Released on 2014 Feb. 26th, included in the first album.
Lyric: BLACK BABYMETAL / Music: BLACK BABYMETAL / Arr.: tatsuo, KxBxMETAL
This song is made and sung by MOAMETAL (R ch) & YUIMETAL (L ch).
Yon no Uta (Song of 4)
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
After one is two. [Hey! Hey!]
After two is three. [Hey! Hey!]
After three is, woo, four. [Four!]
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
Before seven is six. [Hey! Hey!]
Before six is five. [Hey! Hey!]
Before five is, woo, four. [Four!]
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
"4" is for "happiness".
And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!]
"4" is for "failure".
"4" is for "favor-asking". [Four!]
"4" is for "happiness".
And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!]
"4" is for "vitamin C".
"4" is for "joy".
Four. Four. Four. Four. [Four!]
Four, four, four, four, four, four.
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Oops-a-daisy!]
Four, four, four, four, four, four.
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Heave ho!]
Four, four, four, four, four, four.
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Yippee!]
Four, four, four, four, four, four.
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Delicious!]
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
After one is two. [Hey! Hey!]
After two is three. [Hey! Hey!]
After three is, woo, four. [Four!]
Before seven is six. [Hey! Hey!]
Before six is five. [Hey! Hey!]
Before five is, woo, four. [Four!]
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
"4" is for "happiness".
And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!]
"4" is for "failure".
"4" is for "social reform". [Four!]
"4" is for "happiness".
And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!]
"4" is for "delicious".
"4" is for "joy".
Four. Four. Four. Four. [Four!]
Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four!
ROMAJI LYRIC AND NOTES ARE BELOW.
[i] About Japanese Reading of Numbers and Superstition
The number "4" has two readings in Japanese: native "yon" (yo, yottsu) and "shi" borrowed from (ancient) Chinese. Many people associate the number 4 with "死" （death） because both are read as "shi", and they tend to avoid the number 4. For example, many parking lots in Japan lack #4 & #9 (because both "9" and "苦" (pain) are read as "ku" in Japan). Avoiding the number 4 is common in China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, etc. (the pronunciations differ a bit from that of Japanese).
This song is probably sung against such a superstition, claiming to associate the number 4 not with bad things but with good things.
Unnecessary addition: since there are two or more readings for each number in Japanese, Japanese people have invented many mnemonics for important numbers (mathematical, historical, etc). For example, root 5 = 2.2360679 = Fuji sanroku oomu naku. = A parrot calls at the foot of Mt. Fuji.
[ii] About Songwriting of Miss Moa, Miss Yui & Miss Suzuka
Miss Moa said (in some magazines) she & Miss Yui made this song during their Singapore tour (2013 Sep.?), and they kept on singing this song then, so the staff complained about it. There are two childish songs made by Miss Moa on YouTube: she & Miss Yui sing ["fried bread, fried bread, frozen tangerine"], and she sings ["when you're hungry, you cannot fight" (a proverb) + "when you've eaten much, you can fight"]. And she seems to have made a few more songs.
Miss Suzuka said (in an interview) she longs to be a singer-songwriter and she had written down many fragments of poems in her notebooks. Not a few fans are waiting for those notebooks leaked out, holding the guitar or sitting at the piano.
[iii] About Yon no Uta (444 Ver.)
The Apocalypse limited edition of the first album includes "Yon no Uta (444 ver.)". Only the latter half of Reggae part is a bit different, and the words of that part are almost the same as that of the Vega mix ver. of "IINE!".
Yon no Uta (Song of 4 *1)
| Romaji Lyric | English Translation | Notes |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | 2 |
| Ichi no tsugi wa ni. [HEY! HEY!] | After one is two. [Hey! Hey!] | 3,M,(y) |
| Ni no tsugi wa san. [HEY! HEY!] | After two is three. [Hey! Hey!] | M,(y) |
| San no tsugi wa, uu, yon. [FOUR!] | After three is, woo, four. [Four!] | 4,M,MY |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | Y,M,Y,M |
| Nana no mae wa roku. [HEY! HEY!] | Before seven is six. [Hey! Hey!] | Y,(m) |
| Roku no mae wa go. [HEY! HEY!] | Before six is five. [Hey! Hey!] | Y,(m) |
| Go no mae wa, uu, yon. [Foo!] | Before five is, woo, four. [Four!] | Y,YM |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | Y,M,Y,M |
| Shiawase no shi | "4" is for "happiness | 5,Y |
| Shinu ja nai shi. [Foo!] | And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!] | [i],6,4,M |
| Shippai no shi. | "4" is for "failure". | Y |
| Yoroshiku no yon. [Foo!] | "4" is for "favor-asking". [Four!] | 7,M |
| Shiawase no shi. | "4" is for "happiness". | Y |
| Shinu ja nai shi. [Foo!] | And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!] | M |
| Bitamin no shi. | "4" is for "vitamin C". | 8,Y |
| Yorokobi no yon. | "4" is for "joy". | M |
| Yon. Yon. Yon. Yon. [Foo!] | Four. Four. Four. Four. [Four!] | Y,M,Y,M |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. | Four, four, four, four, four, four. | |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Yoishoo!] | Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Oops-a-daisy!] | 9 |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. | Four, four, four, four, four, four. | |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Yokkorasho!] | Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Heave ho!] | 9 |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. | Four, four, four, four, four, four. | |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Yosshaa!] | Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Yippee!] | 10 |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. | Four, four, four, four, four, four. | |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Oishii!] | Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Delicious!] | |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | |
| Ichi no tsugi wa ni. [HEY! HEY!] | After one is two. [Hey! Hey!] | M,(y) |
| Ni no tsugi wa san. [HEY! HEY!] | After two is three. [Hey! Hey!] | M,(y) |
| San no tsugi wa, uu, yon. [FOUR!] | After three is, woo, four. [Four!] | M,MY |
| Nana no mae wa roku. [HEY! HEY!] | Before seven is six. [Hey! Hey!] | Y,(m) |
| Roku no mae wa go. [HEY! HEY!] | Before six is five. [Hey! Hey!] | Y,(m) |
| Go no mae wa, uu, yon. [Foo!] | Before five is, woo, four. [Four!] | Y,YM |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | Y,M,Y,M |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | |
| Shiawase no shi. | "4" is for "happiness. | Y |
| Shinu ja nai shi. [Foo!] | And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!] | M |
| Shippai no shi. | "4" is for "failure". | Y |
| Yonaoshi no yon. [Foo!] | "4" is for "social reform". [Four!] | M |
| Shiawase no shi. | "4" is for "happiness". | Y |
| Shinu ja nai shi. [Foo!] | And it doesn't mean "to die". [Four!] | M |
| Oishii no shi. | "4" is for "delicious". | Y |
| Yorokobi no yon. | "4" is for "joy". | M |
| Yon. Yon. Yon. Yon. [Foo!] | Four. Four. Four. Four. [Four!] | Y,M,Y,M |
| Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! Yon, yon! | Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! Four, four! | |
Notes
- The lines marked with "M" are sung by MOAMETAL, with "Y" by YUIMETAL. The enclosed phrases [---] marked with "(y)" are sung by YUIMETAL, with "(m)" by MOAMETAL. "M,MY" means the first half is sung by MOAMETAL, the second half by both. The lines without "M"&"Y" and the enclosed phrased without "(y)"&"(m)" are sung by both. (Added on 2017 Mar. 20.)
- I hit on this translation before BABYMETAL officials began to use "Song 4" as English title. But, does it express "singing about the number 4"?
- In this part of live performances, YUIMETAL & MOAMETAL put their index finger on their lip. It is a gesture of "be silent!". One reading of 4 (= shi) resembles the voiceless sound "shh" associated with the gesture, and probably no more implication. (Thanks to WHENIM64-METAL san on 2015 Mar. 12th)
- This is "the number after one is two", and so forth.
- This sounds like the shout rather than English "four", the shout characteristic of a Japanese comedian, Razor Ramon H.G. (H.G. means "hard gay". Kids shouldn't search for his videos).
But watching carefully their hands in these parts of live performance (in their World Tour 2014 Trailer and in fancam videos of concerts in Europe 2014 Jul.), they raise up one hand keeping finger signs of number 4, so I changed translation from "foh" to "four" on 2014 Jul 16th (thanks to latrell Cruz san on 2014 May 5th). - This is like "S is for Space", and so forth, but "shi" itself means the number 4 and written so in the official lyric. It's difficult to translate.
- Though written as "4" in the official lyric, this "-shi" is a grammatical particle connecting sentences. "***-shi, ---" means like "***, and also ---". But "and also ---" is often omitted, and "***-shi, +++" often means "Because *** (and some other reasons), +++". Sometimes the consequence is also omitted like this line. Then it is already said or only suggested (for this line: "so you shouldn't avoid the number 4").
- "Yoroshiku (onegai shimasu)." is used in various contexts, but basically to ask someone some favor. In this line, it is asking to cope with the "failure" mentioned before.
- More literally, "4(shi) is for that(C) of vitamins".
- "Yoisho(o)" & "yokkorasho" are uttered when one lifts up something heavy, raises oneself, etc. The latter is uttered in heavier cases. Replace these if you know more suitable English words.
- This "yossha(a)" is uttered when a good chance has come (e.g. one has drawn a good card in a card game). "Yossha" is also used for agreeing.
"Yossha" comes from "yoshi" which is the old form of "yoi" (= good) (appended on 2017 Mar. 20).
I changed the translation of "Yosshaa!" from "Goody!" to "Yippee!" on 2019 Dec. 15 (thanks to Leafsdude san on 2019 Sep. 27).
The latter half of Reggae part of 444 Ver.
| Romaji Lyrics | Translation | Notes |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Yoyoyo!?] [Yoyoyo!?] |
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Four, four, four!?] [Four, four, four!?] | |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Are? Kore Metaru ja naku-nai?] |
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [Why? This is not the Metal, is it?] | 11 |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Metaru ja naku-ne?] |
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [It's not the Metal, is it?] | 11 |
| Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon. [Soo DEATH ne!] |
Four, four, four, four, four, four. [No, it isn't.] | 12 |
Notes
- Ending with "-nai?" (contracted "-ne?") is a form of tag question. As the main part is negative, it becomes a double negation form.
- In most cases, Japanese "hai", "soo", etc. (= yes) are to agree with the questioner, and Japanese "iie", "chigau", etc. (= no) are to disagree with the questioner. In this case, the questioner thinks it's not the Metal, and the answerer agrees with her.
As usual...and I hope this isn't getting tiring...it is sincere,
ReplyDeleteArigatou gozaimasu.
^____^
Not tiring at all while working for Suzuka, Yui & Moa.
Delete"4" is for "vitamin C". that's hillarious! nice one.
ReplyDeleteMiss Moa & Miss Yui are geniuses in word play.
DeleteVery interesting about numbers 4 & 9.
ReplyDeleteIn western countries often hotels/skyscrapers have no 13th roomnumber/floor.
I think these numbers need not be skipped. Those who don't care or people in urgent need would take them if remained. Skipping numbers doesn't create new demands.
DeleteJapanese wordplay makes me cry tears of joy and I knew from the start this song would be a goldmine. Thank you for catering to my amusement.
ReplyDeleteBy the way: "H.G. means "hard gay". Kids shouldn't search for his videos" - I think you should include office workers in this warning as well. But I knew H.G. for many years and I don't think he's inappropriate even for kids.
Oh, it is just the precaution for the interested kids to be careful if asking the adult "why does he shake his hips that way?", and for the kids who don't like such things not to see what they don't like.
DeleteRandom question: Do you know what the "social reform" was meant to mean? I don't quite understand it.
ReplyDelete"Yonaoshi" (= social reform) means some challenge to change the society for the better: democratic revolution, campaign against a superstition, saying "no" to bullying, etc.
DeleteI am wondering if for the message and intent of this particular song (I know they also have the anti-bullying song) if it possibly means to reform Japanese society's negative view of the number four.
DeleteI guess the intended message is like "There are many words that have the sound 'shi' or 'yo'. Why do you associate the number 4 only with 'death'?"
DeleteIn daily life, "4" is very often read "yo/yon" to avoid the ambiguity, so the number 4 itself seldom reminds the Japanese of "death" except talking about this negative view.
In the Bible, the number 4 is actually considered a holy number. Funny how cultures around the world can be so different.
ReplyDeleteYes. So I think we should keep it in mind.
DeleteSir can you explain why 'yon' is translated as 'four' then 'shiawase no shi' comes as 'four is for happiness' are there different words for numbers?
ReplyDeleteAwesome work my friend. Babies taking over the world
Like native "foursome" and Latin-borrowed "quartet", Japanese has two ways of reading numbers: native "hitotsu futatsu mittsu yottsu ..." and borrowed from ancient Chinese "ichi ni san shi ...". They are selected according to what word comes next: "futa-tsuki" = "ni-ka-getsu" = two months, but "yon" is often used where "shi" to be used, not to be misheard as "shichi" (7).
DeleteI appreciate all the translations you do, Du Enki! Your blog has really helped me appreciate BABYMETAL more. I'd like your opinion on a theory I have on 'Yon no Uta'.
ReplyDeleteMy theory is that the Reggae music is there because it gives one the feeling that they are on a tropical island by the sea. Sea = C = Shii. So kind of a musical pun in a way. Does it sound possible?
That part really makes me think of some tropical sea, but what I recall is the vision, not the sound of the word "sea" (nor "umi"), so it is hard for me to hit upon. If more directly associated with the word, it will work well (e.g. the rhythm of samba and number 3 (san)).
DeleteActually FOO is Suppose To BE Four Cause Japanese Peeps Don't Have R :D
ReplyDeleteThank you for your opinion. Japanese pronunciation of "4" is really so, but the problem is whether the ordinary Japanese think it to be a meaningless shout or to be an English word used as a shout when they hear it. I think I was not proper to judge that, and I will reconsider that.
DeleteWoo YON! (Hooo)
DeleteFu !!
Oh, well if you ask "FOUR"
It is.
These funny things.
Just Say
ReplyDeleteThank You
from
BMID
Amazing post as always, learning a lot about BM. Thanks Du Enki!
ReplyDeleteReally hope that the girls add some lyrics and music for the new material. Some people is complaining about that because most the of the songs were made by others. So, looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post as always!
Thanks for your detailed notes! Where do you get your info about BM? You mentioned magazines; which magazines do you follow? (In another post you also mentioned 2ch? which subforums?) I'm learning Japanese and enjoy reading original sources. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry I don't remember which magazines I read. Several magazines carry nearly the same interview, the articles are short (2p or so), but the magazines are fat and expensive, so, in most cases, I read them only once at bookstore without buying (^_^;). Suzuka spoke her wish to be a singer-songwriter here (6'10"-10'45").
Deletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGX4bPfAQbA
I get information about the past by searching on the internet. If the source is a personal blog, etc, I try to find plural sources.
I posted the questions about BABYMETAL's lyrics on BABYMETAL thread in 狼 ( hello.2ch.net/morningcoffee/ ). But the threads contain only few valuable posts (10/300 a day then, 10/1000 a day now).
Are there any additional lyrics for "4 no uta (444 ver.)"?
ReplyDeleteBecause I believe I heard SU-METAL talking during the second "Yon, yo, yo, yo, yon, yon" line.
In "4 no Uta (444 ver.)", the lyrics of the second part of reggae section is modified like
Delete"Metaru ja naku-ne?" - "Soo desu ne!" ("It isn't the Metal, is it?" - "No, it isn't!").
Probably SU-METAL's voice is not in this part. But rumor say the laughing voices near the ending are of three girls including SU-METAL (in both normal & 444 ver).
Thanks again for the nice translation.
ReplyDeleteI like the reduced lyrics but for the first time I'm disappointed by the music.
To me it sounds more like a failed patchwork.
Even the choreography of Maosan and Yuisan stands far behind there standards.
However even the best group has at last one week song...
And BABYMETAL still rocks!
Two months ago they completely blew away the german audiance in Koeln :)
I wish the song be more melodious. And I hear some fans complain the producer is negligent about arrangement of this song.
DeleteGreetings Du Enki, Thank you for all your work! I use your translations almost every day while listening to BABYMETAL. Your notes regarding the meanings etc are wonderful.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I have noticed in Yon No Uta that between the reggae-like choruses (after Yokkorasho!) there is a male voice saying the word "Die!" three times. I do not know whether you did not hear them or you merely decided to not include them.
Best regards, DeruMetal
Thank you for your comment. I did hear them, and concluded I should ignore them.
DeleteThank you for all of your detailed translations and the many explanatory notes.
ReplyDeleteThe English title of this song made me think. I guess what they meant to do with the official 'Song 4' was actually more like 'The 4 Song' (as in The Happy Song, The Birthday Song etc.).
Technically, of course you are right with 'Song of 4' - or even 'Song about 4'.
However, semantically I've come to the conclusion that probably a good way to put the title would be 'Song for 4' or 'Song for the 4'. This choice of preposition is due to 3 reasons:
1) First meaning of 'for' is 'opposite of against' (pro instead of contra). Since culture has many superstitions and prejudices against the number 4 and this song tries to counter-act this, it is literally for the 4 (all for it, so to speak).
2) Second meaning of 'for' is 'addressed towards' (like 'a gift for someone'). This song is kind of a gift for the number 4.
3) From your notes I understand that the whole song and lyrics in Japanese relies heavily on word-play and pun. Since in English 'for' sounds much like 'four', this preposition manages to capture some of the pun.
However, please don't take my word for granted, since English is not my native language. I'd be interested in native English speakers' opinion on that.
Thank you for your comment, and sorry for late reply.
DeleteI think "Song for 4" is the best, too, but it means a kind of campaign against the superstition. I can't start it without the permission of Miss Moa & Miss Yui.
other gimmick about 4 : Their finger sign on lips "Be Quiet!" are voiceless "shi, shi, shi, shi, "
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. I will add the note about it.
DeleteAnd, let me say, I noticed it about a month ago but forgot to add the note.
Greetings, Du Enki-san
ReplyDeleteThough it's only denoted in the apocalypse limited edition, the lyrics denote the「HEY! HEY!」after the lyrics: Ichi no tsugi wa ni/Ni no tsugi wa san/Nana no mae wa roku/Roku no mae wa go, the「Four!」after U~~~ yon!, and the「フォー!」after the second U~~~ yon!
Also, would the same DEATH denotation be applied to the 444 ver.?
Regards,
DaburyuuMetal
P.S. Did you see the lyric video of Over the Future with your credits on YouTube?
Thank you for information.
DeleteI've changed eight romaji lines to "HEY! HEY!", two lines to "Four!" with small-caps, & one line to "Soo DEATH ne!". I don't have that limited edition. Please tell me if these are not what you meant.
And I've never seen any "Over The Future" with English lyrics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jw3Qpqf-Zw
DeleteThank you for the video. I hope it will survive long.
DeleteTo pair up with the vitamin C pun, the lyric card writes the line "Oishii no shi" as おいCの４.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry it is too difficult a pun for me to express in romaji.
DeleteI have a suggestion for your note #9, but since I don't know Japanese, I can't know if it is correct. However, from your description, it sounds like the word could be "Alright!" (or it could even work as an exclamation form of "Yes!")
ReplyDeleteTangential note: In slang English, it can be written with the L softened as "Awright!" and with both L and R omitted as in the hip-hop style "A'ight!" which strangely looks like the word "Eight", which is twice as much as "Four". ;-P
Thank you for your comment.
DeleteMaybe "Alright!" is more suitable. I chose "Goody!" because "Yossha!" comes from the adjective "yoshi" that is the old form of "yoi" (= good).
Thanks for your replies, and thanks so much for these translations. I've decided I want to learn more Japanese! :-)
DeleteI was thinking, would the "so DEATH ne" be a pun of "so desu ne?" it sounds similar! I don't know Japanese though, so I could be wrong.
ReplyDeleteYes. It's a pun of "so desu ne".
DeleteHere I go again (I come from the comment in 'Doki doki'):
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised withe line "4 is for failure" (Shippai no shi). It seems to contradict the other lines, about the virtues of number 4. In note 7, you relate this 'failure' with the 'favour asking' of the next line (which I don't think is very clear...), anyway the 'failure' reappears later coupled with 'social reform'. So, I' not sure if I understand...
On the other hand, this song by the BBM duo is pure genius in understanding one of the main missions of BM that probably "he" intended (at least as far as I can see), i.e. demystificating and even making positive some things supposed to be evil that are or can be really not evil or at least not that bad (in this case, a "bad luck number", in other cases, turning "death" into "to be", "black metal" into "black BABY metal" etc.). I guess this has a key role in why some metallers hate BM, because they want metal to be seriously black, deathly and evil hahahaha
Saludos,
Fernando :)
Those lines can be logically-consistently interpreted like this: though 4 is for "failure", it is also for "favor-asking" & "social reform". "If we fail, we can ask someone a favor to help us." "If our society fails, we can reform it."
DeleteI guess the prototype of this song was improvised by listing the things associated with "shi" or "yon" with hand clapping and Miss Moa added a good thing after Miss Yui unintentionally added a bad thing, (I think I've heard somewhere that Miss Yui said she is relatively pessimistic.)
The positiveness & the messagefulness of this song are fully attributed to Miss Moa & Miss Yui who made this song, and the producer just found it to be good and decided to include it in the first album.
Aha, that makes sense (your explanation), thanks again!
DeleteAbout your last line (The positiveness...), that's more or less what I wanted to say. I guess when Kobametal learned about this song he would be jumping happy cos it had to be like a dream come true. I wish they (M&Y, or Su-Metal) wrote a bit more! :) I absolutely love the 2nd album but I was a bit disappointed at first when I saw there were no new self-penned tunes :(
Thanks for your kind reply,
F. :)
So 4 is kind of like 13 in English world?
ReplyDeleteYes. 4 is often considered as an ominous number in Japan, China, etc.
DeleteA bit late to the party, but I figured I'd add in my few cents on a few things here. Maybe you're still hanging around and might even reply at some point? It would be interesting to get some feedback. :)
ReplyDelete1) The concept of the chorus would seem to function in a similar style to alliteration, but with an intent to compare the words due to their starting letter rather than just as a neat sentence structure like it is normally used. It's something you wouldn't really use in English (ie: in my experience, no one would try to use Peter Picked A Peck Of Pickled Peppers as a way to compare different words that start with 'P', it's just something that flows in a very particular way), but as an English speaker well-versed in both "A is for Apple" and alliteration, combining them makes total sense. Is it a common concept in Japanese to compare words in such a way, or is it something unique to this song?
2) "Song 4", as a title, sounds like "the 4th song", or, to extend it, "the 4th song we made". Which makes me wonder, was this maybe the 4th song Moa and Yui wrote? Or maybe wrote together? It's suggested they'd written songs before, so perhaps? It would be a neat translation in that context. It's not an unheard of concept to title songs in such a way (look up: Acoustic #3 by Goo Goo Dolls, or #34 by Dave Matthews Band). More likely, it was just a translation failure that it came out that way, instead of the "Song About 4" as a lot of people have suggested it should have been, but it's fun to speculate anyway!
3) Regarding yoishoo, yosshaa, etc: I'd suggest another good translation for the former would be "whoopsie", while the latter could be "yippie"? Yokkorasho might fit better as "pull (it) back", if for no other reason than the choreography has them miming pulling back an arrow - "heave-ho" more gives the impression of pulling something towards you, ie: you'd say "heave-ho" while playing tug-of-war with someone. It doesn't work so much when talking about pulling something taut or pulling something away from you.
4) Lastly, it's definitely interesting to me that Japanese has different words for the same number in counting schemes, considering that English does not. Assuming that's the correct understanding, considering the example of "foursome" vs "quartet", which would be comparable to "four" vs "quadruple"? Are "yo/yon" & "shi" actually interchangeable when counting (ie: one, two, three, four)? Or do they have situations where the use of one would be correct and the use of the other is not? In English, you definitely wouldn't count "single, double, triple, quadruple" in the same way you would count "one, two, three, four".
Thank you for comment and very sorry for very very late reply.
Delete1)
As Japanese language has many homonyms, Japanese people often wonder which word the sound stands for: Someone says "suzu" of Suzuka NAKAMOTO stands for "鈴"(bell), another says it stands for "涼"(suzushii; cool), and yet another may jokingly say it stands for "錫"(tin). This song is an extended one of such wordplays, but "shi" at the end of "shinu ja nai shi" is used for the end rhyme because it doesn't mean number 4 but is a particle (see note #6). Rhymes, alliteration, etc. are used in Japanese poetry but not so popular.
2)
Some fans say and I agree that the reason why the English title of "Yon no Uta" is not "Song about 4" but "Song 4" is that it is so decided in association with a famous song, Blur's "Song 2". Miss Moa had made several songs before this song (see updated note [ii] above), but I don't think this is her (or their) 4th song in some way of counting.
3)
Thank you for telling me the word "yippee" (I can't find "yippie" in dictionaries). An interjection is better here. I've changed the translation. And I'm sorry but I don't understand how different the words "whoopsie" and "oops-a-daisy" are. As to "yokkorasho", watching their arms in that part, the choreography probably depicts the action of rising up in the bed or turning heavy levers upwards or something. I think heaviness is more important to "yokkorasho" than direction.
4)
Japanese language borrowed many words from Chinese. In many cases, there are also native Japanese words that have nearly the same meaning. Hito(tsu), futa(tsu), mi(ttsu), yo(ttsu)... are native Japanese, and ichi, ni, san, shi... are borrowed from Chinese. In principle, both types are not combined in one compound word (e.g. both native "me" and borrowed "moku" mean "eye", and both "hito-me" and "ichi-moku" mean "one glance", etc., but there aren't "hito-moku" and "ichi-me" in Japanese). As a modifier, in general, both types can be used & interchangeable (e.g. both "mittsu no hako" and "san-ko no hako" mean "three boxes").
In the cases of 4 & 7, however, native Japanese "yon" & "nana" are often combined with the numerical expressions borrowed from Chinese. For example, "40" & "70" are, in principle, pronounced as "shi-juu" & "shichi-juu" respectively, but, to avoid mishearing, they are very often pronounced as "yon-juu" & "nana-juu" respectively.
No problem with the late reply. I'm just happy you responded at all to my rambling post. :)
ReplyDelete1) Yeah. I know a slight amount about the Japanese writing system, but not a whole lot. One of the things I'm aware of is how a given symbol (Kanji?) can represent either a word/words or syllables. There's sort of an implication with your explanation that different symbols can also represent the same syllable? Hence how the syllable "suzu" could be represented with 3 different symbols?
2) I like the idea of "Song 4" being a shoutout to "Song 2" by Blur. It's definitely an interesting idea, though not sure how likely it is. Is that song well-known in Japan? There's no note of charting on Wikipedia's English entry, but in fairness they're not always complete.
3) Yeah, "yippie" wouldn't be found in dictionaries. It's not so much a word as a written form of an exclamation. Sort of like "huh" or "oh". Almost an onamonapia in a sense. "Whoopsie" and "oops-a-daisy" are kind of similar, they're exclamations one makes when they make a minor mistake or get into a minor accident (if you bump your arm against a wall, you might go "whoopsie", for example). They're more what one would say in a playful way, too, or what you would expect a child to exclaim when they make a mistake. And I understand your explanation with "yokkorasho", so I think the use of "heave-ho" is probably good.
4) It's neat to learn stuff about languages like this. It's definitely an unfamiliar idea in English to represent numbers with multiple words. While English definitely has a history of assimilating words from other languages (French, most famously), that never really made its way to our counting system. Is it a case where native Japanese speakers see "shi", etc, as a Japanese word, or is it recognized subconsciously or otherwise as a Chinese word by your everyday speaker?
Thank you for comment and sorry for very late reply.
Delete2)
I don't know how popular Blur's "Song 2" in Japan, but it doesn't matter how popular it is. When the producer gave "Yon no Uta" an English title "Song 4", he probably thought that the BABYMETAL fans should know Blur's "Song 2", or that those who don't know the song are not his fellows, or something. When using language, it may be more important for some Japanese people to confirm the speaker/writer and the listeners/readers share feeling, knowledge, etc. than to inform general public of something.
1)
In principle, one kanji represents one word, not (a) syllable(s). To represent a syllable, hiragana or katakana is used in Japanese. The pair of words "鈴"(suzu; bell) & "錫"(suzu; tin) in Japanese is somewhat like the pair of "night" & "knight" in English.
1) 4)
What word the sequence of syllables represents in Japanese writing depends on the context and what kanji is used. When some words in series are all written in hiragana, it is rather difficult to know what words are written there because no space is usually inserted between words in Japanese writings.
What word the sequence of syllables represents in Japanese speech depends on the intonation & the division of the syllables and the context. The intonation of "鈴"(bell) is "su_zu-"(_:low, -:high) and that of "錫"(tin) is "su-zu_" in Tokyo, but that of "鈴"(bell) is "su-zu-" in Kyoto. As the intonation of a word varies according to regions in Japan, it is not taught officially in school and not mentioned in most dictionaries though it helps Japanese speakers in daily life. Sometimes neither intonation nor context can help the listeners. For example, both "市立学校"(municipal school) and "私立学校"(private school) are read as "shi-ri-tsu-gak-ko:_" in Tokyo. Thus, when misunderstanding is likely to happen, many Japanese people read "私立"(private) as "watakushi ritsu" though it is an irregular reading.
Yippie is an exclamation of joy and happiness. It is found in dictionaries.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thefreedictionary.com/yippee
Thank you for comment and sorry for very late reply.
DeleteThe dictionary you mention has two entries: "yippee" for an exclamation of joy and happiness, "yippie" for a noun referring to a young politically active hippie. I'm sorry for having said I can't find an exclamation "yippie", but I wrongly thought "yippee" & "yippie" are different words, not variant spellings.