Taiwan Navy recruitment ad language puzzle
« previous post | next post »
Photo of a Taiwan Naval Academy recruitment ad in the Taipei MRT which references the One Piece ワンピース manga series from Japan:
First some basic information about One Piece, then I'll explain what the Chinese says:
One Piece (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It has been serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump since July 1997, with its individual chapters compiled into 104 tankōbon volumes as of November 2022. The story follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy, a boy whose body gained the properties of rubber after unintentionally eating a Devil Fruit. With his pirate crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, Luffy explores the Grand Line in search of the deceased King of the Pirates Gol D. Roger's ultimate treasure known as the "One Piece" in order to become the next King of the Pirates.
In large, yellow characters and letters:
Tobias said,
February 26, 2023 @ 8:05 pm
Could it be “one peace”? Seems closer to the navy’s mission than a pirate story, and easier for “everybody [to have] in their heart.”
Judge said,
February 27, 2023 @ 1:02 am
@Tobias
I think no because of the second English line. "Write your own storyline of One Piece" sounds pretty clearly to be about the anime, with the capital letters and the word "storyline".
Patrick Ryan Ingram said,
February 27, 2023 @ 1:14 am
A bit of an odd choice, given that the Navy is one of the villains in that series.
Lasius said,
February 27, 2023 @ 3:44 am
Because it is a very successful franchise and also the Chinese localization's title apparently primarily uses the Latin transcription.
https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/ONE_PIECE
Guyh said,
February 27, 2023 @ 4:44 am
Lasius is right. This is one of those rare instances where a Japanese manga is more widely known in Taiwan by its English name than its Chinese name.
I think the other obvious reason is that the Chinese name is…problematic in this instance. The Chinese name for this comic is 海賊王 (Hai Zei Wang) which means Pirate King. Using that phrase in a Naval Academy ad was probably a step too far!
Terry K. said,
February 27, 2023 @ 5:25 pm
This Manga has ONE PIECE as a graphic (with pictures mixed in) very large on the cover.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18745053-one-piece-1 (Japanese)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54113573-one-piece-1-1-8 (Chinese, simplified)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1237398.One_Piece_Volume_1 (English)