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One of the problems with translating, is how to treat the names. Should the name be taken laterally, or translated? By enlarge, the names are taken literally. That is why Akane is known to us as Akane, and not as Violet, one of her possible names. (akane is suppose to be a color in Japanese) The reasons for this should be obvious.   But the argument doesn’t end there.  Akane, in Japan, is largely, Akane.  The meaning of the name is largely archaic.  Many English names (as well as I suspect many other language) suffer from the same thing.  Do you know the meaning of Brandon, Micelle, or Stanley?

But then there is Shampoo, Calone, and Mousse. The origins to Shampoo's name are something akin to legend, and a good example of how difficult it is to translate from one language, to another.

Xian-Puu is said to have a number of meanings.  Woman mountain,  woman warrior, and "she whose breasts are as big as a mountain" (I did NOT make that up) are just the few definitions that I have heard so far.  (There are probably more)

The prevailing wisdom is that Shampoo is translated from Xian-Puu, and that Xian-Puu is in fact Shampoo's true name (and thus, Shampoo is the incorrect name) Others argue that Shampoo is in fact translated from Chines, not Japanese. Still others claim that it's Mandarin, or even from a made up language.

One plausible origin is that Shampoo's name is in fact English.  That is, Takahashi selected (possibly at random) the word "shampoo" to represent her character.  In Japanese, Shampoo's name would sound foreign, and even exotic. The same would seem to hold true for Cologne and Mousse.  Of course, Takahashi command over the English language is not known to me, but she wouldn't need to understand English to use the word "shampoo" any more than English writers need to command Japanese to use "baka" or "hentai".  (The fact that shampoo, cologne, and mousse are all bathroom items would seem to lend support to this idea.)

If this is the case, than the whole argument over Xian-Puu is a classic of how tricky translating can be.   You might note that Xian-Puu and Shampoo are pronounced roughly the same way (give or take a dialect or two), so the pronunciation of the word is not in dispute.

The Xian-Poo spelling is drawn from a vary specific chart that converts Japanese vowel sounds, onto Roman (The writing system that English, French, German, Spanish, Latin, and Protegees uses.  And that you are currently reading right now.)  these spelling rules are vary specific and widely used in both spheres.

But the same word (pronunciation) would be spelled dramatically different using more contemporary English spelling rules (witch are infinitely more complex) produce "shampoo".

To add fuel to the debate, it seems that nearly every Japanese name has two spellings.  Take Ryouga and Ryouga, Ukyou and Ukyo.  Each spelling is produced by the two different spelling codes I just mentioned.  Ryouga, was produced by the vowel conversation chart.  While Ryoga was produced by more contemporary spelling rules (witch are vary fuzzy when dealing with new words and names).  By in large, the former is considered to be a more proper spelling.

But if this is so, then Xian-Poo must be the correct spelling as well, right?  Except Xian-Poo already has an English spelling, Shampoo.  Especially if Rumiko Takahashi took the word from English in the first place.

But no one really knows for sure.  This is a technical problem the plagues translating in general, and even the experts must use a grain of salt on this issue, and the mater only seems to be important to purists.  By in large, Shampoo is considered to be the correct spelling.  However, Xian-Puu is still so common enough in fan fiction that it deserves to be mentioned.

By Code Name D AKA Douglas E. Kulp

Kun and Chan

Definition In English written Ranma fan fiction, the chan and kun are suffixes used to denote the sex of the proper noun. Thus Ranma-chan reefers to Ranma in his girl form. Ranma-kun reefers to him in boy form.  All though Ranma is usual assumed to be in boy form unless otherwise stated. The kun is often used for female  characters who are changed into boys. Like Akane-kun or Shampoo-kun.  [ Top ]

Kun and chan. Good English, or bad Japanese. (Essay by Code Name D) In Japanese, the kun and chan are suffixes that are added to the ends of name when speaking to a close friend or relative. This is why Ranma usually greets Ukyou with U-chan. But is just as likely that Ranma would say to Ryouga, Ryouga-kun. This (as I understand it) is proper Japanese usage. But it's poor English. And proper English is still needed when writing an English Ranma fan fiction.  Here, the kun and chan are what is called borrowed words. Words taken from another language to have a similar meaning. Some times even being added to English dictionaries with exactly, if not similar meanings as for the parent language. The use of kun and chan are good examples of borrowed words (all though it's usage is not common enough for inclusion into English dictionaries) It's interesting to note that English has no direct means of addressing a proper noun's sex. Especially when it's apt to change. Thus, the use of kun and chan fills this need for Ranma 1/2 fan fiction.  [ Top ]

Alternatives Language Male Female Usage Japanese Name-kun Name-chan Most common English boy type Name girl type Name Common English male Name female Name Suitable Ranma only Ranma Ranko Common English boy Name girl Name Discouraged Japanese otoko Name onna Name Discouraged

However, this is not necessarily so for Ranma fan fiction. Why this is, is not entirely understood, but probably comes from two factors. One: The number of Ranma "purest" who right and read fan fiction. Those who (strangely enough) insist that English written Ranma fics are in fact fics that are assumed to be translated from Japanese (even though the author dues not speak Japanese). Two: That Ranma fan fiction was started before Ranma was imported into the US. Thus those who were more likely to write or read Ranma fan fiction, were also more likely to understand Japanese, if not speak it fluently.

What ever the reason, certain Japanese words are common, if not considered an outright staple for Ranma fics. One such staple is the use of kun and chan. Another is Ranma no baka (spoken by Akane to Ranma), or just baka. Using Japanese dialogue for the battle cries is so common, that Viz Video uses them for they're dubbed over TV, OVAs and movies.

Unfortunately, (especially for new readers) rule #1 still applies. So if you are writing a fan fic, use these words sparing, and make sure there is plenty of context to compensate incase the words meaning is not apparent. This is one reason why this dictionary was created in the first place.