ayu fan subs incorrect and sloppy...

[Delirium-Zer0]

Originally Posted by tenshi no hane

Good thing I didn't see this thread before posting my latest translations lol.

I hate when people who don't even know the source language start criticising. You don't even know which translation is "correct". Nice to see so many people in this thread stick up for translators.

Anyway. To add to the discussion:

I see a few mentions of "we won't know unless Ayu translates them herself" but it's not that simple, I think. Even Utada Hikaru, who was raised bilingual and has released Japanese and English albums, said she wouldn't want to translate her own lyrics because it's too difficult. I can't find the source for that quote just now, but these quotes are also interesting:

She talks more about lyrics in English vs Japanese in the JQ Interview if anyone's interested.

Utada is a great example of how bilingualism alone doesn't necessarily make you able to translate. Thinking like a translator isn't easy! Knowing the definitions of words doesn't necessarily mean you understand the MEANING of the words. When Utada translated the Emily the Strange books into Japanese, she got a lot of criticism from professional translators for how weak her translations were - they were too literal, basically.