Hello everyone. In the age of Isekai's we've developed a number of slang terms to refer to the genre. Two of which are Transmigrator and Reincarnator. The former is when someone travels to another world in their born body while the latter is when someone get's a new body once they arrived in their Isekai fantasy. My question today is if there's a title for people who go travel from the future to their past selves. Examples include Nei Li from TDG, Zuo Tianchen from Moshi Fanren, Kyle from Tsuyokute New Saga, and Kirie from UQ Holder(Technically). I guess Regressionor's work but does anyone have any better ideas?
Regressor: from future to the past Returnee : transmigrated and then come back to original world Reverse transmigration : other worlder to earth Thats Basically all i know
Regressor is the term commonly used in Korean novels to describe that, a person who travels back to their younger selves with the knowledge of how things developed in their original timeline. That said Japanese novels don't really use that term. Transmigration and reincarnation are common terms for the Japanese stories. But when they include regression, it's usually a one time thing that happens to one character and nobody knows about it. In Korean stories regressors can be famous figures that are known for their extraordinary history.
Mmm, those are somewhat correct, but not always. Regression would already fall under reincarnation. "Trans"+"migration" means moving your body/soul/consciousness to another location, i.e. world/universe/dimension, to live. "Re"+"incarnation" means your soul/consciousness inhabits a body again in the same world, regardless of timeline. It's a murky genre and people often play fast-and-loose with the terms when writing in it. Especially since transmigration is technically under reincarnation, just like regression. I just think of it as original world specific since that's the most-often written about.
In Isekai I usually see a Transmigrator as someone who was teleported into another world either by summoning, spatial gateway, hole in space time, etc. The thing is that they experience the new world in their same old body. While I see a Reincarnator to be someone who perishes, most likely ran over by a truck, and is reborn as a new person in a different world. But somehow retaining their memories of their past life. Of course i mean this in a novel trope sort of way. The term of reincarnation in real life has a religious connotation that is rarely present in novels. It isn't supposed to have anything to do with other worlds and is only in reference to the next life in this one.
What you consider a Transmigrator, I consider a Transported. Transmigration for me is when a character takes over the body of someone who already has their own history. It's like reincarnation and remembering your past life, but not really since your new body and its memories were never YOURS until you transmigrated. You took over the body. There's a distinction of ego/soul/identity. Google defines transmigrate as "(of the soul) pass into a different body after death." Like if you died or just fell asleep and ended up in the body of a 8 year old Harry Potter. You weren't exactly reincarnated since you didn't personally go through those experiences yourselves. You never personally experienced those 8 years. You just have the original memories. Of course reincarnation and transmigration can be blurred. Did you take over the body, replacing the old soul or were you already there and just awakened and took over now? Or maybe you just fused souls and one soul was more dominant?