Submitted by johnmyster t3_11so17s in todayilearned
ComfortableSock2044 t1_jcfpwsj wrote
Reply to comment by Artsy_traveller_82 in TIL that only Nintendo's founder knows what their name means. by johnmyster
The kanji don't necessarily always reflect meaning. For proper nouns, ateji are used which are chosen for pronunciation and not for meaning. Lots of Japanese companies use ateji and don't intend for any specific meaning.
So if they're saying only the owners know the meaning then it doesn't really matter what your friend says because your friend is only going off what's presented to him/her -- the kanji -- and we know they used ateji.
I'll break it down. Nintendo= 任天堂
任 to leave up to
天 heaven
堂 large room or a hall
Yes, i can see where your friend got the meaning, but that doesn't mean it was intended. Again, kanji used in proper nouns are ateji and don't necessarily have the meaning of the kanji. Below is a Wikipedia article dedicated to ateji
Source: I've been speaking Japanese for over 20 years, have lived there, and I've worked as a translator and interpreter amongst other bilingual jobs. Not a "weeb" or whatever new word you guys have developed for Japanophiles.
Artsy_traveller_82 t1_jcglf0j wrote
Nothing I said contradicts anything you just said.
ComfortableSock2044 t1_jckgv9p wrote
I'm saying your friend's translation is a moot point because his translation is based on the symbols literal meaning which isn't the reason they were used. The symbols were chosen for their sounds.
FractalCurve t1_jck0sma wrote
> Source: I've been speaking Japanese for over 20 years, have lived there, and I've worked as a translator and interpreter amongst other bilingual jobs. Not a "weeb" or whatever new word you guys have developed for Japanophiles.
The pre-emptive hostility here is somewhat unwarranted.
ComfortableSock2044 t1_jckh0jn wrote
I've been on Reddit for 12 years (not this account) There is always someone shitty to anyone who says they speak Japanese.
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