Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsura Sugiru
- Thread starter MangaDex
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Thanks for translating this manga. Thankfully, it's funny, cute, short and sweet. The author has a real challenge ahead. I'm looking forward to seeing how this unfolds.
It's hard for young people to navigate Okinawa identity. Unlike most innocent boys from Tokyo, kids in Okinawa aren't born Tokyo-Japanese: they're born into a cross-cultural struggle. For this boy, his love interest speaks a difficult Japanese dialect. @Kurausukun, for Okinawa locals and linguists, these Ryukyu Islands are home to six or so local endangered languages distinct from Japanese (Yonaguni, Ishigaki, Miyako, Shuri, Nago, & Amami). The differences are not just accents, emphases, or a few words; these languages are not mutually intelligible. The oldest lingua franca in Okinawa might have been Shuri or Chinese, but now it's Japanese.
These local languages are a reminder that the Ryukyu Islands' kings had to fight to unite the islands' diverse residents under one government, creating a multilingual kingdom. That these languages are called Japanese or Japonic dialects results from Japan's colonial period. As is often said, "a language is a dialect with an army." Leaders in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Kanagawa decided the Ryukyu Kingdom could be a Japanese asset, and conquered the islands, first in 1609, and then completely in 1872. The United States even took a turn, after WW2, with the U.S. military governing the islands from 1946-1972. Decades of mistreatment and Japan's Peace Constitution made locals riot, thinking reverting to Japan would make the American bases close - it didn't.
Growing up in Okinawa means choosing an identity, if you can. You can try to emulate Tokyo, but your skin might by too dark to pull off Yamato Nadeshiko or the look of a manga protagonist. It's not fun to aim for almost Japanese. You can aim for gyaru and join the Japanese counterculture, but the roots are different, so grounding yourself might mean at least trying to learn your ancestral language, like Kana in this manga. You can try, like the love interest in this manga, to embrace your heritage, but people who don't know your language won't understand you (that's the vast majority of people).
As you can see, I disagree with the term "dialect" as applied here. It reiterates a colonial understanding, but it reflects important realities. From a Tokyo boy's perspective, probably all of these variations on Japanese are dialects. Even some Japanese scholars, Hiroshi Honma, for example, have written that "Okinawa has always been part of Japan" but that's only true in the sense that Hawaii has always been part of America, or Scotland has always been British. The conquerors replaced their native names, so technically it's simultaneously correct and deeply misleading.
There's another reality it represents too: like the characters in this manga, Okinawa residents typically pepper their Japanese with Ryukyu words and phrases as a kind of compromise, so young people and non-Okinawans will understand. Add to that the reluctance of schools and some local parents to teach their ancestral languages, because it's not necessarily a career asset. In doing so, some residents treat their languages like dialects, so it's natural for someone visiting to think "this is a difficult dialect" not, "why didn't I study French before visiting France?"
It's hard for young people to navigate Okinawa identity. Unlike most innocent boys from Tokyo, kids in Okinawa aren't born Tokyo-Japanese: they're born into a cross-cultural struggle. For this boy, his love interest speaks a difficult Japanese dialect. @Kurausukun, for Okinawa locals and linguists, these Ryukyu Islands are home to six or so local endangered languages distinct from Japanese (Yonaguni, Ishigaki, Miyako, Shuri, Nago, & Amami). The differences are not just accents, emphases, or a few words; these languages are not mutually intelligible. The oldest lingua franca in Okinawa might have been Shuri or Chinese, but now it's Japanese.
These local languages are a reminder that the Ryukyu Islands' kings had to fight to unite the islands' diverse residents under one government, creating a multilingual kingdom. That these languages are called Japanese or Japonic dialects results from Japan's colonial period. As is often said, "a language is a dialect with an army." Leaders in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Kanagawa decided the Ryukyu Kingdom could be a Japanese asset, and conquered the islands, first in 1609, and then completely in 1872. The United States even took a turn, after WW2, with the U.S. military governing the islands from 1946-1972. Decades of mistreatment and Japan's Peace Constitution made locals riot, thinking reverting to Japan would make the American bases close - it didn't.
Growing up in Okinawa means choosing an identity, if you can. You can try to emulate Tokyo, but your skin might by too dark to pull off Yamato Nadeshiko or the look of a manga protagonist. It's not fun to aim for almost Japanese. You can aim for gyaru and join the Japanese counterculture, but the roots are different, so grounding yourself might mean at least trying to learn your ancestral language, like Kana in this manga. You can try, like the love interest in this manga, to embrace your heritage, but people who don't know your language won't understand you (that's the vast majority of people).
As you can see, I disagree with the term "dialect" as applied here. It reiterates a colonial understanding, but it reflects important realities. From a Tokyo boy's perspective, probably all of these variations on Japanese are dialects. Even some Japanese scholars, Hiroshi Honma, for example, have written that "Okinawa has always been part of Japan" but that's only true in the sense that Hawaii has always been part of America, or Scotland has always been British. The conquerors replaced their native names, so technically it's simultaneously correct and deeply misleading.
There's another reality it represents too: like the characters in this manga, Okinawa residents typically pepper their Japanese with Ryukyu words and phrases as a kind of compromise, so young people and non-Okinawans will understand. Add to that the reluctance of schools and some local parents to teach their ancestral languages, because it's not necessarily a career asset. In doing so, some residents treat their languages like dialects, so it's natural for someone visiting to think "this is a difficult dialect" not, "why didn't I study French before visiting France?"
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Yeah, this kind of thing happens unfortunately frequently. Even moreso given that Japanese "standard" dialect is taught everywhere, no matter what your native accent is, as the de facto accent you should be using in any professional capacity. This kind of thing seems to happen a lot to smaller languages--you brought up Scotland as an example, and both Scottish and Irish Gaelic are hemorrhaging speakers. The situation is similar with Welsh, etc., and of course the Ryukyuan languages. In the specific case of Okinawan, though, I can see it being a more political move--by saying that it's a dialect instead of its own language, you can claim that it's still Japanese.
Double-page supporter
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This art styles looks familiar...hentai level familiar
Dex-chan lover
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Most think the black girl will end up with MC. But i could see mile away she turn out to be wingman instead of love interest. MC will end up with blonde. Mark my work !
The blonde girl will lose because black hair girl is describe in the tittle ? but why i see as more chapters release, MC learn more about the blonde girl. While all we learn about the crush is still the same bright and cheerful girl. Man, The flag is quite oblivious
@VeJJ i guess no raw available
The blonde girl will lose because black hair girl is describe in the tittle ? but why i see as more chapters release, MC learn more about the blonde girl. While all we learn about the crush is still the same bright and cheerful girl. Man, The flag is quite oblivious
@VeJJ i guess no raw available
Fed-Kun's army
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People who complain about missing chapters definitely did not read the translator notes.
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Thanks for your thoughtful comments, @Kurausukun. Yours have been nice and concise.
I suspect the decline of Welsh, with Irish and Scottish Gaelic shares a lot of common political and economic aspects with the decline of Ryukyuan languages. There's a lot of humor devoted to treating Scots like their English is a difficult dialect, but so far, this manga has seemed more respectful than I expected.
Hopefully, it stays light, and keeps showing a way learning a local language isn't really a handicap; it can open up new meaning and understanding.
I suspect the decline of Welsh, with Irish and Scottish Gaelic shares a lot of common political and economic aspects with the decline of Ryukyuan languages. There's a lot of humor devoted to treating Scots like their English is a difficult dialect, but so far, this manga has seemed more respectful than I expected.
There was the comic scene about the Higa's, but mostly it's seemed innocent so far.
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Correct, it just got announced.
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this manga have already about 70 chapters, but noone want to translate it
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