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On the recent speedsubs controversy: translations from places other than the source language are also something to think about. Sometimes there aren’t enough primary TLers in a fandom, so we have to make do with secondary sources, e.g. JP to CN to EN, JP to EN to ES...
(1/10)
(1/10)
I’m not saying non-source TLs are inherently bad — I myself am a part of this (I primarily translate from Korean, though lately I’ve been doing simpler Japanese TLs). Though, I make sure to get my longer TLs looked over by someone who actually knows the source language.
(2/10)
(2/10)
Basically, translating in multiple languages leads to degradation of the original meaning, despite best efforts to prevent it. It’s already hard do TLs from one language to another — add a third and it’s a sure recipe for additional things that get “lost in translation”.
(3/10)
(3/10)
For example:
- Person says “I like lemons” in Japanese.
- A JP-KR TLer subs it as “I love citrus”.
- A KR-EN TLer then takes that and subs it as “I enjoy sour fruits”.
Since the meaning evolves with every TL/interpretation, the original meaning can get mutated and lost.
(4/10)
- Person says “I like lemons” in Japanese.
- A JP-KR TLer subs it as “I love citrus”.
- A KR-EN TLer then takes that and subs it as “I enjoy sour fruits”.
Since the meaning evolves with every TL/interpretation, the original meaning can get mutated and lost.
(4/10)
Because secondary TLs inherently carry a higher risk of mistranslation, TLers — and viewers — should be extra careful with them. Secondary TLers should at least clearly state where they got their TLs from and try to get things looked over by a primary TLer if possible.
(5/10)
(5/10)
I know a popular mindset is “Well, some translation is better than no translation at all” — but in a fandom where you’re dealing with actual people, whether you’re subbing for Vtubers or seiyuu livestreams, putting words in a real person’s mouth is incredibly dangerous.
(6/10)
(6/10)
It’s good to have the spirit of “I’m a fan so I want to help others understand how awesome this person is!”, but it should be combined with a healthy mix of “I’m a fan so I really don’t wanna mess up and have others think wrongly of this person, omg this is terrifying—“
(7/10)
(7/10)
Continuing with that trend — if you rush a TL or scrape things together from a secondary language, would the final product be something you’d be proud to show the person you’re translating for? That’s what you should strive for. Make something you can be proud of.
(8/10)
(8/10)
In the end, we’re only human so we can and will make mistakes when translating. But at the very least, we can try our best to minimize that through having multiple quality checkers (QCers) and really taking our time to produce good TLs instead of a rushed half-assed one.
(9/10)
(9/10)
tl;dr:
- Secondary translations (from a language other than the source material) can be good for the fandom
- But they carry the same risk as speedsubs — possible mistranslation, leading to fans thinking a real person said something they didn’t
- Please use QCers
(10/10)
- Secondary translations (from a language other than the source material) can be good for the fandom
- But they carry the same risk as speedsubs — possible mistranslation, leading to fans thinking a real person said something they didn’t
- Please use QCers
(10/10)
