Thoughts? Examples.

My long Spill

 

I was pondering today while doing my daily language studying. _{*Side note: I love studying languages. I am fluent in English and Latin of which I don't use much because not too many people speak it. I have studied Japanese and French since I was 11, Korean since 12 (I dropped the ball on that one), and now I am learning German, which is easier because my dad speaks it a little, Spanish, and Portuguese.}

 

So, back to the topic. But, keep Japanese in mind. 

I was thinking of the names in Kingdom Hearts. You know, the basic name meanings Sora= Sky; Riku=Land; Kairi=sea; Terra=land+earth; Aqua=water

 

But, Sora is the focus. Sora means sky in Japanese. It is a feminine name in Korean and Japan. However, it means empty too which is where Vanitas's name comes from as a rough translation to Latin vanitas-tatis also a feminine noun. Also, if you read the interviews you would know that because it was in an interview about BBS. 

 

Sora's name does not come as strong as it does in Japanese as in English.

 

Let's start at Destiny Islands and its symbolism. Why is it important? Visualize it. 

Destiny Islands is where the land, sky, water meet in harmony. Perfect homeland for SRK; it is where they all come together. 

 

In Kairi's Letter at the end of KHII, "They all share one sky, one destiny." 

"Thinking of you, wherever you are. We pray for our sorrows to end, and hope that our hearts will blend. Now I will step forward to realize this wish. And who knows: starting a new journey may not be so hard, or maybe it has already begun. There are many worlds, but they share the same sky — one sky, one destiny." -Kairi

English speakers are thinking," Okay, they share the same sky."

But, this letter truly shows the symbolism of Sora. 

 

It is known that the sky is the connector along with hearts making Sora like the human version of the sky. 

 

Also the Ice Cream Xion Death Scene: I tried to explain it earlier this year on here.

I am no Japanese expert, but I know some Japanese. I might be incorrect, so don't take it word for word.

Maybe it's my English influence, but Roxas said could be in the imperative mood in the Japanese version. 

The word "Taberu" when put in the imperative form adds "yo" dropping the present ending "ru" and keeping the stem "tabe" or "ro" instead of "yo" due to irregularity of the verb.

However, you can form a question by putting "yo" or "ka"  (or "ne" I am not so sure on this one) at the end. Maybe they got confused and did not know how to translate it.

 

But, "tabeyou" can be provisional/future tense. 

 

The English version worded that poorly. 

 

Dame da, Xion, Mata san ni de aisu Tabeyou?

Could have been

"Don't [go], Xion, Will the three of us eat ice cream?" (I don't like this one)

or 

"Don't [go], Xion, The three of us will eat ice cream."

I don't detect any who at all, but it is easier to translate that way.

 

 

Other name trivia that I found through etymology: 

Ventus means Wind in Latin, but all the 4th priniciple part of the verb venio(sp?) which mean 'to come'

Ansem could come from the German name Anselm meaning 'God's Helmet' probably meaning Protector of Knowledge

Namine is a variant of Nami meaning Wave showing the connection to Kairi. It could have connections to Latin in the word nomen, nomina meaning Name or nominane---> nomine---> Namine which would mean no name

Roxas could come from the name Rojas meaning red or a person living in sandy lands or a person with red hair.

Edited June 22, 201411 yr by HikariYami

Interesting stuff. 

This is really interesting. I have heard of this before, but not this deep. I agree with you on most of this especially kairi's letter part of this topic. 

This is pretty amazing stuff!  It just goes to show you that being knowledgeable in languages is a good thing!  You can find so many meanings in the smallest of things.

Wow! Really interesting, I never actually thought about the Destiny Islands one!

That makes sense, but let me give you MY take on the "Who else will I eats ice cream with?"

 

Remember in the beginning of Days when Axel said "Friends eat ice cream and laugh about stuff", or whatever he said.

 

Then at the end when Xion died, Roxas said "No! Xion! Who else will I have ice cream with?"

 

Translation: "Who else will be my friend?"

Ironicly my google name was Sora at one point, so it was roughly Sky Frost in English.

Hey,

That's very interesting! Never knew that.

 

-Aang

I see where You're going with this. But One thing i don't understand is where You're going with the Meaning of each Main protagonists.

Majority of this stuff I already knew but it nice to see someone share this with the fans. I'm really good at identifying symbolism and stuff, so yeah.

 

Peace!

Majority of this stuff I already knew but it nice to see someone share this with the fans. I'm really good at identifying symbolism and stuff, so yeah. Peace!

Tons of symbolism references to Shakesphere and mythology and Latin and Norse mythologyEnough to write a bookThe post was originally longer. I condensed it a hella lot

 

That makes sense, but let me give you MY take on the "Who else will I eats ice cream with?"

 

Remember in the beginning of Days when Axel said "Friends eat ice cream and laugh about stuff", or whatever he said.

 

Then at the end when Xion died, Roxas said "No! Xion! Who else will I have ice cream with?"

 

Translation: "Who else will be my friend?"

Wow, I never thought of that!

My take was always that sitting on the clock tower and eating ice cream with Axel (whom Roxas no longer feels he can trust) and Xion is basically the only happy memory Roxas has.

 

 

I also know of one notable mistranslation... in KH2, when Roxas and Sora are fighting, Roxas says, "Tell me, why did he choose you?" The word "he" is a mistranslation, the original sentence is asking why the Keyblade chose Sora.

 

Also, I can think of a loss of meaning due to cultural differences. I won't lie, the first time I saw Marluxia take his hood off, I laughed. Mysterious dude with deep, ominous voice, and then pink hair and rose petals! At least, that's what I thought, until I did a bit of research. I found out that the flower petals are actually cherry blossom petals, and that in Japan, cherry blossoms are not only seen as symbols of beauty, but also as symbols of death and the transient nature of life, because the blossoms only bloom for a short time. So while I laughed the first time I saw the hood come off, a kid playing the game in Japan more likely went, "Oh crap! This guy's dangerous."

Edited June 24, 201411 yr by The Granas Girl

This is some awesome stuff..  :ohmy: