The TR Issue

[Geechisu]

Here's a question that always bothered me.

What is up with Giovanni's name? People often say it's his first name, however, others claim that it's his last. The Japanese name, Sakaki,is a common surname, pointing to that being his last name, and the first name unknown. However, in the English, his name is a common Italian given name, which begs the question of whether or not the English translators were trying to make a bad joke based off of the Mafia and didn't realize that it may have been a surname, or that it is, in fact, a surname based off of a given name, i.e. James Lewis vs. Lewis James, both fitting either role.
I thought this may be a dub mistake, but then I realized that Akagi, Cyrus's Japanese name, is also a common Japanese last name, while his English is a common first name.
Any opinions on the name business?

 

[Falconwing]

...

Giovanni is a ground type trainer. He gives out the earth badge. He is in charge of a mafia style group. And geo means earth.

Hence the name.

 

[Usagi-Zakura]

I think its a first name.

In Japan its more common to call people by their last name, many people who either don't know each other too well or aren't good friends will call each other by their last name.

In English most are easier on the first names, so they gave the villains only first names instead of only last names.

 

[Vsyoravno]

I think some of the Japanese names, especially for evil team leaders, are meant to be surnames, but the English names are always meant to be their first names (with some exceptions, like the professors whose first names we don't know, and for some reason I'm convinced Gordor is a surname). That's just the impression I get.

Personally I've never seen Giovanni used as a surname before, but I've definitely seen Cyrus used as a surname...but I think both of those are first names in this case.

 

[zel]

I always thought Giovanni was his first name, and never really gave a thought to his last name. :c

Because who needs a full name when you're a BAMF? ;D

 

[Juuchan17]

Because who needs a full name when you're a BAMF? ;D

I agree with this somehow.

But yeah, first name. That's what I think . . . although I've never thought about this before.

 

[Dopey]

For me, its just

G-I-O-V-A-N-N-I

Never bothered about his full name. But yeah, its more likely that its his first name.

 

[Geechisu]

Well, that clears that up...

Though when I was little, I always thought that his last name would be Rocket, since it made no sense for the team to be called that otherwise...
AND THEN I READ THE MANGA HOOBOY.
So as ridiculous as 'evil tusks' sounds, I stick with my theory-I-made-as-a-ten-year-old.

 

[Kori Gotcha]

It's not a mistake of translation, it's an adjustment for translations sake. Culturally, in asian cultures, people refer to each other by their last names to show respect. Using a first name is a sign of familiarity and can be seen as disrespect when addressing someone of higher status by their first name, but in eastern cultures, we don't have these kinds of strict standards, especially for a children's game. It would just be awkward otherwise.

All of the gym leaders (and all characters in general), with the exception of Lt. Surge, in english have used their first names. Misty, Brock, Sabrina, Ericka, Faulkner, Winona, Brawly, etc. It makes sense that in japanese, these would all be surnames rather than their given names.