#op-tap

English translation

Character names and nicknames Language quirks and registers Vocabulary and onomatopoeia glossary Techniques Index

Traduction française

Noms et surnoms des personnages Tics, niveaux de langue et caractéristiques des personnages Vocabulaire général redondant et onomatopées Répertoire des techniques

Disclaimer

This is not a scanlation. All translations are provided in Google Docs and Sheets. They are free to be cited and used, but please don't forget to credit the project as a source, thank you!

Please also note that, because of how different the translation issues are depending on the language, English and French documents have different annotations.

Current progress

Translation: Ch. 1 - p.17 Transcription: Ch. 1 - p.60

I work on OP TAP about 1h each day of the week. My pro pace is at 10-20 pages an hour, but it takes me longer to transcribe and translate this project. First, because the first pages are always longer to translate, but the first OP chapter is also quite long and dense. Second, it takes a lot more time to think about natural ways to translate closest to the original (as opposed to how I usually adapt the content), and to comment on the numerous first occurrences I find, from lore to onomatopoeia. Third, because I do this in two languages. I hope to get faster as it goes!

The biggest challenge in translating a manga series whose publication spans several years is the impossibility to go back. You can’t simply revise previous volumes as soon as a new chapter is released. This is a real issue in the case of One Piece: certain choices that were absolutely appropriate at one time are no longer relevant at all, either because translation techniques have evolved, because the audience now operates in a different context (notably access to the Internet and to original or alternative versions), or because the story itself gives the text a different meaning that was impossible to foresee (or, in the case of such a long saga, that the author himself hadn’t yet envisioned!)

OP TAP, on the other hand, is designed in a way that allows the translation to evolve over time. However, I will ensure that outdated translations are clearly marked and explained, so that readers can understand and analyze them for themselves.

Historically, our goal as translators has always been to remain invisible. We had to disappear so that readers would believe they were reading an original version, so that they could immerse themselves in a story just as much as those reading it in the original language.

It’s no longer possible: with today’s new tools for accessing information, the whole world knows we exist. Our readers know what we do, they know in which language the works they read are written, and the moment they federate into a fanbase, they also know how to dig deeper than we can on our own—often alone and underpaid—thanks to their numbers and the time they devote to their favorite work.

It is the awareness of this shift that also drives me to launch OP TAP: a portion of the readers knows the original version, is interested in it, and this “observation haki” challenges the very meaning of what constitutes a translation.

At a time when AI is trying to replace us—even though it is incapable of matching the fluidity and nuance of our work—fans, for their part, are far more powerful and effective. In my opinion, this new audience must be taken into account and given access to a parallel form of translation that is more informative and analytical. It is what they are demanding, even more: what they are beginning to expect from us.

I use the modified Hepburn romanization system, which makes pronunciation easier to understand for English- and French-speaking readers. It is currently the most widely used and accessible system, and it was officially adopted by the Japanese government in 2025.

In fact, the Japanese romanization system was different until then, so certain spellings used in the original version of One Piece will also be transcribed according to the Hepburn system, in order to preserve the original pronunciations as closely as possible.

As a reminder, macrons (small bars above certain vowels) indicate a long vowel: ā, ī, ū, ē, ō and Ā, Ī, Ū, Ē, Ō.

Examples :

Jinbē (roughly pronounce Djinbe-e, both [ɛ] as in bed if I am not mistaken, but English phonetics specialists would know better)

Shabondi, not Sabaody (I will need to decide on the i/y, the latter of which could be used to retain part of the transcription currently used in the manga, since it doesn’t cause any confusion regarding pronunciation.) The Japanese transcription comes from the Portuguese word “sabão,” which became “shabon” in Japanese, meaning “soap,” and is entirely relevant. However, I prefer to align more closely with the Japanese pronunciation in common use so that non-Japanese speakers can understand and reproduce it.)

Additions to the system

the っ (little tsu) appearing at the end of some exclamatory sentences to emphasize tone are currently transcribed as - to convey the idea of a sharp, intense exclamation.

since this formatting isn’t available in Google Docs, emphasis marks (equivalent to our italics) above certain words are displayed with a midpoint following each character (·), so as to differentiate it from the interpoint separator (・)

With the same objective of accessibility in mind, OP TAP offers resources related to the language of One Piece. Many of these already exist and will be referenced as needed. However, the translation process requires specific attention to detail that I haven’t found anywhere else: there is no up-to-date list of the characters’ speech tics, the nicknames they give each other, or how these evolve over time.

When translating, one must keep a close track of these elements to ensure they are always rendered consistently.

Example: Nicknames and verbal tics

Wealth, fame, power… One man once had gotten hold of everything in this world…

Tomi・meisei・chikara Katsute konoyo no subete o te ni ireta otoko

Analysis

Being up to date with One Piece and translating this first sentence has been very emotional, but also very difficult.

I had heard it countless times, and since we have learnt more about the OP universe, especially about Laugh Tale, I have been wondering what Roger meant by that.

I am trying not to read fan theories, because I want to keep being surprised, but also because it could impair my judgement as a translator.

However, what I am sure of is:

You can call me Dee for now. I’ve been translating manga since 2015, and I’ve always been passionate about manga and Japanese culture.

I specialize in boy’s love, but my first love is shōnen manga. This project allows me to reconnect with that passion while stepping outside my comfort zone. Long series are rare in my field, so this is a real challenge I’m taking on… out of love ♥.

I hope this exercise will allow me to grow even more as a translator.

However, I should warn you that since shōnen manga isn’t my specialty, my translations might be a bit off. Since I don’t live in Japan, I also have limited access to certain cultural elements or communities.

A translation cannot be done without analyzing the source material. This is an opportunity to examine the subtext, the symbolism of the panels, and the way the drawings speak volumes more than any dialogue…

Many of these analyses will have very little, if any, influence on the translation. However, I find them interesting because they are elements one must keep in mind when translating.

Of course, this is also an opportunity for me to look at my favorite manga from a different angle. Therefore, I cannot guarantee that my comments will be impartial.