[Guide] Making 'Ninja Magic'

[Rhap Sodos]

So, this is a pet project I've been throwing around in my head for a while now, and since I finally have the time to actually start formally writing it down, I figured it would share. 
 
Basically, the plan for these is to do a short series of blog-esque posts regarding some of my thoughts/experiences on NA. While I can't boast 10 Years (like some people) I have been here long enough and consider myself well versed in enough of the common pitfalls that I figured some of you might care about my opinion. 
 
I'm hoping to get these out once every week or so, and currently have about 3-4 ideas in mind. If there is something in particular you notice I do and you want to know why, feel free to shoot me a PM. 
 
P.S. System/Rule questions should either be directed towards the Patch 8.x.x Discussion Thread, or the Admin Q&A. This is more of a 'top-down' approach to NA things (and we'll get to that later.) 
 
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1. Lost in Translation - An explanation on why translating fantasy names is honestly a lot of guesswork with a healthy side of bullshit. 

Edited September 10, 2015 by Rhap Sodos

[Rhap Sodos]

"Rhap Sodos, how do you say <blank> in Japanese?" 
 
Good question. Next question. 
 
For realsies, translating names (especially unusual fantasy names like 'Crystal Release: The Gods' Crossings Technique') is probably 20% basic language comprehension and 30% good resources. The other 50%? A basic idea of what you're trying to say and loose idea of how you want it to sound. Let's look at a few examples, shall we? 
 
X. Drake from One Piece. If you break his name down:

• Though it is scan from the Japanese Manga, the author includes the English Romaji¹ "X. Drake" so we know that's how it's spelled.
• The furigana² for Drake is literally "Dore-ku."
• The furigana for X is... Diez. Yes, like the number 10, spelled using a roman numeral.  

So his name isn't "Ex" Drake, nor is the X 'short' for something else, like Xavier. The X is read "Diez", and so his name is Diez Drake. 
 
Light Yagami is another prime example:

• Yagami is... basically by the books.
• Light, is spelled using the Kanji '月', which 99% of the time means 'moon'.
• 月 is usually pronounced as either 'Getsu' [Like 'Suigetsu'] or Tsuki [Like Tsukiyo].
• The furigana for "月", is 'Raito', which is the Japanese adaption of the English word "Light".

So you can see, translating names is a loose business at best. It doesn't help that Author's can also chose various spellings/pronunciations for the same word:

• ANBU/ANsatsu Senjutsu Tokushu BUtai, whereas 'Ansatsu' means 'Assassin'.
  • Note that "ANBU" only uses the first syllables of two of the words that make up it's actual meaning.
• Saikyō no Shikaku, whereas 'Shikaku' means 'Assassin'
  • Whoa whoa wait, Shikamaru's dad's name is "Assassin"?

We'll get to that. So what's the difference? 

Antasu is spelled using the kanji '暗殺', literally 'Dark/Shadowy' and Kill'.

Shikaku is spelled using the kanji '刺客', literally 'Stab/Stick' and 'Guest/Company'.

 
Both denote assassins/assassinations, but Kishimoto might have chosen differences based on nuance, or simply the way it sounded given the rest of the phrase/technique. 
 
Okay, so back to Nara Shikaku. 
 
Kishimoto almost always uses katakana³ to spell his character's names. This means while we can usually SURMISE what their meanings are (e.g. Kakashi is 'Scarecrow', the 'Shika' in 'Shikaku/Shikamaru' is Deer, etc.) it's an imprecise system and usually relies on context clues. The best example of this is "Sarada", who, because her name is spelled in katakana, is also 'spelled' the same way you would if you were using the English loan word "Salad". Some with Boruto/Bolt. Now, we (now) know that their names are not "Bolt" and "Salad" because of official romanization, but because of the way they are spelled they're essentially homonyms. 
 
tl;dr - Translating names into Japanese is a lot of guesswork. You can play around a lot with kanji and sounds to get what you want. Unless you are EXPLICITLY using something wrong, if you ask me whether or not it's 'right' chances are very good I'm going to shrug and say "Looks good. Ship it."
 
Now for some tips and tricks:

• Wikipedia. ... Yes, Wikipedia. A lot of Wikipedia's pages will have a Japanese (日本語) equivalent, so when looking for a fairly common... thing, chances are good their is a Japanese Wikipedia page for it, which will list the most common spelling/name for it.
• Magic: The Gathering. ... Same deal as above. A lot of their newer cards are also printed in Japanese, and it's actually a pretty fantastic source to 'steal' cool sounding, professionally translated names from. You can toggle language on their The Gatherer database.
• Naruto WIki - Not only are they really good at including both the English and Japanese versions of the names (including Kanji, Furigana, and Romaji), but they will often list attacks that are game and/or filler only.
  • It's also useful if you want to establish a 'trend' for which words Kishimoto is more likely to use. 
• Excite.co.jp. This is your standard 'English <-> Japanese' translating site, but since it's Japanese origin (as opposed to English) I've had a lot good luck with it. It's honestly what I used when I was studying Japanese.

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• Romaji: Literally "Roman Characters". The technical term for when we translate things from a Japanese writing system to English.
• Furigana: A kana pronunciation guide, displayed in small text above Kanji. Use for unfamiliar kanji or, in the case of manga, shows the pronunciation the author inteds (i.e. "Diez").
• Katakana: Writing system used predominately for foreign loan words, sound effects, or to 'stress' something [similar to bolding].

Edited September 10, 2015 by Rhap Sodos