Bulma or Blooma?
Moderators: General Help, Kanzenshuu Staff
- samuraix123
- I Live Here
- Posts: 3814
- Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2011 7:22 pm
- Location: Kentucky
Bulma or Blooma?
Hello Everyone!
I've noticed several people calling Bulma ''Blooma'' and out of curiosity, Why do some people call her that? Also this isn't an attack on people that may refer to her as ''Blooma'' Just curious is all.
I've noticed several people calling Bulma ''Blooma'' and out of curiosity, Why do some people call her that? Also this isn't an attack on people that may refer to her as ''Blooma'' Just curious is all.
The Dragonboxes are like a middle aged woman who still looks good through simply taking good care of her skin and body with maybe a tiny bit of makeup while the Orange Bricks are like a middle aged woman who get's 50 tons of botox, makeup and plastic surgery in order to look younger and as a result looks even worse. ~ ringworm128
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
It's people feeling a need to use a "proper" romanization of the name. I don't really mind it but I myself use Bulma because you can say it derives from "Bloomers" even if it's not really the name itself.
- Gyt Kaliba
- Kicks it Old-School
- Posts: 8861
- Joined: Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:38 am
- Location: Arkansas
- Contact:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Gaffer Tape has a really great explanation in one of his Dissection videos, but I can't for the life of me remember all the details, just that it's closer to the pun. I myself am just too used to using 'Bulma' to switch really, and with it still being that even in Japanese, I just can't break myself even if I did want to.
AniManga Travelogue - Currently Reviewing: Dragon Ball (Z)
Twitter
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)
- Chuquita
- Namekian Warrior
- Posts: 15155
- Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2004 2:16 am
- Location: New Jersey
- Contact:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
"Blooma" is way more fun to say than "Bulma" is, but as most of my fan-activities involve text as opposed to audio, and since I'm much more used to typing "Bulma", that's what I use.
- DBZGTKOSDH
- Namekian Warrior
- Posts: 12401
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2011 7:45 pm
- Location: Greece
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Toriyama wrote Bulma, so it's Bulma for me.
James Teal (Animerica 1996) wrote:When you think about it, there are a number of similarities between the Chinese-inspired Son Goku and that most American of superhero icons, Superman. Both are aliens sent to Earth shortly after birth to escape the destruction of their homeworlds; both possess super-strength, flight, super-speed, heightened senses and the ability to cast energy blasts. But the crucial difference between them lies not only in how they view the world, but in how the world views them.
Superman is, and always has been, a symbol for truth, justice, and upstanding moral fortitude–a role model and leader as much as a fighter. The more down-to-earth Goku has no illusions about being responsible for maintaining social order, or for setting some kind of moral example for the entire world. Goku is simply a martial artist who’s devoted his life toward perfecting his fighting skills and other abilities. Though never shy about risking his life to save either one person or the entire world, he just doesn’t believe that the balance of the world rests in any way on his shoulders, and he has no need to shape any part of it in his image. Goku is an idealist, and believes that there is some good in everyone, but he is unconcerned with the big picture of the world…unless it has to do with some kind of fight. Politics, society, law and order don’t have much bearing on his life, but he’s a man who knows right from wrong.
- VegettoEX
- Kanzenshuu Co-Owner & Administrator
- Posts: 17547
- Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2004 3:10 pm
- Location: New Jersey
- Contact:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Here's my take on it.
The character's name written out in katakana is ブルマ which you would directly romanize as buruma. We know it's a pun on the article of clothing, which itself is written out in katakana as ブルマー which happens to come out as burumā. Note the similarity (read: near-exactness).
(Though as Herms points out, it's sometimes written out exactly like the character's name as ブルマ and sometimes as ブルーマ and even sometimes as ブルーマー. For the sake of argument, we're going with ブルマー with the one elongated syllable at the end as our "official" spelling for the article of clothing.)
They're essentially the same, right? The character's name of ブルマ is just the article of clothing without an extended syllable at the end. If we'd adapt their adaptation of ブルマー (burumā) right back to our word of "bloomer"... well, wouldn't you keep the character's name the same except for that ending part? They both have ブルマ except for the clothing that extends it out at the end.
Logically, if you write ブルマー as "bloomer" you would have to write ブルマ as "blooma". The extended syllable at the end gets turned into "er" sounds. In this case, the "mā" is no different from the "zā" which we form "Zarbon" with and the "tā" that we form "Tarble" with: a short "ma" on the end for the character's name as opposed to the "mer" on the end with the clothing.
Where it gets funky is that Toriyama gives us a Latin-based spelling on her shirt: "BULMA".
That's all fine and dandy, except that foreign adaptations take that spelling and funk up the pronunciation. It's hard to get across in text, but her name in Japanese is nowhere near as overexaggerated with a "bull" or "bowl" sound that usually gets tossed around in English dubs.
One school of thought with Dragon Ball name spellings is to preserve a pronunciation above a spelling. You can go further and even arrange it by preserving a pronunciation, then bringing out a pun, then bringing out a spelling.
PUN BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE:
Examples include Viz's "Vegerot", where the original name and its pronunciation ("Vegetto") is completely abandoned in favor of exclusively bringing out the pun.
PUN INTO PRONUNCIATION BEFORE SPELLING:
Our own "Tullece" brings out the "lettuce" pun the name comes from and then goes on to preserve the pronunciation of the character's name. It doesn't resemble its tāresu romanization at all, but it doesn't need to.
"Blooma" falls somewhere in that latter category: it preserves the pronunciation and the pun without worrying too much about established spellings for the name. "Blooma" does a perfect job of slurring over the R/L switch-up to preserve where "bloomer" comes from, and just like the katakana, drops the "er" from the clothing to the "a" that's in the character's name.
That's a huge explanation to sum up a real simple thing: the character's name drops a "mer" to a "ma", so spell the rest of it the same. "Blooma". Done.
The character's name written out in katakana is ブルマ which you would directly romanize as buruma. We know it's a pun on the article of clothing, which itself is written out in katakana as ブルマー which happens to come out as burumā. Note the similarity (read: near-exactness).
(Though as Herms points out, it's sometimes written out exactly like the character's name as ブルマ and sometimes as ブルーマ and even sometimes as ブルーマー. For the sake of argument, we're going with ブルマー with the one elongated syllable at the end as our "official" spelling for the article of clothing.)
They're essentially the same, right? The character's name of ブルマ is just the article of clothing without an extended syllable at the end. If we'd adapt their adaptation of ブルマー (burumā) right back to our word of "bloomer"... well, wouldn't you keep the character's name the same except for that ending part? They both have ブルマ except for the clothing that extends it out at the end.
Logically, if you write ブルマー as "bloomer" you would have to write ブルマ as "blooma". The extended syllable at the end gets turned into "er" sounds. In this case, the "mā" is no different from the "zā" which we form "Zarbon" with and the "tā" that we form "Tarble" with: a short "ma" on the end for the character's name as opposed to the "mer" on the end with the clothing.
Where it gets funky is that Toriyama gives us a Latin-based spelling on her shirt: "BULMA".
That's all fine and dandy, except that foreign adaptations take that spelling and funk up the pronunciation. It's hard to get across in text, but her name in Japanese is nowhere near as overexaggerated with a "bull" or "bowl" sound that usually gets tossed around in English dubs.
One school of thought with Dragon Ball name spellings is to preserve a pronunciation above a spelling. You can go further and even arrange it by preserving a pronunciation, then bringing out a pun, then bringing out a spelling.
PUN BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE:
Examples include Viz's "Vegerot", where the original name and its pronunciation ("Vegetto") is completely abandoned in favor of exclusively bringing out the pun.
PUN INTO PRONUNCIATION BEFORE SPELLING:
Our own "Tullece" brings out the "lettuce" pun the name comes from and then goes on to preserve the pronunciation of the character's name. It doesn't resemble its tāresu romanization at all, but it doesn't need to.
"Blooma" falls somewhere in that latter category: it preserves the pronunciation and the pun without worrying too much about established spellings for the name. "Blooma" does a perfect job of slurring over the R/L switch-up to preserve where "bloomer" comes from, and just like the katakana, drops the "er" from the clothing to the "a" that's in the character's name.
That's a huge explanation to sum up a real simple thing: the character's name drops a "mer" to a "ma", so spell the rest of it the same. "Blooma". Done.
:: [| Mike "VegettoEX" LaBrie |] ::
:: [| Kanzenshuu - Co-Founder/Administrator, Podcast Host, News Manager (note: our "job" titles are arbitrary and meaningless) |] ::
:: [| Website: January 1998 |] :: [| Podcast: November 2005 |] :: [| Fusion: April 2012 |] :: [| Wiki: 20XX |] ::
:: [| Kanzenshuu - Co-Founder/Administrator, Podcast Host, News Manager (note: our "job" titles are arbitrary and meaningless) |] ::
:: [| Website: January 1998 |] :: [| Podcast: November 2005 |] :: [| Fusion: April 2012 |] :: [| Wiki: 20XX |] ::
- samuraix123
- I Live Here
- Posts: 3814
- Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2011 7:22 pm
- Location: Kentucky
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Wow! That's a-lot more info than I was expecting to see on a subject like this. Thanks for the info VegettoEX and everyone else!
The Dragonboxes are like a middle aged woman who still looks good through simply taking good care of her skin and body with maybe a tiny bit of makeup while the Orange Bricks are like a middle aged woman who get's 50 tons of botox, makeup and plastic surgery in order to look younger and as a result looks even worse. ~ ringworm128
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Bulma for me. I like the romanization better then saying Blooma
Why Dragon Ball Consistency in something such as power levels matter!
Spoiler:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
If Toriyama writes Bulma on his t-shirt is Bulma, if Toriyama writes Gokuh on Gokuh's cap, is Gokuh
Do you want NEW GENERATION DRAGON BALL (Z, GT..) IMAGES? In HQ? Of all characters? Click here: http://daizex.fanboyreview.net/viewtopic.php?t=17178
My Deviantart: http://raykugen.deviantart.com/
Dragon Ball Characters Project Deviantart: http://dbcproject.deviantart.com/
My Deviantart: http://raykugen.deviantart.com/
Dragon Ball Characters Project Deviantart: http://dbcproject.deviantart.com/
- samuraix123
- I Live Here
- Posts: 3814
- Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2011 7:22 pm
- Location: Kentucky
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
I agree. I've just said and heard ''Bulma'' so many times that when I see ''Blooma'' it just strikes me as odd. I used to spell ''Paikuhan'' the Funimation way, but now I love the original spelling of it.dbzfan7 wrote:Bulma for me. I like the romanization better then saying Blooma
The Dragonboxes are like a middle aged woman who still looks good through simply taking good care of her skin and body with maybe a tiny bit of makeup while the Orange Bricks are like a middle aged woman who get's 50 tons of botox, makeup and plastic surgery in order to look younger and as a result looks even worse. ~ ringworm128
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Yes, for example, Kuririn hat he weared for journey to Namek, had written Kulilin, yet everyone call him Kuririn (And that`s how his name is speeled in Japanese too)
Last edited by coola on Tue Jan 15, 2013 5:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
My Twitter: @kamil198811
Bulma fan
Thanks to Discotek:
Magic Knight Rayearth get DVD release in 2015 and Blu-Ray release on 2016
Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas get DVD release in 2015
Bulma fan
Thanks to Discotek:
Magic Knight Rayearth get DVD release in 2015 and Blu-Ray release on 2016
Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas get DVD release in 2015
- DBZGTKOSDH
- Namekian Warrior
- Posts: 12401
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2011 7:45 pm
- Location: Greece
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
We have seen his name written Kuririn in the manga too.
James Teal (Animerica 1996) wrote:When you think about it, there are a number of similarities between the Chinese-inspired Son Goku and that most American of superhero icons, Superman. Both are aliens sent to Earth shortly after birth to escape the destruction of their homeworlds; both possess super-strength, flight, super-speed, heightened senses and the ability to cast energy blasts. But the crucial difference between them lies not only in how they view the world, but in how the world views them.
Superman is, and always has been, a symbol for truth, justice, and upstanding moral fortitude–a role model and leader as much as a fighter. The more down-to-earth Goku has no illusions about being responsible for maintaining social order, or for setting some kind of moral example for the entire world. Goku is simply a martial artist who’s devoted his life toward perfecting his fighting skills and other abilities. Though never shy about risking his life to save either one person or the entire world, he just doesn’t believe that the balance of the world rests in any way on his shoulders, and he has no need to shape any part of it in his image. Goku is an idealist, and believes that there is some good in everyone, but he is unconcerned with the big picture of the world…unless it has to do with some kind of fight. Politics, society, law and order don’t have much bearing on his life, but he’s a man who knows right from wrong.
- VegettoEX
- Kanzenshuu Co-Owner & Administrator
- Posts: 17547
- Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2004 3:10 pm
- Location: New Jersey
- Contact:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
In the case of Paikuhan, FUNimation's name for him has SOME basis in the original name, but it's clearly not a direct adaptation of it since it's missing an entire syllable in the middle and does nothing to preserve the pun. I'd classify that as "change" rather than "adaptation", and in that case, it can be completely ignored.
I totally get the "Toriyama wrote it this way" argument. I'm on board with that. Like I said, the problem is that such a spelling infers a particular pronunciation in "our language", and said pronunciation doesn't resemble the original a whole heck of a lot. It doesn't preserve the pronunciation, and it doesn't preserve the pun. What good is it, then? What if Toriyama wrote "Clearin" on Kuririn's hat, instead? How about "WELL COME"...?
You have to start calling into question Toriyama's grasp on the language he's playing with. What other spellings do we get? Bulma? Gokuh? Kulilin? I think that's it. It's not a great base to work from and start forming ideas about consistency and style.
We're essentially "stuck" no matter what we choose, so if you're going to go with something for a reason, at least you have a reason...!
I totally get the "Toriyama wrote it this way" argument. I'm on board with that. Like I said, the problem is that such a spelling infers a particular pronunciation in "our language", and said pronunciation doesn't resemble the original a whole heck of a lot. It doesn't preserve the pronunciation, and it doesn't preserve the pun. What good is it, then? What if Toriyama wrote "Clearin" on Kuririn's hat, instead? How about "WELL COME"...?
You have to start calling into question Toriyama's grasp on the language he's playing with. What other spellings do we get? Bulma? Gokuh? Kulilin? I think that's it. It's not a great base to work from and start forming ideas about consistency and style.
We're essentially "stuck" no matter what we choose, so if you're going to go with something for a reason, at least you have a reason...!
:: [| Mike "VegettoEX" LaBrie |] ::
:: [| Kanzenshuu - Co-Founder/Administrator, Podcast Host, News Manager (note: our "job" titles are arbitrary and meaningless) |] ::
:: [| Website: January 1998 |] :: [| Podcast: November 2005 |] :: [| Fusion: April 2012 |] :: [| Wiki: 20XX |] ::
:: [| Kanzenshuu - Co-Founder/Administrator, Podcast Host, News Manager (note: our "job" titles are arbitrary and meaningless) |] ::
:: [| Website: January 1998 |] :: [| Podcast: November 2005 |] :: [| Fusion: April 2012 |] :: [| Wiki: 20XX |] ::
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
coola wrote:Yes, for example, Kuririn hat he weared for journey to Namek, had written Kulilin, yet everyone call him Kuririn (And that`s how his name is speeled in Japanese too)
http://i45.tinypic.com/e6pwrp.jpg[/img]
But he wore a shirt that says "Kuririn" during the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai, so we can choose! Same goes for Goku and Gokuh (and maybe Gokuu). Bulma hasn't been written as anything else in the manga I believe, except for "Bluma" in DBO, if you go with it (as it's based on the manga and perhaps stands for truth?). Also, Yajirove.
Last edited by hleV on Tue Jan 15, 2013 5:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- samuraix123
- I Live Here
- Posts: 3814
- Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2011 7:22 pm
- Location: Kentucky
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
I died laughing VegettoEX when you said "Clearin"
Edit - I've also seen people spell Goku's name ''Gokua'' and I don't really like that because it makes me think of this guy
Edit - I've also seen people spell Goku's name ''Gokua'' and I don't really like that because it makes me think of this guy
Last edited by samuraix123 on Tue Jan 15, 2013 5:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The Dragonboxes are like a middle aged woman who still looks good through simply taking good care of her skin and body with maybe a tiny bit of makeup while the Orange Bricks are like a middle aged woman who get's 50 tons of botox, makeup and plastic surgery in order to look younger and as a result looks even worse. ~ ringworm128
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
I've recently submitted to the all-mighty Blooma. My only regret is that people might not understand me, but I'd just explain it to them anyway.
- Gyt Kaliba
- Kicks it Old-School
- Posts: 8861
- Joined: Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:38 am
- Location: Arkansas
- Contact:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
That's why I've basically gone with what seem to be the most accepted spellings and names based on the various sources I've encountered. As soon as I realized 'Well Come' was actually a thing (I'd been told way before that it was some kind of stupid joke of Hell Come, I think), I realized that I couldn't exactly trust Toriyama's use of English. So I pretty much just ignore 'Gokuh'.
As far as P-ikkon goes, it is a bit of a name change, but one that's similar enough to the original name that I'm fine with it. Just personally, I mean - I'm not gonna fight for it's usage or anything, but it's never bothered me either.
Ack, I didn't realize the dub name for Paikuhan was filtered as well. I had no idea it was as beviled as Fr-i-eza.
As far as P-ikkon goes, it is a bit of a name change, but one that's similar enough to the original name that I'm fine with it. Just personally, I mean - I'm not gonna fight for it's usage or anything, but it's never bothered me either.
Ack, I didn't realize the dub name for Paikuhan was filtered as well. I had no idea it was as beviled as Fr-i-eza.
AniManga Travelogue - Currently Reviewing: Dragon Ball (Z)
Twitter
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)
- JeffJarrett
- OMG CRAZY REGEN
- Posts: 964
- Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2012 2:09 pm
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
It's Bulma, Toriyama decided to spell the name of this character he created that way. Fans don't have spell names Toriyama created with spellings other than what he chose.
- Herms
- Kanzenshuu Admin Emeritus
- Posts: 10550
- Joined: Thu Oct 21, 2004 6:40 pm
- Location: Jupiter
- Contact:
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
It's not a language he's playing with though, it's an alphabet. Writing "Bulma" on a shirt isn't English any more than writing the lyrics to Chala Head Cha-La in Romaji is. Toriyama's alphabet spellings of character names are all perfectly valid. He never writes "Gtku" or "Zuririn", or anything else that's actually incorrect. Rather, they're merely spellings that sometimes seem strange to us because they're different from what we're used to, or don't conform with our ideals for how much a spelling should match the name pun. And English speakers might mispronounce them, but these spellings weren't intended for an English audience, but for a Japanese one that he could assume was familiar with alphabet. It's one thing to say that these spellings aren't optimal for our purposes as English-speaking fans, but to say that therefore they're wrong is overreaching it.VegettoEX wrote:You have to start calling into question Toriyama's grasp on the language he's playing with. What other spellings do we get? Bulma? Gokuh? Kulilin? I think that's it. It's not a great base to work from and start forming ideas about consistency and style.
At any rate, English speakers may mispronounce "Bulma" (in the sense that they pronounce it differently than the name's pronounced in Japanese), but that's also true of "Ryu", "Naruto", and of course "Saiyan". Blame it on the vagueness of English phonetics, but I doubt there's any spelling fully immune to this. I suspect more than a few people's first instinct would be to prounce "Blooma" as "Blow ma"
Kanzenshuu: Is that place still around?
Sometimes, I tweet things
We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason.
Sometimes, I tweet things
We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason.
- samuraix123
- I Live Here
- Posts: 3814
- Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2011 7:22 pm
- Location: Kentucky
Re: Bulma or Blooma?
Herms I like the point you brought up about Ryu. Because a long while back, I always called Ryu ''R ''I'' U'' sorry I have a little trouble explaining stuff but I think most people know where I'm coming from. also how many letters are in the Japanese alphabet? or could I be missing something.
The Dragonboxes are like a middle aged woman who still looks good through simply taking good care of her skin and body with maybe a tiny bit of makeup while the Orange Bricks are like a middle aged woman who get's 50 tons of botox, makeup and plastic surgery in order to look younger and as a result looks even worse. ~ ringworm128
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!
Still recording Toonami broadcasts on VHS after all these years!
#1 Paikuhan fan!