Tintin returns to Wales after 26 years
Borders bookstore in Llantrisant will be an historical venue on Thursday 6 November 2008. That’s when the international reporter Tintin will begin despatching his adventures in Welsh - after a break of more than a quarter of a century.
Tintin’s two new adventures in Welsh will be launched on 6 November at Borders Llantrisant during a day jam packed with activities for local schools, before the main launch event beginning at 6.15pm, which will include a talk by the international authority on Tintin, Michael Farr.
Tintin first appeared in Welsh between 1978 and 1982, but the adaptations by Dafydd Jones have been developed from new from the original French editions by the Belgian author Hergé. A lifelong fan of Tintin, Dafydd has had over 25 years to think how best to improve on the original Welsh versions.
Mwg Drwg y Pharo and Awyren 714 i Sydney will be familiar to readers of Tintin in English as Cigars of the Pharaoh and Flight 714, and as Tintin is renowned in over 70 languages the Welsh editions have been developed to stand shoulder to shoulder with the best of those international versions.
One of the main challenges in adapting Tintin to a new 21st century audience in Wales was the character names. Captain Haddock, Snowy, Calculus and Thomson & Thompson are so familiar in their English-language context that the Welsh names had to stand up to scrutiny and be strong in their own right.
Tintin and Haddock translate easily as Tintin and Hadog, but the other characters proved far more thought-provoking. After much discussion, Tintin’s faithful dog was named Milyn - Welsh for ‘small animal’, but resonating Hergé’s original name, Milou; Calculus is Ephraim R Efflwfia - efflwfia is a scientific term for a spurt of particles, but what about the initial ‘R’? It stands for Recorde, as in Robert Recorde, the Welsh scientist who invented the equals sign in 1557.
However the name for the Thom(p)sons was the most difficult to get right. There are plenty of names in Welsh which can be spelt in different ways, but none of them struck a chord with Dafydd Jones. He finally decided on Parry-Williams and Williams-Parry, echoing the renowned 20th century Welsh poets Sir T H Parry-Williams and his cousin R Williams Parry.
"Giving characters names which resonate with the culture we’re adapting Tintin into is so important," says translator Dafydd Jones. "Although we all know Tintin is so famous worldwide, it’s crucial that any adaptation is subtle enough that the audience can identify with the characters without necessarily realising there’s a gag or an oblique reference involved".
Publishing Tintin in Welsh again is a landmark occasion in popular Welsh literature, and is just the latest title in publishers Dalen’s catalogue of comic books and graphic novels in Welsh. The imprint was established in 2005 by Alun Ceri Jones who originally translated Asterix into Welsh in the 1970s. Since then Dalen has been publishing several series aimed at adults as well as children. These include the classic Lewsyn Lwcus (Lucky Luke, along with extremely popular characters from Germany called y Triawd Amser (Time-travelling Trio). There is an exquisite and detailed series for girls, Llio!, as well as graphic novel series for teenagers and adults such as Y Derwyddon (Druids) and Chwedl Arthur (The Arthur Legend).
Dalen’s publisher Alun Ceri Jones said "It’s so exciting that we’re able to include Tintin in our catalogue. It’s one of the major comic series from Europe that everyone will recognise. I’m sure it will be a cornerstone of our publishing programme for several years to come."
Mwg Drwg y Pharo and Awyren 714 i Sydney are launched on 6 November, priced £6.99 each, and available through all good bookshops, plus online from the publishers at www.dalenllyfrau.com, or www.gwales.com.
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