Chapter 6: Talons and Tea Leaves
| Simplified Chinese (Mandarin: China) | ||
| 猎鹰和茶叶 Lièyīng hé cháyè |
猎鹰
lièyīng = 'hunting hawk' = 'falcon'. 和 hé = 'and'. 茶叶 cháyè = 'tea leaf'. |
Falcon and tea leaves |
| Traditional Chinese (Mandarin: Taiwan) | ||
| 獸爪與茶葉 Shòuzhǎo yǔ cháyè |
獸爪
shòuzhǎo = 'beast's claws' = 'talons'. 與 yǔ = 'and'. 茶葉 cháyè = 'tea leaf'. |
Talons and tea leaves |
| Japanese | ||
| 鈎爪と茶の葉 Kagitsume to cha-no-ha |
鈎爪
kagi-tsume = 'hook claws' = 'talons'. と to = 'and'. 茶 cha = 'tea'. の no = connecting particle 葉 ha = 'leaf'. |
Talons and tea leaves |
| Korean | ||
| 갈고리발톱과 찻잎 Galgolibaltob-gwa chasip |
갈고리발톱 galgoli-baltob = 'hook claws' = 'talons'. 과 -gwa = 'and'. 차잎 chasip = 'tea leaf'. (차 = 茶) |
Talons and Tea Leaves |
| Vietnamese (Chinese characters show etymology) | ||
| Móng vuốt và lá trà | móng vuốt = 'claws, talons'. và = 'and'. lá = 'leaf'. trà = 'tea'. |
Talons and tea leaves |
| Mongolian (new) | ||
| Хумс ба цайны навч khums ba tsainii navch |
хумс khums = 'nails, claws, talons'. ба ba = 'and'. цай tsai = 'tea' (-(н)ы -(n)ii Genitive form). навч navch = 'leaf'. |
Claws and tea leaves |
'Talons and tea leaves' is a reference to two matters: Harry's fate as read in tea leaves in Professor Trelawney's divination class, and the talons of the hippogriff, another of Hagrid's 'loveable' pet creatures.
How is 'talons' translated?
'Talon' tends to be used for the claws of a bird of prey, such as an eagle. The hippogriff counts because it is part bird.
- The word for talon in the Chinese translation from Taiwan is 獸爪 shòuzhǎo 'beast's claws'. 爪 zhǎo is a term for the claws of an animal or the feet of a bird. 獸 shòu (Simpl. 兽) refers to a wild animal, here meaning the hippogriff. 禽爪 qínzhǎo 'bird's claws' would have been a possible alternative.
- Japanese and Korean use similar compound words referring to talons as 'hooked claws' (Japanese 鈎爪 kagi-tsume, Korean 갈고리발톱 galgoli-baltob).
- The Vietnamese version uses móng vuốt, a compound of móng 'nail' and vuốt 'claw' meaning 'claws' or 'talons'.
- The Mongolian word хумс khums similarly refers to talons, although the meaning is broad and also encompasses mere fingernails.
The Mainland Chinese version translates 'talons' as 猎鹰 lièyīng 'hunting hawk' (i.e., 'falcon') (Trad. 獵鷹). A falcon, representing a deadly enemy, is what Professor Trelawney saw in Harry's tea leaves. This obscures the ultimate connection with the hippogriff.
How is 'tea leaves' translated?
Tea is the traditional beverage of choice in East Asia. China has a huge range of teas of all different types (green, red, white, pu-erh, oolong, etc.). Green tea is favoured in Vietnam and Japan, green and grain teas in Korea, and milk tea in Mongolia. Western culture has brought changes, especially to Japan and Korea, but also to the other countries here. English-style black tea is present to varying degrees, but coffee continues to make heavy inroads, especially in Korea but also in Vietnam, which is a major coffee grower.
'Tea' originated in China and the word for 'tea' all over the world is derived from some variety of Chinese, including the languages covered here.
- The word for 'tea leaf' in Chinese is a compound word consisting of 'tea + leaf', 茶葉 (Trad.) / 茶叶 (Simpl.) chá-yè. This is used in both translations.
- Korean similarly uses a compound word, 차잎 chasip 'tea leaf'. 차 cha 'tea' can be written with the Chinese character 茶.
- Vietnamese is similar, except that the order of components is reversed according to the grammatical structure of Vietnamese: lá trà 'leaf tea'.
- The Japanese translator uses the connecting particle の no in the expression 茶の葉 cha-no-ha, literally 'leaf of tea'. In everyday life the less sophisticated term 茶っ葉 chappa 'tea leaf' is often used.
- Mongolian uses цайны навч tsainii navch, where цайны tsainii is the Genitive of цай tsai 'tea'. The meaning is thus something like 'tea's leaf'.
(Korean appears thanks to "Hiro".)
(Detailed notes on the chapter can be found at Harry Potter Lexicon)
| ⇚ Chapter 5 |  |