#romanisation

[lurkingteapot]

When I say I wish popular romanisations of Thai were less ambiguous and more consistent, it's stuff like this:

Phupha and Pat (and Pa!) have the same initial consonant sound. Pran's is different—it's the same as Kampung's "p" sound. Pran, Pa, and Phupha share an "a" sound though—the same "a" sound Kampung also has (though it's written differently (*)). Kampung's "u" sound and Phupha's "u" sound are not the same. Kampung's "p" is the same sound as the initial in Pran. Kampung and Korn share an initial. It's the same sound the names Gunn (MSP) and Gun (Atthaphan) and Kan (KPTS) start with. All three of those names are pronounced identically. Kan (KPTS) is not pronounced the same as Kan (The Eclipse). Tian does not share an initial with Toto, but Toto (BBS) and Tinn (MSP) do. If the romanisation of BBS given names and ATOTS place names were consistent, we'd have Phut and Pha and Pran (or Pa Pan Dao). (Pa the person and Pha the word for cliff do not sound the same because of tones, but that's another topic.) I could go on.

And all this is just based on consonants and vowel quality and lengths, not even going into different glyphs for the same consonant. I don't have a solution to offer for this. I 100% think authors or subtitling teams (or, y'know, REGULAR PEOPLE who just want folks who don't speak Thai to be able to put their name in writing) choosing a romanisation that looks good to them is valid. But I'm also a language nerd, so I can't quite stop thinking how much harder this makes it for folks trying to learn more about the language, or pick up more about it, either.

(Name examples and corresponding official romanisation taken from real life, A Tale of Thousand Stars, Bad Buddy Series, KinnPorsche The Series, My School President, and Our Skyy 2)

(*) Edited 2023-06-16 to add: this was a mistake stemming from too many unchecked edits and I'm sorry. Kampung's "a" is neither long nor short whereas Pran, Pa, and Phupha have long "a" sounds and Pat has a short one.

[kawion]

why does the romanisation of cantonese turn g sounds into k sounds??? take wong kar wai, kung fu, kowloon?? there's no k sounds in any of them

[cyansconlangs]

Thoughts on Galum's vowels and how I've decided to transcribe them?

Monophthongs

a- /a/

ao- /ɒ/

ae- /æ/

e- /ɛ/

o- /ɔ/

oe- /œ~ə/

i- /ɪ/

ei- /i/

u- /ʊ/

ou- /u/

oer- /ɚ/

Diphthongs to remember

ai- /ei/

au- /ou/

ái- /ai/

áu- /au/

(these are just the ones that need memorising, the rest are how you'd expect)

[howtodigatrench]

same kind of guy (cat)

[lurkingteapot]

me on my "why is freeform romanisation like that" train again, but … come on, that's three times the letter "a" makes an appearance in the romanisation of Chaan's name on the business card, and no two instances of it sound the same.

Meanwhile …

Thai: ฌาน แสงเสถียรพงค์

Phonemic Thai: ชาน แสง-สะ-เถียน-พง IPA: tɕʰaːn sɛ̌ːŋsàʔtʰǐːanpʰoŋ Paiboon: chaan sɛ̌ɛngsàtǐanpong RTGS: chan saengsathianphong

What's this guy's name anyway?

ฌาน - I'm going to stick with Charn from now on since that's clearly how the character romanizes it, although 'Chan' is what you would get with the Royal Thai General System of Transcription. The 'r' is indicating that it's a long vowel sound, it's not anything like an American 'r.' Think more like a British 'ar' sound.

ติณห์ - I'm going to follow MDL and use Tinn. RTGS gets you 'Tin,' but there's a silent 'h' at the end so I feel like more letters is better.

[khaoneowie]

in another universe..

[ashenstars-inactive]

嘉明

[sexybritishllama]

for anyone else like me who had no idea how to pronounce the new legends game announced today, on the japanese website they’ve confirmed it’s Z-A and the katakana pronunciation is listed as ゼットエー (zetto-ei)

[lurkingteapot]

I feel you linger in the air หอมกลิ่นความรัก Ep 6

Lots and lots of keysmashes, 2-3 romanisation and translation notes, and a whole lot of squee.

Khun Yai pulling out Jom's chair for him???? that's some chivalry courtship bs, WOW

ปัตยุบัน appears to be an obsolete form of ปัจจุบัน, so this is the "modern day bar", huh

adfasdfasdf this is cute but AWKWARD I love it

asdfasdfsd that's James, isn't it? he sounds so villainous but I'm very amused

asdfasdf James, borderline rude but funny

I sense history?

oooof corruption at a high level

adfasdfasdfd

that's NOT what they're playing, sorry. that cello is NOT playing what we're hearing

aaah กะเทย /kàʔ tʰɤːj/ / gà təəi dancer!

Niao/Niaw, huh. As in sticky? I wonder how they translated กะเทย here-- OH I like that! feels like queen is appropriate, considering the setting. NICE. (side note iirc "กะเทย" has the connotation of seedless fruit, so green seedless fruit might be more insulting than that? gotta look it up)

but also wtf "Neuy" that's-- that's not what เหนียว sounds like, wtf, where are you taking these romanisations from?? But then again they also romanise เมย Meuy as Maey and จอม as Jom, not Jorm, but พ่อ as Por even though the vowels are identical, so what do I know

AAAH oh I love this? UNEXPECTEDLY! I prepared for tension and scary things! not unexpected companionship!

asdfasdfasdf Yai's FACE, someone's jealous

oh my goodness the way they're having a polite pissing match over Jom 😂😂😂

Noooo please I'm not up for horror in my BL

OH we're addressing the weird behaviour?

adsfasdfasdf oh Khun Yai, please

asdfasdfsdf god this episode is FUNNY

Khun Yai is so disappointed 😂

Oh man, Ming really has his work cut out for him with Jom

don'tttt that's dangerous

Khun Yai got it baddd

Okay now I'm back to being suspicious of James, but maybe he really dido mes s with Khun Yai's head?

what is Fongkaew's thing?

OH WAIT is this the fire they were talking about at the club?

oh shiiiit

oh no Fongkaew, you'll get caughttttt 😭

She's so good. She deserves everything, oh my goodness.

Bad thought -- please let it not have been Ueangphueng and Moey who (had someone) set the fire?

Khun Yai's such a kid, oh my goodness, he's SULKING

OH so we're TALKING about this now??

I love that he didn't kiss him when he had him cornered!! look at this 1920s man have better understanding of consent and situations in which it may be compromised than many present-day BL show protagonists

I'm glad Prig's on their side now

Oh Khun Yai did you not change out of your tennis clothes after exercise??? Ew.

WOW James really gets straight to the point, huh

I'm now wondering whether I was just predisposed to dislike James because it's Kim who plays him and his character in BBS shot Pat? but goddamnit I'm cheering him on atm

this snitty behaviour super doesn't suit Yai

but I guess Jom doesn't get what Yai's issue is

okay wow Khun Yai, that's sorta. nope. I retract my statement re: boundaries and consent.

awww look at you big boy putting words to your feeling!

Jom, wtf

that's gonna be the picture of Khun Yai, asleep

called it

okay but Jom. Jom. What's your conflict? the difference in status? (which: FAIR, he has a LOT to lose)

don't give the dude hope if you're not going to go through with ittttt

OH. Oh, okay, Jom, you're just being the bigger person here, gotcha

oh god he is twenty. this child.

kiss??

hug! hug is good too.

oh no, these two are so cheesy. I love them.

AHAHA yeah that was a set-up for that if ever I've heard one-- kiss!

oh, this is a nice one

love that shot of the gifts!

… that's not what you discussed, Khun Yai, but it is sweet.

oh, oh, shit's going to start hitting the fan for real next week, huh

[pharawee]

*ที่รัก — thîi rák — darling or beloved. an endearing term used for loved ones.

[yamada-ryo]

Shouldn't this line be more like "senpai's girl" rather than "senpai's daughter"? Like is 娘 read as むすめ or こ here?

[shesnake]

Park Chan-wook on The Handmaiden co-writer Chung Seo-kyung's "queer friend"

[wildflower-otome]

[Translation] 9 R.I.P. - Minami - Heavenly End After Story

Source: 9 R.I.P. Stella Set Special Bonus Booklet Note: Major Spoilers for Minami's Heavenly End below.

More Valuable Than Life - Minami Heavenly End After Story

Sometime after Misa and I had begun our life in hell together—.

Truth be told, I wanted to be with her 24/7, but in order for us to enjoy our lives, we needed money.

Which was why, today I had gone out for work.

‘Misa~ I’m home—’

…..…..…..Huh?

I looked around the area outside. Searched inside the tent. Checked the bed.

‘I’m sure I told you to wait for me…..!’

Unable to endure it, I went out to search for Misa.

* * *

No matter where I searched in town, I couldn’t find her anywhere, so I went to the last place I could think of, tucked away in a corner of my mind.

‘…..Ah, I feel so sluggish- Wish I could just burn that stupid calypha tree down…..’

I had gone to H.O., the place that reeked of the air that so vexed me. She had to be here. With that bastard I really wanted to kill…..

After walking through the outer hallway just as I had thought, I could see the figures of Misa…..and that jerk Seiya.

‘Hey, stupid woman. Why the hell are you here?!’

As I spoke angrily, unable to hide my irritation, she ran over to my side, seeming flustered.

‘Minami-kun, great job at work today. I had thought to finish up here before you came home, but-.....’

‘Hah? What kind of business would you have to finish up here?’

‘That’s, um.....’

While Misa was still at a loss for words, Seiya came closer.....

‘Haah..... dear me. What a terrible way to speak to one’s lover. It’s not too late, Misa-san. You must give up on this horrible demon.’

‘That’s going a little too far-’

‘Don’t go getting in between us, asshole.’

‘Foolhardy words, considering where we are.’

As he spoke, Seiya threw something in my direction—but without missing a beat, Misa caught it.

‘Seiya-san, I’m sorry about Minami-kun, but please don’t go throwing calypha petals. And Minami-kun, you mustn’t be so rude.’

‘.....Out of respect for you, I shall let it pass.’

Not saying anything, I turned my face away, ignoring her.

‘Misa-san, I believe it might be best to tell him the truth. After all, if you do end up passing, it will mean coming here on a regular basis.’

‘That’s, true.’

.....Say what now?

Misa straightened her shoulders and once more faced towards me, looking nervous as she went to speak.

‘There was a poster on the noticeboard in town advertising part-time jobs at H.O. That’s the reason I came here to speak to Seiya-san. I want to work.’

‘----’

‘It’s hard not having anything to do, and I don’t want to put all the burden on you, Minami-kun. It’s two of us living together. That’s why-’

‘No.’

‘..........’

‘If you want something to do, help me out with my work.’

‘I don’t know anything about fortune-telling-’

‘Just you being there will help me out. In other words, quit overthinking things. Talk to me before you do anything. Got it?’

‘.....Yeah.’

‘I mean, to begin with, you being at H.O. is bad enough, but there’s no way you’re working with Seiya.’

‘Fufu-, just as I predicted.’

‘Yes.....you were completely right, Seiya-san.’

‘The hell you talking about?’

‘I was just telling her that you’d hate the idea, so it was best to give up. A shame really, I would have liked to have been coworkers.’

.....Hmph. Guess Seiya did have some brains after all. He didn’t need to add that last part though.

‘Sorry for wasting your time, Seiya-san.’

‘Don’t let it worry you. For your sake, I will always have more than enough time. Do come and see me again.’

‘Yes, of course.’

‘Oi, don’t ever come here again.’

‘I can’t promise that. Seiya-san is my friend, after all.’

‘Blech.....Don’t say something so disgusting!  Just so you know, I don’t approve.’

‘Fufu-, thank you for your kind words, Misa-san. Now then, I still have work to do, so I shall take my leave.’

Haah.....he’s finally gone.

‘Misa, I appreciate that you tried to help me out, but don’t go doing things on your own anymore. From now on, we’ll be together when we’re out, as well as at home. Alright?’

‘.....Why do you restrict my actions so much?’

‘Because I want to have you under my control.’

‘............’

Sighing, Misa lent me her shoulder as we began to walk out.

‘Hey, what’s with the sigh?’

‘Hm? I was just thinking that really is like you, Minami-kun.’

‘And what sort of emotion is that?’

It couldn’t be that she hated me, right.....?

‘Like it sure is heavy being loved.’

‘Do you dislike it?’

‘Of course not. I love you too, Minami-kun. Although, I guess I lose when it comes to heaviness. I don’t think I could win for all eternity.’

The word “eternity” that she suddenly spoke caused a stirring in my chest.

‘Ahaha-, you just keeping losing to me forever, then- ♪’

-Being able to be with her for all eternity. That was what was more important to me than anything.

‘I love you, Misa-chan ♥️’

[peachtalia]

I wrote a whole infodump on Herakles headcanons on a priv acc (yk for human version since I prefer to view the guys that way) so I’ll paste it all here cuz fun. It’s gonna be super disorganized and may not carry All of my ideas cuz it’s just me writing whatever came to mind in the moment but I’ll try to organize it the best I can from what I wrote. Also plz take into consideration that I’m not entirely following canon here and a load of it is headcanons with some of canon sprinkled in. Also this is a wip ig

I doubt anybody would read my word vomit cuz I didn’t bother to clean any of this up and my sentence structure is def abysmal as fuck but ig u could say I’m putting this here for my own sake but anyone else is free to read if u would like!!

cw talk of parental loss tho

Okay so I’m gonna ramble about names here cuz it interests me a lot. Obv I’m not Greek or in Greece I just have a deep interest in other cultures and like to research a lot and stalk forums and videos on experiences etc. My ideas may change over time as I learn more about the culture. He feels a bit more old-fashioned to me but anyways yeah nah if I happen to say anything innacurate plz lmk @ anyone who actually reads my word vomit haha

So anyways I def don’t see it as my place to bash on him being given the name "Herakles" cuz I Do know that in Greece they would seem to occasionally give Greek mythological names to ppl (ex: singer who's birth name is Artemios); but I noticed they most often use Christian names tho (also fun fact my irl name is the fem version of an old Greek saint and seems common there along with Hispanic countries that would often do the same lololol)

But at the same time I’d wanna assume that being named Herakles would kinda fuck u over since it would be a huge name to live up to. But that’s just me. Plus to me that adds to his overall life theme

Also I’ve mentioned this before but ppl for years would dunk on his surname claiming that it's "not a real Greek surname" when ... it actually IS, it's just super rare based on what I’ve collected. Admittedly ngly I’ve even been a part of this when I was a kid smh (See: Greek actress with the birth name Evgenia Karpouzi, the fandom would always use the spelling "Karpusi" but that's not language accurate to the more commonly taught Greek language romanization based on what I’ve learned.....

Anywho now onto headcanons and stories I like to apply to him lol

He seems the type whose mom is very huge in the historical arts and preservation field and might've been a Greek history professor and took a huge role in curating and preserving Ancient Greek ruins and artifacts...arranged heritage festivals and exhibitions etc.. Taught culture... Maybe pushed him to be very talented and knowledgeable as a kid and would actively pass down her own knowledge onto him and set pretty high standards for him while also spoiling tf out of him and also being caring yet not as present as a mother due to her career. He grew up very involved in the arts both creative-based and performance-wise but probably mostly the latter. He seems like the type who would be quiet and a bit of a loner at times but was also a lot more enthusiastic and expressive at times.

So anyways yeah not only does he suffer under the curse of living in the shadow of his mothers legacy and not meeting the public expectations in following in her footsteps but a lot of his life is basically formed around her and he wasn’t left with much room to actually form his own personal style due to how heavily influenced he was by her own interest and life path and her passing when he was idk 14 made it even harder for him to even try to let go of any of this cuz besides all of her leftover belongings and the collective community memory of her, it was all he had left of her from within himself so letting go of any of it to make more room for developing his own personal sense of style outside of her existence felt like betraying her or going against her wishes.

He feels deeply guilty for not taking on her legacy after her passing and following in her footsteps but he still does what he can to contribute here and there and still holds a load of pride in what he learns from her + what comes from his roots and besides hanging out with and feeding street cats he still has a lingering fascination and interest in philosophy and observing and maintaining historical sites not only cuz it’s great but also cuz it reminds him of her. It Would also make sense given how canonically he’s portrayed having a home that’s cluttered with his mom’s old things and artifacts that he never wants to get rid of since she passed while he was young.

As for his beef with Sadiq I see it as a ‘obnoxious goofy uncle and petty nephew’ sort of conflict lol. But I like to see it as like. Sadiq was a younger college student of his mom’s who would also do volunteer assistant work for her, so naturally he’d meet Herakles thru that. And with him being that type of guy would screw around with Herakles and poke fun at him yk like how those older guys would treat young kids sometimes and purposely provoke them in a joking yet annoying manner (I have lots of experience of this) and Sadiq himself never saw it as a big deal but yk Herakles Hated that shit and he’s the type to take that kind of stuff to heart. Also Herakles would envy the time he spends with his mom cuz here he is able to get involved with her work life and meanwhile Hera is being some kid at home who sometimes gets to go to his moms work sometimes.

And ooomfg when his mom passes u know damn well that envy turned into pure vitriol cuz Sadiq was able to spend more time around his mom before her sudden death. But Sadiq (still unaware of how deep this shit goes for Herakles) takes Herakles under his wing cuz he feels super bad to say the least.

Now Herakles has one of those large Greek families but he’s autistic* as shit so while he can be loud with them he’s also quiet and a bit of a loner at times so he’d be super reliant on his mother for initiating his interactions with others and she’d take a big part in involving him in family gatherings so u know damn well the second she was gone he didn’t know wtf to do anymore or how to connect with others on his own without her being an extra support lol yk like that one social person that helps interactions go smoother.

* yes I am aware that autism may present differently depending on culture but I’m autistic myself and am basing this on observations I’ve made thru autistic ppl I’ve known in different countries and who also have a similar familial dynamic culturally. Even tho I’m in the US I also have this experience myself with my Viet family members. No duh it’s not ‘just an autism thing’ but yk headcanons

Not to mention him being depressed as fuck over her passing and beginning to self isolate. And being so pitied by family members 24/7 SUCKED Ass so idk ig eventually (after many years and moments of Herakles mostly blowing people off) ppl began to avoid him and stopped inviting him to things like yk that sad thing that often happens whenever someone’s going thru a loss and ppl don’t know what to do about it. He’d ignore their invitations often for years. Of course they’d still try to call or send something or visit every now and then but only very occasionally. It’s like an ‘idk what to do’ sort of thing.

So yeah he’s an only child and was raised by a single mother with a busy and active life where he was always expected to become her shadow whether intended or not. Wow. But despite his family inching away from him, bro still has that younger Cypriot cousin who vibes with him and relates with his quietness and occasional loner behavior so he’d often hang around him cuz the rest of the family would overwhelm him sometimes, therefore even during this time he was the last to stick around for the most part and they’d often hang out in silence. He is a bit more chatty than Herakles tho at times. Idk his name yet. That one Cypriot cousin has a younger brother I think, who’d hang around Sadiq but Herakles’s a #hater and doesn’t really like him for that. He’s the type to threaten to cut ppl off from association and he gets petty and stubborn as hell and holds grudges like u cannot believe. Obviously despite his spite he does still care for Sadiq deep down. He says what he wants but he doesn’t actually wish the guy any real harm and would get super bothered and upset if anybody were to attempt to do so.

Oh yeah and I also mentioned before that I see him being narcoleptic lol *maybe* he occasionally dealt with cataplectic symptoms and it would make sense given how rarely he seems to express strong emotions but I still don’t know. I’m not as knowledgeable in cataplexy I admit. But he’s def on the narcolepsy spectrum and lacks a load of motivation and drive in his life overall. Some of it comes from his mildly nihilistic view on life and some of it is depressiveness and the inability to help himself more on his own accord. It probably took a lot for him to get on a stricter medication routine for it. He tries to take care of himself at the bare minimum but he still doesn’t quite cultivate the best or healthiest of habits. He’s often got others around him trying to help him out and check up on him. Think also of the comic strips of Ludwig trying to help him organize and clean his house and get his finances into check.

Idk how his mom died. Maybe it’s one of those things never spoken about but it was sudden and he was at home when it happened and just remembers it getting super late and dark and him wondering where tf she is each time he’d wake up and him attempting to call her work and go to voicemail each time.

Also back on the topic of his tendencies but Herakles can for sure be the sore loser and jealous type but only depending on whether or not the matter involves Sadiq. Otherwise he’s like eh whatever it’s fine I’ll get it next time) and as I said above he’s also got a somewhat nihilist mindset and wishes to just spend his time doing as he pleases lolll his philosophical info dumps would get mind breaking at times and he just drones onnnn and onnnn and on about it it’s like the kind of stuff that’d make u lie on ur back with ur hands behind ur head staring up at the sky like “yeah……..wow…😕” and would prob put u to sleep cuz he speaks in a slower and softer tone. And you’d prob experience a strange yet vivid dream in the moment. He’s got an ambient and nostalgic feel to his presence that’s hard to explain and melancholy yet oddly calming.

Oh also he still practices Orthodox Christianity besides being an atheist on the most part and not even following any religion or religious rules or moral code bc it’s what he was raised doing with his mom and he feels like it’s what she would’ve wanted lmfaooo I guess it’s for nostalgia’s sake and paying respects to her. Maybe he’s an atheist. Idk. Perhaps his philosophical ideals and stuff he’s learned influences his view on general spirituality and religion so in a way he feels like in the end all gods are all to reach a similar point and intention and are an outer extension/projection of our own subconscious beings and are vessels of hope and focal points for moral code and explanations for the world around us. Or maybe he just views them as beings created to give people’s lives purpose. Or he believes all things at once. Who knows what goes on in his mind.

As for his narcolepsy, his mom may have assumed at first that he was the type of child to nap a lot or that he was lazy, but over time she’d realize something is probably up and would recognize that he wouldn’t be able to help it most of the time and that he actually isn’t the lazy type and works hard when he can. She’d get called by teachers often yelling about his tendency of zoning out and sleeping in class and she’d just respond with “Oh yeah? Well maybe your class isn’t interesting enough if he’s always falling asleep in it!”

So yeah. A load of his life was built around her from the start, and he relied on her for a lot, I mean she’s his mom and all too and the only closer(?) family member in his life given that he’s an only child and has no father. The sudden change of her leaving completely threw his life off course so for years he’s been in some sort of endless state of limbo where he’s both apathetic both saddened yet he might not make it so obvious when around others. He just appears quiet, apathetic and carefree for the most part.

[haomnyangz]

right in front of his tteokbokki

[telleroftime]

I feel like Yūji would either grow out his hair to look like Choso or shave it to be like Todo. Either way, I cannot imagine him wanting to keep his hair the same length as he always had it for the sole reason that he'd be reminded of Sukuna.

Maybe he would shave it at first. It's a quicker change after all. But as he heals from the trauma... I think he'd let it grow out to be longer. Shoulder length at least. That way it is always down and controlled like water, as opposed to the spikes that was Sukuna's hair. Maybe he'd straighten it, style it like Nobara did. Or perhaps he'd tie it up into a pony tail like Maki used to do.

Either way, he'd do anything to look different, to not see Sukuna in his own reflection.