New (to me) on Amazon - "Nimue Alban: Mit Dampf und Donner"

Die Menschheit musste vor einer außerirdischen Spezies auf eine fremde Welt fliehen. Hier unterlag sie lange Zeit einer Kirchendiktatur, die jede moderne Technik verbot. Doch das Inselreich Charis hat seine Unabhängigkeit erklärt und den Vorstoß in das Zeitalter der Dampftechnik geschafft.

Die Kirche musste in der Schlacht schwere Verluste hinnehmen. Doch sie sammelt bereits wieder ihre Kräfte. Der Kampf um die Zukunft der Menschheit ist noch nicht vorbei ...

This appears to be the German translations of Safehold under the substitute grouping of "Nimue Alban" and it appears to be up to book 14 so it looks like the translator is 'chunking' the series differently! What is fun for me, the non-German reader, it to try to translate the titles without referring to the web translators AND to look at the book covers so different from our 7 current volumes. As for figuring out words, the coincidence of running across this at the official start of the Christmas Season is matching this Donner with Clemet Moore's "Donner and Blitzen" to get Thunder in English. I will leave it to my fellow denizens to do their own work in this fun extracurricular activity. URL of the 14 book listing is below.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=series_rw_d ... gital-text

They've probably split each book in two parts. That's extra money for the publisher and the translator.

You'd have to ask a native German speaker if the translation is ok.

It's sort of tempting to buy one of them, to see if I remember any of the German I learned in school. But English isn't my first language, so it would be a double translation and I don't own a German-to-English phrasebook. On more mature consideration the thought gives me a headache.

ayg wrote:They've probably split each book in two parts. That's extra money for the publisher and the translator

True, but in the case of Safehold it's caused some problems (and bad reviews), as the first book kind of lays the foundation in the first half and in the second half they duke it out, causing the first two German books to feel significantly inbalanced. This effect is observed (though to a lesser degree) throughout the entire series as it is split in German.

ayg wrote:You'd have to ask a native German speaker if the translation is ok.

I never read the German versions (even being a native speaker), but a friend of mine did read them and says they are better than the original (apparently they cut some some of the more epic info dumps and moved them to appendixes, thank goodness). In general, translations from David Weber get good grades for translation here in Germany.

Yes, they are splitting the books in two.

Also they seem to have given them completely new titles instead of translating the original ones.

'Mit Dampf und Donner' has coupled thunder with steam (Steam and Thunder) probably to give an impression of what's happening in the book. Note that 'Dampf' can mean both steam or gunsmoke in German - well gunsmoke really is 'Pulverdampf' but I guess in a literary sense you could shorten it to 'Dampf' - so the title has connotations of both, steam tech and battle. Actually a somewhat clever title I guess.

It is fairly standard practice for German publishers to split translations of popular fiction into two books. I guess that's just how the German market operates.

Charybdis wrote:

Die Menschheit musste vor einer außerirdischen Spezies auf eine fremde Welt fliehen. Hier unterlag sie lange Zeit einer Kirchendiktatur, die jede moderne Technik verbot. Doch das Inselreich Charis hat seine Unabhängigkeit erklärt und den Vorstoß in das Zeitalter der Dampftechnik geschafft.

Die Kirche musste in der Schlacht schwere Verluste hinnehmen. Doch sie sammelt bereits wieder ihre Kräfte. Der Kampf um die Zukunft der Menschheit ist noch nicht vorbei ...

This appears to be the German translations of Safehold under the substitute grouping of "Nimue Alban" and it appears to be up to book 14 so it looks like the translator is 'chunking' the series differently! What is fun for me, the non-German reader, it to try to translate the titles without referring to the web translators AND to look at the book covers so different from our 7 current volumes. As for figuring out words, the coincidence of running across this at the official start of the Christmas Season is matching this Donner with Clemet Moore's "Donner and Blitzen" to get Thunder in English. I will leave it to my fellow denizens to do their own work in this fun extracurricular activity. URL of the 14 book listing is below.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=series_rw_d ... gital-text

Ok, I had a lot of fun with this. Drawing only on my knowledge of English and Spanish, with a very limited smattering of French, and a few words of German and Latin, here is my attempt to translate these titles. This should be good for a laugh...

Nimue Alban: Operation Arche
Operation... easy enough
Arche: similar root to archetype? Or Arch... Arc! "Operation Arc"!

Nimue Alban: Die Übermacht
Über: something like "super" I seem to recall, or "ultimate"?
macht: going to go with "match"
so "Ultimate Match", possible reference to the battle of Darkos Sound?

Nimue Alban: Der Krieg der Ketzer
Der: of?
Krieg: war
Ketzer: no idea...
"Of war and of <something>"

Nimue Alban: Mit Dampf und Donner
Mit: with
Dampf: ? damp?
und: and
donner: thunder? or like the French "Donner"??
I'm going to guess "With Rain and Thunder"


Nimue Alban: Die Streitmacht
Die: the
Streit: street?
macht: as above, match?
"Street Match"??

Nimue Alban: Caylebs Plan: Nimue Alban
I'm going to go with "Cayleb's Plan: Nimmue Alban"!!

Nimue Alban: Der Kriegermönch
Krieger: related to "war"
mönch: month?
"The Month of War"

Nimue Alban: Kampf um die Siddarmark
Kampf: struggle
"The Struggle in Siddarmark"

Nimue Alban: Der Verrat
Verrat: similar to Spanish "verdad" meaning "truth"?
"The Truth"

Nimue Alban: Die Eiserne Festung

"The Something Something"... no clue on this one

Nimue Alban: Haus der Lügen
Haus: House
Lügen: no clue. Possible proper name?

"The House of Lügen"

Nimue Alban: Codename: Merlin
Phew, an easy one: "Codename: Merlin"!

Nimue Alban: Die Flotte von Charis
Flotte: fleet? Float?
"Charis' Fleet" ?? probably wrong, too late in the series for the big fleet actions.

Nimue Alban: Die Invasion
"The Invasion"!

So if anyone here is fluent in German, I'd be very curious to find out that actual translations, and how far off I was

Skipping the easy ones, Google Translate gives me:

Nimue Alban: Die Übermacht
"The Superiority"

Nimue Alban: Der Krieg der Ketzer
"The War of The Heretics"

Nimue Alban: Mit Dampf und Donner
"Steam and Thunder"

Nimue Alban: Die Streitmacht
"The Force"

Nimue Alban: Der Kriegermönch
"The Warrior Monk"

Nimue Alban: Kampf um die Siddarmark
"Struggle for Siddarmark"

Nimue Alban: Der Verrat
"The Betrayal"

Nimue Alban: Die Eiserne Festung
"The Iron Fortress"

Nimue Alban: Haus der Lügen
"House of Lies"

Nimue Alban: Die Flotte von Charis
"The Fleet of Charis"


... from those titles, I'm now really curious which ones line up with which English books.

Regarding the translations of books, some of the people doing the translating can prove themselves to be rather gifted.

I remember reading that one of the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett (Witches Abroad?) was actually regarded as being better in German!

Someone grab that translator and put him onto translating RFC's works,quick!

Michael Everett wrote:Regarding the translations of books, some of the people doing the translating can prove themselves to be rather gifted.

I remember reading that one of the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett (Witches Abroad?) was actually regarded as being better in German!

Someone grab that translator and put him onto translating RFC's works,quick!

Patrick Couton (the translator of Terry Pratchett in French) actually gained a SF literary prize (Grand Prix de l'imaginaire which is rather prestigious) for his work. But he go the extra mile, by not simply translating the raw text, but also create equivalencies in the very numerous Puns and Cultural references that would fly over the head of many non native British. Eg Pratchett Pseudopolis yard (reference to Scotland yard) become in the French title le "guet des orfèvres", which both is a reference to the quai des orfevres (headquarters of police in Paris) and a pun, as guet is the old medieval word for town police.

It is to the point that it is the only author where I will await & read both the translation and the original text with perfectly equal pleasure.

Our wizard translators are quite good but I prefer to read the original text, partly because of the very long delay. I may buy occasionally the French text, but don't feel compelled to.

GlynnStewart wrote:Skipping the easy ones, Google Translate gives me:

Nimue Alban: Die Übermacht
"The Superiority"

Nimue Alban: Der Krieg der Ketzer
"The War of The Heretics"

Nimue Alban: Mit Dampf und Donner
"Steam and Thunder"

Nimue Alban: Die Streitmacht
"The Force"

Nimue Alban: Der Kriegermönch
"The Warrior Monk"

Nimue Alban: Kampf um die Siddarmark
"Struggle for Siddarmark"

Nimue Alban: Der Verrat
"The Betrayal"

Nimue Alban: Die Eiserne Festung
"The Iron Fortress"

Nimue Alban: Haus der Lügen
"House of Lies"

Nimue Alban: Die Flotte von Charis
"The Fleet of Charis"


... from those titles, I'm now really curious which ones line up with which English books.

I found a partial numeric listing of the German Editions on goodreads.com.
I disagree with a few of your literal translations though.

Uber usually means superior, but can also be mighty. Macht is force or Army. Like the Wehrmacht.
A so Ubermarch could be a mighty Army. And it is Book 5:1.

Streitmacht, I interpret as Enemy Force. Book 6:2

Die Flotte von Charis, either "The Fleet or The Flotilla from (not of) Charis. Book 2:2

The Iron Fortress is book 4:1 A Mighty Fortress.