Responses to my online translator post were mixed. Some people agreed, while others got defensive*. Past differences of thought aside, I found something today that argues unequivocally in favor of my point. It seems that Kosuke Fukudome, a right fielder for the Chicago Cubs, has some well-meaning but very Japanese-illiterate fans. At a Cubs game earlier this year (April–I’m kind of late), fans brandished signs that they thought bore the Japanese equivalent to the Cub’s slogan: It’s Gonna Happen. Unfortunately (but oh-so-predictably), they didn’t.
The signs read 「偶然だぞ」 or gūzen da zo, which translates into It’s Accidental. Probably not the most appropriate sentiment when your favorite baseball player steals a home run.
So what caused this blunder? Online translators, of course. As illustrated below, when entered into Google tranlsate, the Cubs’ slogan becomes the inadvertantly commical phrase that ended up on the placards (much to the delight of the Japanese blogging community, I might add). Had the fans tried the more gramatically correct “It’s going to happen”, they would have gotten 「それが起こるだろう」, which would have been a vast improvement. Just some food for thought :D
Source: as-is.net
*I’m joking, you guys. You’re all entitled to your own opinions.
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I think most people, if they are going to use an online translator, is they need to translate whatever the result back into the language it was originally put in...but that's just my take...
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1) Go to Babelfish or Google Translate
2) Type a paragraph in your native tongue
3) Translate into Japanese
4) Translate back into English
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The only reason i use online translators now is if there is just a single kanji or a four-character idiom i don't know.
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Best City in America ( well, i think Tokyo and Chicago are both amazing )
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but ye, great article Erin; its true online translators are really not good.
if you try to translate the same thing on different online translators, the outcome is completely different on each site. Really unreliable.
~use a dictionary, or a japanese speaking person lol
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Reminds me of the good old days in the mid eighties, when I did Aikidō.
There is a technique where one walks on his knees, called "Shikkō".
One day, there was this Japanese sensei who visited the dōjō, and as soon as our teacher said the name of that very technique, the Japanese laughed out loudly.
Apparently we pronounced it wrong, turning it into "peeing". =)
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they mean well.
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