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Disney in Other Languages

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Disney in Other Languages
froggerway

froggerway

nobody cared then
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Why is this pin called "Rox" in French? When I use Google translate, it tells me the french word for fox is "renard". So what is Rox? I thought maybe it was a version of Tod but the matching pin Rouky translates to Hound. I also noticed that they have the Thumper pin listed as Panpan but again, the translator says the direct translation from English to French would be Batteur.

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Have you noticed this with other characters and other languages, where the translations seem a bit askew? Not just from English--> other language, but from other language-->English.
 
Well, I do know that "Chip and Dale" are called "Tic and Tac" in French. I don't think that's a literal translation by any means, it's just the names those characters were given in France.
 
Because historically, translations of Disney film titles and characters were not always literal. Nowadays, Rapunzel stays Rapunzel and Ariel stays Ariel, no matter what country the film is shown in. But in the past, names were altered to either make more sense to the non-English audience or to make them easier to pronounce. Remember, we didn't always have an Interweb or even international TV to help people become familiar with other languages, and English wasn't as widely spoken/heard/understood! (We take so much for granted these days, even though we know it wasn't always like this. This is one of those lingering indicators of the times in which these films were created.)

I have no idea where "Rox" came from, but here's an interesting blog post from an Italian Disney fan (in English) that shows you how many character names from older Disney films were changed for the Italian market:

http://mycornerofitaly.com/disney-characters-in-italian/

The Seven Dwarves are particularly interesting, since the chosen Italian names convey the same idea as the English names (mostly) but are certainly not literal translations. Edit: I totally get where the blogger is coming from. When I was in the Disney Store in Florence in, like, 2004, all the Dwarf plushes had their Italian names embroidered on their hats. Mind. Blown. Who knew that Dopey isn't just Dopey everywhere? But back in the day, he was christened Cucciolo. Nowadays, most folks familiar with the English-language version would know "Dopey" but back then, nope.

If anyone deciphers where "Rox" came from, please share. Ha.
 
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unibear said:
Well, I do know that "Chip and Dale" are called "Tic and Tac" in French. I don't think that's a literal translation by any means, it's just the names those characters were given in France.
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Ohhh, I remember seeing that awhile ago. It made me laugh and honestly, if the English names were Tic and Tac, too, it'd be just as cute as Chip and Dale, imo. :D

Addicted to Alice Pins said:
Because historically, translations of Disney film titles and characters were not always literal. Nowadays, Rapunzel stays Rapunzel and Ariel stays Ariel, no matter what country the film is shown in. But in the past, names were altered to either make more sense to the non-English audience or to make them easier to pronounce. Remember, we didn't always have an Interweb or even international TV to help people become familiar with other languages, and English wasn't as widely spoken/heard/understood! (We take so much for granted these days, even though we know it wasn't always like this. This is one of those lingering indicators of the times in which these films were created.)

I have no idea where "Rox" came from, but here's an interesting blog post from an Italian Disney fan (in English) that shows you how many character names from older Disney films were changed for the Italian market:

http://mycornerofitaly.com/disney-characters-in-italian/

The Seven Dwarves are particularly interesting, since the chosen Italian names convey the same idea as the English names (mostly) but are certainly not literal translations. Edit: I totally get where the blogger is coming from. When I was in the Disney Store in Florence in, like, 2004, all the Dwarf plushes had their Italian names embroidered on their hats. Mind. Blown. Who knew that Dopey isn't just Dopey everywhere? But back in the day, he was christened Cucciolo. Nowadays, most folks familiar with the English-language version would know "Dopey" but back then, nope.

If anyone deciphers where "Rox" came from, please share. Ha.
Click to expand...

That's a great piece of information, thanks for posting it. :) And I agree, for Rox or any of the Disney characters, if anyone has seen articles like this, please post them.

I know translations aren't always literal, usually an element of cultural slang is involved, but I needed to start somewhere. Panpan (Thumper's French name) is cute, too, cause in my mind I hear "Bambam" which is kind of close to a thumping sound. :lol:
 
Reynard is already the name of a fox from fables, so they might not have been able to use the name, or they my have wanted to change the name to keep it distinct so audiences wouldn't think this was a Reynard tale. Robin Hood was actually originally supposed to be a Reynard movie, so that may also be part of the reason.
 
timeerkat said:
Reynard is already the name of a fox from fables, so they might not have been able to use the name, or they my have wanted to change the name to keep it distinct so audiences wouldn't think this was a Reynard tale. Robin Hood was actually originally supposed to be a Reynard movie, so that may also be part of the reason.
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Was Disney's Robin Hood then altered somehow in France from the English version, names or character types? In Zootopia, is Nick Wilde still Nick Wilde?
 
Robin Hood is Robin des Bois in French. As far as Google translate tells me, des Bois means Woodland (makes sense, since he lives in Sherwood Forest) but the phrase Robin des Bois translates directly to Robin Hood.

Nick Wilde is still Nick Wilde in French (but Zootopia is Zootopie, and it's Zootropolis in other parts of the world like the UK).
 
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Goofy is called Dingo in France, Rapunzel is Raiponce and in Dutch we have different names for the characters too. Cinderella is Assepoester, Snow White is Sneeuwitje, Dopey is Stoetel, Fox and hound is Frank en Frey Cheshire cat is kolderkat, Mad hatter is gekke hoedemaker and I could go on and on lol
 
Rox is most likely a play on roux, the french word for red. Fitting for a red fox, no? Keep in mind, early transliterations were basically changing storybook character names match language counterparts, otherwise making an awkward sounding "American" name into something more recognizable or easier to pronounce in another...
 
SoraPandora said:
Captain Hook is Captain Crochet in France, which I find hilarious. I get that "crochet" means "hook" there, but I just can't get the image of Hook knitting by the fire out of my mind.
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LOL!!! Well, hey, it probably gets boring on that ship waiting around for whenever Peter Pan gets back to Neverland, LOL!
 
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