Language desk
< February 9	<< Jan \| February \| Mar >>	February 11 >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Language Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

February 10[edit]

Chinese tattoo: translation[edit]

What is the meaning of "實力勇氣" as found in the photograph of Rehtaeh Parsons (article version of 15:26, 10 February 2015)? The individual characters 實 and 力 and 勇 and 氣 seem to mean "true" and "strength" and "brave" and "spirit" respectively, but I am uncertain about the meaning of the series.
—Wavelength (talk) 22:15, 10 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

It's a combination of two words. I'd translate 實力 as "strength" or "true strength", or "(true) power" or "(true) ability", depending on the context. 勇氣 means "courage". The combination sounds like a motto, kind of like "wisdom and virtue" (sapientia et virtus). --98.114.146.37 (talk) 03:20, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Could be a Four-character idiom, or an imitative attempt at one... AnonMoos (talk) 06:11, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Oh lord, it's the Chinese tattoos! Procede with caution, Wave. Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | ^{Say Shalom!} 22 Shevat 5775 06:33, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

The Japanese do it the opposite way - here is a T-shirt on a primary school kid. NSFW. KägeTorä - (^影_虎) (Chin Wag) 07:33, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

I actually saw this shirt, but with the text in giant green letters, on the back of the shirt, and printed upside down, on a PROC student in student halls back in London. I may have been too drunk myself to care enough to point out the stupidity of his shirt (as it was just that mind-numbingly idiotic). Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | ^{Say Shalom!} 22 Shevat 5775 13:27, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Or if you want to see how 'translations' can go really bad. KägeTorä - (^影_虎) (Chin Wag) 10:33, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

What in the world is "fetal heart custody" about? Is the place run by Elizabeth Báthory? μηδείς (talk) 20:27, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

That's a bad mis-translation from Chinese. I think a correct translation would be "cardiotocography room". --98.114.146.37 (talk) 00:43, 12 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

For those curious about how the translation got so messed up, this is likely what happened: The original Chinese is 胎心监护室. 监护 is the part where the translation went wrong. 监 means "to monitor" or "to supervise"; 护 means "to protect". The combination is commonly used in 监护人, which means "a guardian" (someone who's responsible for protecting the welfare and interests of another person, such as a child.) In a divorce situation, or when custody of a child is taken away from the parent(s), custody is often referred to as 监护权 (監護權 in traditional Chinese). 监护权 translated rather literally means "right of guardianship". It seems that the translator relied on the translation of 监护权 and mis-translated 监护 as "custody". --98.114.146.37 (talk) 01:32, 12 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

In general, try searching for pairs of characters instead of individual characters, because (modern) Chinese words tend to be two characters long. wikt:實力 and wikt:勇氣 both exist. Four-character set phrases (chengyu, already indirectly linked by AnonMoos) are also common, but I don't think this is one. -- BenRG (talk) 20:40, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

(BenRG, Thank you for the general advice.) I did a Web search for rehtaeh parsons tattoo, and I found http://thevarsity.ca/2013/10/28/cyberbullying-and-policing-the-internet/, where paragraph 7 (the last one) gives the rough translation "strength and a brave air".

—Wavelength (talk) 22:13, 11 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

"A brave air" sounds like a literal translation of the constituent characters of 勇氣. 勇氣 is a standard word in Chinese and the correct translation is "courage". --98.114.146.37 (talk) 00:43, 12 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Strength and courage. It is not a four-word idiom. --Bowlhover (talk) 10:18, 13 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Bowlhover, thank you. (I also appreciate what Florian Blaschke said about "fossilised expressions" under "Chengyu" on your talk page.)

—Wavelength (talk) 19:30, 13 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]