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May JAT Board Report (Bill Lise)
Last Call for IJET 97 (Fred Uleman)
IJET Meeting Report (George Tokikuni) * partly nihongo
日本の特許をインターネットから検索できる（ただし有料）* nihongo (George Tokikuni)
Qualifying Customers: How Do You Tell They Are Real? (Bill Lise)
May 17TH JAT Party Report + Virtual Potluck!? * partly nihongo (Emily Shibata-Sato)
日本の出版翻訳の現状 (Hiro Sato)
Shogakukan Companion to Artistic Works (Shu Yamakawa)
Extra & more extra reading for dictionary nerds (Tom Gally)
+ 「新解さんの謎」から (Emily Shibata-Sato)
Big Bang vs. the Big Bang (Jeremy Whipple)
The JAT Board met before our 17 May gathering and thereafter (e.g., via email).
Treasurer Bob Oliver reported that the new online payment system is working well; the first check from Kagi has been cashed.
Membership Secretary Jeremy Whipple reported that our membership count is sitting at about 182, the highest level in a long time, and that the number of members on JAT-LIST is greater than the total number of members of JAT several months ago. There are still some holdouts who either do not have email or who have email but have not told us their email addresses. Little can be done for these people, but Jeremy is going to make up a postcard to be sent to these people in the hope of bringing them online.
Bill Lise mentioned that he received a request from a JAT member who is not a member of JAT-LIST, but who has an email address, to send him the Bulletin as a separate emailing, along with the request that his email address not be revealed to anyone. This request was naturally declined, and Jeremy indicated no interest in having an email address that he would have to mark "secret" in the JAT database.
Meeting coordinator Bob Oliver reported that the meeting in July will be a panel discussion among JATers who are going to attend IJET in Sheffield. Meetings in August and beyond are yet to be decided.
The issue of JAT chapters was brought up, triggered by a request for information about same that Jeremy received. The directors recalled that 10 JAT members are required to form a JAT meeting, that there is no guaranteed benefit to forming a JAT chapter, and that there hasn't ever been a single JAT chapter actually formed anywhere. Still, we are not opposed to this, provided the chapter meets the requirements, which are set forth in the Constitution.
Bulletin Editor Emily Shibata-Sato reported, as usual, that contributions were thin, but (as of this writing) reports that many more contributions have been received than in the recent past. The issue of honyaku mailing list summaries came up briefly, and there appeared to be a consensus that value-added summaries, as opposed to concatenated files of past honyaku notes, could be interesting. Emily was going to contact somebody who could try to "drum up business" in this area.
The Board briefly discussed the issue of having a section of our website open to members only by password. Although there hasn't been anything specifically done yet, it appears that, in some form, this could be practical and useful.
George Tokikuni reported on our first IJET-9 committee meeting, at which the division of labor was decided. That meeting is reported elsewhere in this issue.
George also brought up the issue of a survey of JAT members that he wishes to conduct, saying that for the time being he will do a study of the Directory information to glean what information it provides that would enable us to characterize our members. He will also be looking at the honyaku mailing list membership to determine just how many members of JAT are active on that forum.
Michael House said he wanted to get onto further HTML-ifying JAT Bulletins for the website and got verification that two issues had been received by Bill Lise, who will be doing the actual uploading.
Bill Lise President
The IJET committee has started preparation for the ninth International Japanese/English Translation Conference (IJET-9 conference), which will be held at the same site as IJET-7 in Yokohama on May 23-24 next year. Details will be announced when determined, but please put a mark now on these days on your next year calendar. We hope many JATers will attend the conference and communicate with translators and interpreters coming from all areas in the World.
会議運営上の特徴としては、委員間のやりとりや参加予定者への情報 提供のほとんどにネットワークを利用することです。電子メールの 積極的な活用やinfobot, home pageを利用して皆さんに各種の情報を 連絡しようと考えています。電子ネットワークを効率的に利用することに より、今までよりも短い時間で少ない費用で少ない人員で運営することが 可能になります。この記事をお読みの方はもちろん電子ネットワークに 接続しているわけですが、知り合いの翻訳者・通訳者でまだ電話と ファックスにだけ頼っている方がいらっしゃれば是非ともcyberspaceへ 誘ってあげてください。その方がまだ電子メールを利用されていないJATの 会員であればなおさらです。
IJETの運営委員会はほぼ１ヶ月に１回の割合で会合を行い、日頃の ネットワークでの議論を元にしてさらに深い討論を行い各項目を決定 します。決定事項は順次皆さんにご連絡します。
by George Tokikuni
従来は専用のネットワークを通して特許公報を利用することが 可能であったが、インターネット経由で情報検索し図面も含めて全文を 閲覧することが可能になろうとしている。野村総合研究所 （Nomura Research Institute, Ltd.)では６月２日から特許情報サービス 「NRIサイバーパテントデスク」を開始する。特許庁が発行する特許 公報をデータベース化し、日立製の高速な検索エンジンを利用して 全文検索できるようにするとのこと。1993年以降の特許と大手企業の 技報（東芝レビューや日立評論、三菱電気技報、新日鉄技報など）が 検索・閲覧できる。料金は月額２万円の固定制か、基本料2000円プラス 全文１件50円の従量制となるらしい。現在は無料でデモ版を利用できる が、数日かかってデモ版IDを発行してもらってからの利用となる。URLは http://patent.index.or.jp である。興味のある方は試してみては いかがだろう。（私は現在デモ版のIDを発行してもらっているところで、 まだ検索はしていない） 同様のサービスをグリーンネット、日本発明資料、日本特許情報機構も 近日中に開始するらしい。
by Bill Lise
People who have been in sales might have run into the expression "qualifying a customer," which refers to the process of determining whether a prospective client is worth further investment in time (meaning money) to develop as a real customer.
Basically, in the case of translation, the customer-qualification process consists of asking and answering a set of questions something like this.
Is the prospective client one who normally orders translation work?
If so, they probably have information about what translation costs. Taking work from a first-time purchaser of translation (or interpreting services without nailing down both the rate and either the volume or the total cost likely to be incurred could be asking for trouble. It is not unusual for a first-timer to go into terminal sticker shock and even refuse to pay a full billed amount after the work is done, citing nothing more than their shock at the price as a reason for refusing to pay the amount billed. This does happen, but it can be prevented by qualifying the customer in this area.
Where and from whom does the client normally order translation work?
Because of the great differences in rates that are charged in various countries and markets, this is a significant issue. For example, a US company in Japan ordering work in Japan for the first time might think that US rates would apply. Similarly, a translation agency in the US would probably not be able to pay rates that would satisfy translators in Japan. This becomes a more important issue as translation customers make more use of the internet to obtain translation services.
Are you talking to a person who can order the work?
This sounds like a given, but it is not. Many times the person who speaks to the translator is a messenger, without the authority to actually order work. If the client's organization is setup to provide a seamless link to the person who indeed can order work, this might not be such a disadvantage. However, many times the messenger will be so removed from that person that promises become quite meaningless until "real" approval is granted. Before you rearrange your schedule, thereby losing money, to do work that doesn't arrive, find out whether the stories you have been told can be believed.
How important is the translation to the client?
More money can be spent on important translations ordered by entities that realize the importance of the translation. Examples of such translation include manuals and catalogs that need to be translated in order for the client to do business, and deposition documents that are need for civil litigation, in which huge sums of money are at stake. Casual orders of translation for information purposes are more likely to result in wailing and gnashing of teeth at invoicing time.
Is the client financially healthy?
Even if the client is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, they could be losing money hand over fist. If they are listed, do some reading at your local bookstore to find out how they are doing. If you are dealing with a manufacturer, reading the industry newspapers should also give you an idea of how they are doing. For example, Dempa Shimbun would be useful to someone aiming at working for electronics companies. If the client is an translation agent or broker, you will need to ask your colleague translators.
There are more questions, and perhaps quite different questions, that need to be asked by translators working in specific fields and markets. Knowing the questions to ask can take the heartburn out of trying to figure out whether they really need you to translate at a rate you are willing to accept.
Bill LISE, President president@jat.org Michael HOUSE, Web Publications macross@gol.com Bob OLIVER, Treasurer treasurer@jat.org Adam RICE, JAT on the Internet webmaster@jat.org Emily SHIBATA-SATO, Publications editor@jat.org George TOKIKUNI, IJET Affairs PFG01116@niftyserve.or.jp Jeremy WHIPPLE, Membership Secretary membership@jat.org
To learn more about JAT, please visit our Web site at http://www.jat.org/.
The Japan Association of Translators (JAT) is a nonprofit association dedicated to serving the interests of individual translators. Unless otherwise stated, opinions expressed in JAT Bulletin articles are solely those of individual contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Japan Association of Translators.
c) 1997 Japan Association of Translators, All rights reserved. Individual authors of articles in the Bulletin retain copyright to their articles, permitting them to use the articles as they see fit, including granting permission for reprinting in other media.
JAT's party of May 17, held instead of the usual meeting, was attended by 30+ people. Though JAT monthly meetings have a tendency to be very male-dominated, one-third of the party participants (i.e. 10) were females.
This party was organized with a hope that this gathering would give new and old members alike the chance to meet and talk in an informal and unstructured environment.
The directors conducted a mini-survey after the party to which 15 people responded. The following is a summary of the survey.
1. Party food (we had sandwich, yakitori, kushiage, katuso tataki, soramame, edamame, shumai, fruits-cherry and watermelon- , etc.)
Most people thought there was enough food... but not much (or almost none) was left for those who arrived late. Most people also seemed be satisfied with the selection of dishes, although there were comments like "wanted more seafood" or "more yakitori and other things that can be easily eaten while standing."
2. Drinks (we had beer, sake, shochu for chuhai, whisky, uroncha, mineral water, coke and orange juice)
Most people thought there was enough to drink, both in terms of variety and quantity, but some people wanted "wider choice of nonalcoholic drinks/softdrinks" and one person said "wanted wine."
3. Fee (was 3000 yen)
Most people said that 3000 yen was not too much and seemed satisfied with what was offered for what they paid (again except for the latecomers).
4. Party procedure
Except for a brief aisatu by JAT president Bill Lise and very brief self-introduction by the other directors at the beginning the participants just ate, drank and talked with each other. When asked "Did you get to talk to other participants?" most people said yes and some said they wanted to talk to more.
5. Arrangements
When asked whether we should have arranged something (e.g. self introduction) 7 people mentioned that self-introduction might have been a good idea (especially for newcomers) . One person suggested that "If everyone is on JAT-list, you can collect self-introduction notes (more detailed and interesting than JAT directory descriptions) and print out 2-3 page material for distribution at the party."
Other people said it was OK or rather, "lobbied against self intro's and it wouldn't hurt if one or more directors took the responsibility to 'integrate' any wall-flowers but there didn't seem to be many..." Another comment: "We are adults and do not need party games."
5. More parties?
Everybody said that they would like to have this kind of party again. Some suggested that parties could be held "once or twice a year" or "by replacing some of the monthly JAT meetings."
6. Any other suggestions?
Here are some of the comments given by the respondents: * As for nijikai, do not worry about it. It has its own role; nijikai was also held on May 17 after the JAT Party!
* I see their point about nijikais. The success or failure of a nijikai is almost entirely dependent on who you sit next to. A dull or arrogant person can ruin your night. Also, the atmosphere is not conducive to intelligent conversation. Still, they can be fun, and I do not think parties can replace them.
* Anyway, as for the party, I think it should have started later, like 3:00 or 4:00 PM. I rarely drink before dark and almost never at 1:00 PM.
* All in all, however, the party was a success. Thinking back, the best thing about it was the mobility -- getting to talk to a lot of people while being able to easily remove oneself from the less interesting conversations.
* Nijikais are okay, but it was easier to mingle at the latest party.
* I think this was a great gathering. I enjoyed myself and regretted having to leave early....schoolwork, you know.
* お互いの親交を深め、新しい知己を得るためによい機会であったし、 今回は料理もおいしく、楽しめたと思う。普段はmeetingに出席されない 方々にもっと来てもらえたらよかったと思う。
* 普段の２次会で、隣の人以外とも話しができるような会場を提供する ことは可能だろうか。検討してもいいと思う。
* If JAT welcomes more party paticipants, should advertise in Tokyo Classified, Tokyo Notice Board, じゃマール, and Niftyserve.
* I have always agreed that "stand-up" or "buffet-style" or cocktail party format is best.
* Name tags にもっと工夫を.
* 時間が短かったように思います。
* Everything was fine - please keep it simple.
* As a newcomer, I thought it was a good chance to get to know people. With self-introduction or some other organized activities, it would have been easier for me to talk to more peopl or join a group of people who are talking with each other.
* This is one thing I liked: getting to talk with people informally who might not necessarily come to a nijikai. I think the directors should plan a similar event at some time in the future, not soon, but eventually.
* It was easier to move around and talk to people, which you can't do at the niji-kai's or at the regular meetings. It would be nice to have this type of party periodically throughout the year. Perhaps we could even have one on week nights to satisfy those members who can only attend on week nights. But I think a survey as to how many members would actually be able to attend should be taken. As you know, a lot of people tend to be irresponsible and do a lot of jiko shucho, just to hear themselves talk.
* Despite how I felt towards the beginning (as a newcomer), I really enjoyed talking with many people with different backgrounds. It would be nice to see more of this type of "meeting" to enhance one's circle of friends.
7. Date
We organized the party on the usual meeting day and at the usual place but as shown in the comments above and recent pots on JAT-LIST, there are members who can only attend parties on week nights. When asked about the party date half of the respondents said "Saturday is fine (or can attend only on Satudays)" and the other half said other days are OK too.
I would welcome comments and suggestions in this regard from the people who could not come to the party.
And last of all I would like to thank George Tokikuni and Bob Oliver for organizing this party by quoting a comment from one person: "... armloads of appreciation to the people who put it together."
(by Emily Shibata-Sato)
Having members throughout Japan and throughout the world, JAT cannot organize a "butsuriteki-na" party that every member can attend. So what about a "virtual" potluck - summer fiesta to feature the next July/August issue of the bulletin?
Send me your selection of dishes (anything... from 'teiban' potato salad to exotic 'kyodo ryori') to Emily Shibata-Sato( aya-sato@pp.iij4u.or.jp ) by June 30. If you are cooking-challenged ? drinks are OK too (e.g. dozen cans of Asahi Super Dry).
My first selection is 梅干し入りおにぎり (onigiri with umeboshi). Hope this is not the only 'dish' served at the potluck （これだけでは地震の被災民.....）.
-- Emily Shibata-Sato
by Hiro Sato
(NOTE: This is a revised JAT Bulletin version of the original message that Hiro posted to HONYAKU on May 24. Thanks to Hiro for taking time to rewrite it.)
Most Japanese translators, whether he/she willingly become a translator or accidentally become a translator, might have the thought of becoming the translator for publications. 翻訳者は一度は出版翻訳を考える(2). The translation for publications, which includes essays, novels, nonfiction, and autobiographies, is thought more prestigious than that of business or industrial documents. The reason is simple, artistic, creative and metaphysical. From this viewpoint, the translation is considered to be art. (文芸翻訳では、翻訳は芸術 (3)） Actually, I was one to think of becoming translator as an artiest. But I gave up this pipe dream after I actually got involved the world of translation. 私も文芸翻訳家を夢見た(4). After two years of observation on the translation for publications, I was able to reach the conclusions. I would like to list my personal view on the translation for publications as follows(出版翻訳の現状 (5)）.
1. Smaller market and more competition The ultimate total translation volume (demand) is far smaller than those of business and industry translation. 市場が小さい(6). It is my rough guess that numbers of translated books may be just 1000 books a year (except books of academic fields and computers) . The necessary full-time translators for 1000 books are less than 300. As a result, this field have been competitive. In addition, it is hard to live only by the income of translation because of low rate. The rate is 400,000 to 500,000 yen per book if 買い取り(7) contract. If the contract is 印税収入(8) , the income may vary depending on copies to be sold. If discontinued for the first edition, the income of translator my be lower than 400,000 yen. 初版で絶版になったら悲惨 (9) . Some of translators became millionaire by the best seller book translation, i.e. Ms. Ikeda who translated SOFIES VERDEN. ソフィーの世界を訳した池田さん (10). But they are a tip of iceberg.
2. 徒弟制度 (11) The first step that an inexperienced translator enter into the translation of publications is to work under a famous or experienced translator (師匠とか先生 (12)). Usually the inexperienced translator translates the target book instead of 先生 (13) as a ghost translator. (下訳をする(14)). After a couple years of 下訳(15), the 先生(13) introduces his 弟子 (16) to his business-partner publishing companies. (のれん分けをする (17)).
3. Moonlighting of University teachers Academic books are translated by University professors 大学教授が翻訳のアルバイトする (18) . This system is profitable both professors and publishing companies because the professors can build up their academic career easily and the publishing companies cut a translation cost. 教授と出版社がもちつもたれつ (19) . But the professors don't translate. Students who are studying under him translate as 下訳者 (20). So 下訳 costs is almost zero. (教授が学生をただ働きさせる(21) )
4. Translation contest and schools for translation One way to translate for publication is to get the first prize in a translation contest or study in a school for translation. 翻訳コンテストで一等賞か学校で学ぶ (22). But still very competitive. One out of 1000, I guess. チャンスは千に一つ (23). Some schools advertise such as あなたも翻訳者になれます(24). Yes, possible. The point we must keep in our mind is that there are not enough market or demand that more than 5000 students in schools can become translators for publications. 出版翻訳者の市場で ５０００人必要なわけない(25).
Conclusion: The best way to become a translator for publishing - Establish your own publishing company, and be the owner and translator. 自分で出版社を作るのが早道、誰でも翻訳家やれるよね (26)
投稿者の一言 知って知らざるを上とす。 老子 One of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of knowing the truth.
NOTES (1) NIHON NO SHUPPAN NONYAKU NO GENJOU (2) HONYAKUSHA WA ICHIDOHA SHUPPANHONYAKU WO KANGAERU (3) BUNNGEIHONYAKU DEHA HONYAKU HA GEIJUTU (4) WATASHI MO BUNGEI HONYAKUKAWO YUMEMITA (5) SHUPPAN HONYAKU NO GENJOU (6) SHIJOU GA CHIISAI (7) KAITORI (8) INZEI SHUUNYUU (9) SHOHAN DE ZEPPAN NI NATTARA HISAN (10) SOFI NO SEKAI WO YAKUSHITA IKEDA SAN (11) TOTEI SEIDO (12) SHISHOU TOKA SENSEI (13) SENSEI (14) SHITAYAKU WO SURU (15) SHITAYAKU (16) DESHI (17) NORENWAKE WO SURU (18) DAIGAKU KYOUJU GA HONYAKUNO ARUBAITO SURU (19) KYOUJU TO SHUPPAN GA MOCHITSU MOTARETSU (20) SHITAYAKUSHA (21) KYOUJU GA GAKUSEI WO TADABATARAKI SASERU (22) HONYAKU KONTESUTO DE ITTOUSHOU KA GAKKOU DE MANABU (23) CHANSU HA SEN NI HITOTU (24) ANATAMO HONYAKUKA NI NAREMASU (25) SHUPPAN HONYAKU NO SHIJOU DE 5000 NIN HITUYOU NA WAKE NAI (26) JUBUN DE SHUPPANSHA WO TUKURU NO GA HAYAMICHI, SOUSUREBA DAREDEMO HONYAKUKA YARERUYONE !
- FROM HONYAKU - * Shogakukan Companion to Artistic Works (Shu Yamakawa) * Extra reading for dictionary nerds & More extra reading for dictionary nerds (Tom Gally) + 「新解さんの謎」から (Emily Shibata-Sato) * "Big Bang" vs. "the Big Bang": An episode from HONYAKU (Jeremy Whipple)
Newcomers!! If you want to know what HONYAKU is, jump to "What is Honyaku Mailing List?" at the end of this file.
by Shu Yamakawa
I ran across this reference book in a nearby bookstore.
和英・英和 タイトル情報辞典 Shogakukan Companion to Artistic Works ISBN4-09-510192-X June 10, 1997 \2,940
The blurb says that this book contains 14,000 titles in 18 fields such as: 2600 movie, 1100 TV, 1300 pops/rocks, 200 jazz, 160 folk/children song, 500 classical music, 120 opera, 100 baret, 120 drama/musical, 120 PC/TVgame, 150 comic, 240 fine art, 2100 mistery, 1600 SF, 2600 literature, 340 Japanese literature, 460 general book, and 190 newspaper/magazine titles.
The first 770 pages list those titles J-to-E with breief descriptons, followed by a 130-page E-to-J index, plus a 120-page E-to-J register of authors whose works are included in this book.
This reference should be useful and worth the money for those of you who often encounter titles of artistic works.
I would, however, appreciate any second opinions of those who are more knowledgeable about artistic works. Arts are not included in my specialties <G>.
by Emily Shibata-Sato
I read a book titled above （Shinkai-san no nazo) a few weeks ago. Since I enjoyed it very much, I decided to write about it in the bulletin. Soon after, I found Tom's post about this same book on Honyaku. I asked Tom if I could quote his post (to save my energy &jt;g>) and got his approval.
So here goes his two posts (about this book and about the editors of 新解さん) followed by several examples to be quoted from 「新解さんの謎」. (Note: If you've already seen Tom's posts, jump to "back to Emily ".)
(Note 2: GG's definition of "meikai （明解）" is "a lucid explanation; a happy solution")
by Tom Gally
(HONYAKU: August 5, 1996)
I just finished reading an entertaining book that other dictionary nerds on the list might enjoy.
The title is 新解さんの謎 Shinkai-san no Nazo and it is by 赤瀬川原平 Akasegawa Genpei. The 新解 Shinkai in the title refers to Sanseido's 新明解 国語辞典 Shinmeikai Kokugo Jiten. Though I used this dictionary when I was a student, I'm afraid that my Japanese ability was not good enough then to notice its quirks. It turns out that the dictionary is full of opinionated definitions and off-the-wall examples, and Akasegawa delves into those quirks in an amusing and sympathetic way. Highly recommended.
(The second half of the book consists of a series essays on paper. I haven't read them yet.)
+ + + + +
More extra reading for dictionary nerds
by Tom Gally
(HONYAKU May 24, 1996)
Following up on my post of August 5, 1996, I thought I would add a few comments about dictionary-related books that have been published recently.
In my last post, I mentioned 新解さんの謎 (Shinkai-san no Nazo), the entertaining book by 赤瀬川原平 (Akasegawa Genpei) about the quirks in the definitions found in Sanseido's 新明解国語辞典 (Shinmeikai Kokugo Jiten). Akasegawa's book seems to have done quite well, as it has gone through many printings and is still prominently displayed in the larger bookstores. It has also led to the publication of several related books, including クイズ新明解国語辞典 (Kuizu Shinmeikai Kokugo Jiten), a collection of word puzzles keyed to the dictionary.
Though Akasegawa didn't mention him by name, the driving force behind that dictionary's idiosyncrasies seems to have been the late 山田忠雄 (Yamada Tadao), who also happened to be the son of the linguist 山田孝雄 (Yamada Yoshio) (1875-1958). Some of the younger Yamada's collected word citations have been published in three volumes by Sanseido under the title 私の語誌 (Watashi no Goshi). Compiled without the use of electronic databases, these books trace the meanings of a handful of Japanese words based on how the words have been used in print, especially in newspapers. The terms covered include 快挙 (kaikyo), 他山の石 (tazan no ishi), and, especially, こだわる (kodawaru), which is analyzed in depth in the second volume. After reading through the citations and Yamada's comments, I started to wonder if I would ever again trust a two-line dictionary definition to capture the full meaning of a word.
Yamada the Younger's other writings, including a number of essays on dictionary-making, were collected in 1993 in a handsomely printed volume called 壽藏録 (Juuzouroku). The author's こだわり (kodawari) can be seen in his consistent use of old kanji and kana forms in this book.
On a more practical note, Sanseido has just published a one-volume supplement to its excellent kokugo dictionary 大辞林 (Daijirin). Titled 大辞林漢字引き・逆引き (Daijirin Kanjibiki Gyakubiki), the book lists all the words in the second edition of Daijirin by their first and last kanji. There are also reverse indexes of the katakana and hiragana-only words and of idioms and proverbs. The kanji are listed by on-yomi (sometimes kun-yomi), and there is a stroke-count index. As far as I know, Daijirin is now the first kokugo dictionary (other than electronic versions) to have a complete kanji and jukugo index, thus making it possible to look up any word in the dictionary even if you don't know the reading.
The bibliographic information on these books follows.
Title: 新解さんの謎 Shinkai-san no Nazo Author: 赤瀬川原平 Akasegawa Genpei Publisher: 文藝春秋 Bungei Shunju ISBN: 4-16-351790-1 Price: 1,600 yen Published: July 1996
Title: クイズ新明解国語辞典 Kuizu Shinmeikai Kokugo Jiten Editor: 武藤康史 Mutou Yasushi Publisher: 三省堂 Sanseidou ISBN: 4-385-35761-7 Price: 1000 yen Published: April 1997
Title: 私の語誌 Watashi no Goshi (1) 他山の石 Tazan no Ishi (2) 私のこだわり Watakushi no Kodawarai (3) 一介の Ikkai no Editor: 山田忠雄 Yamada Tadao Publisher: 三省堂 Sanseidou ISBN: (1) 4-385-35667-X (2) 4-385-35673-4 (3) 4-385-35671-8 Price: 2900 yen per volume Published: (1),(2) September 1996 (3) March 1997
Title: 壽藏録 Juuzouroku Author: 山田忠雄 Yamada Tadao Publisher: Privately printed by 三省堂 Sanseidou ISBN: None listed Price: None listed Published: August 1993 Note: I obtained my copy of this book by responding to a notice in Sanseido's PR magazine offering to give away free copies for the price of postage. A later notice in the magazine said that all of the copies had been given away, so the book is probably no long available.
Title: 大辞林漢字引き・逆引き Daijirin Kanjibiki Gyakubiki Editor: 三省堂編修所 Sanseidou Henshuujo Publisher: 三省堂 Sanseidou ISBN: 4-385-13901-6 Price: 4000 yen Published: May 1997
+ + + +
back to Emily これが 「新解さんの謎」だ！(Korega Shinkaisan no nazoda!)
So I got this book many months after Tom's first post appeared on Honyaku. The book was still sold 平積みで (hirazumi) which is a sign that the book is doing well.
I tried to quote several examples but without the 'context' they aren't really fun. So I'll quote just one example from this book and compare it with definitions given by 広辞苑 and 大辞泉. The word is よのなか(世の中).
1. 新明解国語辞典 (1) 同時代に属する広域を、複雑な人間模様が織り成すものととらえた語。愛し合う人 と憎み合う人、成功者と失意・不遇の人が構造上同居し、常に矛盾に満ちながら、 一方には持ちつ持たれつの関係にある世間。
２．広辞苑 (1) 世間。社会。また、世間の情勢。世間の人情。世間の傾向。世情。
３．大辞泉 (1) 人々が互いにかかわり合って生きて暮らしていく場。世間。社会。(2) 世間の人々の間。また、社会の人間関係。
For more details (male-chauvinistic, fish-loving and often pessimistic tendency of Shinkai-san - dictionary editors - ) read the book, or the dictionary itself!
by Jeremy Whipple
A couple of weeks ago I posed the following question on the HONYAKU mailing list:
>> It's my understanding that "Big Bang," in reference to the Thatcherite deregulation of the British securities industry, does not take a definite article. And it seems to me that the same article-less usage should apply to the Japanese Big Bang, except when preceded by a modifier, as just now. But a colleague insists that it sounds/looks funny without the article. What do my esteemed [fellow] 'yakkers think? >>
I was confident I'd get some replies, but failed to anticipate the number. Over the next couple of days,I counted some 25 answers or related comments. The most useful for my purposes was the posting from Tom Gally that appeared within an hour of my original query:
>> You seem to have identified a subtle problem. Here are some results of a few brief searches at the Electric Library. First, three citations about the Japanese Big Bang:
"The convoy system is still alive and well, and that casts serious doubt on the sincerity with which authorities are looking at the ' Big Bang' (financial reforms) -- or what we thought should be *the 'Big Bang,"'* said Brian Waterhouse, financial analyst at HSBC James Capel. (Reuter)
Hashimoto named his mid-November proposals after a set of British reforms carried out in 1986 that revitalized London markets and were known as *"the Big Bang."* Some critics, noting that Japan plans five years for its reforms, have dubbed them "the Slow Fizzle." (Los Angeles Times)
However, priorities changed when Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto recently staked his political future on his ``Big Bang'' package to overhaul Japan's financial markets by 2001. The MOF's determination to protect insurers ``basically collapsed because of *the Big Bang,* '' says one Washington trade lawyer. (Business Week)
Note that "the" was used each time. Now, two about London:
Things improved in the 1980s. Exchange controls went, tax rates were cut, sterling stabilised. More significant for the rest of Europe was the London stockmarket's Big Bang in 1986. *Big Bang* scrapped fixed commissions, allowed unrestricted entry to the exchange and set up an electronic market- making system based on NASDAQ's in place of the old floor-trading through jobbers. . . . (Economist)
More substantively, the Authors present two arguments that they believe "support[] the view that specialists ultimately induce price volatility in markets."[67] First, they compare the daily volatility of price changes in the DJIA and the Financial Times-Stock Exchange 100 (FT- SE) average in the period surrounding October 1986, when London's "Big Bang" reforms occurred. They observe that while in the eleven weeks prior to *Big Bang,* the volatility of these indices was similar, in the ten weeks after *Big Bang* the volatilities appear different. Of course, it is not particularly surprising that volatility changed in London following *Big Bang*. (Journal of Corporate Law)
But note the following, also about London:
Not all of the link-ups between commercial banks and securities houses after *the Big Bang* have been successful: The established universal banks have generally performed better than the new ones put together by mergers and acquisitions Nevertheless, the relative absence in the Euromarkets of legal restrictions on financing techniques has enabled banking firms to experiment with various combinations of financial activities and to settle on the one that works best for them. (CATO Journal)
The tendency seems to be "the" for Japan and no "the" for London, but perhaps a larger set of citations is needed before a final determination can be made. >>
Marceline Therrien then observed:
>> I think, as shown by Tom Gally, that to some extent this may be one of those American/British usage differences. In British English, articles seem to get dropped a lot more often than in American English, eg. "going to hospital." On the other hand, Brits speaking of "driving down the M-1," while Americans "drive down I-80." >>
This, predictably, produced a spate of notes from Brits and Yanks telling each other they didn't know what they were talking about.
Laurie Berman returned to the original question, commenting:
>> To get to the point, because it sounds particularly British, and particularly specific, WITHOUT the definite article, I think in the Japanese context it would be better WITH the definite article. >>
Meanwhile, other posters were discussing definite articles in Australian English!
At this point I wrote a little note of acknowledgment:
>> Thanks for all the comments on the above, especially the helpful citations Tom Gally offered from the Electric Library (which I really must join sometime real soon). I've decided to reverse my initital policy and let the "the" stand in references to Japan's BB.
Digression: David Eunice's comment about the article-free form as insider jargon reminds me of GATT, which for some obscure reason was apparently "the GATT" to insiders, though I could never bring myself to write it that way. English can be perverse, to put it mildly. >>
This (unwarranted!) digression on my part produced further comments on the likes of "Ginza," "Ukraine," "Congo," (formerly with "the," now without), and tangentially "Burma" versus "Myanmar." Interesting, though obviously not relevant to the question at hand, which I had settled to my satisfaction.
Epilogue: I still haven't joined the Electric Library, though I have every intention of doing so. Perhaps somebody who already belongs would care to post a note describing how this works? As I understand it, for 10 dollars a month, you get access to a huge Internet database of periodicals. Might be of interest even to some JATers who prefer not to deal with the heavy volume of messages on HONYAKU.
Jeremy Whipple (jwhipple@gol.com)
JAT sponsors a mailing list called honyaku. The list has a membership of around 650 (or more?) and a traffic level of often more than 100 notes per day.
To join the HONYAKU mailing list first get your Internet e-mail address. Then send e-mail to listserv@peach.ease.lsoft.com (note: there is no "e" after listserv), and send the following text:
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