Template talk:Foreign names

How are we to handle different translations into the same language? Case in point, the page for the Fountain lists its French name as "Salle de bains", which I presume is the name in the PAL version of SMG, because the NTSC French version calls it "la Fontaine". How should one remark both names? Gus 03:34, 23 October 2008 (EDT)
 * Actually, I didn't even know that Mario games are available in different languages in North America. Are there more languages in North American versions (European ones usually offer five languages)? And what about Latin America, do they get Mario games in Spanish and Portuguese or just the English versions? And what is Rosalina named in NTSC French version, Harmonie like in French European version or Rosalina? Uh, to answer your question, I'd just enter both names like done here. --Grandy02 06:11, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

The back of the NTSC Super Mario Galaxy box mentions the game is available in French and Spanish. See here. - 09:08, 23 January 2009 (EST)

French and Spanish in the Americas
It seems that there are more and more French and Spanish names that differ between Europe and the Americas since the versions for the latter region are available in three languages recently. Should we create separate entries for French and Spanish names in the Americas? Just a suggestion, continuing the current way is also fine for me. --Grandy02 09:56, 10 October 2009 (EDT)


 * I went ahead and added this functionality to the template. It seems like a better solution to me, but users who prefer the current system can still use it.  Also, which dialect(s) of Chinese are Mario games released in?  This seems like something we should specify.  11:13, 1 November 2009 (EST)


 * I looked at the game names listed in the iQue article and they all must be in Mandarin; the names don't come out properly in any dialect that preserves final consonants (almost all the others). "Mario" becomes "Ma-lik-au" and "Zelda" becomes "Choi-yi-daat" in Cantonese.  Sarisa 11:19, 10 November 2009 (EST)

Prefix
Why is everything but Dutch the first three letters for the prefix (e.g. Spa=Spanish, Ger=German, Chi=Chinese, etc)? Shouldn't Dutch be "Dut" rather than "Ndl"? --


 * I suppose it's because the Dutch word for Dutch is "Nederlands". But that's not consistent with the prefixes for Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, and German, of course. 15:54, 30 January 2010 (EST)


 * Exactly. Japanese would have to be Nip, German would be Deu, Spanish would be Esp, etc. Thus, I've changed Dutch to "Dut". (I'll fix any articles that use the "Ndl" prefix for the template; although I doubt it's used very often) --

The Example
As the standard way of inserting a Japanese name into the foreignname template is to write the name in Japanese characters after the Jap= followed by the romanisation after JapR=, should the example be changed to reflect this? It currently puts a romanised name after Jap=, which is not how it is normally done unless the correct way of writing the name in Japanese characters is unknown.-vellidragon 19:01, 15 April 2010 (EDT)
 * I changed it. It should show how it is done right for that kind of name. --Grandy02 08:37, 5 June 2010 (EDT)

Brazilian Portuguese
I know somethings in Brazilian Portuguese, but I can't write it because thats in Portugal Portuguese and worse: I can't edit it to add the language. 11:35, 7 September 2011 (EDT)

Traditional and Simplified Chinese
The Traditional Chinese version Mario games is coming out recent years. I want to edit Traditional Chinese name for characters and objects, but I find I must put it with Simplified Chinese. There is a big deal. Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese are using different name and different pronunciation. It should not be put together. So I hope we can create separate entries for it. --NM4000T4 19:55, 22 April 2012 (EDT)


 * People in mainland China and Hong Kong do translation separately. For example, iQue translates Mario as 马力欧 while people in HK translates as 瑪利歐, which are different despite Traditional and Simplified differences. I wonder how many groups of people are doing translation in Chinese-speaking area. Another gossip-loving Toad (talk) 10:22, 31 January 2015 (EST)

Russian Name
Not need a romanized Russian Name? -Odo2718 08:23, 27 May 2012 (EDT)

Interwiki
Someone should add the following to the template:

With this, the template sets the interwiki links to the italien and the german wiki automatically.

The "ItA" and "GerA" is needed, when the name under the "Italien" or "German" section of this template is different from the actual name of the article in the italien or german wiki. For example: The name of the Super Mario World tv series is simply "Super Mario World" so:


 * Ger=Super Mario World

But the actual name of the article to this tv series in the german wiki is "Super Mario World (TV-Serie)" so:


 * GerA=Super Mario World (TV-Serie)

The template shows "Super Mario World" but sets a interwiki link to the actual article "Super Mario World (TV-Serie)"

Sincerly, DarkLuigi (talk) 06:10, 9 October 2012 (EDT)

British and American English
What is about both English variants. For MKWII I know definitely, that some names different, e.g. Sneakster and Nitrocycle. Compare the U and E files of http://szs.wiimm.de/download/bmg/

Another question: What means "NOE"?

Wiimm (talk) 15:59, 8 September 2013 (EDT)
 * "Nintendo of Europe", I guess. SPM KoopaTroopa.png MegaKoopa   Talk  14:09, 31 December 2013 (EST)

Suggested edit.
May I suggest to we use &lt;span class="explain"&gt; for romanisations? For example, instead of

ここは　ヨッシー Koko wa Yosshī Airando

we have instead

ここは　ヨッシー ?

06:07, 27 October 2013 (EDT)


 * I'm sorry but I think we'd better not. Kana don't look familiar to American or European readers, but almost everyone knows Latin alphabet. So I think we might as well lay the romanization on the page to indicate how to read the Japanese. I suggest using  to spell kanji in terms of kana, such as "不思議 fushigi". Another gossip-loving Toad (talk) 21:30, 19 November 2014 (EST)

Other suggestions
I have some suggestions for this:
 * Change the "meaning" header to "meaning and/or etymology";
 * Make the "meaning" column optional (see Earth locations for example);
 * And make it more original rather than just a simple white table.

12:14, 24 August 2014 (EDT)

Use for another Wiki
Well, I can't edit the template, but I want to copy it for an idea for a template like this on my SMG Fanon Wikia. Kirby kart

themushroomkingdom.net
There are lots of Japanese names at themushroomkingdom.net that can be imported to this wiki's "Names in other languages" sections. Can we carry out a plan to import them? If there are people interested and want to do the work, we can maintain a progress chart. It would be too boring for one person to do them all. Another gossip-loving Toad (talk) 07:07, 4 February 2015 (EST)
 * It's probably for the best if any foreign names are added by someone who directly viewed them. Not that TMK isn't considered trustworthy, but it's better if we actually confirm the names before mass-dumping them.
 * Oops, in the past few days I was mass-dumping them, by far the "Items" section and all below of "Paper Mario: From Japanese to English", and I can't confirm most of them. (The ones I can confirm, though, are right.) Maybe some Japanese can do it better, and I'd better stop. Another gossip-loving Toad (talk) 10:15, 4 February 2015 (EST)
 * Personally, I think it's okay to use secondary sources for names as long as we cite them, in case something is wrong. Plus, credit where credit is due: we wouldn't want folks mass-dumping our info without giving us proper credit, after all - that's one step below plagiarism. So I'd say at the very least, go back and cite TMK for all the pages you added Japanese names to. Use this:  (but substituting the correct date, of course). -  11:51, 4 February 2015 (EST)
 * I'm sorry for the delay (I went to the countryside in Ji'an last month and had no Internet access) but I've now finished adding the credit. Also I'm sorry for causing this trouble. I guess this edit should be deleted too. Are there more problems that need to be fixed? Another gossip-loving Toad (talk) 11:32, 24 February 2015 (EST)

Russian romanization
Currently these pages have Russian but lack romanizations. Can someone add them? Another gossip-loving Toad (talk) 09:47, 15 August 2015 (EDT)
 * Done. (I was using Google Translate, wikipedia:WP:RUS and Wiktionary for the romanizations.)  00:01, 20 May 2016 (EDT)

Hungarian support
Add Hun (Hungarian) to the language list. Currently Fire Sale's "names in other languages" section has a Hun row included, which is still not visible. 13:58, 2 September 2015 (EDT)

Hebrew support
I know the only Mario production to be translated/dubbed into Hebrew is The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, but it should still be added anyway. RaguRando (talk) 14:18, 13 September 2015 (EDT)
 * It's been added. --Glowsquid (talk) 15:14, 13 September 2015 (EDT)
 * Thank you! RaguRando (talk) 15:58, 13 September 2015 (EDT)

Compatibility with the mobile skin
I was using the mobile skin and found that this template uses the "infobox" class instead of a "wikitable" class. This makes the table aligned due right. I would like you to change that. And if the style was changed after that, add a "other-languages" class (or id) and configure it with CSS. Thanks. －&thinsp; yhynerson1 ( talk,  contribs )  19:10, 13 November 2015 (EST)
 * Please go through this problem as soon as possible. －&thinsp; yhynerson1 ( talk,  contribs )  09:21, 14 November 2015 (EST)
 * Is it serviceable now? - 12:30, 14 November 2015 (EST)
 * I've just checked. It looks perfect. Thanks. －&thinsp; yhynerson1 ( talk,  contribs )  22:38, 14 November 2015 (EST)

Scandinavia
Could someone please add Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish to this template as there already are at least one page using that parameter and I intend to watch the animated shows dubbed in those languages and add their names for stuff. -- R alts eye prata med mej 19:39, 14 September 2017 (EDT) EDIT: I realized I said this in the middle of a bulk edit, so I'll ping it now that it's lesser edits and therefore a bigger chance of someone seeing it. -- R alts eye prata med mej 08:03, 15 September 2017 (EDT)
 * Wait there's no language called Scandinavic :P I just wanted you to add the Scandinavic languages (Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish) :S -- R alts eye prata med mej 09:17, 15 September 2017 (EDT)
 * time to smell the coffee --Glowsquid (talk) 09:56, 15 September 2017 (EDT)
 * Happy smellin -- R alts eye prata med mej 10:05, 15 September 2017 (EDT)
 * IT SEEMS THAT THE TEMPLATE IS ONLY FOR NAMES THAT APPEAR IN OFFICIAL LOCALIZATIONS, WHICH DON'T EXIST IN THE SCANDINAVIAN LANGUAGES, AS FAR AS I KNOW. 05:02, 5 November 2017 (EST)
 * Please don't use all caps. The template is for all medias including dubs, official websites, and all other medias. -- R alts eye prata med mej 16:27, 5 November 2017 (EST)

Japanese names written in English
As you can see from the Mario Playing Cards, in Japanese there are quite a few names written in English which do not exactly correspond to the Romanization of the Japanese name (as an example, Koopa is not the proper romanization of 「クッパ」, Kameck is not the proper romanization of 「カメック」, not to talk about the names of the Koopalings, Bullet Bill and Birdo which clearly are English names rather than romanized Japanese names), should we add a JapE entry for them so we can list them along with the Japanese names written in Katakana or should we just use the Jap entry?--Mister Wu (talk) 10:22, 15 September 2017 (EDT)

Czech, Hungarian, and Polish
Could someone add these languages please? Princess Peach is given a local name in the Super Mario Odyssey pages; (also, T-Rex) -- R alts eye prata med mej 09:49, 7 December 2017 (EST) Please, someone?
 * cz
 * hu
 * pl


 * Czech and Polish have been added, although it looks like Hungarian's already there. 21:51, 8 December 2017 (EST)
 * Thanks! -- R alts eye prata med mej 05:22, 9 December 2017 (EST)

Separating Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese
I see that in the template, American and European French and Spanish can be accepted as separate entries by the template if they're different. A lot of S. Chinese names are also different from T. Chinese names, but we have to separate them manually. Can S and T Chinese be added to the template just like A and E French/Spanish? ChiS/ChiSR/ChiSM and ChiT/ChiTR/ChiTM should be good for the purpose. H.N.K. 12:19, 3 January 2019 (GMT+8)

5 New Languages
Although each one has only been used for one or two things, they still have each been officially used.

Galician: | Saturday Supercade

Thai: | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3

Slovenian: | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3

Greek: | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3

Arabic: | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and | Super Mario World (the TV show)

Grandet Omate (talk) 11:21, August 11, 2020 (EDT)
 * Back on this I would also recommend adding Indonesian: | SMBSS and Slovak: | Nintendo official website (might be Czech, better to look into before adding). Also I was apparently too blind to notice that Greek is already there, so need to add that. Also with the creation of several of the Galician SS episode related stuff, such as Belinda, it would be good to have that soon. I only speak English and Spanish, but I’m sure someone will be able to use those languages. I also found 2 WP articles for Mario in Belarusian and Ukraine, but I don’t know how true those are.

Grandet Omate (talk) 00:14, October 5, 2020 (EDT)

Literal translation
As there isn't an official rule/guideline about whether or not to use "literal translation" (or a variation thereof) (and if so, how to use it), I suggest that we make one.

Proposer: Deadline: November 24, 2020, 23:59 GMT

Use "literal translation" to refer to the English name

 * 1) Well, this is an English wiki, and a casual reader would logically assume that it's referring to the English name. And yes, I know that the vast majority of Mario games were originally in Japanese, and that localisers use the Japanese version instead of the English version as the base (although that wasn't always the case (no rhyme intended)). But localisers seem to at least have some inspiration from the English version. Or is it just coincidence that some localised names just happen to be translations of the English name?

Instead of "literal translation", use some other non-repeating wording

 * 1) Second preferred option. Yes, I fully admit that "literal translation" is vague wording, and should instead be clearer - something along the lines of "translation of the English/Japanese name".

Don't use "literal translation" at all

 * 1) I always found it vague and confusing, and I think the logic also applies to the readers. We shouldn't be lazy for the sake of being lazy.
 * 2) I'd just do away with this entirely. I never really liked it and the first option is actively misleading, and the second option isn't always obvious.
 * 3) We normally don't allow these kind of translations anyway.
 * 4) Per Toadette. The fact that so many editors have been confused over its usage for so long to the point that this proposal had to be made is probably a good indication we should do away with it altogether.
 * 5) Per all.
 * 6) Yep, per all. Just write out the meaning as the header says.
 * 7) Per all.
 * 8) Per all.
 * 9) My preferred option. It's not always obvious with some games whether English or Japanese is the original language the games were developed in.
 * 10) See my comment below
 * 11) Per proposal.
 * 12) That is very confusing. Also per all.

Comments
I'd never really thought about it, but now that it's been brought up, I've suddenly realised how vague the term is (to be perfectly honest, I thought it meant something completely different to what everyone else here does), so I think that unless we can properly clarify the meaning and potentially make large-scale changes to the affected pages, the simplest thing to do is just take the term out of circulation entirely. Also, as Archivist Toadette said, the use of these literal translations borders on laziness anyway. 04:26, November 15, 2020 (EST)

All Languages needed
I made this a new section since it doesn’t really fit under "5 languages" anymore. Here is a list of all missing languages:


 * Arabic: TAOSMB3 and SMW TV show (needs romanization section)
 * Galician: Saturday Supercade (needed for Belinda)
 * Greek: TAOSMB3 (needs romanization section)
 * Malay: SMBSS
 * Slovak: LEGO Mario app
 * Slovene: TAOSMB3
 * Thai: TAOSMB3 (needs romanization section)
 * Turkish: LEGO Mario app
 * Ukrainian: LEGO Mario app (needs romanization section)

Please don’t ignore me like everyone always does.

Grandet Omate (talk) 09:42, January 8, 2021 (EDT)
 * Yeah, I think that's reasonable. 10:30, January 8, 2021 (EST)

All Languages Needed (Revised)
I have a list of every official language that needs to be added now:
 * Arabic: Super Mario (needs romanization section)
 * Croatian: Super Mario World
 * Estonian: Lego.com
 * Greek: The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World (needs romanization section)
 * Indonesian: The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
 * Latvian: Lego.com
 * Lithuanian: Lego.com
 * Slovak: Lego.com and Nintendo.com
 * Slovenian: The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
 * Thai: The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (needs romanization section)
 * Turkish: LEGO Mario app
 * Ukrainian: LEGO Mario app (needs romanization section)

It didn’t feel right to respond to another user with, so I made it a new section. Grandet Omate (talk) 14:05, April 20, 2021 (EDT)

Talked in North or Latin America?
I'm a bit upset with a part of this template. You see, the sections for French and Spanish have 2 variants: NOA (North American) and NOE (European): I'm OK with the French language in that respect (obviously, because of Canada's french inside Quebec), but with Spanish I'm not OK. I mean, in The Americas, Spanish is mainly talked in South America and Mexico and they form, alongside Brazil and French Guiana, what's called Latin America, and the people who live there are around 600.000.000, as opposed to the 40.000.000 people who live in the USA and speak Spanish alongside English. Then, why did the template's creator chose to call that variation "NOA" Spanish when most people that speak Spanish in The Americas don't live in the US?

--LEGOGames1000 (talk) 13:00, May 9, 2021 (EDT)
 * I believe in this case that NOE and NOA stand for Nintendo of Europe and Nintendo of America respectively. If I'm remembering correctly, as far as I know Nintendo of America handles translations for Latin America and South America as well as North America. So I think the template is referring to the translation by Nintendo of America, not the translation for North America. Someone else can correct me on this if I'm wrong though. BBQ Turtle (talk) 13:09, May 9, 2021 (EDT)

Order
Instead of alphabetical order, how about an order that makes more sense, such as age/importance, sort of like how SmashWiki does it. My proposed order: Japanese --> French --> German --> Spanish --> Italian --> Dutch --> Chinese --> Korean --> Russian --> Portuguese --> everything else. RickTommy (talk) 20:26, June 9, 2021 (EDT)
 * I'd personally put Spanish above French, but this seems like a good order. I do wonder why this was changed. 21:42, June 13, 2021 (EDT)
 * It was changed because the list was getting long and for tables with many languages, it wasn't intuitive for a new reader to find the language they're looking for. -- 22:49, June 13, 2021 (EDT)

Official guide on when to list certain translations
Hi, I have always been confused on what the rules/preferred way is. For stuff like game titles it seems like we only list translations that are either in a different writing style (JP/CN/KR) and languages where the title is the same (usually FR/ES/DE etc...) arent listed even if the game supports said languages. Super Mario Odyssey as an example. Yet other stuff such as enemies have languages where the name of the thing is the same still listed ( Goomba as an example). Is it literally just video game titles that don't list the "redundant" languages or is it something else? and is this rule mentioned anywhere or did it kind of just happen? - Zachruff (talk) 23:56, December 22, 2021 (EST)

Icelandic, Malay
Could someone add Icelandic? This is needed since The Super Mario Bros. Movie is being translated into these languages. -- R alts eye prata med mej 08:40, October 13, 2022 (EDT)

Please add Serbian
It is officially now known that The Super Mario Bros. Movie will be dubbed into Serbian. Could you please add this Serbo-Croatian language variety to the template? The only other Serbo-Croatian standardized variant that's currently represented is Croatian. Zakawer2 (talk) 12:22, November 30, 2022 (EST)