the chapters are too much so I have never researched about this.

    So, someone there who knows about the best way to translate this, please teach me.
     
  2. nienienie

    nienienie Well-Known Member

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  3. strayCat0

    strayCat0 What are you doing right now?

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  4. anonymous1

    anonymous1 Active Member

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  5. NorthBladeTL

    NorthBladeTL Well-Known Member

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    This is my personal list but I've already shared it a couple of times.
    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xoozBaPscyA1-1_86m0YpcuwEbaWwHv1wz8W1qhA_sE/edit?usp=sharing


     
  6. NorthBladeTL

    NorthBladeTL Well-Known Member

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    Forgot to add, there are no standardized translations, but there are a few general trends. E.g. names based on RL geographical locations and well-known landmarks are usually left as the Chinese pronunciation (Mount Hwa, Wudang, Zhongnan, Kunlun, Mount Heng for geography and Shaolin for landmarks). Names based on nouns/adjectives are usually translated e.g. Beggar's Gang, Southern Sword Sect, Tempest Manor, Tiger Ridge Escort Agency. "Murim Alliance" is fairly standard, as basically every murim reader knows what "murim" is. In the end, it's up to you but it's generally fine as long as you are consistent and be careful of possibly embarrassing mistranslations (taoist =/= shaman, mount hwa[华山] is not volcano[火山] as the hanja is different, "Volcanic Age" is possibly one of the most embarrassing mistranslations ever).

    I also prefer to use the Chinese names for cities (Beijing, Wuhan, Guangzhou) and landmarks (Yangtze River, Dongting Lake, Qinghai Lake, Yellow Crane Tower, Pavilion of Prince Teng), as no one would find it on a map otherwise.
     
    Last edited: Oct 31, 2022
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  7. TXHY

    TXHY Normal Member

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    Oohh don't forget "Lightning Degree" (비뢰도) as well, my friend :blobjoy:
     
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