Why "Freeza?"

[Plague-Memories]

I'm just curious about this, and I always find myself correct people when they spell it Frieza, but why do we spell it as Freeza? Isn't the katakana for his name Furiza?

[Eire]

So I suppose that you say Warszawa instead of Varsaw, Praha instead of Prague and Moskva instead of Moscow? I'd like to listen to that.
That's easier, people are used to know him under that name that in some way make it correct.

[Plague-Memories]

So I suppose that you say Warszawa instead of Varsaw, Praha instead of Prague and Moskva instead of Moscow? I'd like to listen to that.
That's easier, people are used to know him under that name that in some way make it correct.

Your response was in no way helpful. I found this on my own: http://www.VegettoEX.com/blog/2009/12/1 ... s-me-nuts/
Much more insightful than your response.

[Herms]

I'm not too clear on what exactly you're asking, but his name is written in katakana as フリーザ/Furiiza. Many people use the spelling "Freeza" when writing his name in alphabet letters because his name is a pun on "freezer", the same way they write "Cell" instead of "Seru" or "Trunks" rather than "Torankusu".

[penguintruth]

What bothered me is when Funimation used "Cooler" instead of "Coola"' and now I get corrected by some DBZ fans for using the more accurate translation that people had been using for years before Funimation finally got to those movies.

[kaialone]

I spell it Freezer just for the heck of it

[ChaplinFan25]

It's always been one of my biggest pet peeves when FUNi spells it "Frieza". It just looks wrong. Wouldn't it be pronounced "Fry-za" if it had the "i"?

[Kendamu]

It's always been one of my biggest pet peeves when FUNi spells it "Frieza". It just looks wrong. Wouldn't it be pronounced "Fry-za" if it had the "i"?

Not really. The "ie" as "ee" is Germanic in origin and can be seen in English words such as "achieve, "field," or "grieve."

We just tend to use the "ee" spelling in "Freeza" around here because, like stated earlier, it conveys the "freezer" pun better.

[Herms]

I spell it Freezer just for the heck of it

Which isn't really accurate because there's no extended 'a' sound at the end.

[VegettoEX]

I spell it Freezer just for the heck of it

Not entirely accurate, though. An extended "aa" sound (like in "zaabon" and "taaburu" which we typically write out as "Zarbon" and "Tarble" [even though I internally debated with "Table" for a while]) would give you an "er" on the end, but that's not how the name is spelled -- there's just a short "a" at the end of "furiiza" (フリーザ = fu - rii - za).

If it were spelled as フリーザー then yes, you would probably adapt the name over as "Freezer". Incidentally, the original Japanese name for the Pokemon named "Articuno" in North America is indeed フリーザー ("Freezer").

That all being said, I'm fairly certain some dub somewhere called the DBZ character "Freezer". Doesn't mean we all should, though.

Lots of people confuse the romanization of イ and い with our Latin/Roman letter "i" with how we pronounce the letter "i" in our language (where it can sound like it does with the single-letter word "I" referring to oneself, or like it does right there in the word "it" with a short sound produced by a mouth that's not quite as open as the former). It's a quirk of romanization, and has nothing to do with how the sound is made in its language of origin. That's why when we adapt the name フリーザ "into English", we typically write the two "ee" in there, which is the most-often and logical choice for expressing that sound with our alphabet. kendamu has certainly pointed out examples to the contrary with the "ie" sound -- but hey, this name isn't Germanic, and "i" before "e" except in "Freeza".

Also, yeah. The blog post.

(I'm also not a linguist. I just play one on the Internet with cartoon names.)

[CODii]

I believe the general rule of thumb when choosing spellings is to simultaneously preserve the pronunciation and the pun. In this case Freeza is used because his name is a pun on the word "Freezer."

[Piccolo Daimao]

I believe the general rule of thumb when choosing spellings is to simultaneously preserve the pronunciation and the pun. In this case Freeza is used because his name is a pun on the word "Freezer."

Yeah, I agree. It's the reason people (including myself) spell it "Broli" to preserve the broccoli pun, and I use "Suke-san" just in case Toriyama actually did intend the pun Herms theorized about.

Suke-san [usually called the Invisible Man in English versions]
透ける/sukeru means “transparent”, or “see-through”, while san is a Japanese honorific more or less equivalent to “mister”. So basically he’s “Mr. See-Through”. The name may further be a reference to the Mitokoumon character Sasaki Sukesaburou (佐々木助三郎), called “Suke-san”（助さん） for short. Mitokoumon was a fictionalized version of the travels of Tokugawa Mitsukuni (aka Mito Mitsukuni), which has been adapted into several TV dramas. To quote this forum, the story is about how ‘former Vice Shogun Mito Mitsukuni travelled incognito around Japan with his retainers ‘Suke-san’ and ‘Kaku-san’ righting injustice”.
Toriyama Explanation: “It’s embarrassing to explain, but since he’s see-through [suketeiru] he’s Suke-san.” [DBF]
Source Spelling:: 透ける/sukeru + さん/san
Name Spelling: スケさん/Suke-san

[mister yummy]

It's Freeza because that best fits the pun. Frieza is a perfectly legitimate, if slightly odd, transliteration. Friiza works too. Or anything that makes that particular 'i' sound. The 'i' in si.

Of course, it's Spanish pronounciation that was used when making the standards for romanizing Japanese. If it had been English pronounciation instead, リ would be transliterated with re instead of ri, イ would be e instead of i, and エ would be eh or even a instead of e. So, a hint to properly pronouncing Japanese words, say them like they're Spanish words instead of English words. You'll at least be closer.

[CODii]

It's Freeza because that best fits the pun. Frieza is a perfectly legitimate, if slightly odd, transliteration.

What makes it odd?

[The Time Traveller]

It's Freeza because that best fits the pun. Frieza is a perfectly legitimate, if slightly odd, transliteration.

What makes it odd?

Well, we don't spell the word "Freezer" or "Freeze" as "Friezer" or "Frieze".

Though Mr. Freeze's, from Batman, real name is Dr. Victor Fries, pronounced "Freeze".

[CODii]

It's Freeza because that best fits the pun. Frieza is a perfectly legitimate, if slightly odd, transliteration.

What makes it odd?

Well, we don't spell the word "Freezer" or "Freeze" as "Friezer" or "Frieze".

Though Mr. Freeze's, from Batman, real name is Dr. Victor Fries, pronounced "Freeze".

I looked at that so many times and never once noticed the "i." I was thinking he was saying that "F-r-e-e-z-a" was odd. My bad.

[Ahiru77]

I spell it Freezer just for the heck of it

I feel the same about Freeza with an i.

[CODii]

I spell it Freezer just for the heck of it

I feel the same about Freeza with an i.

Using an I is one thing, but "Freezer" is simply wrong. You can use the wrong name if you want I suppose, but, as pointed out by VegettoEX, nothing in the original Japanese word justifies ending with "er."

[Adamant]

That all being said, I'm fairly certain some dub somewhere called the DBZ character "Freezer". Doesn't mean we all should, though.

I think the vast majority of the European translations call him that. They're for the most part spun off from the French and German translations in one way or another, so there's a whole ton of characters misnamed the exact same way throughout the continent.

[CODii]

That all being said, I'm fairly certain some dub somewhere called the DBZ character "Freezer". Doesn't mean we all should, though.

I think the vast majority of the European translations call him that. They're for the most part spun off from the French and German translations in one way or another, so there's a whole ton of characters misnamed the exact same way throughout the continent.

Silly French. I will never forgive them for the "H" word. Not to mention their inexplicable line about Goku and Tullece being brothers.