............... here begins the thing on the net ......................
Which translation of “The Velveteen Rabbit” is most accurate?
Just on Amazon, I can see:
El Conejo De Pana,
El Conejo De Felpa, and
El Conejo De Terciopelo
Clearly, these are different translations, as even the titles are translated differently. I am considering purchasing one as a gift, but I don't know enough to tell the difference between these and am wondering if anybody has insight into the accuracy of the translation (or other differences that I should be aware of).
With some stories/books there is an authoritative translation and some lower-quality imitators, and those "in the know" know which one is the best. If that's true with this story, which one is the authoritative translation?
And then there were some answers .... but they all got the wrong idea .... they all talked about how to translate the TITLE.. " The Velveteen Rabbit", but surely what the enquiry was about was ,which was the best translation of the whole story. Obviously. But let's watch them all going down the wrong path ... at least there's plenty of Spanish in there ....
4down vote
I think that the appropriate translation for Velveteen is Pana:
Velveteen
Velveteen (or velveret) is a cloth made in imitation of velvet. Normally cotton, the term is sometimes applied to a mixture of silk and cotton. Some velveteens are a kind of fustian, having a rib of velvet pile alternating with a plain depression.
Pana
La pana,1 corderoy,nota 1 corduroynota 2 o cotelénota 3 es un tejido grueso, de tacto áspero, semejante al terciopelo, liso o compuesto por fibras entrecruzadas que cuando están en paralelo forman el distintivo motivo con acanaladuras (bastones) verticales de pequeño tamaño, pero también pueden ser un poco más gruesos.
Felpa seems to be Terrycloth, and Terciopelo is Velvet
shareimprove this answer
answered Aug 20 '15 at 15:37
Diego16.9k42149
I'd go for pana as well. IMO felpa aims for familiarity (I think most readers would think felpa when thinking about a plush animal) but pana, although less used in toys than felpa, is not an unfamiliar material at all, and it adds a touch of humbleness and handcraft... Which the original author might be already intending? (I haven't read the book, sorry). I like terciopelo the least, for the opposite as pana: it's a fine material which I imagine in a toy for a rich kid. And lastly, if you want the «none of the above» option, peluche (which I like less than pana as much as felpa) [more...] – guillem Aug 20 '15 at 16:33
[...] Unless you are targeting a region where the meaning «friend» for «pana» is too interfering in what you want to convey (Venezuela?). – guillem Aug 20 '15 at 16:35
up vote1down vote
All of them are literal translations, but in spanish you don't use any of them to refer to that kind of toys; the correct translation would be "Conejo de peluche" ("felpa" is a synonyom of it, but nobody says "Conejo de felpa"):
(definition from Google):
PELUCHE
nombre, masculino
1. Tela, generalmente de seda, lana o alguna fibra sintética, parecida al terciopelo pero de pelo más largo y aspecto más brillante; se utiliza sobre todo para forrar prendas de invierno y confeccionar muñecos. "un perrito de peluche; se pasaba el día en el café, con la cabeza apoyada en el respaldo de peluche, mirando para los dorados del techo" sinónimos: felpa 2. Muñeco hecho de peluche, que suele tener forma de animal.
PD: Anyway, maybe all of those terms refer to the same kind of toy; they are probably literal translations of "peluche" and don't really mean a difference in the product they are selling.
..........here ends the thing on the net..................
there you are .... that's what happens when the responders don't understand what the questioner actually wants.
What I will add to that is ... I know from experience that some translations are better than others. Some translators like to show off, and use lots of obscure words and fancy idiomatic usages .... they like to let people know they they know lots of stuff... irrespective of what the tone of the book is. The French versions of the William books that I have were translated by someone like that ... whereas the Spanish versions are much better.
Another thing you have to watch for is ... some unscrupulous publishers are using machines to do their translations ... and these are generally pretty crap. I've seen Amazon reviews where they warn you not to buy certain editions because they have been produced in this way. Let's hope this doesn't catch on any time soon.
So ... we still don't know exactly which one of those versions in best. Bah !
Meanwhile, back in the real world, here's La Senda with a brilliant cover version of " En la habitación" ...... what a fine song ....
Fumo sola en la terraza del hotel
recuerdo el humo
y la cerveza en tus manos.
Anoche las niñas paseaban sus zapatos
y no teníamos nada que perder.
No teníamos nada...
En este cuarto hay demasiado por hacer
y no tengo a nadie con quien echar un rato.
Todos queríamos ser extraordinarios
Podrías hacer algo por volver
podrías hacer algo...
El tiempo en esta habitación me sabe a vino
dedico demasiado a imaginar que estas conmigo
apuro la copa de un trago
dejo el cuerpo en el pasillo
Hoy todo lo demás es lo de menos
Hoy todo lo demás...
Yo confiaba que subieras a mi habitación
y no que te marcharas como hiciste
Las escaleras son interminables
si no hay quien te espere después
si no hay quien te espere...
No hay manera de que vuelve ese miércoles
tengo la sal entre los ojos mojados
Quiero que sepas que eres el culpable
de que hoy me sienta extrañamente bien
de que hoy me sienta extraña...
El tiempo en esta habitación me sabe a vino
dedico demasiado a imaginar que estas conmigo
apuro la copa de un trago
dejo el cuerpo en el pasillo
Hoy todo lo demás es lo de menos
Hoy todo lo demás...