When Japanese (Advertisers) Attack!!
I just hope that no Brack People get offended
Hat Tip to Cerberus
God bless Japanese advertising executives. They want to be Americans so bad, they can taste it.
Unfortunately for them, they don't always hire translators that have ever really been exposed to American culture. And what's spawned from this is an abomination called "Japanese-Ingurisshu" (English). Anyone who's ever been in Japan knows exactly what I'm talking about.
A few notables:
"My Life, My Gas" (the Tokyo Gas Company's slogan)
"Pocari Sweat" (a popular sports drink. Get it? 'Fluid of the body'... 'sweat'?)
"Creap" (a coffee creamer)
"Rony Wrinkle" (a condom brand)
"Let's Sports Violent All Day Long" (a completely baffling T-shirt slogan, but I like it!)
"Please take one step forward and crap twice" (a sign in a temple in Tokyo)
"Dirty Water Punishment Place" (How a sewage treatment plant was marked on a Tokyo map)
"Fingering the nothingness that underlies everything" (How a Japanese technical manual referred to a "pointer to void." Pretty Zen-like, huh?).
Anyhow, my good goomba, Cerberus, over at The Gates of Hell, has a hilarious... and a wee bit racy, example of Japanese-Ingurisshu.
With that said... PIECE, OUT!!
I just hope that no Brack People get offended
Hat Tip to Cerberus
God bless Japanese advertising executives. They want to be Americans so bad, they can taste it.
Unfortunately for them, they don't always hire translators that have ever really been exposed to American culture. And what's spawned from this is an abomination called "Japanese-Ingurisshu" (English). Anyone who's ever been in Japan knows exactly what I'm talking about.
A few notables:
"My Life, My Gas" (the Tokyo Gas Company's slogan)
"Pocari Sweat" (a popular sports drink. Get it? 'Fluid of the body'... 'sweat'?)
"Creap" (a coffee creamer)
"Rony Wrinkle" (a condom brand)
"Let's Sports Violent All Day Long" (a completely baffling T-shirt slogan, but I like it!)
"Please take one step forward and crap twice" (a sign in a temple in Tokyo)
"Dirty Water Punishment Place" (How a sewage treatment plant was marked on a Tokyo map)
"Fingering the nothingness that underlies everything" (How a Japanese technical manual referred to a "pointer to void." Pretty Zen-like, huh?).
Anyhow, my good goomba, Cerberus, over at The Gates of Hell, has a hilarious... and a wee bit racy, example of Japanese-Ingurisshu.
With that said... PIECE, OUT!!
posted by Kevin Whiteman at
11:06 AM
2 Comments:
I love Japan. Though I've never been I'm something of a Japan-o-phile by hobby. And it's true. Their rudimentary grasp of "Engrish" really provides for a lot of laughs. It's kind of too bad though b/c the Japanese are really, really intelligent people and often extremely perfectionist by nature. But their constant mistakes in Engrish and seeming lack of care for proper translation kind of makes them look dumb. I mean, I know they aren't dumb--but other westerners taking an outsiders view wouldn't know that. (There are plenty of "gaijin"--foreigners--living in Japan who could help these companies out with the translations!)
A while back, a friend showed me a site called "Engrish.com". You might check to see if it's still available.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home