Entertainment
Korean Language Professor Breaks Down Squid Game’s Subtitles | WIRED
The on-screen English translations of ‘Squid Game’ didn’t always match up to the characters’ dialogue. Korean English professor and director of the Korean Language Program at Columbia University, Joowon Suh, is here to explain the phrases English speakers might have missed out on while watching the hit Netflix show. Still haven’t subscribed to WIRED on…
k azu
October 29, 2021 at 6:35 pm
This video was super useless.
MASI
October 29, 2021 at 6:39 pm
5:30 she is sooo cute I want to adopt her
prashant saxena
October 29, 2021 at 6:45 pm
that’s the compromise with any dubbing .There is no translation or dubbing which can perfectly translate anything, if you use exact translation of any language it becomes meaning to the other person.
SO the translation or Dubbing should only consider the actual meaning and emotion and intensity of the situation and then Dub the equivalent words in the destination language.
Farhad Haqverdi
October 29, 2021 at 6:46 pm
Wrong, you can’t speak English in France and get away with it!
Sweet Toother
October 29, 2021 at 6:52 pm
I remember seeing some translation inaccuracies in some french-language shows on Netflix, like Lupin.
Korean is a really nice language. In some ways, it’s easier than english. The spelling is phonetic, the alphabet has fewer characters than english, and there’s no uppercase or lowercase.
Karen Knizek
October 29, 2021 at 7:06 pm
Every Korean drama has the same translation problems.
Ruralcin
October 29, 2021 at 7:16 pm
i love this series
zagros qazy
October 29, 2021 at 7:28 pm
dame that women is bad at this 😬
La vaca que ri
October 29, 2021 at 7:36 pm
I used to watch a bunch of subbed anime when I was younger. I don’t know if this only applies to Brazilian subs, but translators used to add a bunch of notes to the translation to convey the subtleties in honorifics and other cultural differences. Most of this translations were made by volunteer fans and where miles ahead of Netflix subs
I don’t understand why they can’t add this to “standard” shows.
k hanna
October 30, 2021 at 12:30 am
Too complex for your average viewer 😂
Gladius Draco
October 29, 2021 at 7:47 pm
all things considered they did a really good job with the translation, translation is just very complicated.
Tom Nook
October 29, 2021 at 7:54 pm
If you have a Korean boyfriend, call him Oppa all the time. He’ll love you for it
Tom Nook
October 29, 2021 at 7:58 pm
2:44 who else cried and was angry at this moment
Laggy Y
October 29, 2021 at 8:07 pm
“Oppa” alone is basically a complex social essay of Korean men-women relationship (if the man and the woman is not related).
Mohamed Raaif Rushdhy
October 29, 2021 at 8:22 pm
Do you really think I am a brother.
Ariel Leung
October 29, 2021 at 8:36 pm
Interesting. Everytime a really successful genre of Asian movies/TVs makes it, a less good one of that genre will go viral in the west.
Anita Backrub
October 29, 2021 at 8:55 pm
I visited South Korea in Oct 2019 The people were very nice such a cool place
HBA Power
October 29, 2021 at 9:06 pm
All this it’s because Korean society is hierarchical…
Antonio Stark De Rivera
October 29, 2021 at 9:47 pm
Hyung means homie then?
Elisabet Star
October 29, 2021 at 11:03 pm
I often see it being translated as “bro” which I think is closer to the meaning since it also can be used for family (younger brother addressing older brother) but also someone you are really close to and consider your bro. Homie can do too, but doesn’t really contain the actual brother meaning.
Vish Bhai
October 29, 2021 at 10:04 pm
This happens in all other languages too so why are people making a big deal about it now
Yes No
October 29, 2021 at 11:48 pm
more plz
Isabel Legrady
October 29, 2021 at 11:49 pm
the low-key jab at english-speaking people at the end of the video was kind of a power move, i love her
Castler
October 30, 2021 at 12:34 am
I think it has a slightly deep meaning when Ali says “Sajangnim.”
In Korea, “Sajangnim” is one of respectful expressions for a man who met for the first time. However Ali is a very poor migrant worker in the show. For him, most of the other men have a higher social class than himself. Ali always says “Sajangnim” because he knows that he is the lowest class person.
This is similar to calling someone ‘My Lord’ in old Western culture.
Stan B.
October 30, 2021 at 12:44 am
Sajangnim = Hey Boss!
StickManProductions
October 30, 2021 at 12:49 am
vbvb
anonyguru
October 30, 2021 at 6:20 am
This happens to non-English speakers with songs and movies in English all the time.
Bianka Toth
October 30, 2021 at 6:32 am
Like I needed to be more heart broken than I already am.. thanks
JDH
October 30, 2021 at 7:08 am
The irony, of course, with people who think “other languages are not as sophisticated” is that they rarely have any sophistication with English. I’m shocked by the Nationalism of southern Americans in particular, who refuse to learn anything beyond the 6th grade version of the language spoken by the country that use to own us.
A. Melanoleuca
October 30, 2021 at 1:46 pm
{JDH} The southern states are not generally known for their intellects, per se. Of course, they have their share of highly-ranked universities and well-versed scholars. But, the fact they consistently lag behind when it comes to health and educational standards is a testament to their perceived inferiority by many.
Muh c
October 30, 2021 at 10:41 pm
Southern Americans? Or are you talking about the USA?
wheetamin
October 30, 2021 at 7:17 am
i remember back then when korean shows were still not very big and easily accessible internationally, there were dedicated fansub groups (shout out to iSUBS and soshified) that would help translate the shows and include translator’s notes above the subs to properly explainin the terms e.g. korean honourifics, familial terms, slangs etc. since the groups are usually only a few people, the subs would take longer to make, but the sub quality is really high, and you could understand the korean context well.
but now that korean shows are much more popular and are so in demand, fansub sites gotta churn out subbed version much faster than before, and so the subs quality has gone down and many viewers miss out on the meaning (like in squid game)
i’d rather corporations hirer subbers that take longer time to properly translate and localise the show, instead of making the subbers release crappy subs that leave everyone unsatisfied
Farin Mithila
October 30, 2021 at 7:23 am
I have watched too many k dramas. I don’t know the language but still I could caught the difference between the translation and actual expression. yes it’s not possible to translate the emotions of a language. You have to actually listen with heart even if you don’t understand.
GoodbyeRubyTu3sday
October 30, 2021 at 8:02 am
6:58 ooooooooooh good luck in finding French people who know English and are actually willing to speak it LOL
Chanhhwi Mun
October 30, 2021 at 9:17 am
Seriously, if you are not native korean, you can only experience 70% of this show.
It’s really hard to translate the full meaning of dialoge in this show.
Zaniyah Molly
October 30, 2021 at 9:20 am
The ajar xylophone jelly delay because front conceptually melt within a watery interactive. silent, pretty edge
Avingo Skul
October 30, 2021 at 9:47 am
Why am I even watching this 🤣
priki priki
October 30, 2021 at 11:24 am
im not learning korean but i do know how to read and i do know a lot of words, so i also noticed some of these things. all i can say is several parts of the show are more meaningful when you actually understand it even without subtitles (which i kind of relate to)
Soraj k
October 30, 2021 at 11:31 am
so baically its not about netflix season its the limitations of converting one language to another.
rieskimo
October 30, 2021 at 12:12 pm
So basically, a large amount of people are being introduced to translated content for the first time.
Rayeon
October 30, 2021 at 12:50 pm
i’m a korean native speaker and this is exactly what i thought watching squid game with english subtitles! it’s 100% accurate, great job with the video!
Aditya Kamble
October 30, 2021 at 1:15 pm
Watching Ali being betrayed in the English dubbed version was very sad as it is, but I think if I did understood Korean, it would have been more painful…..
El classico
October 31, 2021 at 8:41 am
Please don’t remind me about Ali’s death scene
vokikas
October 30, 2021 at 1:51 pm
The Mandalorian’s Squid Game Final Episode »»
I rock dirty shoes
October 30, 2021 at 3:14 pm
Go watch a hood movie with the subtitles on
Hellena's Fandom Trivia
October 30, 2021 at 4:28 pm
Why would they make the subtitles more PG in this show when in other Netflix K-dramas I have watched they didn’t bother?
godfatherNYC
October 30, 2021 at 8:05 pm
This is great! There will alway be these flaws in subtitles. STILL, watching the original language with subtitles is ALWAYS better than watching it dubbed into your language. You lose all of the emotion when you watch it dubbed. Even with subtitles, you FEEL it better.
Toksyk VFX
October 30, 2021 at 8:18 pm
I watched it in sub one day, then watched it with my sister another day… alot of the subs were different
A Cohen
October 30, 2021 at 8:18 pm
why would you make me watch that scene again
Angie Rodriguez Castellini
October 30, 2021 at 10:08 pm
That thumbnail 😅
Angie Rodriguez Castellini
October 30, 2021 at 10:12 pm
I like how she says that every language his rich culture i’m hispanic and when i feel like people translate our shows,movies,etc it’s just swear words spanish(castellano) is more than just swear word we are not vulgar all the time
diddy dad
October 30, 2021 at 10:18 pm
in Thailand we have like hundred different pronouns to address people
ahub87
October 30, 2021 at 11:27 pm
Yeah… they should have left the translation of “Hyung” as “Brother” there are enough English speaking countries in which non-related males call each other “Brother” as a term of endearment or closeness…it would have made Ali’s death more heartbreaking than it already was
Maureen Keegan
October 31, 2021 at 1:07 am
Watching the series I thought “wow, their first names sound nothing like the written version” I understand now why they didn’t, they weren’t saying the names!
Pras Fidelis
October 31, 2021 at 2:50 am
speaking as a translator myself, translation is about conveying the message within the intended context. it’s not word for word translation. that is even more difficult to do so with interpreting (oral translation) because of time restriction, particularly with simultaneous interpreting.
and forget about swearing… salutations alone in Asia is more complex than the western counterparts. at the very least, we use “big brother/sister” when calling a stranger (even to a waiter/waitress) of roughly the same age instead of simply saying “excuse me”. and when you go toward East/NE Asia region, the salutation gets even more layered partly because they still observe class structure. like that “hyung” (big brother) salutation is apparrently only used if you have a close relationship with the person. if the translator wrote “big brother” (or even simply “brother”), s/he would’ve been correct vocab-wise but the impact of the meaning would be lost to native English speakers because of cultural difference. so, writing Cho’s first name (Sang-Woo) was ultimately the most appropriate choice given that in western culture calling someone by their first name instead of their last name indicates closeness.
Pras Fidelis
October 31, 2021 at 2:50 am
speaking as a translator myself, translation is about conveying the message within the intended context. it’s not word for word translation. that is even more difficult to do so with interpreting (oral translation) because of time restriction, particularly with simultaneous interpreting.
and forget about swearing… salutations alone in Asia is more complex than the western counterparts. at the very least, we use “big brother/sister” when calling a stranger (even to a waiter/waitress) of roughly the same age instead of simply saying “excuse me”. and when you go toward East/NE Asia region, the salutation gets even more layered partly because they still observe class structure. like that “hyung” (big brother) salutation is apparently only used if you have a close relationship with the person. if the translator wrote “big brother” (or even simply “brother”), s/he would’ve been correct vocab-wise but the impact of the meaning would be lost to native English speakers because of cultural difference. so, writing Cho’s first name (Sang-Woo) was ultimately the most appropriate choice given that in western culture calling someone by their first name instead of their last name indicates closeness.
Lndin Galle
October 31, 2021 at 3:53 am
Didn’t watch it, but I’ll watch this.
Ji Sun Lee
October 31, 2021 at 5:53 am
ㅎㅎ 욕을 이렇게 진지한 영어 설명으로 듣다니.
El classico
October 31, 2021 at 8:41 am
Wow her English speaking skills is quite good
Safwan Chowdhury
October 31, 2021 at 10:38 am
2:25 I am more sad now 🙄
justrandomotaku
October 31, 2021 at 1:54 pm
me, a subbed anime watcher since childhood: finally my time has come
Eusebius Bob
October 31, 2021 at 4:26 pm
First world problems at the end we all saw the same move even if the sounds is off these is making a big deal out of nothing
forgetful stranger
October 31, 2021 at 4:53 pm
It’s a shame that Netflix inaccurately dumbed down the translation because this is actually basic changes that even regular kdrama watchers would be able to make
Femcel
October 31, 2021 at 5:05 pm
Thank you so much for this
Hatsune Miku
October 31, 2021 at 5:13 pm
danng
기뮨선
October 31, 2021 at 5:13 pm
영상에 한글 자막도 달아주실 수 있을까요…?
유튜버우군
November 1, 2021 at 3:11 am
When Ali was calling Sang-u hyoung again and again, Korean or persons who could know the meaning of Hyoung might feel deeper sadness and something emotional.
Mish ✨
November 1, 2021 at 3:44 am
I watched it with subs, but even the subs skipped out on a lot. It hits harder when you understand, at least even the expressions and some of the terms.
Cloud Punk
November 1, 2021 at 6:51 am
Korean here. If some girl that u thought not close with u enough, suddenly called u as “Oppa” just like “Han Mi Neyo” in the show. Most Korean navtive male probably would think that chick is hitting on me now. So the description in the video was quiet accurate. The translation was good enough, but sometimes it did not deliver the cultural prospective as much as original language.
Shivu Sharma
November 1, 2021 at 10:11 am
Hindi dub was better than English dub in squid game
Because hindi is as complex or even more complex than Korean
Yeontan's Mommy (Saturn T)
November 1, 2021 at 8:50 pm
ALL KDRAMA AND KPOP FANS IN THE COMMENTS BE LIKE: hold my yeontan-
Felisitas Stella
November 2, 2021 at 12:47 am
An entire video about accurate translations and the video narrator couldn’t even say the korean characters’ name right. Wired keeping on providing hollow and virtue-signaling content once again
라임바라
November 2, 2021 at 7:38 am
Does anybody know how Fury’s “mother…” in the last scene of Infinity War was translated in Korean? It said “어머니” in the subtitles which literally means “mother”. Some people thought Captain Marvel could be his mother lol it was a terrible translation
Veronica C.
November 2, 2021 at 8:46 pm
That’s terrible 🤣
Percent One
November 2, 2021 at 7:41 am
저 여자분의 Sajangnim에 대한 설명은 사전적 의미고
요즘은 소상공인도 소유주를 사장님이라고 부름
피고용인도 사장님이라고 부르지만 손님도 사장님이라고 부름 ㅎ
커프
November 2, 2021 at 9:18 am
일종의 최상위 높임어법이라고 봐도 될 정도죠
JJangByung
November 2, 2021 at 7:43 am
I think it was very useful. However, you don’t have to think too negatively just because subtitles don’t accurately express nuance and culture. The important thing is to watch a lot of subtitle media. After you get used to the subtitles, you can learn inaccurate expressions or cultural nuances.
skullokei
November 2, 2021 at 8:07 am
ㅆㅂ과 ㄱㅅㄲ의 번역을 이렇게 진지하게 분석하는 영상을 보고 있으니 아오 기분이 묘하다 ㅆㅂ.
How could you seriously analyze the translation of a ssibal and a gaesaekki. I feel strange right now.
강연호
November 2, 2021 at 8:14 am
재밋노
Кит Постовнёв
November 2, 2021 at 8:37 am
BTW in Russian localization of Squid Game “baby” has been translated as “daddy”, and the further dialog about the age definitely had sense
fallensteak re
November 2, 2021 at 8:42 am
As a casual watcher of korean films(unless it’s very good) I dont really give a crap how accurate the translation between two languages as long as it has the same structure of idea because it’s already hard translating accurate words. It might be accurate but it has different meaning
커프
November 2, 2021 at 9:17 am
Basically, ‘oppa’ is about the same age as the user of the word, but it is used both for older men. The point is that, in social relationships other than family, it is a word used only in intimate relationships. therefore, ‘oppa’ often used even between lovers.
The reason Han Mi-nyeo called Jang Deok-soo ‘oppa’ was an attempt to forcibly give her intimacy (more like a lover). This is the context you can realize when you know Korean.
커프
November 2, 2021 at 7:47 pm
In the same principle, ‘hyung’ is similar to ‘oppa’, and in social relationships other than family, it is used only in intimate relationships. The difference between ‘hyung’ and ‘oppa’ is that men use the word ‘hyung’ for older men (‘oppa’ is a word women use for older men). Ali called Sang-woo ‘sajangnim’. In addition to its original meaning, it is often used for individuals who are not personally intimate but of unknown status (usually higher than me). This is also the context of expressing changes in intimacy using Korean words.
커프
November 2, 2021 at 7:56 pm
Another interpretation is that Ali is a foreign worker and the only higher social status-person he has come across is his real ‘sajangnim’ (literally the boss). so he may be misrepresenting anyone who appears to have a higher social status than him as ‘sajangnim’ . The status system in Korean word is very complex and difficult for foreigners. Calling a stranger ‘sajangnim’ is maybe a very safe choice to Ali as a foreigner.
박건우
November 2, 2021 at 9:46 am
this is what koreans want.
IWKY
November 2, 2021 at 9:46 am
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ 욕 설명해주는 게 진짜 웃기네. 한국어 욕이 진짜 다양하고 상황에 따라 여러 의미를 가지기도 해서 번역하기 힘들긴 할 듯 ㅋㅋㅋ
꽃거지
November 2, 2021 at 12:46 pm
한국의 킹왕짱번역가: 어머니……
realme yoon
November 2, 2021 at 12:50 pm
알아듣기 쉬운 영어로 좋은 발음으로 말씀해주셔서 감사합니다ㅎㅎ
Vanessa V-S
November 2, 2021 at 2:34 pm
She couldn’t have said it better , it’s super hard to have an real translation. This is something MOST of the non English speaking people know for a fact : Translated movies are not accurate .
Angelika Bodie
November 2, 2021 at 2:38 pm
Oppa = Daddy 😏. Got it. Lol
허걱
November 2, 2021 at 2:40 pm
우리도 영어 뉘앙스 공부하느라 ㅈ빠졌었다
니들도 열심히 배워봐라
JOE JOE
November 2, 2021 at 2:47 pm
Oppa is an honorific word used only when women call men.Basically, it is a concept that is only allowed when they are in close relationships with each other.And it can only be used for older brothers, friends, and relatives.If a woman older than me calls me oppa, most Korean men will doubt and feel burdened by her intentions.
Detective Pikachu
November 2, 2021 at 2:56 pm
답답하냐?ㅋㅋㅋ 그럼 한국어 배우든가ㅋ😜😜
selfキノコさん
November 2, 2021 at 3:24 pm
All the anime subtitles on Netflix is whack too and I’m concerned because my younger Japanese cousins use it to learn English.
soull
November 2, 2021 at 3:38 pm
I actually understand the difficulty that translators found in giving the exact meaning . Because there’s no words in English that could give the exact same meaning that korean speakers understands .
호잇호잇
November 2, 2021 at 6:02 pm
난 영어 못하는데 뭔가 이해가 된다ㅋㅋ
Kyujin Shin
November 2, 2021 at 8:09 pm
Probably a few weeks later, a new version of Squid Game will be spread, titled “Squid Game; Corrected Subtitles.”
Sierra Alice
November 2, 2021 at 8:30 pm
So instead of jerk, it should be “Son of a B*tch”
mada.7694
November 2, 2021 at 10:33 pm
Many years of watching Korean drama series prepared me haha! At least I was familiar with the honorifics and some swear words. I feel like without that I would’ve been very lost!
고양이양파
November 3, 2021 at 1:10 am
교육계에서 종사하시나요? 설명을 너무 잘하신당👍👏👏👏
씨발롬아 is like a ..ok ..I just said it . .oh my gosh . ..ok..😂 너무 귀여우신데?💕
Buenomars
November 3, 2021 at 12:07 pm
-OPPA- “Older brother to a woman” GANGNAM STYLE!
cuh_ren
November 3, 2021 at 12:44 pm
I think most asians can translate better because we do use honorifics a lot. As a southeast asian I can name honorifics that are used by other asian countries that have an equivalent term in my native language that I can’t translate well if I have to make an english translation. For example the lady mentioned “oppa” in my native language it is kuya and it can also be used romantically when that girl is younger than her lover and it even has a popular flirtatious pronounciation used in popular culture. In thailand “oppa” is “phi” which basically applies to both men and women who are older than the user of the term. It can be used in a romantic tone too. But in english you don’t call your big brother or a big brother figure as “big bro” because it does not sound natural in english.Instead, you call him by his first name.
就是要美美的回憶
November 3, 2021 at 12:47 pm
The editing makes me feel like the Flash moving around her while she’s talking.
v•
November 3, 2021 at 1:22 pm
I need her to translate the full series for me 😣😣
권무혁
November 3, 2021 at 3:30 pm
“oppa” word has already used and famous, “oppa kangnam style” song by psy singer.
어사화
November 3, 2021 at 4:06 pm
5:27 정겨운 모국어에 특이점이 온 통역가
Danni Shelton
November 3, 2021 at 4:26 pm
in conclusion: i still can’t forgive sang-woo for what he did to ali
It's Just Ryan
November 3, 2021 at 4:29 pm
So basically… The Korean language is nuts? This is why I love English and don’t really want to learn any other language. English is soooooo flexible. If we don’t have a word to describe something we’ll invent one and add it to Webster’s dictionary lol. And even if English isn’t your first language and some words do confuse you, then don’t worry because we have a ton of other words to describe THAT word. Maybe I’m just being an arrogant American, but I personally believe that English is the most versatile language in the world.
우왕
November 3, 2021 at 6:35 pm
속이 뻥 뚫리네요 감사합니다
thekeytomyheart_
November 3, 2021 at 6:39 pm
So glad my brother watched the show with me since I was able to explain hyung, oppa, ahjumma, etc. to him whenever it was emphasized
queer tears
November 3, 2021 at 6:40 pm
I’m bilingual and waiting for the day when a show in my language becomes popular so that I can enjoy the show to its depth (and explain the deeper meaning to my friends lol- basically bragging rights)
Tommy Hetrick
November 3, 2021 at 8:08 pm
thanks for clarifying. I was a little confused about why they started the dialogue about her age but it makes a lot more sense now.
大銀河帝国の皇帝
November 3, 2021 at 8:09 pm
Having watched the German dub, I can say that it is very close to the original Korean
Fajar Setiawan
November 3, 2021 at 8:17 pm
*laughs as in have been watching hundreds of thousands of subtitled Korean shows and dramas*
moonlight
November 3, 2021 at 8:27 pm
Koreans use “Sajangnim” , meanwhile in my country we use “Oustad” which basically translates to “professor”. I think that’s why the honorifics stuff doesn’t confuse me as much as it is for other countries.
Mike B
November 3, 2021 at 8:47 pm
Sounds like babe was good enough
sunny but toast
November 3, 2021 at 8:51 pm
The fact I learned how to speak Korean a bit always made me hate that,,, solely cuz of Ali calling Sang-Woo hyun-
Mister Claw Boi
November 3, 2021 at 9:31 pm
“That’s a whole different video.” BAHAH
마리mari
November 3, 2021 at 9:43 pm
I’m intermediate in korean (not good enough to watch a whole show without eng subs) so while listening to the korean dialogue and reading the subs I was like “oh this is not right,,” jkdfgk it’s very interesting to watch like a whole breakdown of it. Specially oppa, I (accidentally) watched it with the ENG [CC] subs and she was calling him “old man” which was SO odd. But as a spanish/english speaker I find korean a very hard language to translate, so I understand why some choices were made haha. (Not for the dubs tho wth was that)
Kays Dash
November 3, 2021 at 11:10 pm
Netflix translations are all fckd up.
Adnan Sawaf
November 4, 2021 at 12:02 am
People make a big deal out of everything. Who cares of the translation wasn’t spot on? We understood the show just fine
Miss Meliss
November 4, 2021 at 1:11 am
The dubb and the subtitles were so different I had to turn the subs off it was so distracting 😂
임단아
November 4, 2021 at 1:21 am
“oppa” more like “daddy” than babe
Lone Kpopper
November 4, 2021 at 1:25 am
Honestly, I think the 형 & 오빠 translations were appropriate. The perfect alternative for K-dramas, where most of the viewers know basic korean words, is oppa or hyung, essentially just romanized. The problem is that “Squid Game” was meant to be international and most Americans have never heard those words before, so I think the next best thing is what was used. Imagine how confused you’d be if you’ve never heard those words and saw Ali say “Big brother, where are you?” Or 한미녀 saying “Right, older male whom I am or look to be close to?”. So yeah, I think just “Sang-woo” for 형 and “babe” for 오빠 are the best next thing.
Antrum KFP Salatschleuder
November 4, 2021 at 4:36 pm
English is just a stupid Language for stupid People … the German Translation ist much better
Dunja O
November 4, 2021 at 5:01 pm
I would love to see more similar videos that go deeper into the subtleties of translation
Verónica Álvarez
November 4, 2021 at 5:09 pm
She just says “i don’t think the translation is correct” but she doesn’t propose better translations. “Babe” for oppa is not completely accurate but according to the feeling the woman tried to convey, wanting to be closer to him, it seems to me that there aren’t many other options.
JazzyWazzy
November 4, 2021 at 9:56 pm
I think, just leave it as oppa, I’ve been watching Koreans dramas before they were put on Netflix, and that was always the way they did it, you kind of understand what it means by the context
A43N55JK7
November 5, 2021 at 12:10 am
@JazzyWazzy But that’s just lazy interpretation and breaks the immersion. Localising is a difficult job but it serves to transform one culture to another.
Fan subs can get away with half translations but for actual production value its inexcusable.
Verónica Álvarez
November 5, 2021 at 12:21 am
@JazzyWazzy a lot of people would be even more confusing, in these cases, i don’t think babe is that bad, she even mentioned the romantic interest
Jeongho Ko
November 4, 2021 at 5:32 pm
The subtitles doesn’t seem that bad. Maybe just learn to speak Korean if you don’t want to “miss” any of those subtle nuances.
NewBillyP
November 4, 2021 at 5:53 pm
These happen a lot because English doesn’t have variety of words when it comes to address people by their class
C K
November 4, 2021 at 5:54 pm
“ Babe”?!?! 😅
honeysakura1
November 4, 2021 at 6:24 pm
I understand this problem, the english translation for anime series in netflix sometimes does not relate to what the characters had said
The reason is that some words in one language does not give off the same expression in another language. Direct translate the words often will make it sound so weird lol
Sarah AR
November 4, 2021 at 6:30 pm
Ali 😢
John Wick
November 4, 2021 at 7:12 pm
You all are GAE SEI KYA !!
Stephen Steele
November 4, 2021 at 8:21 pm
They probably don’t wanna spend a lot of money on translators so they got an intern who studied basic Korean 101 in college and told him to do it lol
Ryan's Synthwave Guitar
November 4, 2021 at 8:50 pm
Squid Game was actually a show about adults learning to make strawberry juice and test out track suits, but it was translated so badly it looked like people playing games and dying if they failed.
Clay Music
November 4, 2021 at 9:04 pm
People need to understand that it was either ali or sang woo that will remain alive. Sang woo was just doing what any human would wants to survive would do.
Would you honestly be like “looks like you win Ali. I’ll just call the guards so they can kill me.” No you’d do anything to stay alive.
You’re okay letting Ali die because that’s the only way you stay alive
ay-la
November 4, 2021 at 9:21 pm
i can’t watch the ali scene without crying
HAVgiraffe
November 4, 2021 at 9:36 pm
Ali’s death is a billion times for heartbreaking. Are you kidding me!
Em Ji
November 4, 2021 at 10:25 pm
If you’re used to watching things with different languages and you have to depend on subtitles ,you’ll understand that everything translated to english is sometimes not their actual/direct tranlations,I mean their word ti word translation, it’s not like that all the time.. You can prove that thru watching a local movie/series of yours and turning on the cc. 😅
Rani Mesa
November 4, 2021 at 10:31 pm
Came here to be enlightened on the swearing words.
Ella The Poet
November 4, 2021 at 10:32 pm
If Netflix would update their subtitles a lot of people would watch Squid Game all over again. Business model, much?
Tim and Tom v
November 5, 2021 at 12:12 am
this proves that sub and dub is both missing out
Xatalla
November 5, 2021 at 12:24 am
The big issue with translating languages like Korean and Japanese into English is that both languages are hierarchical, so its hard to convey that. But I believe there could have been far more accuracy than there was in the show, especially for the insults
Santi Wang
November 5, 2021 at 12:34 am
Thankfully, for my many many years of watching k-drama im familiar with the address terms and the swearings 😂
rydell garcia
November 5, 2021 at 12:34 am
i mean as long as it still have the point to it, it’s fine.
BookNerd4Music
November 5, 2021 at 1:00 am
Exactly my sentiments as a person who watches kdramas and follows korean culture – when he kept saying Hyung i was dying inside.
whinona purple
November 5, 2021 at 1:11 am
i also think it was translated into english differently depending on country too,like my american friend said oppa was translated to babe but in ireland mine was translated to old man
whinona purple
November 5, 2021 at 1:14 am
i notice alot in kdramas hyung, and unnie are translated to the characters name
AJJ29
November 5, 2021 at 2:50 pm
I want to see subtitles that just try to go as close to literal as is legible. Like hey you “baby animal” 👿
G.
November 5, 2021 at 3:47 pm
Yes the hyung scene is definitely much much sadder now
Brittany Goodrich
November 5, 2021 at 3:58 pm
This is a really great video! I learned these Korean terms by watching kdramas before translators started substituting the Korean terms for English words (so, in this case, the translator would have written “You can call me hyung” instead of “You can call me Sang-woo”). As a translator myself (Chinese to English), I understand that translation is hard, so I don’t blame them for substituting the words, but I do miss learning the terms through the subtitles. It adds to the experience and can change the emotional impact.
Anonymus X
November 5, 2021 at 4:49 pm
The French dubbing was definitively better than y’all English dubbing. 😏🍵
daniel Goad
November 5, 2021 at 5:00 pm
The Hyung detail is so depressingly interesting
beef
November 5, 2021 at 5:12 pm
I wish they also included Gganbu. The translation behind it wasnt explained enough thru subtitles.
ASR
November 5, 2021 at 5:21 pm
us K-drama watchers already know this
The Dana Yi Show
November 5, 2021 at 5:26 pm
Netflix: *people dying every episode*
Also Netflix: “the subtitles have to be pg”
edo27
November 5, 2021 at 5:54 pm
in school i always thought taking language and linguistics classes was boring but now as an adult i find it sooo fascinating. Case in point this video. Kudos to the expert! She seems very knowledgeable and she was very clear in explaining the issues at hand!
Tom J
November 5, 2021 at 6:12 pm
Korea born American here. The translations were fine
Chris
November 5, 2021 at 6:12 pm
5:28 bless her omg lmaooo
Chris
November 5, 2021 at 6:17 pm
Ali GET BEHIND ME!! 😭😭
Anette Licona
November 5, 2021 at 6:18 pm
TELL THEMMMMMM
SUBTITLES SUUUUUUCK
Shay
November 5, 2021 at 6:19 pm
A few years ago, some subtitles (on Netflix specifically) didn’t translate honorifics and just italicized them. I wish we could go back to that, because it’s Netflix! You can pause and look up honorifics.
I didn’t lose out on anything when I pressed pause and opened another tab to see what “sunbae” meant and got a whole quick rundown of tons of Korean honorifics
Blinding Glimmer
November 5, 2021 at 6:24 pm
Meanwhile Kdrama addicts sitting there, aware that not all translations are direct, already knowing what Hyung, oppa, unni, and well most of the basics.
Ranjit Kumar Sahoo
November 5, 2021 at 7:52 pm
There pretty much similarities in address term between indian languages and korean language so someone reading this happens to be an Indian then you should watch squid Game in Korean with English subtitles turned on otherwise you will/have already missed it
ajrt2118
November 5, 2021 at 8:28 pm
This is not an excuse. The Viki streaming service has amazing subtitles. It gives translator notes so you understand the cultural expressions and lines are longer. I’d much rather properly understand what I’m watching then have the dialogue shortened.
Ataraxia
November 5, 2021 at 9:04 pm
LOL i really waited for the professor to start cussing hard
paranormal lazivity
November 5, 2021 at 9:10 pm
I have been watching kdramas for 6 years now and I learned some phrases and expressions and i can tell that they did A LOT of mistakes in squid game
emiiiilyxx
November 5, 2021 at 9:26 pm
i’m currently learning korean (intermediate) and i picked up on a lot of this. there’s a lot of character development, nuances, and more, being missed simply because of the language barrier. it’s just one of the many reasons i love the depth of linguistics… 신기한데~!
Taeyang kim
November 5, 2021 at 10:59 pm
oppa just basically means daddy.
KWANGJIN CHAI
November 5, 2021 at 11:13 pm
As a Korean the englsh subtitles were quite good, considering the cultural differences.
A Vx
November 5, 2021 at 11:19 pm
How is this video only 7 minutes…..you had the opportunity to make this a long one which everyone would have watched.
Jasta Ykotuce
November 6, 2021 at 12:22 am
This changes things a lot
anpanman99
November 6, 2021 at 1:05 am
As a Japanese-English translator, I think videos like this are the perfect solution for conveying additional “footnote” type information for people who want to know more. Filling up the screen with long subtitles or translator’s notes that people have to pause to read is not the answer. I love googling a movie after I have watched it and finding out more details and easter eggs and funny trivia about the show. I don’t need all of that information plastered on the screen while I’m watching it.
M
November 6, 2021 at 5:16 pm
The professor was so embarrassed saying the bad words. She explained beautifully. But I think the actors were brilliant and even if at times the meaning was lost in the translation, their expressions conveyed a lot.
Amaionnaise
November 6, 2021 at 5:22 pm
Thank you for doing what you do! It brings a whole new level of depth into the show! Amazing Job Professor!
LadyLal
November 6, 2021 at 5:42 pm
I’ve watched kdramas for over a decade now and throughout the years I’ve learned these terms so While I knew these words weren’t super accurate I never realized that other non Korean speaking ppl wouldn’t get it eventually within the show hahaha no I’m not fluent at all in Korean I cannot speak it but you definitely get to recognize important words and understand some parts of the cintura that way! Although now looking back subtitles were much more accurate back then on the third party sites pre Netflix. This is the same for a lot of other Korean shows not just squid game. But the more ppl watch and Google on their own the more they can eventually understand these terms !
Mel B
November 6, 2021 at 5:48 pm
It’s not even just those terms which might be difficult to translate but some translations still didn’t match like I could tell that they were saying something different than what was written in the subtitles, it’s like they made up their own dialogue at times.
Ma Ri
November 6, 2021 at 5:48 pm
If you are bilingual, u would know that subtitles, most of the time, arent direct/exact translations. It bothers me tbh
Kylie Hansen
November 6, 2021 at 6:08 pm
I remember trying to describe the hyung aspect to my mom and when Ali was betrayed I was shook.
N
November 6, 2021 at 6:12 pm
This is why I’m glad that I know the basics of Korean culture and the language. When I’m watching any Korean show, I understand more of the meaning behind certain scenes simply because I know what kind of weight certain words hold 🙂 I suggest anyone else who is interested in watching more Korean shows do the same!
TRBL
November 6, 2021 at 6:33 pm
kdrama fans have been complaining about netflix’s translations for a while now so i’m glad it’s finally being addressed
Grace D
November 6, 2021 at 6:40 pm
im so happy that i caught these nuances 😭 im making progress in my Korean Language learning
MyEpiphany77
November 6, 2021 at 7:07 pm
Wrong! Sajangnim literally means boss! Most employees wear suits. You don’t say it to just anyone in a suit. You address business owners, executives, CEOs, etc. as sajangnim to show respect and not cross the hiearchial line. The reason Ali called him sajangnim is because he is socially higher than him. But, when they became close, Ali drops the honorifics and called him hyung (older brother) because he considered him like family.
m ee
November 6, 2021 at 7:18 pm
yes people say scumbag
GoofyTuna
November 6, 2021 at 7:27 pm
Sang Woo sheisty
Jake Aiman Writes
November 6, 2021 at 8:05 pm
5:30 the prof lady just realised she cursed on camera lol 😆
Jake Aiman Writes
November 6, 2021 at 8:07 pm
people who watch dub just missed a lot of the cultural vibes
Gregory Perkins
November 6, 2021 at 8:51 pm
Is oppa more like white girls say daddy
Richard Le Huynh
November 6, 2021 at 9:27 pm
I thought oppa means daddy
nana
November 6, 2021 at 10:34 pm
even if i don’t actually speak korean, but years of watching korean media and taking a couple of korean courses has taught me a lot about the korean system/society/language, and i definitely noticed the misleading translation in squid game
Y N
November 6, 2021 at 10:45 pm
Unfortunately this “professor” is wrong on many things she’s saying
Darick Squire
November 6, 2021 at 11:18 pm
Omg why???
Zebstrika Girl
November 6, 2021 at 11:37 pm
These parts I all paused and explained to my boyfriend because he studied Japanese and I studied Korean. When we watch anime he explains things I didn’t get but this time it was my turn to do so and I took advantage of it. Especially when I understood a situation before he did.
paft
November 7, 2021 at 12:13 am
dubbing should be illegal. And only those legally blind can listen to it.
jeiro
November 7, 2021 at 12:41 am
Ik the significance behind “hyung” but I never noticed that Ali started calling him hyung
Jihyun Lee
November 7, 2021 at 12:46 am
교수님 “ㅅㅂㄻ”할때 얼마나 속으로 뜨끔ㅎㅏ셨을지 상상됨….입밖으로 잘 내지 못하는 그 말 ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
eroshiyda
November 7, 2021 at 12:58 am
Thanks for the explanations! I learned a lot 😀
Sokyoul
November 7, 2021 at 6:36 pm
But you normally always miss sth when you watch a movie and its a language you dont understand.
Also, as a person that understands Korean, i think the subtitles were alright. If you know some Korean you will get the meaning behind the sentences anyways. And if you dont speak Korean and are not familiar with the society, it will be lost on you anyways. So whats the point of being angry about the subtitles.
Michelle G
November 7, 2021 at 6:50 pm
Culture and language are interconnected.
PrincesStabbity
November 7, 2021 at 7:00 pm
Huh…oh nonono…actually, going to France speaking only English is not a good idea 😂😂😂
doda 123
November 7, 2021 at 7:18 pm
when you’re an avid kdrama fan for years you’ve already picked up on all of these
aiyohhhh
November 7, 2021 at 7:36 pm
Growing up on fan-subs, it really makes me appreciate that style of subbing where rather than replacing all words, they’ll just use the romanized version of certain ones to retain cultural connotations. I didn’t mind pausing to look at a footnote, it was cool to get cultured.
baraitalo
November 7, 2021 at 7:42 pm
I remember watching pulp fiction or summat like that and the subtitles put (baseball} bat as morcego 🦇
Justin K
November 7, 2021 at 7:44 pm
i understand a little Korean and still knew that the english and korean didnt match in some cases
tooltalk
November 7, 2021 at 7:55 pm
IMHO and speaking as a native Korean speaker, this translation brouahaha is way overblown.
Mercury Li
November 7, 2021 at 7:57 pm
I watched it with Chinese subtitles. The Chinese translation is much more accurate
Dóra Banai
November 7, 2021 at 8:20 pm
Loved this video cant wait for more 🤗
Dennis Nielsen
November 7, 2021 at 8:31 pm
Non english speaking countries have dealt with this for decades… smh
Maritina89
November 7, 2021 at 8:49 pm
i had to stop watching. Too sad.
Leticia Gonzalez
November 7, 2021 at 9:35 pm
I don’t speak Korean. I did watch Korean dramas as a teen so I recognize some words and the translation that bugged me the most was when the participants were choosing partners and they found out only one of them will survive the wife looks at her husband and says yobo and it’s translated to oh, boy I was like what!?!?
no peace
November 7, 2021 at 10:10 pm
This is so cool
Laryssa Lopes
November 7, 2021 at 10:17 pm
Well, that’s the limit of translation. They did their best, in my opinion. You can’t translate “oppa” or “hyung” to Portuguese, for example. There’s nothing that comes as equivalent or close to the meanings intended. But it’s nice that people noticed theses differences.
michelle
November 7, 2021 at 10:28 pm
this was so needed omg
PS5K
November 7, 2021 at 10:33 pm
YES YES YES THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I WANTED WHEN I WATCHED THIS YES
B
November 7, 2021 at 10:48 pm
“We are not really a – calling by first name basis society” See what happens if everyone names their kids Kim.
rainepanda
November 7, 2021 at 11:12 pm
Kind of weird that they said that oppa meant babe but in the subtitles I got in English it said old man which I think is accurate.
Ju lia
November 7, 2021 at 11:27 pm
in the german translation, they use red light for when the players are allowed to move and green light as a sign to stop 😂🤦🏻♀️
Charlie Wow
November 7, 2021 at 11:37 pm
I’m way too used to animes being filled with translator notes that I have to pause to read lol. I never minded, I always came away with a better understanding of what was being conveyed.
Bruno L.
November 8, 2021 at 12:01 am
I’m always pissed off at translations where insults and swear words get diluted and attenuated. There is no valid reason for it. And it’s even more insulting when it’s done on subtitles.
Dawson Reece
November 8, 2021 at 12:08 am
I always Japan was the only Asian country to use honorifics
Sam C
November 8, 2021 at 1:10 am
What’s interesting is, I have watched a korean drama where they would just translate ‘oppa’ etc. as ‘oppa* *informal term used for a woman to address an older man*’ which is obviously excessive when you are trying to read subtitles, but it’s thanks to that I was able to understand these nuances with sajongnim / hyeong / oppa
linlinpooh
November 8, 2021 at 1:12 am
Even as someone who watches korean shows and dramas a lot I noticed a lot of mistranslation. I feel like Viki can do a way better job translating 😂 That’s how I learned more I think or just being into deep to Korean culture haha
M a a d
November 8, 2021 at 3:22 pm
oh so just like Japanese yeah… am an anime&manga fan lol so the english translation can’t be 100% accurate.
Bebos 01
November 8, 2021 at 3:37 pm
Years of my mom watching K-dramas meant that I basically watched the show knowing all the Korean meanings
BunnyOfDoom
November 8, 2021 at 4:12 pm
There’s a process called localization that changes word when its necessary to make it more relatable to the audience in a different country.
All translations are difficult to localize.
Ritwik Mohanty
November 8, 2021 at 4:12 pm
Everytime i learn a little bit more of a language i always find out that subs and dubs dont do justice.
Valentín López
November 8, 2021 at 4:26 pm
Korean is such a nuanced language and I love it. I’m not gonna lie, I started learning it because of kpop but after Parasite came out I was so mad people couldn’t fully understand or appreciate all the dialogues and little details on the characters’ speech because of the language barrier. It truly is amazing.
Jukebox 1119
November 8, 2021 at 4:39 pm
LOL it was kinda funny how she said Shibalnom in a monotone in korean
i cracked up lol
Jukebox 1119
November 8, 2021 at 4:41 pm
and to give you another word that starts with “Shibal” you could also say shibalneon which’s a version for women
cuz Shibalnom usually means only men
Jaimee Rindy
November 8, 2021 at 4:47 pm
Haha ya I don’t speak Korean but pretty much every time the subtitles said “jerk” or “scumbag” I was like “Ya… that’s not what they said”
Lilo Morales
November 8, 2021 at 5:10 pm
As a professional translator, I can say Netflix’s subs are horrific in any language because they are not willing to pay enough to hire professional translators. Moreover, the US sub and dub industry is a baby because you’re not used to consuming things that are not originally in English, so…
However, if you are the kind of person that hopes for a literal, world-by-world translation, let me tell you you are incorrect. The point is to pass on the message to understand what they are talking about, and it’s obvious you’ll miss a lot.
Anna Sun
November 8, 2021 at 11:44 pm
One of the most frustrating things about Netflix’s subtitles for me it that, as a Swedish person, I’ve noticed that swedish subtitles for non-english language shows are translated using the english translation, creating some kind of chinese whispers situation. It’s ridiculous and I’ve stopped trying to watch anything with swedish subtitles, just opting for english instead. It’s especially frustrating when watching shows in languages I have enough knowledge about to be able to pick up on mistranslations, but don’t know well enough to skip the subtitles.
Paula Echeverría Suárez
November 9, 2021 at 1:02 am
In my personal experience, the Spanish subs are way better than the English ones
MikDan 88
November 8, 2021 at 6:27 pm
Translations are like women.
Beautiful aren’t faithful.
Faithful aren’t beautiful.
Jannat E Jahan
November 8, 2021 at 6:54 pm
I’m not a Korean speaker, but after watching a bunch of amazing dramas and films, now I can get what they’re trying to mean in Korean slangs without even watching the subtitle. I think consistency plays a role to understand any language’s intricacies.
Imani
November 8, 2021 at 7:35 pm
Being a former kpop stan prepared me for the terms of address sitch 🤣 I was gobsmacked at the marbles game outcome lol
But on the real, I’ve spent so much time reading subtitles and learning other languages, I just expect this inevitably and you gotta do your best with understanding.
Chrz P.
November 8, 2021 at 7:43 pm
man they should have let her finish what she was going to say at the end… that Americans think they’re best than everyone else, SAY IT
blueor
November 8, 2021 at 8:06 pm
Just wanted to say that the Chinese translation kept a lot of nuances since the two languages are very close. None of the issues addressed in this video occurred in the Chinese translation. Guess what I’m trying to say is, you can still get pretty much the full experience if you don’t speak Korean. (Just learn some Chinese, easy peasy)
착한반항아
November 8, 2021 at 8:31 pm
와우 한국단어를 발음 그대로 영어단어로 알려주는 체널은 처음보네
laurelin1492
November 8, 2021 at 8:34 pm
Oo9
AvantTemps
November 8, 2021 at 9:19 pm
Yeah my friend who knows Korean told me to use norwegian subtitles and not the English ones
dino nuggies
November 8, 2021 at 9:40 pm
I remember watching squid game (subs, not dubs) and feeling so grateful I understood a tiny bit of Korean. I knew most of the translations were botched lol I was so confused why they made “oppa” to “babe” 🤨
MK Lim
November 8, 2021 at 10:08 pm
The thing with familial relationship naming of others too, is that it implies a sense of duty to each other. Like if a Korean woman calls me “Unni” or “Eonni” (Eng spelling) – meaning older sister, I now feel as though I owe her some consideration in some circumstances. To be a better role model or to buy her lunch sometimes etc. and make sure she is living okay with alright living standards. Using familial terms, means you have to be a GOOD older brother (person) or GOOD younger brother (person) to each other. By Sangwoo saying he can be called HYUNG, he is saying he will be a HYUNG. He is implying he is dependable and trustworthy for Ali (like a brother should be) and we know he f***king isn’t.
MK Lim
November 8, 2021 at 10:11 pm
The Shibalnom is Sangwoo. 🤣
R K
November 8, 2021 at 10:35 pm
Im fluent in both languages. Im actually more comfortable in english but i definitively feel limited by the expressions and richer descriptions the korean languages has that simply does not translate to english. Korean is such a sophisticated deep and rich language while still being so simple. Im so thankful im able to appreciate both.
Powski Productions
November 8, 2021 at 11:03 pm
You know, I feel better with this lady doing it. I remember when some green haired American who took a Korean class tried to school us all on how “we didn’t watch the same show” if we don’t know Korean. Just another Gen Zer looking for their 15 minutes of fame. Much happier hearing an actual language professor go over it.
C: Soniah
November 8, 2021 at 11:08 pm
Thanks to kdramas i already knew this
XclusiveChiq
November 8, 2021 at 11:57 pm
I thought she was calling him old man 😂
달뚜비
November 9, 2021 at 1:06 am
이게 알고리즘에 왜 떳지ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
kiOvO
November 9, 2021 at 1:11 am
I know very little Korean and even i knew the subtitles were wrong lol
Matthew Heath
November 9, 2021 at 4:41 pm
So they should have used “Zaddy” for “Oppa”?
wesley32186
November 9, 2021 at 4:49 pm
I was told once that Sajangnim was like “Boss” or “Bossman”, is that a fair interpretation?
QuoBok __
November 9, 2021 at 4:53 pm
CCP representative breaksdown communist manifesto
NOMAD, AKA NMD
November 9, 2021 at 5:33 pm
Oopa is the Korean version of calling your bf daddy
Unicorn-Town-Going-Down
November 9, 2021 at 5:34 pm
I’ve only taken 1 semester of Korean, and I could tell the subtitles were off.
Unicorn-Town-Going-Down
November 9, 2021 at 5:38 pm
I’m not Korean, but I have quite a few Korean friend and they use honorifics with each other. Knowing how trusting Ali was of Sangwoo had me bawling during the marble game. My parents didn’t understand what the language conveyed, though, so they weren’t nearly as upset as I was.
Michael Hollender
November 9, 2021 at 6:00 pm
The “babe” thing seems accurate, given the explanation. People use a forced “babe” on/with their significant other all the time.
Tom Haflinger
November 9, 2021 at 6:22 pm
There is definitely a sense of superiority for people who speak English natively. People who are trying to speak a language that they are not fluent in, will generally sound less intelligent. So the native English speaker, through this interaction, will get the sense that the non-native speaker is not as smart as they really are.
Lucy Ermilio
November 9, 2021 at 6:41 pm
Good now fire the subtitle writers at Netflix. It’s so hard to watch Chinese and Korean shows.
Arthur Weinstein
November 9, 2021 at 6:51 pm
Literally every single foreign film has bad subs
ayeerdnA _
November 9, 2021 at 7:03 pm
She didn’t want to say, but sekki basically translates to SOB. You’re welcome.
crimeselected
November 9, 2021 at 7:11 pm
Let’s not forget they had to find english words that we the most suitable for dubbing, meaning the length of words play an important role. And I think that they did actually a great job here!
tino
November 9, 2021 at 7:31 pm
Me who has been watching kdrama for years knowing all the correct translations be like
✌🏻😎✌🏻
Maylin Elisa Cardenas
November 9, 2021 at 7:44 pm
By now, WIRED ought o be teaching linguistics 101
femaletrouble
November 9, 2021 at 7:53 pm
I guess a close equivalent to oppa could be when spouses/romantic partners refer to their other half as “my old man” or “my old lady”. But that’s more referencing the partner to a third party and not a direct pet name.
#EXO #NCT #WAYV Come Back, the superior song
November 9, 2021 at 8:04 pm
That’s why when I watched it more than once I use English subs, my native language and Chinese. The subs are quite different and could totally change a scene…
savannah grace
November 9, 2021 at 8:15 pm
i haven’t watched this video yet but i know that most people calling out the subtitles are talking about the “English (CC)” ones, when the other collection of english subtitles are much better.
I watched the show using the “English” subtitles and lots of things that people are saying the “English (CC)” subtitles are supposed to say are actually said with the “English” subtitles. idk why there are two sets especially if one’s a lot worse lol, it’s annoying
of course, i’m sure the “English” subtitles aren’t extremely accurate either but i definitely get a better understanding of the show and context than when i watched it a second time with the “English (CC).”
riley zafra
November 9, 2021 at 8:24 pm
2:31 so informally, would it be like “bro! Bro! Sangwoo! bro!” type of thing? 🤷
RhondaK K
November 9, 2021 at 8:37 pm
Professor Joonwon Suh is so enjoyable. Great presentation.
kero please
November 9, 2021 at 10:07 pm
i didn’t think i could hate sang-woo more
Dintamio
November 9, 2021 at 11:16 pm
For person who also knew Korean Language.. it is so often i find that sometimes I find many subtitles were off. And some parts it kind of annoying because it way off… especially if you turn on the dubbing version. Which is it can such change the meaning and intentioon of it.
sjagoefta
November 10, 2021 at 12:59 am
Netflix subtitles are often very wrong or different. That’s why I like it when fans sub video like in in the “Rakuten Viki app” so much more accurate.
hunterwyeth
November 10, 2021 at 1:17 am
I highly recommend viewing with subs. The original voices are a lot better and there’s an important reason you’ll want to hear the original actors voices later in the show.
MySisterIsAFoodie
November 10, 2021 at 1:22 am
This is nitpicking. There is always nuance lost in translations. We got the gist/idea. It didn’t make it any more sad because one or two words weren’t properly translated.
Claudia Gordillo
November 10, 2021 at 4:18 pm
Thank you for your explanation Professor, it was very interesting
Ophelia Rising
November 10, 2021 at 4:20 pm
English speakers are lazy to learn other languages because they can get away with speaking simply their mother tongue. I don’t have a problem with that but what I annoys me is that often they take it for granted when foreigners speak English to communicate with them, as if it’s something everybody should be doing perfectly. And we’re all expected to speak their language even when they travel abroad.
ann24
November 10, 2021 at 4:39 pm
In the german translation, hyung became “big brother”, which is not a common term to call someone in Germany – and yes, I stumbled upon it!But then I just thought that this would be a korean term showing respect (as it is apparently). So I kinda get the problems the translators are facing here!
Krabby Kat
November 10, 2021 at 4:41 pm
that *BOTCHED* translation made it easy for a lot town watch the show so cut the crap y’all
Lesley Ann
November 10, 2021 at 4:43 pm
After seeing these tiktoks retranslating the subs, I realized I was automatically translating it in my head without knowing. I had to explain to my dad why the marble scene made me cry so much.
Not Good
November 10, 2021 at 4:48 pm
The oppa/babe thing is the one that bothered me lol, bcs like yeah, I guess in a relationship way it’s okay in this context?? But it completely looses the age context lol
smartie1098
November 10, 2021 at 6:16 pm
Tbh it feels like the subtitles were made by people who learned English as their second language rather than eg. Korean Americans that are bilingual
K
November 10, 2021 at 6:22 pm
Is “oppa” used in a similar but less perverse manner like “Daddy” in English?
TheMoises1213
November 10, 2021 at 6:25 pm
This was good
Bailey Derby
November 10, 2021 at 6:29 pm
This is true of all subtitles tbh
Elbardo
November 10, 2021 at 7:08 pm
basically, and everyone that has some common sense would have realised this before, because of how different korean and english are you can’t have a 1 to 1 translation, unless you want the series to look like an early 2000 fansub anime that had translator notes all over the place.
Kristen Rector
November 10, 2021 at 7:50 pm
In “My Name” (also on Netflix) they certainly translated 시발년 and 미친년 correctly and often 😂
sicabeat
November 10, 2021 at 8:03 pm
yeah we could tell that the translators were underpaid because they did such a half-assed job. assuming the same for the cringey english-speaking actors. i’m sure they had no idea it would blow up this big 😂
Jason
November 10, 2021 at 8:20 pm
#justiceforali
Berlian Presti
November 10, 2021 at 8:21 pm
sometimes i just wish they didn’t translate honorifics and just give a small note abt what’s the word mean in the corner
Philosopher Logic
November 10, 2021 at 8:45 pm
So glad I took level 1 Korean in highschool.
Uncertain Zee
November 10, 2021 at 8:46 pm
Translating swear words in general are just so difficult, i try to explain english ones to my parents or Spanish ones to non-spanish speakers and it’s always a lot of “it’s kinda like *some curse word in that language* but has more of *whatever type of feeling that often highly depends on the culture and trying to find something similar*”
hobilul
November 10, 2021 at 10:36 pm
this is where my kdrama and kpop obsession comes to use lol. It’s definitely more fun when you can understand some of it
Ark Sum
November 10, 2021 at 11:17 pm
I definitely feel like some of the coarseness could have been translated better. The professor talks about many things that could have been done better and I don’t speak Korean so maybe this doesn’t make sense, but I definitely in the bathroom scene envisioned more like “I’m taking a huge dump” instead of “I’m using the restroom” which makes her sound like she’s trying to be polite
Desi Desi
November 10, 2021 at 11:22 pm
And this is why I am going to learn the Korean language! I KNEW we were missing out on certain things!
Anthony Cuomo
November 10, 2021 at 11:46 pm
Languages are tight.
Erwin van Broekhoven
November 11, 2021 at 12:06 am
Yeah it happens with every language. I notice it a lot with dutch translations on english shows. Since my family isn’t as fluent in english. So I notice in english their can be multiple words that translate to the same word in dutch and a lot of nuance in dialogue is lost. And I have noticed a few that are just plain wrong.
Paula Flores
November 11, 2021 at 12:06 am
i hate poor translation
skrt skrt
November 11, 2021 at 12:17 am
lol
steven duenas
November 11, 2021 at 12:57 am
When the show is so good that you have to nit-pick on the subtitles…
zer0luv
November 11, 2021 at 1:50 pm
I still don’t understand why oppa and hyung couldn’t be translated. In America men call each other “bro” or “my brother”, people would have understood if there was a short explanation. Oppa could have just had a little note that it was a term of endearment, it’s a great way to put it into the Western zeitgeist.
blimp
November 11, 2021 at 1:58 pm
i love using subtitles
25beee
November 11, 2021 at 2:43 pm
Maybe because I already watched a looot Kdrama and K variety show, I already noticed some translation are not really spot on, and it’s not only in Squid Game, some translation at another drama on Netflix are have same problems and surprise I don’t even know Hangul nor learn it..
Maria Ravdanis
November 11, 2021 at 2:45 pm
That’s all fine and interesting of course, but would you read subtitles like ‘Stop calling me business person but call me older brother instead’ or ‘Love you, babe who is older than me”? When translating one must first and foremost consider the norms of the target language, so sure some things will be lost in translation but it’s no reason to say translators did a bad job.
zaQba
November 11, 2021 at 3:08 pm
The green light red light thing irks me though. In Korean the song carry a totally different meaning.
Bstaznkid4lyfe
November 11, 2021 at 3:37 pm
Most translator are bad at translating the subtitle, but it’s close enough..If it was translated by a real Korean, then it’s 100% accurate..
Jyoti Gautam
November 11, 2021 at 4:28 pm
Ali’s death was so heartbreaking and sang woo betrayed him
But in a corner of my heart, I think sang woo kinda did right as it was a life or death situation but he could’ve been honest instead of making Ali a fool and Ali was a lil dumb, I mean why would you trust someone when it’s a life or death scenario obviously the other one would try to survive and he should’ve thought about survival
And I am sad over Ali’s death but I can’t hate sang woo
MonoGray
November 11, 2021 at 4:29 pm
She gives off comfort vibes like just her talking makes me feel comfort
James E
November 11, 2021 at 5:28 pm
Subtitles are truly so important though, for non natives you will pick up new words and look at the subtitles for the right translations. But this way with honorifics you could definitely learn it wrong
rabbis-why
November 11, 2021 at 6:20 pm
💗
filip haaland
November 11, 2021 at 6:28 pm
just do what fandubs of Japanese translation has done for years:
Keep the word and then add a fast explanation on screen, this way the audience gets to understand the culture.
If it goes by too fast We can always pause, its on netflix afterall not the cinema
karen j cosme
November 11, 2021 at 6:54 pm
Not sure I would have shed a tear during some of these scenes, as explained, but I have to give credit to the superb acting – subtitles or not, they conveyed what was happening quite clearly.
ray c
November 11, 2021 at 7:51 pm
english has the most basic swearwords if compared to other languages lol
Delvin Bonilla
November 11, 2021 at 8:04 pm
People are making the translation a bigger deal then it is. It just shows how everyone is not familiar with Subs & Dub. Dub obviously never match the actual translation, it just never happens with any foreign movie. Especially in Anime, so I don’t know why people are making it a big deal.
CJ
November 11, 2021 at 9:52 pm
This series is just about these nuances. The killing and brutality is what we see on the surface, but it all has this background that we do not fully grasp as non Korean audience. This series is a masterpiece, GG-worthy, fantastic. Too bad that the series is reduced to something that it does not stand for, it shows the clash of cultures in an ultra-extreme surrounding. So great to watch, hopefully it ends after season 2, otherwise it will fade away
Ari Hart
November 11, 2021 at 10:05 pm
Seems like the word ‘pipsqueak’ would have been a better substitute for ‘sae-kki’
drop me a line if you need someone for season 2, netflix — I’ll squeeze you in.
시마리
November 11, 2021 at 10:24 pm
5:27 why is she pronouncing “씨” as s+i? It’s not English s+i -_-
Joshua Davidson
November 11, 2021 at 10:36 pm
I’m not a Korean speaker, but I think the translation was pretty good. Most of the inaccuracies she mentioned were for terms that don’t really have English equivalents.
As for the dubbed version though, yeah that was horrible.
fryderyktube3D
November 11, 2021 at 10:43 pm
Wait why are all the comments about squid game? Aren’t we watching the NASA live stream?
fryderyktube3D
November 11, 2021 at 10:46 pm
wait lol I just refreshed but for some reason youtube loaded this video’s comment section on the NASA live stream about the crew 3 docking. wtf, lmao no wonder there were ABSOLUTELY NO comments about it.
McShady
November 11, 2021 at 10:52 pm
ok but at the same time it’s extremely hard to create subtitles for slang and then make it make sense to western audiences, like the “oppa” scene, how are they supposed to translate that age difference joke in just a few seconds while also giving the viewer time to actually watch the program.
The Wabbit King
November 12, 2021 at 12:02 am
I like how she never suggests a correction, makes the argument sound weaker. Like “babe is not accurate because oppa means something close between two people” (i know im paraphrasing)… So what word were they supposed to use??
Salamander
November 12, 2021 at 12:10 am
My friends had to endure a lengthy rant after I watched the scene where sangwoo tells ali to call him hyung. I was so upset by how lame the scene sounds in English. I know it would be harder for English speakers to adjust to but I kind of wish they just included the titles in their original forms.. I’m always happy to research a little about a culture to try and understand more about those difficult to translate contexts.
Nicola R
November 12, 2021 at 12:15 am
As someone learning Korean the subtitles annoyed me so much lol
msully74
November 12, 2021 at 12:30 am
That was an excellent context explanation, thank you.
Peachy Bri
November 12, 2021 at 12:39 am
As someone who has studied Korean honorifics, slang, and Korean in general: it pissed me off seeing the subtitles translate NOTHING close to what the actual characters are saying 😵💫
Thank you WIRED for getting her on here and thank you professor for explaining clearly. Netflix subtitles are eugh. I hate how “PG” and basic they are.
Boy Katol
November 12, 2021 at 2:30 am
Why they didnt hire this woman then
Brian Ortiz
November 12, 2021 at 2:30 am
0:28 “Not the dub version”
Cc: “Not the dumb version”
Ironic
Alif Ishak Ayob
November 12, 2021 at 3:45 am
Here’s my question:
1. Did the professor watch the entire show?
2. Did the professor actually offer any alternatives/solutions to what she deems as “inaccurate” translation?
Natasha Meow
November 12, 2021 at 3:50 am
I feel like sekki can almost translate to son of a b*tch
Happy Trails
November 12, 2021 at 5:05 am
Korean language has its own charm and can’t get too caught up in subtitles. Sometimes when translated they take liberties to try and help the story makes sense to the target audience. Even though it not completely accurate its ok. Gives everybody chance to learn korean, annyeong.
b2kzangelalwayz
November 12, 2021 at 6:07 am
Korean-speaking audiences do not give the actors nearly enough credit. Pain, suffering, despair, and disappointment were expressed in a universal language that we understood. Everyone is hyper focused on language and translations, as if it’s going to change the fact that we all cried for Ali.
Nipu 008
November 12, 2021 at 7:39 am
Me who is not a korean but have watched soooooooo many kdramas that i understand these 🕶️
Yousef Al-Nuaimi
November 12, 2021 at 8:07 am
when she said “that’s a whole nother video” at 0:34 I questioned whether I should watch this…
Aoife
November 12, 2021 at 8:57 am
After watching enough k dramas you start to pick up on this stuff pretty quickly.
Leiterreyes
November 12, 2021 at 11:05 am
As a kpop fan, you know that there are subtitles that aren’t accurate with the korean language lol it’s kinda cringey
Emilia
November 12, 2021 at 2:08 pm
The Korean language is so beautiful. After picking up the language after watching sooo many Korean movies, I learnt that the language is soo emotionally deep. So deep that you can’t translate it to English. You use words to express love, happiness, sadness, lonliness in such a profound way. It’s absolutely gorgeous.
GuiguiReGiS Mercer
November 12, 2021 at 2:43 pm
Fascinating how the use of mother to insult someone is common in many languages, after all our cultural and physical differences we still find ways to insult each other mothers to mean great harm! Poor mothers
James Henry Smith
November 12, 2021 at 3:17 pm
I almost thought Kpop was in Korean for a sec.. That would be embarassing.
Josie Crane
November 12, 2021 at 4:36 pm
I remember seeing one person online get grossed out bc they thought that Korean girls and women would literally call older male partners or love interests “brother”
Like no “oppa” is practically untranslatable bc it is used in multiple different situations
“Oppa” and the related words “Hyung”, “Noona” (younger male to older female), and “Unnie” (younger female to older female) can all be used in different relationships (mainly legal/genetic family, friends, and love interests)
Sirensongenterprises
November 12, 2021 at 5:14 pm
Netflix also sanitizes English to English captions. It’s gross and infantilizing to deaf and hard of hearing folks and major access issue.
C
November 12, 2021 at 5:18 pm
Who cares….
Wattywatasaurus
November 12, 2021 at 5:29 pm
I read somewhere that Han Mi-Nyeo is apparently the biggest sacrifice of the language barrier, because to a non-Korean speaker, she comes across as being deranged and rather weird, when in reality she’s just meant to be coarse and earthy, a bit like what we in Britain would call a chav. And that actually makes a lot of sense – I’m fairly sure a lot of non-English speakers wouldn’t pick up the nuances and social connotations of a chav character in a story, such as the characters in the movie Fish Tank, and would view them in much the same way.
sanaa majeed
November 12, 2021 at 5:33 pm
As a Kdrama veterin I I don’t speak korean but I sure know how to cus
soju81
November 12, 2021 at 5:59 pm
There were certain cultural things that I understand were omitted because there would need to be a cultural lesson… BUT there were certain sentences that were blatantly omitted. Almost all cursing was omitted too. The annoying lady was way more annoying but you wouldn’t know that because of the way they watered down her speech.
I noticed ALL Netflix Korean films/dramas heavily tone down the language. They omit all or most cursing in K-dramas and films. Not sure why….
Kam S
November 12, 2021 at 9:29 pm
This makes sang-woo all the more unforgivable
Clev for Now
November 12, 2021 at 11:41 pm
I can’t wait to watch this show when people aren’t talking about it in a few months
Matthew Cronin
November 12, 2021 at 11:46 pm
Translators have to balance literal translation against translation of intent all the time. Changing “Hyung” to Sang-woo’s first name is a great example of this done, in my opinion quite well. Hyung conveys a feeling of increased closeness, where in English not using any titles, using only the first name, does (or used to do, anyway) something similar.
Of course, this also breaks down because first-name-only use has become the norm in almost every situation. Absence of hierarchy or formality in social English makes this just impossible, but I can get why they’d use first names as a proxy, because it’s probably the only thing even close in English.
LaurenAnne
November 13, 2021 at 12:02 am
Yes!! I’ve been waiting for a video like this!!
Laur
November 13, 2021 at 12:11 am
“baby of any animals”
you mean “child of an animal?”
smh even the lady here didn’t translate the curse words properly. “baby animal” sounds cute, not harsh lol.
Amelia
November 13, 2021 at 12:37 am
i’m surprised the view hasn’t reached a million?? btw thank you Wired for this!
JoAshanti
November 13, 2021 at 4:19 am
Netflix better not butcher the subs for season 2. I don’t want to watch a different Squid Game show to what Korean speakers will be watching
BlahBlahBlast
November 13, 2021 at 4:31 am
YES.
BlahBlahBlast
November 13, 2021 at 4:31 am
The slaughter in this subtitles…
Ashley Walker
November 13, 2021 at 5:52 am
@5.40 – at the very least, her tone conveyed that something more than “scumbag” was intended. The acting and tone actually did that for quite a few of these examples.
다Z라Z
November 13, 2021 at 4:05 pm
Agreed. The actress did such a fine job using her body language and intonations there was no doubt as to her character.
MK Uis
November 13, 2021 at 6:00 am
lol “Pretty good at conveying the story line…” that’s the basic of any translation, it’s like you barely pass, if you messed up even the meaning, dude you shouldn’t be in the translation game. Note we haven’t even started talking about the cultural reference/context of the dialogues, the change of tone via subtle choice of words, vocabulary association with class (yeah I’m looking at you America, you certainly have class differences in how different people talk), etc. Sorry, everything is just lost in translation..
Finn
November 13, 2021 at 7:19 am
its not just squid game, or korean to english translation errors, netflix constantly fucks over the people who need subtitles period
Alessandro Mazzacani
November 13, 2021 at 8:11 am
So Squid Game’s honorific translations are great, unless you want to translate one word into 30.
Leslie Dugger
November 13, 2021 at 8:29 am
No worry…. A lot of this actually translated fine.
Luke Marcel
November 13, 2021 at 1:27 pm
as a linguistics student interested in learning new languages, i think the nuances of translation are part of what drew me to studying languages. the cultural differences that affect how language is used are so cool, and it’s really interesting seeing that broken down here. language is awesome.
Chinedu Anulugwo
November 13, 2021 at 2:24 pm
OPPAI!!!!
Sorry i mean Oppa
ll sue
November 13, 2021 at 3:22 pm
“oppa” is basically “papi” or Daddy”..
다Z라Z
November 13, 2021 at 4:03 pm
Calling your boyfriend “Daddy” is so creepy. Seriously need a different translation.
ll sue
November 13, 2021 at 6:04 pm
@다Z라Z true, but this would fit in the script. I.e. when she calls him “Daddy” it makes sense that he replies referring to her age
Maskappi
November 13, 2021 at 4:57 pm
The anime community has solved this with TL notes already, why not make it an optional feature
Dom Dee
November 13, 2021 at 5:13 pm
We watched the dubbed in English and in French, and the French voice actors were much better! I guess they’re so used to dubbing stuff in France, the voices felt natural and not caricatures.
José Ribamar Jr
November 13, 2021 at 5:14 pm
I freaking love this type of content. Pleeease do more stuff like this, for example: a Norwegian language professor checking out the subtitles in ‘Ragnarok’.
Kenya Katrina ELF
November 13, 2021 at 5:26 pm
This is why a thank those fan translated shows/series/animes/manga, they always put a “t/n” when they think we might not understand the cultural context. They do an excellent job 👏👏👏
Nathaly Kim
November 13, 2021 at 5:36 pm
it’s really cool to see these non English huge Netflix hits, such as squid game, dark, money heist, lupin
props to Netflix for branching out more than the traditional companies ever did, and hopefully ppl will stop being so afraid of subtitles
정복자릴리아
November 13, 2021 at 5:58 pm
hyung – norazo
Roberto MAURI
November 13, 2021 at 6:46 pm
The constantly poor quality of translations is a never-ending mistery to me, not to mention a real nuisance for non-English speakers around the world.
ᴅᴀɪsʏ ᴍᴇʀᴏʟʟɪɴ
November 13, 2021 at 7:15 pm
i cried the most, my heart broke so hard at that moment between ali and sang-woo and now i gotta relive that except that ali was even kinder to him than i thought :’c
Meg Fluffy
November 13, 2021 at 7:59 pm
excellent video, I esp. liked the ending. this is why we should study foreign languages, something us in the US are so poor at
Tipsy Bass
November 13, 2021 at 8:22 pm
I really thought this was common knowledge that any movie with subtitles isn’t very close to what they’re saying (talking mainly of English subtitles). Lots of profanity isn’t translated into English. Some I’m fluent in, like Spanish and Italian, they rarely subtitle what the people are saying. I’m pretty sure it’s like that with all Asian movies as well, especially Kung fu movies
Sarit Shull
November 13, 2021 at 8:46 pm
Netflix’s Hebrew shows also have really weird subtitles.
It’s like they ran it through google instead of getting someone who’s first language is English to translate
Ad A
November 13, 2021 at 9:58 pm
Lol
Flame Beats
November 13, 2021 at 10:17 pm
I guess the dub was slightly more accurate by saying “old man” instead of babe.
Jennifer Hanses
November 14, 2021 at 1:22 am
Sounds like “Oppa” should have been translated as “daddy” rather than “babe.” Would have worked great with the age joke, too.
lunathemoon
November 14, 2021 at 5:18 am
I watched so much K-Drama that I noticed a lot of the slightly incorrect translation. Some words in Korean just could not be translated exactly over to American audience who may not have seen any K-Drama or Korean show before.
Austin Tumblerock
November 14, 2021 at 5:21 am
Who asked?
cheesegraturr
November 14, 2021 at 8:53 am
i did
sweiland75
November 14, 2021 at 6:02 am
The first issue is that it seems impossible to translate politeness to something understood by Americans. LOL
Klm49
November 14, 2021 at 6:21 am
Thank you so much Professor Suh!!!!!!
JimiNida
November 14, 2021 at 8:06 am
*In India, There Are Hundreds Of Official Languages, Thousands Of Dialects Plus Innumerable Accents! Figuratively Each City Can Be Distinguished On That Basis, Various Levels Of Respectful & Disrespectful Tongues; And Yeah The Translation Ain’t Attainable At All.*
Vic Lau
November 14, 2021 at 8:40 am
Ali is the only noble main character of the show. He do everything for his family, no gambling, no funny business, not committing crime, no hurting other. Yes his ex-boss deserves the finger crush.
RR Yase
November 14, 2021 at 9:32 am
How do Filipino dramas translate kuya on Netflix?
fentanyl54
November 14, 2021 at 9:41 am
they couldn’t find anyone who is not fat?
Adele Dazeem
November 14, 2021 at 10:22 am
These kind of videos wouldn’t be made if they didn’t fk it up 😂
Leon Müller
November 14, 2021 at 10:35 am
“Everybody speaks english, even if you go to France!”
Nearly died laughing
Shravasti Sarmah
November 14, 2021 at 12:21 pm
As someone who speaks more than two languages, I have never had an English word that didn’t have any equivalent in the other languages but always words in other languages that had no equivalent in English.
ADRX Deedrich
November 14, 2021 at 12:23 pm
How could they use babe for oppa lol
Potato
November 14, 2021 at 1:05 pm
The youtube captions transalated dubbed version to dumb version😂😂
Mustafa Senpi
November 14, 2021 at 2:52 pm
The cool thing I watch kdrama for 8 year’s and I understand everything so I read the subtitles but I know the wrong thing but the most thing I hate that they translate the doll game ( Green line red line ) it’s just so sad that this ppl don’t like to share the Korean tradition song they just chang it
Git Man
November 14, 2021 at 4:38 pm
Should have been “daddy” instead of “babe”
aggrogahu
November 14, 2021 at 6:06 pm
It’s pretty obvious that they’re using honorifics when subs say a character’s name, but something else is audibly said/heard. Subtitles did a serviceable job, as it’s impossible to preserve the exact nuance without butchering the English.
Bobbie C
November 14, 2021 at 6:52 pm
I love this video. I will show my boyfriend it. Because I understand these terms in Korean.. I tried to explain it to him too and just how heartbreaking the use of ‘Hyung’ really is but these terms are hard to translate.. it’s better to learn what they mean and read them as such than try to translate it to English. Language is fascinating. Korean in fascinating. I wish I had an actual talent in learning it or any language to be fluent. I always feel stuck at the basics lol
Sven Molhuijsen
November 14, 2021 at 7:49 pm
“If you go to France you can convey messages in English”… Not in my experience 😅
Yandolito
November 14, 2021 at 8:32 pm
Did not watch Squid game but I’m here for this! Linguistiiiiiics🤓🥰
Adrian Pietkiewicz
November 14, 2021 at 8:47 pm
I knew he wasn’t calling him Sang-Woo! Thanks for the explanation!
InkBird
November 14, 2021 at 8:57 pm
I was wondering why despite the subtitles constantly saying sang-woo i wasn’t actually hearing the character SAY sang-woo most of the time lol
_SPT-WarWolf_
November 14, 2021 at 9:15 pm
Question for Koreans
(Squid Game/Parasite Spoilers ahead)
Is there a lot of Koreans who can speak English? Cause we see that some of the Korean characters in Squid Game, like the detective (can’t remember his name) and the Front Man, can speak English. Could them being brothers have something to do with it?
Also, I feel the need to ask, is cremation just normal in Korea for people who die? Cause when it comes to funerals in the US, burial is the standard unless the deceased person requested otherwise. Therefore, seeing the players in Squid Game getting cremated added an element of horror to the show. But in Korea, is that just normal? I got curious because there was a character in the movie, Parasite (excellent movie, btw) that was also cremated. They also showed a huge mausoleum that was full of other urns for people’s ashes.
rachel.doremi
November 14, 2021 at 10:07 pm
So it’s just a just the language barrier of honorifics… and the pg version of subtitles… just like every foreign audience’s experience with foreign media… i imagine the subtitles for friends or fast and furious have misunderstandings because of cultural differences too… idk why people threw a pity party about it
Soumyadeep Bhattacherjee
November 14, 2021 at 10:09 pm
When she explained ‘hyung’, it broke me 🙁
KingZ
November 15, 2021 at 12:04 am
Yeah, honestly I got pretty much the same feeling and understanding whether I would have knew this or not.
The subtitles are fine. You can pretty much surmise the context through the actors emotion, characters personality, etc.
They literally cannot be more accurate unless they used the literal romanized term and gave us context of what it means + we had to remember said context.
However, that said, Netflix needs to do better and take their translations more seriously, like hire or contract people for that instead of just baseline, foreign language >English.
Jason Lovi
November 15, 2021 at 2:09 am
Gonna hold off on watching this till I figure out how to watch the show the way it was meant to be watched.
Joshua Tutanes
November 15, 2021 at 2:41 am
I love how the Netflix subtitles screw up “oppa.” Like, you guys also distributed a BLACKPINK documentary WHERE THEY STRAIGHT UP EXPLAIN WHAT “OPPA” MEANS. HOW DID THEY SCREW THAT UP?
MrJeezus
November 15, 2021 at 2:53 am
We all knew Oppa meant “big brother” because had all translated Gangnam Style in 2012.
MrJeezus
November 15, 2021 at 2:54 am
And what about the accuracy of translation of the phone call in episode 2? That was so funny.
wu jimmy
November 15, 2021 at 3:08 am
This is so interesting because I actually watched Squid Game in Mandarin subs and they translate much better
Alive Outside
November 16, 2021 at 2:09 am
Same here
Ana Maria Harvey
November 15, 2021 at 3:41 am
i’m filipino and my grandma also calls my grandpa “older brother” in visayan
Kyle Holcomb
November 15, 2021 at 3:45 am
One thing I really liked when I used to watch anime was when there would be translator notes on the screen, I wonder if Netflix will ever explore that as an additional option for English subtitles.
Mason Beutler
November 15, 2021 at 3:59 am
Wish Netflix would spend a little more money on subtitles to hire real experts like her- they should be embarrassed to have poor subtitles and running for their most watched show of all time.
8915032
November 15, 2021 at 4:10 am
Maybe footnotes for certain words can be added at times and viewers can pause to read it. I hope it doesn’t affect the viewers’ interest in watching the show.
Kien D Luu
November 15, 2021 at 5:46 am
Her closing statement is so apt that only multilingual people will truely appreciate it.
Who’s cat I’m i?
November 15, 2021 at 7:01 am
Oddly enough I’m happy that I didn’t use English subtitles
ash
November 15, 2021 at 7:03 am
it’s been like that for foreign shows on netflix for a long time but people are only noticing now because squid game got popular
BimDaTitanicNerd
November 15, 2021 at 7:04 am
bruh i literally watched the whole series with english sub because theres no way im gonna be able to understand what theyre saying lol
Yuri Vladimirovich
November 15, 2021 at 7:53 am
I give the video a like, but I’d like to point out that the korean language expert should stop calling vulgar language a low class language. High class people curse. And vulgar language must be treated the same as the, so-called, standard language. Because curse words can have a huge history behind them.
Seul Gi Song
November 15, 2021 at 11:50 am
I liked the fact that Mi nyeo’s name means pretty girl.
Thoughtspresso
November 15, 2021 at 2:21 pm
If you lived your teen years through anime fansubs and scanlations, then you know it’s wholly possible to just outright port words that dont exist in that language with a Tr. Note.
Lemon Clover
November 15, 2021 at 2:34 pm
When you are not korean speaker but have watch tons of korean drama all your life, you understand fully what they want to conveyed
Han Vu
November 15, 2021 at 5:35 pm
Awesome, thank you professor
Andrew Richard
November 15, 2021 at 5:41 pm
Actually, Americans think their language is the least complex, and everyone else should learn such a straightforward language. But actually English is one of the hardest to learn, because it is a combination of 4 languages: germanic, latin, Norse, and French.
Ame Lia
November 15, 2021 at 6:39 pm
i personally wouldn’t nit pick the subtitles or suggest that the translators weren’t up to their jobs as educators… so long as the meaning is conveyed, is it really necessary for expressions to be pedantically and literally spelled out? This isn’t the 한국어 101 elective class @CU that I didn’t end up signing up for… way back when…
xx mike
November 15, 2021 at 8:45 pm
a lot of has to do with cultural difference. especially when it comes to words of expression which simply only exist to that culture (language). this is why translating expression words gives totally different feeling as exact translation does not exist.
SQ8MXT
November 15, 2021 at 11:44 pm
I just watched it in korean so lets see how much i managed to misunderstand 😀
InvictusByzantium
November 16, 2021 at 12:07 am
The best explanation I ever got for “Oppa” was when someone compared it to senpai in Japanese. Not quite the same thing, but there are definitely similar connotations.
Internet Child
November 16, 2021 at 3:03 am
I noticed in a total different drama that was even marketed towards family. They said their “F word” but the subtitles said sh*t instead. Like everyone knows what that word is…
The Alaskan
November 16, 2021 at 5:10 am
Please do this for “Narcos: Mexico” I want to know if the subtitles are right also. It’s the biggest Spanish show
Xenobio
November 16, 2021 at 3:14 pm
I’ve actually seen “oppa” used as an “English” translation for “ge” in the subtitles of a Chinese drama because it seems like English-speaking audiences are now more familiar with Kdramas (this was even before Squid Game came out)
Indigo Cool
November 16, 2021 at 8:15 pm
Since i had a tiny bit of Korean knowledge beforehand I was able to pick up on the use of hyung and oppa, as well as how sanitized the subs could be given how often “shiba” came up. There were still things I didn’t pick up on though, so it’s nice to know!
Robert Margle
November 17, 2021 at 4:30 am
The subtitles are definitely wrong. For example, at 3:32 she says “that mean’s that it’s kind of like” but the subtitles only say “that means that it’s like.” In English, those things are somewhat different.
Pooja Fauzi Alagan
November 17, 2021 at 9:01 am
I’m so glad that the translation for Asia Netflix is in correct terms.
mari cel
November 17, 2021 at 10:40 am
I love how korean translate english subtitles. It’s like they are writer themselves. Hyung is elder brother. 😬
EASY KOREAN
November 17, 2021 at 11:32 am
잘 보고갑니다. 감사합니다. !!
justicedinosaur
November 17, 2021 at 12:50 pm
I don’t even speak Korean but I know Japanese which has a similar thing and have ears so I picked up on the Huang thing. The subtitles were dumbed down to a kind of unnecessary extent
Deady4u
November 17, 2021 at 6:20 pm
The dub is just ear cancer
Altar Native
November 17, 2021 at 10:02 pm
I used to watch movies with subtitles, but then I became a gamer. And now I basically watch movies like a blind person. Audio only.
Blah
November 17, 2021 at 10:21 pm
I’ve heard the difficulty in translation explained as “poetry doesn’t translate”.
Selena Wilson
November 17, 2021 at 10:46 pm
As an avid kdrama watcher, I find it very amusing that people are making such a big deal about the translations for Squid Game in partiular, because it’s like this for literally every kdrama on netflix. The more you watch, the more of the language you start to pick up, so it’s very easy to notice those translation mistakes on your own.
Laura S
November 17, 2021 at 11:07 pm
I wish Netflix would use subtitles with correct translations so casual viewers of the show can understand better. The only reason I watched this was because it came up on my recommended. So Netflix needs to do better.
Daniel Gill
November 18, 2021 at 4:03 am
Korean and Latinos – correct me if I’m wrong:
Oppa = Papi
jmks
November 18, 2021 at 5:42 am
Thankfully I know all these already, after watching some Korean dramas and movies. But I agree that they never convey the honorifics correctly, and always just use the characters’ first names in the subtitles.
caspereau
November 18, 2021 at 1:25 pm
Netflix single handedly proved how meagre of a language english is compared to others
Best Cat Dad
November 18, 2021 at 4:46 pm
I’ve been learning Hangul and was confused by a lot of the subtitles 🥲
Walter Cunningham
November 18, 2021 at 5:34 pm
I fell like the English translation conveyed everything she said the actual words meant
Dieira knightley
November 18, 2021 at 10:13 pm
I’m glad I didn’t watch this. Seriously theses subtitles are tragic
Eldest Child
November 19, 2021 at 2:27 am
I feel like it might have been better to just leave those honorific terms untranslated and let context give it meaning, e.g. just leave it as “oppa” instead of making it “babe”. Many things simply can’t be translated between languages
Isaías Ríos
November 19, 2021 at 2:43 am
Oh you Koreans are cute.
**laughs in decades of evil spanish subtitles.** **cries in Tribilin, Rana Rene, Bruno Díaz, Guason and Ricardo Tapia**
BrittoBabe
November 19, 2021 at 10:04 am
Okay well… Sang-Woo is even more despised for what he did to Ali now. And I didn’t think that was possible. But honestly thank you for this video. I love learning things like this. Very interesting
Hog Hug
November 19, 2021 at 10:38 am
Such an amazing video and now the hyung scene is so muchsadderrr
Rachel
November 19, 2021 at 1:51 pm
I wish I could find more videos like this explaining the differences in actual meaning and what we read in subtitles. I would like to rewatch every Korean movie I’ve seen and know the differences lol. I find it so interesting to know the actual meanings!
Illustrated By Tara
November 19, 2021 at 2:45 pm
Whatever the translation, for us English, it works! We wouldn’t call anyone big brother etc so babe works for us! X
freeday.tv
November 19, 2021 at 9:34 pm
I’m much more satisfied with what I understood watching it in Korean the first time now 😄 I’m only intermediate level but I tried explaining the honorifics thing to others too, that really stood out to me.
Maria Clara
November 19, 2021 at 9:49 pm
I think these translations were far better in Spanish, after watching this. I tried to watch Squid Game in English, and didn’t feel the language used as harsh as the one actually used. (Subtitles)