The act of translating from one language to another can be a complex process, which is why reading documents that have been machine translated is so amusing. The other day I was was reading the Wikipedia page for the popular Kyoani series Chuunibyo demo Koi ga Shitai! (中二病でも恋がしたい！) , and I realized I wasn’t satisfied with the English translation they’d listed, which was “Regardless of My Adolescent Delusions of Grandeur, I Still Want a Date!” (This had been taken from the English website of TBC, the show’s producer, making it semi-official.) First of all, this translation assigned a subject (“I”) that is specifically missing from the original, implying that Yuuta wants to experience love with Rikka, his eyepatch-wearing odd little friend, when really the statement applies to both equally. Also, the word 恋 (koi) is an important one, encompassing the burning, almost compulsive feelings you have for someone when you’re experiencing romantic love with them, and “have a date” didn’t seem to capture this very well. (Incidentally there’s another word for love, 愛 (ai), that describes the deeper, long-term love you feel for family or a partner of many years, plus the compound word 恋愛 (ren’ai) covers both koi and ai in one word.) So I clicked the “edit” button and changed it to, “Even People With Adolescent Delusions of Grandeur Want to Fall In Love!” Do you like my translation?
I’m rooting for Rikka and Yuuta in Chu2koi!
