Bibliography

[Gez]

Nguyen is a fairly common chinese name.

And especially common Vietnamese name.

[Krazddndfreek]

Hehe, I think I got that one wrong. I'm so racist.

[Prime32]

I'm going to take a wild guess and say that the other girl is a yuki-onna. Or should that be yuki-shojo?

And especially common Vietnamese name.

Which is probably why she's wearing an aodai.

[Gez]

Hehe, I think I got that one wrong. I'm so racist.

It is Chinese in origin. It's just that it's the single most common family name in Vietnam.

[Mina Kobold]

Nguyen is a fairly common chinese name.

it might be my ignorance on the Chinese language and culture (except the alchemy and really old stuff, but that's general trivia ) but shouldn't "Ng" be impossible with their alphabet?

I might base my guess too much on Japanese, don't judge me

[Maximum Zersk]

it might be my ignorance on the Chinese language and culture (except the alchemy and really old stuff, but that's general trivia ) but shouldn't "Ng" be impossible with their alphabet?

I might base my guess too much on Japanese, don't judge me

Not exactly. Japanese has become it's own language, with it's own phonemes and such.

And they don't mean Ng as in the English "Nn-guh". They mean something like a Voiced Velar Nasal, probably. I'm not sure, I haven't studied any Chinese Language.

And there's no such thing as The Chineses Language. That's like saying The Indian Language.

[Kumo]

it might be my ignorance on the Chinese language and culture (except the alchemy and really old stuff, but that's general trivia ) but shouldn't "Ng" be impossible with their alphabet?

I might base my guess too much on Japanese, don't judge me

"Aside from N, japanese sounds never end in a consonant."

Is that what you were thinking of?

[Gez]

it might be my ignorance on the Chinese language and culture (except the alchemy and really old stuff, but that's general trivia ) but shouldn't "Ng" be impossible with their alphabet?

It's "Yuen" or "Ruan" in Chinese. And in their alphabet, it's 阮.

And yeah, it's supposed to be a velar nasal ŋ, like the "ng" at the end a present participle in English. It's just that in English, this sound is always at the end of a word (and sometimes simplified into an "n"), whereas here it's at the beginning.

Yay wikipedia!

[Mina Kobold]

"Aside from N, japanese sounds never end in a consonant."

Is that what you were thinking of?

Something like that, "Ng" can't be pronounced without a vowel sound between but Japanese (and any Chinese language, I presume) isn't romanised like that and as such it would be impossible to write Ng in Japanese Kanji.

@Zersk: I should probably have said "Chinese language and culture stuff", my bad

I know there's a lot of Chinese languages (Most notably Mandarin) but I was using it as a generic term, bad grammar on my part but still better than using the wrong language.

*Checks what Velar Nasal means on Wikipedia*
Man, phonetics are confusing

EDIT: Lunar'd

@Gez: Groovy, oddly it looks equally cool as Nguyen, Yuen and Ruan which means I will be stealing borrowing those names for something in the near future

[Maximum Zersk]

I'm a Grammar Nazi. I can and will pick up small, seemingly insignificant things in your post.

It's just that Japanese doesn't have the same writing system that we do. By that logic, you shouldn't be able to write Shi. But you can. Because in Japanese, that's a single kana. But Japanese doesn't even have a Ng sound, so that's not the problem.

When you hear sounds in another language, don't think of them with an english alphabet. Think of them with the IPA, or their own alphabet.

[Kumo]

Something like that, "Ng" can't be pronounced without a vowel sound between but Japanese (and any Chinese language, I presume) isn't romanised like that and as such it would be impossible to write Ng in Japanese Kanji.

@Zersk: I should probably have said "Chinese language and culture stuff", my bad

I know there's a lot of Chinese languages (Most notably Mandarin) but I was using it as a generic term, bad grammar on my part but still better than using the wrong language.

*Checks what Velar Nasal means on Wikipedia*
Man, phonetics are confusing

EDIT: Lunar'd

@Gez: Groovy, oddly it looks equally cool as Nguyen, Yuen and Ruan which means I will be stealing borrowing those names for something in the near future

Kanji have one specific meaning, i think you mean katakana or that other writing form whose name i can't recall...

but this is badly off topic

[Maximum Zersk]

Kanji have one specific meaning, i think you mean katakana or that other writing form whose name i can't recall...

I believe you are thinking of Hiragana?

[Zeful]

@Gez: Groovy, oddly it looks equally cool as Nguyen, Yuen and Ruan which means I will be stealing borrowing those names for something in the near future

In Vietnamese it's pronounced "Win".

[Mina Kobold]

It's just that Japanese doesn't have the same writing system that we do. By that logic, you shouldn't be able to write Shi. But you can. Because in Japanese, that's a single kana.

I'm a manga geek, of course I know how Japanese work

I claim that there have to be a vowel between N and G when romanising Kanji and other Japanese alphabets not S and H Just like in spoken English.

The difference between the alphabets (as I see it) is that English the Latin alphabet have letters that are unpronounceable without a vowel-sound while Japanese is more phonetic.

[Maximum Zersk]

I'm a manga geek, of course I know how Japanese work

I claim that there have to be a vowel between N and G when romanising Kanji and other Japanese alphabets not S and H Just like in spoken English.

The difference between the alphabets (as I see it) is that English the Latin alphabet have letters that are unpronounceable without a vowel-sound while Japanese is more phonetic.

True, true. But this conversation should be about the Chinese Syllable System.

Wikipedia says this about the subject.

Syllables consist maximally of an initial consonant, a glide, a vowel, a final, and tone. Not every syllable that is possible according to this rule actually exists in Mandarin, as there are rules prohibiting certain phonemes from appearing with others, and in practice there are only a few hundred distinct syllables.

Meaning that the consonant-vowel order would look something like this:

C(l,r)VC

Or something to that effect.

[Prime32]

Spoiler

Show

[Jokasti]

Benjamin Hewlitt?
Is that to a children's card game or something?

[Kumo]

Spoiler

Show

i don't speak... whatever language you just used

[Maximum Zersk]

Hey, you made one for Bibliography. But you got Eve's last name wrong.

Benjamin Hewlitt?
Is that to a children's card game or something?

No, it's based on the Pactio cards used in Mahou Sensei Negima.

i don't speak... whatever language you just used

Latin.

[Prime32]

Kim seems far more likely to create a Pactio, but there weren't any suitable pictures.

[Jokasti]

Mahou Sensei Negima.

I know... exactly one of those words. Manga/anime or what?

[Sanguine]

Spoiler

Show

Pactio!

Edit:@^Mahou Sensei Negi or Negima is an anime about a ten year old Welsh Mage who travels to japan to teach english in an all girls juinor high school. Hillarity Ensues.

[Maximum Zersk]

I know... exactly one of those words. Manga/anime or what?

Great manga that was made into two horrible Anime and a few okay OVAs.

[Zeful]

I know... exactly one of those words. Manga/anime or what?

Both

That's a TvTropes link, but it's pretty relevant.

[Prime32]

Both

That's a TvTropes link, but it's pretty relevant.

So is this.

[Maximum Zersk]

So is this.

Seriously, MahoSenNegi is the poster boy for Genre Shifts.

[Prime32]

Seriously, MahoSenNegi is the poster boy for Genre Shifts.

Ken Akamatsu: "I'm tired of all these harem comedies, I want to draw this guy fighting this guy."
Editor: "Quiet you. Now give us another harem comedy."
Akamatsu: "But-"
Editor: "No buts."
Akamatsu: "...all right, I'll give you a 'harem comedy'. "
Editor: "Why are you making air quotes?"
Akamatsu: "No reason."

[Maximum Zersk]

*First two volumes come out.*

Editor: Well, this looks good. Now it'll stay this way.

Ken Akamatsu: Yeah, sure. Whatever.

Editor: Why are you making that face?

Ken Akamatsu: What face?

Editor: That face.

Ken Akamatsu: I have no idea what you're talking about.

Editor: Well, okay. Now I am going to look that way and completely ignore what you are going to do with this manga. Oh hey look a bird.

Ken Akamatsu: ...

[Prime32]

???: "All your harem are belong to me."
Protagonist: "No! If only I were stronger!"
???: "Your father was the greatest mage ever who saved the world."
Protagonist: "Then I must train to be just as great, while engaging in epic battles and learning the true meaning of friendship."
???: "You can start with this plot involving martial arts tournaments, time travel and robots."
Kaworu Nagisa: "O hai thar."
Editor: "PRETTY bird!"

[Maximum Zersk]

Kaworu Nagisa: "O hai thar."

*Kitten dies*