Is it safe inside your head?

[sovay]

I discovered this afternoon that the name of the Japanese folk hero Momotarō does not really mean "Peach Boy." Rather, Tarō is a popular boy's name—which made me think that, if rendered idiomatically into English, Momotarō should be Peach Jack. Then I realized that while "Peach Boy" may not be a strict translation, "Peach Jack" sounds like a species of moonshine. This is why I am not a professional translator from the Japanese.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers' By the Way (2002) is not the album for me to listen to when I'm in a bad mood.

Comments

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Jackie the Peach?

Jack Peach?

No, it just doesn't work, does it?

I guess peaches have a different connotation in Japanese culture. Aren't they symbols of longevity or good fortune of something along those lines.

How about Lucky Jack?

[sovay]

Jackie the Peach?

I think he threatened to break my knees if I didn't pay up once . . .

I guess peaches have a different connotation in Japanese culture. Aren't they symbols of longevity or good fortune of something along those lines.

Hm. In China, peaches are the food of the immortals—sort of like ambrosia or the apples of youth in Norse myth; they are immortal because they eat the peaches—but I don't actually know about Japanese myth. I shall research.

How about Lucky Jack?

That at least sounds like a folk hero's name.