Language Laws at Landel's

[damned_info]

It's been asked. It's been questioned. It's been a confusing topic for mods and players alike, but finally, we have here the rules about just how languages work at Landel's.

BARE BASICS:- Everyone can understand each others' main languages. A character whose main language is English would perceive someone whose main language is Japanese as

Comments

[continuum]

In this situation and this situation alone, someone overhearing the conversation who does not know Spanish would not understand the person who has Spanish as a main language.

This part threw me off, but I'm not sure whether it's because I'm un-caffeinated or just because the wording might've gotten mixed up. XD; MOST LIKELY THE FORMER, but anyway:

Shouldn't that be "someone who does not know Spanish would not understand the person who has Spanish as a second language" rather than "main language" since it's the second language that won't be understood to other non-speakers of said second language? Or did I totally misunderstand something? :O!

[lacidiana]

Nope, it means what it says. 8D; Two situations here that are weird under these circumstances:

1) Someone's main language is, say, Japanese. Someone else's main language is English, but they have Japanese as a second language. If that English-speaker started consciously speaking to the Japanese speaker in Japanese, the English-speaker, who normally perceives everyone as speaking English, would start perceiving the Japanese-speaker as responding in Japanese. Once the English-speaker started speaking to them in English again, though, the Japanese-speaker's Japanese would start sounding like English again.

2) Like in the example you mentioned, someone with Spanish as a main language would be perceived as always speaking English by someone who has English as a main language, yeah? However, if that English-speaker comes across someone speaking Spanish as a second language to the person who has Spanish as a main language, both parties would sound like they were speaking Spanish to the English-speaker...Of course, as confusing as that last

[continuum]

Oooh, I see. Okay, I understand what you mean now. XD; Thanks.~

And I think the rules are explained as clear as they can be given they cover pretty much all the bases, so no worries. It's good to have something we can all refer to, and I'm a procrastinator geek so I actually like reading all this stuff. \o/ Damned: Keeping things consistent since 2006.

[not_rly_fai]

This probably fits under the "What if you're not sure what the language of your character's canon is, just the medium's language? Like Kingdom Hearts?"

But um... for Fai? His is some far off fantasy world. In the canon it actually looks like Scandinavian...? Or Dutch? (And in the English dub they use French) They actually have similar language barriers in Tsubasa, though instead of Landel's magic, they have Mokona Magic... um, but I guess my question is, should I make his original language something that relates to Earth languages(since there's only one or two other people in the canon that would actually speak Celes-ian... And one of them is dead...) or should I just have it be his own special gibberish... or I guess it really doesn't matter a heck of a whole lot... ^^;;;

[lacidiana]

Yeah, I'm soooorta familiar with the way language works in Tsubasa, (I've read the first 12 volumes? BUT THAT'S IT?) and yeah, it's pretty similar!

And... well, yeah, you could either choose a Scandinavian dialect or Dutch or French, or if you want to do something fun, you could have it that his own unique language is a mix of those three and if, say, someone spoke Dutch to him as a second language, he'd understand bits and pieces of it, but not fluently. (Like if, say, someone spoke Latin to a Spanish speaker.)

Hope that works!

[not_rly_fai]

Hehe, that is a fun idea ^^

[blazing_general]

I want to do that with Signum's space-German and space-English now.

[usoppsenchou]

Thank you thank you thank you for making this. <3

Also, I am entertained by how complicated it is, but that's actually also very cool, just because it covers lots of possibilities.

I do have a question, hypothetical. Suppose your character is in a Japanese medium and canonically always speaks Japanese because she or he spends his or her time in the canon in Japan around native Japanese people, but is actually from another world and her or his native language ought to be Fantasyplanetese, though he or she never uses it since we never see her or him on Fantasyplanet? Would Japanese become the default or could the character claim Fantasyplanetese as a default and Japanese as a second language?

[misterprince]

lol Fantasyplanetese. I must learn this.

[lacidiana]

8D;; Woo, glad you enjoyed going through it! 'ENTERTAINED' IS A BETTER REACTION THAN 'WTF CONFUSED'???

In that case, you could claim either Fantasyplanetese or Japanese as their main language, though Japanese would probably be more practical. :3

Attn: Slayers Characters

[accursed_rock]

So, does Slayers-verse speak Japanese? English?

Re: Attn: Slayers Characters

[per_ardua]

Not that I play anybody from Slayers here (and in my other game, like most we ignore that pesky language barrier!), but I always figured it was something unique--aren't there occasional glimpses of writing that are obviously nothing of Earth?

Zel's probably going to be in Raine's situation, really... no use speaking any of his other languages, virtually nobody here will understand a thing!

Though come to think of it, both Slayers and Symphonia aren't all that logical on this topic. ^^ Both have been cut off from other lands/worlds for generations, a thousand years or more, and yet--language evolution wut?

[stray_shinigami]

Is it okay if we keep using taichou and fukutaichou? The translation on those is actually pretty squirrely, especially fukutaichou, which no translator of the manga/anime can seem to agree on whether it should be vice captain, assistant captain or lieutenant. Even my electronic dictionary is unhelpful, since it defines taichou as:
a leader
a captain
a commander
a commanding officer

...and the other problem is that while you could translate taichou as captain, it's really not an equivalent rank to what it means in American English, since the shinigami captains command what seems to be equivalent to a battalion (300-1000 soldiers, at least two companies worth) which in American terms is commanded by a lieutenant colonel, while in American terms a captain is normally only in charge of a company (62-190 soldiers).

...which I know is probably overly nitpicky, but that's why I've been using the Japanese all this time. ^^;;;

[whiteychan]

I already confirmed with them that it's ok on the lounge thread.

[stray_shinigami]

Ah, okay. Teaches me not to pay attention. XD

[whiteychan]

Damn right it does!

XD