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op-tap.bsky.social
@op-tap.bsky.social
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The One Piece Translation Analysis Project aims to provide an unofficial, accurate, and annotated translation of One Piece, along with resources and directories for fans.

🪪 Dee - 37 - He/She/They
🏴‍☠️ jp-eng-fr professional manga translator
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op-tap.bsky.social
op-tap.bsky.social @op-tap.bsky.social · May 29
Consult www.tumblr.com/op-tap for links to the actual project, including:
- English and French translations
- Character names and nicknames directory
- Language quirks and registers directory
- Vocabulary and onomatopoeia glossary
- Techniques Index

#onepiece #translation #op-tap
The One Piece Translation Analysis Project (@op-tap) on Tumblr
The One Piece Translation Analysis Project aims to provide an unofficial, accurate, and annotated translation of One Piece, along with resources and directories for fans.
www.tumblr.com
op-tap.bsky.social
Translating suffixes 1/*

Forgot I could just create a thread instead of linking Tumblr

Also I might have to make videos instead of texts at some point because some things are really hard to explain…
I dunno if people would be into that?

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga #makino #nami #sanji
Title: Translating suffixes 1/* Screenshot of Makino talking to Shanks in her bar. They're both smiling and seem quite casual about each other. 相変わらず楽しそうですね　船長さん ああ　こいつをからかうのはおれの楽しみなんだ Translation p.015 Panel 1 01 相変わらず楽しそうですね　船長さん Aikawarazu tanoshisō desu ne senchōsan** Looks like you’re having fun, mister captain. As usual! Comment *I will have to talk a lot about this subject, especially because One Piece is so long and there are a lot of nuances carried by these suffixes. **Contents: - How it usually works - Makino - An introduction to the stakes of the Nami/Sanji dynamic
September 18, 2026 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by op-tap.bsky.social
rogersbase.com
If they ever switch over the official English release of One Piece to AI translations, I will go back to scans.

Full stop.

I am Mr. Official all the way but this one thing would make me hit the high seas indefinitely. Took the survey and left a paragraph. Please do the same!
September 14, 2026 at 11:12 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Second "kanazuchi", introducing vocabulary through jokes and casual conversation

I don't do this a lot, but it's a word that's almost part of the lore at this point, so I think it's interesting if people have access to the meaning the original version bears.

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Panel 4 01a わかるか？ Wakaru ka? Do you get it? 01b 別にお前の海賊になりたいって心意気を Betsu ni omae no kaizoku ni naritaitte kokoroiki wo It’s not really that he wants to discourage your… 01c 踏みにじりたい訳じゃねェのさ fuminijiritai wake ja nee no sa determination to become a pirate. Panel 5 01a わかんないね!! Wakan nai ne!! No I don’t get it!! 01b シャンクスはおれをバカにして遊んでるだけなんだ Shankusu ha ore wo baka ni shite asonderu dake nanda Shanks just likes to make fun of me all the time. Panel 6 01 カナヅ千 Kanazuchi You sink like a hammer. Ono ぷぷっ Pupu- Pff Pff 02 ほら!!! Hora!!! See!!! カナヅ千 Kanazuchi You sink like a hammer.** I found a great opportunity here to introduce the hammer metaphor, with Shanks making fun of Luffy. Luffy will then be able to use the term himself. (Other characters not familiar with the term will probably not use it, for consistency with the world's language.) Side note: The "anchor" metaphor I have seen going around is a very smart adaptation, in my opinion.
September 14, 2026 at 6:41 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Why things get lost in translation: on punctuation and its adaptation
- Punctuation in manga
- Publisher guidelines and readability
- Stakes
- Example with the first Zoro/Sanji nickname crisis

www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82694...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga #zoro #sanji #zosan #sanzo #zosanzo
Quote of the One Piece manga, chapter 179. Bubble 03a with normal size trembling text to convey annoyance: ……おれが!? ビビってるだァ!? …………… Bubble 03b with normal size trembling text first, then bigger and bold text to represent screaming: この…… 〝素敵マユゲ〟 Quote of the One Piece manga, chapter 179. Bubble 03a with bold sharp text: Me?! Scared?! Bubble 03b with bold text everywhere to represent screaming: No way, pretty brow boy!
September 5, 2026 at 6:27 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Random thoughts on Ch.1 and how much it shaped Luffy's personality and goals.

(Translation in alt text)

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Panel 2 01 おうおうルフィ！なんだかごきげんナナメだな Ou ou Rufi! Nandaka gokigen naname da na Hey, hey, Luffy ! Why so grumpy? 02 楽しくいこうぜ 何事も！ Tanoshiku ikouze Nanigoto mo! Don’t worry about anything, come have fun with us! 03 そう！海賊は楽しいぜェ Tanoshiku ikōze Nanigoto mo! Yeah! It’s so fun to be a pirate! 04 海は広いし大きいし!!いろんな島を冒険するんだ Umi ha hiroishi ōkīshi!! Iron na shima wo bōkensurun da The sea is big and vast!! There’s so many islands to venture across! 05 何より自由っ!! Nani yori jiyū-!! And best of all, we’re free…!! This page is incredible, because it shows how much Shanks’ crew influenced Luffy’s vision of piracy. It is, of course, a way for the author to announce his own definition of piracy and what his readers are to expect of his story. Luffy will become the incarnation of this depiction: fun, nonchalance, enthusiasm, sense of adventure, and, above all, freedom. I might come back to the notion of fun to use a stronger term, closer to joy/Joy Boy.
August 31, 2026 at 10:49 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Furigana are used for a lot of puns and double meanings in One Piece, and I can't wait to encounter more difficult choices to make (Or not 🙃)

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Panel 4 01a ちゃんときたえてるから Chanto kitaeteru kara I’ve been training hard. 01b おれのパンチは銃（ピストル）のように強いんだ!!! Ore no panchi ha jū (pisutoru) no yō ni tsuyoin da!!! My punches are as strong as a pistol**!!! **Furigana are the little characters you see next or over more complex characters (kanji). They help indicate the way a word is pronounced. They sometimes also can serve to clarify a meaning even when the original word is not written in kanji. In this panel, the kanji used for gun is "jū", but the furigana is written in katakana (the alphabet for foreign words): "pisutoru" (pistol). It introduces Luffy's "gomu gomu no pistoru". Because this is a future attack move and I want to make sure people make the connection between what they hear in the anime and what they read, I need to keep close to the original version. Thus, contrary to what I would usually do, I am prioritizing the furigana. The "jū" doesn't have any additional meaning, so the choice is easy to make. I know it won't always be the case in the future. Side note: it is quite easy to transcribe to English when the furigana is English as well. Other languages might have to adapt or make more complex choices. In my French version, I used "pistolet" and I am very happy the word is close enough I don't have to think too hard about it!
August 28, 2026 at 2:12 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Shanks is not "captain" to his crew, he's "okashira"

More on Tumblr: www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82584...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Panel 2 01 海賊頭 “赤髪のシャンクス” Kaizokugashira** “Akagami no Shankusu” Pirate Chief “Red-haired Shanks” This is one of the most interesting things I found in this first chapter. I can't believe I never noticed that! Analysis Shanks is introduced as "kaizokugashira" instead of "senchō" (captain). Kashira can mean captain but usually has the sense of head, boss, leader, chief. Keep reading
August 24, 2026 at 3:35 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
First "kanazuchi", italics and Shanks subtext

(Shanks is an idiot, but there is so much to read about him in this first chapter, more about him soon!)

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
02 カ·ナ·ヅ·チ·は海賊にとって致命的だぜ!! Kanazuchi** ha kaizoku ni totte chimeiteki daze!! **Comment: I chose to adapt the word kanazuchi here for clarity and humor purposes, but because it will come back a lot, I am thinking of introducing the hammer metaphor directly, so it can be used later and treated as part of the characters' vocabulary. Here, it is more important to insist on Luffy not knowing how to swim, since later, it will change and be a matter of him not being able to. It’s fatal, for a pirate, not to know how to swim**!! **Comment: The italics on the word “swim” convey how Shanks points at the notion of swimming in the original version. He's insisting just to rile up Luffy, and I don’t believe he’s serious when talking about how deadly it is, since he himself knows pirates in this case. Indeed, we meet Buggy very early (volume 1!), so we can consider Shanks and Buggy’s story was at least partially written at that point, and Shanks speaks from experience here.
August 20, 2026 at 3:56 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
About the translation of onomatopoeias

There will be more about this later 😀

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Onomatopoeias length Panel 5 01 いっっってェ～～～～～っ!!! Ittttee～～～～～-!!! Ouuuchhhhhh!!!** **I usually try to keep the same number of letters, and to make them correspond with the original version, so I can keep the length effect and rhythm. This is why there are as many u as there are t (little tsu), and as many h as ～. Sometimes it works better than others, and sometimes it's straight up impossible, of course.
August 17, 2026 at 4:09 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
On language level issues, choices, and impacts in translation.

Read more: www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82403...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Language level is very low in general in shōnen manga, and I want to keep it that way as much as possible. Two reasons for that: 1/ If it's not low enough, we won't see the difference with characters who talk a little better, and this could result in misscaracterization. 2/ If it's too high, it won't sound natural enough and people will notice. If you watch dubbed anime, you will sometimes have a weird feeling about a formulation, an articulation or so. Dubbing jobs, from translation/adaptation to voice over, are extremely difficult and have their own issues, needing to take into account animation pacing, length of sentences, mouth movements, intonation, etc. There are quality issues, of course, but it's sometimes hard to judge. In manga, however, it is sometimes not easy to transcribe language level because said level is ingrained in grammar and turns of phrases. In these cases, I either choose just to make the sentence sound as natural as possible, or I decide to insist by using vulgar words instead.
August 4, 2026 at 3:47 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
About names transcription, here with ルフィ/Rufi/Luffy.

Will talk about this again regarding translator's access to information outside of the raw manga material, because we have virtually none 🙃

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga

www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82357...
Post by @op-tap · 2 images
💬 0  🔁 0  ❤️ 0 · Names transcription · The official transcription is of course "Luffy", but I thought it would be interesting to indicate the raw transcription (Rufi) for the sake of transparency,…
www.tumblr.com
July 30, 2026 at 3:28 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
We don't always follow the original text order when translating because it can sound unnatural.

However, words also have a different weight depending on where they are placed in a manga, so I tried to keep close to the OG.

www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82339...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Post by @op-tap · 2 images
💬 0  🔁 0  ❤️ 0 · Text order in bubbles · I want to try, as much as possible, to keep the same syntagma in the same bubbles as the original version. We don't always do that, because it's hard and u…
www.tumblr.com
July 28, 2026 at 3:06 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
On Roger's speech and the way it sounds like a gift disguised as another gift.

Read more: www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82330...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
On the left, image of Gold Roger smiling. Onomatopoeia in bubble: "Niya…" On the right, screeshot of a translation. "Frame 2 01 おれの財宝か？欲しけりゃくれてやるぜ… Ore no zaihō ka? Hoshikerya kureteyaruze… My treasure? If you want it, I can give it to you… 02 ニヤ… Niya… Niak… 03 探してみろ この世の全てをそこに置いてきた Sagashitemiro Kono yo no subete wo soko ni oitekita Try and search for it. Everything in this world, if left it back there." Last screenshot: partial analysis of the translation. "I tried to translate how, even this early on (this is the first page), Roger is in total control (of his own execution). I tried to take into consideration: the way he talks, very disrespectful language, eats his words, gives orders a "ze" at the end of his sentence. It's some kind of "heh", a laid back insistence in this case his smile, because in manga, everything you translate is influenced by the visuals and has to match them Translation choices I didn't find any informal way to translate the final "ze". Maybe an "eh", but it sounds too light. So I added a "can" to encompass the idea that Roger is very much in control, and it shows the nonchalance of the "ze", I think."
July 27, 2026 at 4:10 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
When you start your translation and you spend hours on the first page because its words bear the meaning of the whole series

More on www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82285...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
The meaning of "Everything in this world…" 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: The narrator is trying to pass off "Wealth, fame and power" as "Everything in this world", because that's what most people think it is, but it is not and can't be the case "Everything in this world" is a code for what's in Laugh Tale, that Roger left there intentionally "Konoyo" can have a spiritual meaning, and is used in Buddhism to talk about "this world" in the sense of an impermanent, fleeting world people are supposed to leave through awakening. I don't think it has such a meaning in OP, but I think it gives a specific weight to this formulation
July 22, 2026 at 4:03 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
All Japanese transcription systems are very old and would need some adjustments.
You'll see in the post that it also lacks compatibility with manga typography.

However, modified Hepburn is still the most relevant nowadays, imo.

www.tumblr.com/op-tap/82230...

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Transcription system 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.)
July 16, 2026 at 3:15 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
I just finished transcribing the whole chapter 1 🎉
Now back to page 14 for the translation ♥

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
July 14, 2026 at 2:33 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
This is the main reason I started this project 👀

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Translators are no longer invisible 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. This project is therefore also an experiment in light of the realities of my profession and is based on the following idea: people no longer want us invisible, they want us transparent.
July 7, 2026 at 1:04 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Posting a few elements from the project introduction.
Will soon be able to share more about the actual translation :D

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
Who am I? 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. Therefore, please feel free to let me know if you have any information that might be useful to me, help me correct something, or even just allow me to add a comment on a nuance or a reflection.
June 11, 2026 at 2:33 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Not sure I'll be able to translate a lot in the next days/weeks, but I'll do some transcription instead to occupy my mind.

Maybe I should transcribe one whole chapter and translate only afterwards anyway 🤔

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
June 9, 2026 at 2:28 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
I always feel bad for the translators who discover ten volumes later their translation isn't accurate and they had no way to know.
It happened to me too 😭

#onepiece #translation #op-tap #manga
The freedom to take a step back in this One Piece translation 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. Since OP TAP is an ongoing project, its final version will not exist until the manga and the complete translation are finished.
June 5, 2026 at 2:55 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
I'm having a lot of fun with this translation because they are all very vulgar.

Shank's crew is terrible, and Luffy himself, a kid, does the same with a little more innocent tone. It's really cute 🤭

#onepiece #translation #op-tap
June 4, 2026 at 3:19 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
I spent so many hours solely on Roger's speech and I KNOW I will not be satisfied with it until the end of the manga.

There are so many notes on this part, sorry about that 😅

#onepiece #translation #op-tap
June 3, 2026 at 3:22 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
I had decided to wait before I created social accounts, but I really need to vent 😅

I just spent 30min looking for a way to add above points in GDocs. It's not possible. I found another way, thank you midpoint for existing.

Yes it's important, it's like our italics!

#onepiece #translation #op-tap
The Japanese word "kanazuchi" written in hiragana with above dots on each letter The Japanese word "kanazuchi" written in katakana with median dots after each letter
May 29, 2026 at 3:21 PM
op-tap.bsky.social
Consult www.tumblr.com/op-tap for links to the actual project, including:
- English and French translations
- Character names and nicknames directory
- Language quirks and registers directory
- Vocabulary and onomatopoeia glossary
- Techniques Index

#onepiece #translation #op-tap
The One Piece Translation Analysis Project (@op-tap) on Tumblr
The One Piece Translation Analysis Project aims to provide an unofficial, accurate, and annotated translation of One Piece, along with resources and directories for fans.
www.tumblr.com
May 29, 2026 at 3:20 AM