Talk:Narunosuke

Narunosuke's Kanji
According to this image from ep. 262 these are the kanji used in his name: 鳴之助. Their meanings are, as far as I could ascertain: 鳴 = naru (verb: to become or to bear fruit) 之 = no (as far as I've gathered this is the same as the 'no' from Sōgyo no Kotowari and the likes) and 助 = suke (same as in Wabisuke (侘助) and meaning help). I think it's safe enough to add the Kanji, but It's gonna need a bigger authority than me to decide what the proper translation is. Weedefinition  (Talk)  23:41, March 25, 2010 (UTC)

Perhaps it could translate to "The Becoming One"? It could refer to his slow transformation into a Toju. Maggosh 01:39, March 26, 2010 (UTC)

Hi! Well, thanks for asking for help, but actually I can't read Kanji... at all. What I know is from Wiktionary lol. The Kanji meanings I got from there are 鳴 = naru (cry of bird or animal/make sound) 之 = no (him,her,them, I'm guessing him in this case) 助 = suke (indeed, same as in Wabisuke, help, aid, assist) how this add together is beyond me, you should ask Adam Restling, he's the one who usually resolves the Kanji controversies and stuff. Lia Schiffer 20:57, March 26, 2010 (UTC)


 * I'll do that, thanx! Weedefinition   (Talk)  22:01, March 26, 2010 (UTC)

Please don't fret about asking my help :) . This is the kind of thing I'm interested in. Though on occasion I find myself thinking I lack the time for a quality reply at the moment, or that it will take some length to give this quality response, I am compelled by my interest (sometimes to the detriment of my sleep XD) to help if I can.

Lia got a lot of it correct:

鳴 naru

"(Re)sound, ring (e.g. a bell); echo; roar, rumble" (intransitive verb); the more-exclusive association with animal sounds seems to have worn down in Japanese usage.

之 no

One of the archaic ways to write the genitive particle. The word is so common that nowadays it's almost always just written の (in hiragana) or ノ (in katakana), except when used in names, as here. The genitive particle is also used extensively to turn nouns into adjectives, e.g. mirai "future" (noun) + no > mirai no "future" (adj.) in a phrase like mirai no kuruma "future/futuristic car." Cf. the discussion in the Sode no Shirayuki talk. Note that other languages use the genitive or similar constructions in the same way, e.g. Greek-derived geography "earth (adj.) graphing (verbal noun)" < geos, the genitive of ge "earth."

助 suke

"Aid(e)," often used as a name element, just like suffixes such as English -win or -vin "friend" in Melvin, Irwin, Edwin. Cf. also the discussion of it in the Wabisuke talk. As cited in that discussion, the most apt translation of -suke as a suffixal name element is uncertain, as it's so common many may pay it little more mind then they do the English -win/-vin above. Thus, perhaps, as I suggested for Wabisuke, the original meaning of -suke here should be downplayed, too.

Thus, I would suggest translating Narunosuke as "resounding" or "resounder" instead of something like "resounding aide/help," because the original, more lit. meaning of -suke would seem slightly strange as the name of a Toujuu. Then again, it could have merit (even a Toujuu wouldn't want a name that means like "I'm-a-jerk" XD), so I guess you all can judge what you deem best based on my data above :).

FYI, the naru that means "bear fruit" you cited is spelled 生る (rooted in 生 "life, growth"). Other verbs read naru can mean "become, come to consist of, be (of the nature or substance) of," including in suffixal form -nari "-form(ed)" (< "made to have/possess the nature of"). These tend to be written with one of the "to be" or copula root Kanji, such as 為る or 成る. Adam Restling 10:12, March 27, 2010 (UTC)