Japanese Translation Issues in User Profile Settings

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In a discussion titled Japanese Translation Issues in User Profile Settings, user Kirk reported several inaccuracies in the Japanese interface, noting that literal translations often fail to convey the intended context within a user profile. Key issues identified include: the Location field using 場所 (place) instead of 居住地 (residence); the optional marker オプション (option) instead of the more natural 任意; the Birthday field showing 生年月日 (birth date) despite only accepting month/day; and the Summary page label 要約 being too vague. Additionally, a notification setting remained untranslated. Kirk suggested these errors stem from translators working from spreadsheets without seeing the actual UI.

User Moin acknowledged the report, confirming that these issues, along with a related typo, have been added as comments on Crowdin for correction. Kirk responded with gratitude, praising the community’s responsiveness and reflecting on how Discourse fulfills the promise of 1990s internet community building, contrasting it with the disappointments of modern social media.

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I’m setting up a Discourse community for users in Japan and have noticed several translation issues in the Japanese interface. I’m not a native speaker of Japanese, but I’ve been teaching at a Japanese university for over three decades, and these stood out immediately when I was using the platform to set up a dummy profile in Japanese. Please check with native speakers of Japanese; I think they will agree.

Issues Found

1. Location field

  • Current: 場所 (basho - “place/spot”)
  • Problem: Too literal - sounds like a physical location (filming location, venue)
  • Better: 居住地 (kyojūchi) or 地域 (chiiki) for “where you live”
  • Where to find: User menu → Profile → Edit (Profile tab)

2. Optional field markers

  • Current: オプション (opushon - English loanword)
  • Problem: Unnatural when Japanese has a proper word
  • Better: 任意 (nin’i) - the standard Japanese term
  • Where to find: User menu → Settings → Profile tab, appears after “氏名” field

3. Birthday field

  • Current: 生年月日 (seinengappi - “birth year, month, day”)
  • Problem: Field only accepts month/day, not year
  • Better: 誕生日 (tanjōbi - “birthday”)
  • Where to find: User menu → Settings → Profile tab

4. Summary page

  • Current: 要約 (yōyaku - “summary/abstract”)
  • Problem: Vague - summary of what?
  • Better: 統計 (tōkei) or 使用状況 (shiyō jōkyō) to clarify it shows statistics/usage
  • Where to find: User menu → Summary (tab/link in user profile navigation)

5. Missing translation

  • “Notify when someone shares a link to one of my posts” appears in English
  • Suggested: 投稿へのリンクが共有されたときに通知する
  • Where to find: User menu → Settings → Notifications → 通知 section

Context

I suspect that these translation issues stem from translators (even if native speakers) working from spreadsheets without seeing the actual interface. For example, “Location” → 場所 makes sense as a dictionary translation, but in the context of a user profile next to “Name” and “Email,” it should indicate residence/region (居住地や地域).

I’m happy to provide screenshots or additional detail if needed.

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Typo in Japanese translation: user_notifications.confirm_old_email.text_body_template
Typo in Japanese translation: user_notifications.confirm_old_email.text_body_template
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I have added your reports as comments on Crowdin - not only the 4 reported here, but also the one reported in the other topic.

Screenshot_20260211_013244_Chrome
Screenshot_20260211_013244_Chrome1726×892 110 KB

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Thanks @Moin ! By the way, although I’ve only posted a few times here I’ve always gotten really good responses. Of course, that includes your kind responses. Yesterday, I was listening to “We Didn’t Ask for This Internet", a show in which Ezra Klein interviewed Cory Doctorow and Tim Wu. As I listened, I thought “THIS is why I chose to go to the trouble of creating a Discourse community.” In a world where social media platforms have left many of us deeply disappointed, it’s great to have Discourse, a platform that allows the kind of community building that the internet seemed to promise in the 1990s. :wink:

Thanks again for your good work!!

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