Chapter 20: The First Task

 

(For the romanisation of Chinese and Japanese, see Transliteration. To understand the writing systems of CJV, see Writing Systems. For word order notes, see Word Order)

Where a Vietnamese word has been borrowed from Chinese, the original Chinese character is shown in parentheses.

 

Chinese (Mainland)	第一个项目 Dì-yī-ge xiàngmù	第一 dì-yī = 'no. 1, first'. 个 ge = counter/classifier 项目 xiàngmù = 'item, project, event'.	The first item
Chinese (Taiwan)	第一項任務 Dì-yī-xiàng rènwu	第一 dì-yī = 'no. 1, first'. 項 xiàng = counter/classifier 任務 rènwu = 'assignment, mission, task'.	The first assignment
Japanese	第一の課題 Dai-ichi no kadai	第一 dai-ichi = 'no. 1, first'. の no = connecting particle 課題 kadai = 'subject, theme, task, exercise, problem'.	The first task
Vietnamese	Bài thi đầu tiên	bài thi = 'examination paper'. đầu tiên (頭先) = 'first'.	The first examination

Task:

The Mainland translator uses the general word 项目 xiàngmù meaning 'item', 'project', or 'event'. (The classifier/counter used is 个 ge, the most common, all-purpose classifier found in Chinese.)
The Taiwanese translator uses the word 任務 rènwu, which is used not only of assignments given to secret agents but also quite mundane tasks given to staff to perform. (The classifier/counter used here is the rather more specialised 項 xiàng, meaning 'item'. This is a classifier used specifically for things that are itemised.)
The Japanese 課題 kadai is a fairly broad term used for tasks, exercises, subjects, problems, and themes.
The Vietnamese treats the tournament as a kind of examination (bài thi, examination paper).

No. 1:

Japanese uses 第一 dai-ichi for 'first' or 'no. 1', an expression from Chinese.

Vietnamese đầu tiên is formed of Chinese roots (頭先 = 'head first'), but this is not found in Mandarin.

(A summary of this chapter can be found at Harry Potter Facts. Detailed notes on the chapter can be found at Harry Potter Lexicon)

Chapter 19

Chapter 21