Translation of the title?

For discussion of John Ajvide Lindqvist's novel Himmelstrand
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gattoparde59
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Translation of the title?

Post by gattoparde59 » Thu Aug 22, 2013 1:56 pm

What would the title be in English? I can make a guess, but I'm not Swedish. :)

I'll break open the story and tell you what is there. Then, like the others that have fallen out onto the sand, I will finish with it, and the wind will take it away.

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metoo
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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by metoo » Thu Aug 22, 2013 2:44 pm

gattoparde59 wrote:What would the title be in English? I can make a guess, but I'm not Swedish.
The title is inspired by the name of a Swedish composer of popular music, Peter Himmelstrand.

His surname can be decomposed into two parts, himmel + strand. Himmel means heaven or sky, strand means beach.

Since the novel is to involve caravan camping, I guess that the title is also the name of a (fictive) camping ground. It sounds like a suitable name for such a place, at least...

This title will be a hard nut to crack for the translator!
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by gattoparde59 » Thu Aug 22, 2013 6:21 pm

A familiar phrase if you listen to Gospel, or "Stained Glass Blue Grass" music. I believe I have heard it as "the heavenly strand" too.
I thought there would be a bible verse for this, but googling didn't show anything for me. :( I don't think it would be that tough for an English translation. Heaven's Shore, or The Celestial Shore would work.

Lindqvist always has the perfect titles for his novels, I'm sure it will make sense once we read the book. :)

I'll break open the story and tell you what is there. Then, like the others that have fallen out onto the sand, I will finish with it, and the wind will take it away.

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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by Nightrider » Thu Aug 22, 2013 7:55 pm

Perhaps something like "Promised Land"?
There's a 2012 Gus Van Sant movie with the same title, but I don't see why it can't be used again.
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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by metoo » Thu Aug 22, 2013 7:57 pm

I was referring to the connection with Peter Himmelstrand and his music. That will be a hard nut to crack, I think.

Here's a sample:
Last edited by metoo on Thu Aug 22, 2013 8:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by Nightrider » Thu Aug 22, 2013 7:59 pm

I thought this was a discussion about translation of the title?
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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by metoo » Thu Aug 22, 2013 8:08 pm

Nightrider wrote:I thought this was a discussion about translation of the title?
Yes?
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by Nightrider » Thu Aug 22, 2013 8:12 pm

metoo wrote: Yes?
Well, I get the connection Peter Himmelstrand....and it seemed like something very similar to "Promised Land".
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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by metoo » Thu Aug 22, 2013 8:22 pm

Promised land has a definite connection to religion which is only vaguely hinted at by Himmelstrand.

But the problem of suggesting translations at this stage is that we don't know what role the title may have in the story. Without that, it is only possible to translate the words, not the meaning of the title.
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Re: Translation of the title?

Post by Nightrider » Thu Aug 22, 2013 8:31 pm

It was only a thought....for the sake of discussion. Not wrong not right...Just a thought. It's not written in stone.
And "Promised Land" does not necessarily alludes to religion. It can, but it doesn't have to. I wasn't even thinking about this particular application. For all I know "Himmelstrand" could be the title of English language edition. It's highly unlikely, but anything's possible.
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