tvb chinese #1
Introduction: TVB Chinese is a new feature at TVB Musings. It's my reply to the requests of several Vietnamese visitors of the site that want to learn Chinese. This feature isn't a full-fledged Chinese course though because my grasp on the language isn't all that strong either. I've just begun learning Cantonese three years ago due to passion sparked by Virtues of Harmony and I haven't stopped learning since. I've improved and my knowledge increases every day. I hope to share with you guys what I've learned and hopefully it will be useful and insightful. Basically, this feature is the counterpart of Fun With Titles. I will be dissecting and explaining the Chinese title of TVB series. I hope this feature will be beneficial to those who want to learn Chinese. Hopefully, I won't bore my Chinese readers too much with this feature.
Without ado, the first installment...
The Chinese title of newly released series War and Destiny with Myolie Wu and Ron Ng is literally translated as Turbulent Times of a Beauty. (It was actually me who translated the title at TVSF when news about its production was released. People were calling it Gone With The Wind, but when I saw the Chinese title, I immediately translated it to the real meaning and changed the thread's English title. TVSF was the source for information back then, so my translated title quickly and easily got picked up and adopted by other forums. To this day, when I see the translated title that I concocted, I get really happy.) The title can also be translated as Beauty from Turbulent Times, but Turbulent Times of a Beauty just sounds better. I love this title because it sounds very lovely.
Pronunciation: LUEN; This word means confusion, chaos. LUEN SAI is a chaotic period. To put it more eloquently, it means turbulent times.
Pronunciation: SAI; This word denotes an era, a time period, a lifetime. When you hear people say YAT SANG YAT SAI ("forever"; literally, it means "one birth, one life") this is the SAI that they are using. For example, NGOH NGOI LEI YAT SANG YAT SAI means I love you forever.
Pronunciation: GAI; This word denotes auspiciousness, fine quality, being the best. This is a rather "ancient" term, so it's rarely used in modern conversations.
Pronunciation: YAN; This word means person. GAI YAN literally means "best person," but it is used to compliment someone as being a belle, a beauty.
Labels: Chinese, War and Destiny
posted by MetalAZNWarrior at 9:57 PM
10 Comments:
Yay! :P I have another short & fun feature that I don't have to dedicate too much time or brain power to complete. Haha.
23.7.06
Ooo...neat feature you've got here, Metal. Excellent pronunciations and explanations. You did great! =) But didn't you try this feature before, but with DOP's character names? Or was I hallucinating? hmm...
23.7.06
Ending your vaca a day early? Was it that boring? :P Thanks for the Chinese lesson!
And Sidney, I too recall the trilingual dance ;)
23.7.06
Ooh that was interesting. I like the new feature! You should translate 'Land of Wealth' some time. xD I asked my dad what the words meant and the Chinese and English title actually have some sort of connection. Or 'Price of Greed'. xD
24.7.06
Yeo yep yep...Sid and Audrey is right! I remember saying that their names were funny...
Hmmm I'm learning chinese now huh?
24.7.06
Thanks Sid!
As I've said on Sid's blog, the DOP article was more so a translation of the character names into Vietnamese. :)
Audrey - You know every time I saw I'm taking a "vacation," it just means a vacation from not updating. Haha. I've been working on more articles & features for you guys. School is coming up in a month, so I'm stocking up on articles. ;)
Anonymous - Don't worry la! There are more installments coming. I won't miss those series...
Alice - Yup, you're learning Chinese. :P
24.7.06
lol. I know, Metal. Was simply poking fun at your eagerness to come back to the site a day earlier than expected. :P Though of course, none of us are complaining about the sudden change of plan. It was, in fact, a delightful surprise. :)
24.7.06
You know me too well! Haha. I was worried that I'd lose all my "fans" if I didn't update. :P
24.7.06
Fear not, you won't lose your readers. But seems you've acquainted some spammers ... :-\
BTW, I've just realized the bafflement this article brought me. How odd it is that I am not fond of Cantonese though I absolutely adore Vietnamese when the two hold many linguistic similarities. For example, Gai Yan = Giai Nhân.
26.7.06
*Sigh* I know. But I suppose I should be "happy" that my site has reached a level where it's "marketable" for spammers. :P
Indeed, that's why it's much easier for me to learn Canto than Mandarin!
26.7.06
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