Tenshin Ranman Haikara Hime
Innocent High-Collar Princess
Album / Collection: Mirai Wakashuu
Track # 6
Song & Lyrics by capitaro
View romaji/english lyrics
New Feature! Mouseover a kanji character for lookup information!
I've included the repeated words at the start of lines in the romaji here in order to enable singing along, but they're not present in the kanji lyrics; as such, I have elected not to repeat words in my translation, as it seems that's not how the lyricist wants the lyrics to be read.
[1] "Tsukimizake" specifically refers to alcohol drunk at a moon-viewing party, a traditional Japanese pastime. Juxtaposed with the mention in the previous line that the alcohol she's drinking is Western, this demonstrates the singer's enthusiasm for "cultural fusion."
[2] "Mage" refers to a range of traditional Japanese hairstyles for both men and women, all featuring the hair gathered at the top of the head in one way or another. The common translation seems to be "topknot," but in English I feel that that's mainly used for the male hairstyle and thus has the wrong connotation. "Bun" also doesn't really encompass the full range of women's hairstyles referred to by "mage"; some are more elaborate. Meanwhile, "kirisute," though meaning something like "abandon"/"cast away"/"get rid of," is a compound including the word for "cut," which implies that rather than simply ceasing to style her hair traditionally, the singer cut it short enough that this was no longer possible.
[3] "Bunmei kaika" literally translates to "civilization and enlightenment," but the phrase was used to promote the Westernization of Japan during the Meiji Restoration.
[4] Imagine a fanfare sound. (English has such a limited inventory of widely-recognized onomatopoeia.)
[5] "High-collar" was a word used in the late 1800s and early 1900s, after the opening of Japan to the West, to refer to those who adopted a Western manner of dress and general lifestyle, which was trendy at the time.
[6] Koikoi and hana-awase are two games played with hanafuda cards. However, "koikoi" is here written with the character meaning "love."
Translated and transliterated by EJTranslations
http://ejtranslations.wordpress.com
See an error in these lyrics? Let us know here!