Chapter 13: Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw
| Simplified Chinese (Mandarin: China) | ||
| 格兰芬多对拉文克劳 Gélánfēnduō duì Lāwénkèláo |
格兰芬多
Gélánfēnduō = 'Gryffindor'. 对 duì = 'versus'. 拉文克劳 Lāwénkèláo = 'Ravenclaw'. |
Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw |
| Traditional Chinese (Mandarin: Taiwan) | ||
| 葛來分多對戰雷文克勞 Géláifēnduō duìzhàn Léiwénkèláo |
葛來分多
Géláifēnduō = 'Gryffindor'. 對戰 duìzhàn = 'versus'. 雷文克勞 Léiwénkèláo = 'Ravenclaw'. |
Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw |
| Japanese | ||
| グリフィンドール対レイブンクロー Gurifindōru tai Reibunkurō |
グリフィンドール
Gurifindōru = 'Gryffindor'. 対 tai = 'versus'. レイブンクロー Reibunkurō = 'Ravenclaw'. |
Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw |
| Korean | ||
| 그리핀도르 대 래번클로 Geulipindoleu dae Laebeonkeullo |
그리핀도르 Geulipindoleu = 'Gryffindor'. 대 (對) dae = 'versus'. 래번클로 Laebeonkeullo = 'Ravenclaw'. |
Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw |
| Vietnamese (Chinese characters show etymology) | ||
| Gryffindor đấu với Ravenclaw | Gryffindor
(pronunciation: Rip-phin-đo). đấu (鬥) = 'fight'. với = 'with'. Ravenclaw (pronunciation: Ra-ven-lo). |
Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw |
| Mongolian (new) | ||
| Гриффиндор Рэйвенклогийн эсрэг Griffindor Reivenklogiin esreg |
Гриффиндор Griffindor = 'Griffindor'. Рэйвенкло Reivenklo = 'Ravenclaw' (-гийн -giin Genitive form). эсрэг esreg = 'against, versus'. |
Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw |
This refers to a Quidditch match. Translators follow ordinary sporting terminology.
How is 'versus' translated?
The method of expressing 'versus' differs from language to language (and translation to translation).
- Chinese (Mainland), Japanese, and Korean all use the same form etymologically: 对 duì (Chinese), 対 tai (Japanese), 대 (對) dae (Korean). The meaning of 對 / 对 / 対 is ' against, directed at, counter to'.
- The Chinese translation from Taiwan uses the form 對戰 duìzhàn, literally 'battle against'. This form appears to be common in Taiwan.
- Vietnamese uses the separate expression đấu với, literally 'fight with'.
- The Mongolian translation uses a form common in describing sporting events whereby the first team's name is given as is, the second team's name is in the genitive, and 'vs' is rendered as эсрэг esreg 'against, counter to, opposed to'. The literal meaning is roughly 'Griffindor-Ravenclaw's opposing'.
How are 'Griffindor' and 'Ravenclaw' translated?
Although the English names of houses often carry a meaning -- for example, Ravenclaw is clearly 'claw of the raven' -- all our languages use phonetic renditions or transliterations of the sound, as shown in the following table:
| English | Gryffindor | Ravenclaw |
| Chinese (Mainland) | 格兰芬多 Gélánfēnduō | 拉文克劳 Lāwénkèláo |
| Chinese (Taiwan) | 葛來分多 Géláifēnduō | 雷文克勞 Léiwénkèláo |
| Japanese | グリフィンドール Gurifindōru | レイブンクロー Reibunkurō |
| Korean | 그리핀도르 Geulipindoleu | 래번클로 Laebeonkeullo |
| Vietnamese | Gryffindor (Rip-phin-đo) | Ravenclaw (Ra-ven-lo) |
| Mongolian | Гриффиндор Griffindor | Рэйвенкло Reivenklo |
The Mainland Chinese translation diverges somewhat from the English pronunciation.
Both the Japanese and Korean translations end 'Gryffindor' with an 'r' sound (-ドール -dōru, 도르 -doleu). In a normal transliteration from the English, there would not be a final 'r'. The attempt to reproduce the 'r' suggests that the translators may have regarded the name as 'non-English' in nature.
The suggested Vietnamese pronunciations are footnotes from the original instalments. When the book was published as a single volume, the footnotes disappeared.
For the meanings of 'Gryffindor' and 'Ravenclaw' and further explanation, see Names of People and Places ('Houses and their Founders').
(Korean appears thanks to "Hiro".)
(Detailed notes on the chapter can be found at Harry Potter Lexicon)
| ⇚ Chapter 12 |  |