Japanese-style English instructions

Feb 04, 2008 4 Replies

We've all dealt with peculiarities in Japanese instruction sheets for models (the Bandai 1/48th scale tank ones were a riot when it came to describing the vehicle in question's history, with one line I remember being: "Allies were terrified in horror of Tiger and Panther tanks") , but at least you could figure out what they were driving at most of the time. Recently, a friend loaned me his copy of "Here Speeching American", a collection of written oddities from around the world.

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's a excerpt from it here:
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book is so funny that wouldn't be surprised if I woke up my neighbors in the apartment building by my laughter around 3 AM. Here is the instruction sheet from hell from that book, about how to assemble the Dragonball Z toy:



DRAGONBALL Z TOY ASSEMBLY Setting Pre Ceiling Way and Means: (1) with appertain rotor of screw setting pre ceiling on the under standing that serew no wield. May wield two-faced, pressboard securing. wied pre to begin with wiping ceiling of bilge dasto. (2) Thread of length need half as many again as tad. (3) Open toy of batteries shuck. Verification batteries,+,- whereafter stow down.to a certainty need locknat lest take place accident. (4) Hook through toys aspide of hole. (5) Needs swithes shoving NO.for pre arrows specifying of orention shoving. Pack it up time, withhold toy pate, need switches shoving OFF.



  • Prythee no sport with stingy or play asperity game. Winding finger have got bloodstream not walk. Throagh of peril.
  • Tad disport of time grown man tatelage.
  • Till the cowcomes home. Wield toys damage, burn-in prythee wind to a close wield.
  • Give attention to open/close toys,therefore take place peril.for instance slipup batteries wield result in the emission of heat rupture liquid.vent itself prythee pay attention.
  • Play at sith to a certainty bolt up power supply fetch out batteries.
  • Batteries no electrification dissolution,plunge ioto aquaor fire.
  • Not to trust for tad batteries lest in advertent eat off. In the event of accident without loss of time plythee pillroller tuke order with. May pre house of seamy side volitation!!!

Pat :-D



No doubt you will provide additional amusement by posting your translation of a set of English instructions into Japanese?

Jack G.

The thing that hits me is that by hiring just one native English speaker-writer, these companies could completely eliminate these problems, the way a American company could hand over their translation of English into Japanese to someone who grew up in Tokyo and solve their problems also. Meanwhile, off to the zoo:

"BEIJING ZOO Pandas and other miserable animals in cages."

Shanghai Zoo: "Edible Fur Can Be used Evil Animal."

Pat

Sounds like you would enjoy visiting

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It is funny (and free)! Peteski

Oh, that one gets bookmarked - thanks! :-)

Pat

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