Pikipedia:Japanese: Difference between revisions

The [[Pikmin series|''Pikmin'' games]] are developed by [[Nintendo EAD]], in Japan. The main game [[region]] is, hence, Japan. Because Pikipedia is an English wiki, its [[Pikipedia:Canon policy|canon]] focuses mostly on the US version of the games. However, Pikipedia includes some information from the Japanese version of the games, specially considering that besides the language, few major regional differences exist. One of the most common bits of Japanese info on Pikipedia is the name of some subjects as they are known in Japan. In order to have that information, Pikipedia pages may contain characters in Japanese, followed by a Romanization and a translation to English.

The {{tem|J}} template should be used for such purposes. In articles, the Japanese name is normally placed on the opening paragraph, right next to the name of the subject on said paragraph, as well as on a "Names in other languages" section.

Romanization (also known as rōmaji or romaji) is the act of writing Kanji or Kana using Latin letters, making it easier to read and pronounce them for readers who cannot understand Japanese characters. There are several types of romanization, such as [[Wikipedia:Hepburn romanization|Hepburn romanization]] or [[Wikipedia:JSL romanization|JSL romanization]]. While Pikipedia has no defined romanization style, all of the romanized text is found in Hepburn. It is also quite normal to use the one provided by [http://translate.google.com Google Translate]; the "あ" button must be pressed to enable romanization output.

==Japanese names and common names==

In regards to enemies, the Japanese name that appears in the first sentence of every article refers to the creature's {{j|通称|Tsuushou}} meaning "common name" or "nickname"; this is the name used in the [[enemy reel]]'s video titles, the [[Piklopedia]]'s entry titles, the [[lock-on]] titles, and the [[Hey! Pikmin logs|log]] entry titles.  

Another name that the Japanese releases of the games have is {{j|和名|wamei}}, which translates to "''Japanese name''", but has a meaning more similar to the English "technical name". In the overseas releases of {{p1}} the Japanese name is absent and in {{p2}} and {{hp}}, the Japanese name is replaced with the scientific name of the creatures in the [[Piklopedia]] entries.  

For Example: the [[Watery Blowhog]]'s common name in the Japanese version of {{p2}} is {{j|ミズブタ|Mizu Buta|Water Pig|f=tp}}. This is the term that appears in the first sentence of every enemy article. From reading [[Olimar's notes]], one can see that its {{j|和名|wamei}} ("''Japanese name''") is {{j|ヒフキブタドックリ（水吐変種）|Hifuki Buta Dokkuri (Mizuhaki Henshu)|Fire Breather Tokkuri (water spitting variant)|f=tp}}.

In Pikipedia you will find the Japanese name in the "Other information" section of every enemy article.

** Sometimes, you can replace the likes of "To", "Tu", "Ta", etc. with "Do", "Du", "Da", and vice-versa. Example: "Dama" doesn't make sense for the [[Beady Long Legs]], although Tama ("ball") does. "K" and "G" also work (e.g. "gumo" and "kumo", on the enemy's internal name).

* Check if some words aren't meant to be translated. If the translator capitalizes a word or insists that that is the translation for what you want, try searching on the web for the definition of that word. It might be a common object, action, etc. in Japan that has no foreign name. Example: [[Wikipedia:Sake set#Server|Tokkuri]] ([[Puffy Blowhog]]).

* Consider puns and word merges. It might be possible that the word you're looking for is actually a pun between two words, something not-uncommon in the series, even in the English releases (e.g. [[Bulbmin]]). Try cutting a romanized word into two where it seems likely, and make the first word end with the same letter as the second one begins. Example: The [[Female Sheargrub]]'s romanized Japanese name is "ujinko". This is actually a combination of "uji" ("maggot") and "inko" ("parrot").