#yatsurugi no yuki

[finalfantacee]

Happy International Womens Day

[goldbasar]

006  "I vowed that I would bring prosperity to my country by finding and selling my treasures. Alone. No one would ever die protecting me again." -Yatsurugi no Yuki 

[izayoiishikawa-blog]

Hingashi Part II

Inokuni

The great Hakutei River flows through this domain of the Yatsurugi clan, which has long been known for its fertile soil and rice of surpassing quality. However, some few years ago, prolonged rains saw the banks of the river flood, and much of the clan’s farmland was lost. For the sake of her people, the young Princess Yuki resolved to sell several of the Yatsurugi’s sacred treasures in order to fund the reconstruction efforts.

Yuki Yatsurugi “My people are on the brink of starvation. If i do not do something, all of their sacrifices will mean nothing”

A Raen of only seventeen summers, Princess Yuki succeeded her father as the head of the Yatsurugi after he succumbed to a sickness. Unfortunately for the young leader, this transition coincided with the flooding of the Hakuten River, which ruined much of the clan’s farmlands. As if the kami were conspiring to punish her and her people, five of the Yatsurugi’s most cherished treasures were then stolen.

It was this last incident which spurred Princess Yuki to take drastic action. Having trained in the arts of the shinobi since childhood, she believe she had the skills necessary to hunt down the perpetrators. Her journey led her far west to Eorzea, where with the aid of the Doman ninja Oboro and his Western ninja allies, she at last reclaimed three of the clan’s treasures, which she then sold to raise funds for the restoration of their farmlands. She has since resumed her formal duties, and is the picture of grace and responsibility though she still has her private indulgences, such as anmitsu, a type of sweet bean and seaweed jelly.

Suenokuni

The southern coast of Shishu, long rule by the Buhen clan, was considered an ideal location for the reconstruction of a port to receive foreign traders passing through the Ruby Sea. Due to various entanglements resulting from arranged marriages, however, the clan fell out of favor with the Mitsurugi while the decision was still being deliberated. As a conciliatory gesture, the Buhen formally gifted the land upon which the port was to be constructed to the bakufu. In so doing though they lost a portion of their holdings, they ultimately benefitted greatly from greatly from the prosperity brought by the presence of Kugane within their domain, as well as strengthened their ties with the ruling Mitsurugi clan.

Zuiko Buhen “Rise with Valor, Walk with Honor”

The leader of the Buhen clan six hundred years ago, Zuiko----often portrayed with his famous blade, Tsunakiri, and astride his horse, Hizatsuki Kurige---is to this day regarded as a beloved hero of Shishu. Under his command, the meager forces of the Buhen managed to beat back the far larger invading armies of the Mitsurugi. Zuiko’s feats impressed Kanzan that he changed tactics and instead secured the Buhen clan’s fealty by allowing them to retain control of their lands, as well as significant autonomy in managing their affairs. In this way, the Mitsurugi clan converted a bitter rival into a stalwart warden that would defend Hingashi’s western front from foreign invaders for centuries to come---even if it means that they must suffer the occasional vocal objections from a clan that would always consider themselves to be their equals, if not more. After leading a rich, storied life, Zuiko was laid to rest at the age of eighty-three.

[gray-morality]

Loose ends -- 2017.09.13 The little room had never been in such a state of disarray. What little furniture there was – two stools and a small table – had been smashed into pieces. The two straw mattresses were in a similar state, having being cut down and the straw thrown everywhere. And what to say of their few belongings; Clothes torn to shreds, paper burnt and ink spilled. Nothing had been spared. It was obvious whoever came in here wasn’t looking for anything in particular. It wasn’t a burglary, as the tattoo shop which housed that little room had not been touched; It was a message. And indeed, amidst the chaos, rested a little note on the floor, conspicuously clean and undamaged.

“Missed me, Yarichin?”

***

He’d seen him in Kugane. The nerves! After what his new ‘family’ did to them, after the humiliation! But this was beyond rivalry between gangs; It was personal. They had crossed swords in the dark streets of Ul’dah but their meeting had been but too fleeting. And the boy had grown into quite a man! His favorite little bitch! How he missed his cries as he begged and whimper. The fear in his eyes every time they crossed paths. But his stupid family had to leave! And he lost him to some faraway lands. For sure this was fate! The unexpected demise of Kazan only pushed his plan further, but his work had not been for naught. With a bit of pressure on the right people, the location of his beloved pet’s home  had been procured. A bit of travel and he was back in this Gods forsaken land of sand and stone. But the reward would be great… he could feel it.

***

Katsuro Wakahisa there is a delicate knock on the door before the man even steps inside

Akuma Yatsurugi didn't look up, simply calling out. "Come in!" The Au Ra seemed extraordinary busy, looking down onto his desk, writing away.

Katsuro Wakahisa | The door was pushed open and Kuro slid in, closing behind him with a faint click. Offering a bow, he took a few step to stand in front of the desk and the impressive pile of paperwork. "I'm sorry to bother you, my Lord. May I take a few minutes of your time?" Akuma Yatsurugi prolonged dismissively writing away, finally looking up with a content stare. "Ah, Wakahisa-sama. How can I be of service?" He took his usual pose, leaning back against the chair, lifting one leg over the other as the pen was placed against the documents. Katsuro Wakahisa seemed to be searching for the right way to formulate his request before actually speaking. "I'm not one to ask for much but... I have a favor I'd need to ask of you. The place me and my adoptive father live in is no longer safe and, as such, I was wondering if he could reside under the roof of the Syndicate. He's not one who'd ever join us on the field, but he could be of help to Lady Yuki in the infirmary, should she wish it." Akuma Yatsurugi raised a brow, reaching towards to pull back the draw under his desk, and lift a long cigar. "I suppose it wouldn't be a problem. After all, you've done so much for the Syndicate." chomping on the cigar, Akuma lit a match promptly, puffing smoke onto the cigar before taking a fat drag and setting it against the ash tray. "I'll tell you what. Bring your father here, and we'll not only let him rest easy under our roof, but we'll also provide him with whatever is needed, hm?" Katsuro Wakahisa bows deeply. "I'm very grateful for your generosity. I wished I could have provided for him in his old days but I sadly can't be with him all the time. I shall leave you to your work then. You... seem to have quite an evening ahead of you." His gaze turn to the pile of papers again. Akuma Yatsurugi chuckled a bit. "It does indeed, though I might as well stretch my legs. Might see who's rummaging downstairs, hm?" The au ra got up and walked towards the door. Katsuro Wakahisa a thin smile spread on his lips and he simply followed downstairs

[nerobombs]

FFXIV: To Romaji or Not To Romaji

TL;DR: The concept of “Hingan” and “Doman” languages exists purely as a localisation tool, primarily to explain Japanese terms to non-Japanese speakers. There is no mention made of grammar or sentence structure; only rudimentary vocabulary swaps. It’s extremely unlikely that Square Enix intended or intends for “Hingan” or “Doman” to be a full-fledged language existing in the FFXIV universe.

TL;DR 2: Do what you want as long as you aren’t hurting anyone or forcing them to do anything against their will. It’s just make-believe pretendy-times on the Internet. If you want to weeaboo the shit out of your sentences then hey. Shine on you crazy diamond.

Or just, I dunno, ask Koji at the Live Letter or Fanfest or something.

Maybe think about reading my (depending on taste) more interesting stuff here.

Herein I present my findings, and hopefully end this silly debate once and for all, just short of official word from Square Enix.

Firstly, there exist numerous references in-game to the existence of a “Hingan tongue” or “Doman tongue”, in the English version of the game only.

While I am far too lazy to gather proper screenshots (in addition to not having direct access to all of them anyway), you can verify the existence of the following statements using XIVDB’s lorefinder.

“An excellent proposal...or as I believe the Hingans say, “keikaku.” I dabbled a bit in the language when I was younger but for the life of me that ebon-haired emissary would not afford me even a sidelong glan─” 

“Yes, and I speak fluent Hingan. Come on, there's no point putting this off!”

(When I asked Kotokaze what “Namazu” meant, she said it was Hingan for catfish. And there I was thinking she'd said “fisherman”!)

Bunshin-no-jutsu─so we call it in the Hingan tongue. Mirrors, and mirrors of mirrors─in a matter of moments, my few loyal men appeared from afar to be a legion. 

The key to the dish is the broth, called dashi, which as far as I can decipher means “exit juice.” I'm, er, sure it sounds more appetizing in the Doman tongue. The peculiarities of language aside, dashi is made by boiling dried fish, and it's supposed to be the base for many Far Eastern dishes.

Your pronunciation of the Doman language seems to have satisfied Byakubu, who grants you passage into the ninja hideout.

Et cetera. There a few other inklings, but these are a few of the most prominent examples.

That said, there are conclusively no direct references to a modern Hingan or Doman language in the Japanese, French, or German versions of the dialogue, and there very few vague references.

In the instances where Japanese words are translated in other versions, translation is either glossed over or, in one particular case in the French version, is equated to a phrase in “en langue commune” (the common language”).

In other instances (specifically the French and German versions), reference is made to the “ancient language” i.e. Ancient Hingan, same as the English version.

In the Japanese and German versions, there are no references made to any differing languages. There are no translations or references to translations in the Japanese version at all, unless it’s in reference to a fictional, dead language (such as the Nymian language).

In the German version specifically, translations of Japanese words are explained with no reference to Hingan or Doman.

There is exactly one instance in the French version where the following phrase is uttered by a Hingan:

Vous, là! Vous parlez la même langue que moi? (You, there! You speak the same language as me?)

--

Premises

Some might assert that Hingan/Doman exists because of names. For example, “Yatsurugi no Yuki”, “Ame no Murakamo” (Susano’s sword), whatever the name of Zenos’ sword is which I can’t remember off the top of my head, etc.

For example, there is an NPC named “Yatsurugi no Yuki”. “no” is a Japanese possessive particle (that can function as a preposition or modifier), therefore Japanese exists, right?

Does French exist on Hydaelyn because Elezen names use “de” (such as “Haurchefant de Fortemps”), and “de” is a French preposition denoting “of”?

Does German exist on Hydaelyn because an NPC is named “Baron von Quiveron III Esquire” exists in-game, and “von” is a German preposition also denoting “of”?

If “Yatsurugi no Yuki” implies the existence of modern Japanese, then “Haurchefant de Fortemps” must, by the same logic, clearly implicate the existence of French, and Baron von Quiveron implicates the existence of German.

Key Questions:

If Square Enix genuinely intended for Hingan and Doman languages to formally exist in-universe, why is there little to no mention of them in other localisations of the game, and no mention in the base JP? 

What language do Hingans and Domans speak in the Japanese version of the game?

Why don’t any of the Domans or Hingans speak Doman or Hingan to each other when they’re in private and not around any foreigners?

Why does everyone speak the same language to people without the Echo?

Conclusion: “Hingan tongue” and “Doman tongue” are phrases that are used purely to explain Japanese terms to non-Japanese speakers, and are mentioned only in the English version; if this was not the case, then they would have been mentioned in the other versions of the game dialogue. It is highly unlikely that these terms were intended to formally establish the existence of a modern Hingan or Doman language that is used in every-day life, hence why Doman is described as a “dialect” of common Hyur language in the lore book.

These dialects exist only as vocabulary swaps; ijin instead of foreigner, zeni instead of coin, aibou instead of partner, etc. There are no grammar rules, sentence structures, or any other significant differences that formally establish the presence of a full-fledged language.

In the English version, “Ancient Hingan” is formally established to exist and is implied to form the basis of the vocabulary swaps. Otherwise, no mention is made of it.

So if you want to run around Kugane screaming “Watashi no hobakurafuto wa unagi de ippai desu!” or “Nani the fuck did you just fucking iimasu about watashi, you chiisai bitch desuka?” then, well, whatever. You do whatever you want. But the likelihood that gratuitous Japanese will be vindicated by the game is substantially low.