Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland
| Simplified Chinese (Mandarin: China) | ||
| 大不列颠和爱尔兰的龙的种类 Dà Bùlièdiān hé Ài'ěrlán de lóng de zhǒnglèi |
大不列颠 Dà
Bùlièdiān = 'Great Britain'. 和 hé = 'and'. 爱尔兰 Ài'ěrlán = 'Ireland'. 的 de = connecting particle 龙 lóng = 'dragon'. 的 de = connecting particle 种类 zhǒnglèi = 'type'. |
Types of Dragon of Great Britain and Ireland |
| Traditional Chinese (Mandarin: Taiwan) | ||
| 大不列顛與愛爾蘭的各式龍種 Dà Bùlièdiān yǔ Ài'ěrlán de gèshì lóng-zhǒng |
大不列顛 Dà
Bùlièdiān = 'Great Britain'. 與 yǔ = 'and'. 愛爾蘭 Ài'ěrlán = 'Ireland'. 的 de = connecting particle 各式 gèshì = 'each style'. 龍種 lóng-zhǒng = 'dragon type'. |
Various Dragon Types of Great Britain and Ireland |
| Japanese | ||
| イギリスとアイルランドの
Igirisu to Airurando no doragon no shurui |
イギリス Igirisu = 'UK, Britain'. と to = 'and'. アイルランド Airurando = 'Ireland'. の no = connecting particle 竜 normally pronounced ryū, here pronounced ドラゴン doragon = 'dragon'. の no = connecting particle 種類 shurui = 'type'. |
Types of Dragon of the UK and Ireland |
| Vietnamese (Chinese characters show etymology) | ||
| Các giống rồng ở nước Anh và Ái Nhĩ Lan | Các (各) = 'each'. giống = 'type'. rồng = 'dragon'. ở = 'in'. nước = 'country'. Anh (英) = 'UK, Britain'. và = 'and'. Ái Nhĩ Lan (愛爾蘭) = 'Ireland'. |
Types of Dragon in the UK and Ireland |
| Mongolian (previous) | ||
| Британи ба Ирландын луунууд Britani ba Irlandiin luunuud |
Dragons of Britain and Ireland | |
| Mongolian (new) | ||
| Их Британи, Ирландын лууны төрөл зүйл Ikh Britani, Irlandiin luunii töröl züil |
Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland | |
'Dragon':
Although traditionally identified with each other, Oriental and Western dragons are completely different creatures. The Oriental dragon is, in its most typical form, a benevolent creature associated with water, a royal creature symbolising the emperor. The Western dragon is an evil, fire-breathing creature, slain in legend by the hero St George. The Chinese and Vietnamese do not have a separate word for the Western dragon. The Chinese name that originally referred to auspicious Oriental dragons must be used to describe the loathsome Western beast.
The Japanese have several words for dragon, namely tatsu, ryū (both written 竜) and more recently ドラゴン doragon, borrowed from English. Although there is no clear distinction in usage between the three — the English word doragon can equally refer to the Western and Oriental dragons — there is nevertheless a latent distinction that is nicely exploited by the Japanese translator. By using furigana (phonetic lettering) to show that 竜 ryū should actually be pronounced doragon, the translator suggests that this creature is similar to an Oriental dragon but also somehow different, thus setting it apart from the traditional concept.
The whole issue of dragons is a complex and fascinating one. The Chinese actually recognise several different types of dragon, some of which were not quite as benevolent or auspicious as the 龍 lóng (for example, the poisonous 虯 qiú in a poem by the Tang dynasty poet Li Ho). There are innumerable sites devoted to dragons on the Internet, of varying quality. Often they display little knowledge of Chinese and recycle similar information. For starters, try The Chinese Dragon and other mythical dragons of the East, Illiana the Golden Dragon, Tysharina's Lair, Types of Dragons, Dragons in Ancient China, Dragons of China, and The Vietnamese Dragon.
Great Britain and Ireland:
'Great Britain' and 'Ireland' could refer to:
- Two islands, Great Britain and Ireland.
- Two nations, Great Britain (more formally known as the United Kingdom) and the Irish Republic.
The translation will vary according to how the translators decide to interpret the meaning.
In the two Chinese versions, 'Great Britain' and 'Ireland' are translated quite literally. 大不列颠 / 大不列顛 Dà Bùlièdiān means 'Large Britain', that is, the island of Great Britain. 不列颠 Bùlièdiān, the Chinese transliteration of 'Britain', is not very common and has a formal or academic tone. 'Ireland' in Chinese is written with the characters 愛爾蘭 / 爱尔兰 Ài'ěrlán, meaning 'love' + 'er (basically meaningless)' + 'orchid', and could refer either to the nation or the island.
(There is a common fallacy in Japan that 'Great Britain' is a case of self-aggrandisement, similar to the use of 'Dai Nippon' — Great Nippon. In fact, 'Great' Britain does not refer to the 'greatness' of the British nation. It simply means 'Large Britain', either because Great Britain is the largest island in the British Isles, or in opposition to Brittany in northern France — compare the French terms Bretagne for Brittany and Grand Bretagne for Great Britain).
The Japanese version uses names which refer to the two countries, the UK and Ireland. イギリス Igirisu is obviously derived from 'English' and is used for what is known as the United Kingdom or Great Britain. アイルランド Airurando, spelling out clearly the 'r' in 'Ire', is the name for Ireland.
The Vietnamese version also refers to the UK and Ireland. The most common word for the UK or Great Britain is Anh, from Chinese 英 yīng, which is derived from 'England'. There are several ways of writing 'Ireland'. This translation uses the Vietnamese form of the Chinese word 愛爾蘭 Ài'ěrlán, pronounced Ái Nhĩ Lan, which is somewhat different from the English pronunciation of 'Ireland'. Alternative names for Ireland are the Vietnamised form Ailen or (less commonly) the English spelling 'Ireland'.
See also The Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles and Quidditch Teams of Britain and Ireland.
Category: Magical Creatures
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