Translated directly from Japanese to Latin
N.B.: MANGA IS READ FROM RIGHT TO LEFT
Synopsis: The Demon King has been defeated, and the victorious hero party returns home before disbanding. The four—mage Frieren, hero Himmel, priest Heiter, and warrior Eisen—reminisce about their decade-long journey as the moment to bid each other farewell arrives. But the passing of time is different for elves, thus Frieren witnesses her companions slowly pass away one by one.
Official English | Official Japanese | My Latin Translation
Choice Dialogue (w/ Official English Print Translation):
(In fūnere Himmelis) / (At Himmel’s funeral)
Heiter: “Himmelem fēlīcem fuisse arbitror.” / “I believe Himmel was happy.”
Frieren: “Itane vērē?” / “I’m not so sure…”
Mulier A: “Illa puella Dom. Himmelis socia est. Nec vērō ūllam maestitiam ostendit.” / “Look, that’s the girl who travelled with Himmel the Hero. She doesn’t even look sad.”
Mulier B: “Quam frīgida.” / “So cold-hearted.”
Heiter: “Nē vituperāverītis! Neque nōs enim ostendimus.” / “My my, none of us look sad.”
Congregātiō: “Fac sēriē episcope! Nēquam frīgide!” / “Aren’t you the bishop? Act like one! You heartless man!”
Heiter: “Ha ha hae. Sevērissimī estis omnēs.” / “Ha ha ha. You people sure don’t go easy on me!”
Frieren: “…Ego enim nihil omnīnō dē hōc homine sciō… (lacrimāns) Modo decem annōs simul iter fēcimus… Plānē intellegēbam breve esse tempus vīvendī hominibus… Cūr ergō nōn melius eum cognōscere cōgitāvī…?” / “I…I hardly knew anything about him… (crying) We only traveled together for ten years… I knew human lives were short… Why didn’t I try to get to know him better?”
(Let’s just say that the official English is not exactly how I would personally translate the original Japanese text, but I just put it in for comparison)
Translator’s Notes:
Why ‘Frieren Fūnebris’ as the Latin title?
It is a more faithful rendition of the Japanese title 『葬送のフリーレン』. 葬送 means something like seeing someone off at their funeral, attending a funeral procession, etc.. The original title will also have its full significance revealed at a later chapter (though I will only post until Ch. 3).
Why ‘guerrārius’ for warrior instead of ‘bellātor’?
The setting is based off of Medieval Europe. Also, minor spoiler: there will be a character whose nickname is Gorilla Warrior and I thought Guerrārius Gorilla would sound funnier (but since I’ll only be posting until Ch. 3 you won’t see him here).
Why does Heiter use ‘vōs’ and plural 2nd person verbs for singular persons?
He uses polite speech in Japanese, unlike the other three. This is the most conspicuous way for me to adapt it.
Why doesn’t the Latin match my English copy?
I translated directly from Japanese so some things may have been rendered differently.
List of Unclassical Vocabulary/Borrowings/Neologisms:
- adventūra = adventure
- guerrārius = warrior
- postēbrietās = hangover
- mortuvīvus = undead
- mīmicum = mimic (monster that looks like a chest)
- elfus (-a) = elf
- aerālis < aera = era (I did not use aevālis < aevum because the meteor shower is called Ēra Ryūsei in Japanese with Ēra being a loanword used as a proper name)
- quīnquāgenniālis = which happens once every 50 years
- nostalgicus = nostalgic
- horreolum (< horreum) = shed
- alcohol = alcohol
- banda = party, band (of heroes/adventurers)
- antecustōs = vanguard (I did not use prīmum agmen because the agmen would have literally consisted of just one person; I did not use praecursor/antecursor because I did not want it to be mistaken for ‘scout’ or ‘forerunner’)
Fonts Used (All of these support macrons on all vowels including Ȳ):
- Chapter Title: Alegreya SC
- Margins: Palatino Linotype
- Narration: Grenze
- Speech Bubbles: Playpen Sans
- Whispers Within Speech Bubbles: Mansalva
- Speech Outside of Bubbles: Fuzzy Bubbles
- Soft SFX: Sedgwick Ave
- Ominous SFX: Sedgwick Ave Display
- Loud SFX: Protest Revolution
(You can find your own fonts at Google Fonts)