Japanese with Manga

Dueling like in Ancient Rome with 古代

Kanji Explanation: Oldness and antiquity with 古

Manga panel from カードキャプターさくら showing example of Dueling like in Ancient Rome with 古代.
カードキャプターさくら » Volume 3 » Page 21

Li seems fired up over something with Sakura. Yamazaki suggests whatever the issue is be settled when they play badminton during that day’s physical education class. Li asks why things have to be settled via badminton.

山崎(やまざき):
「知(し)らないの？バドミントンっていうのはね　古代(こだい)ローマから伝(つた)わる由緒(ゆいしょ)正(ただ)しい決闘(けっとう)方法(ほうほう)でね」
“You don't know? Badminton is a time-honored method of dueling that has been passed down since ancient Rome.”
「負(ま)けたほうはもう　それはひどいめに……」
“The loser suffers a truly terrible fate.”

Key Points

1古代(こだい)ローマ = “Ancient Rome”
  • 古代(こだい) means “ancient times” or “antiquity”. Here it combines directly with ローマ to name the historical period.
2バドミントンっていうのは introduces the topic
  • っていう is the casual spoken form of という. バドミントンっていうのは means roughly “as for the thing called badminton” and sets up Yamazaki’s explanation.
3古代(こだい)ローマから伝(つた)わる modifies the noun that follows
  • The clause 古代(こだい)ローマから伝(つた)わる describes 由緒(ゆいしょ)正(ただ)しい決闘(けっとう)方法(ほうほう): a time-honored dueling method handed down from Ancient Rome.
  • Here から marks the claimed source, not a reason meaning “because”.
4The two ね keep the explanation conversational
  • In っていうのはね and でね, Yamazaki uses ね to hold Li’s attention as he spins out the story.
  • The で in 方法(ほうほう)でね is the connecting form of the copula だ. It leaves the thought open for the warning about the loser.
5負(ま)けたほう and the unfinished 目(め)に……
  • 負(ま)けたほう means “the one who lost” or “the losing side”. The pause lets it act as the topic: 負(ま)けたほう（は）もう…….
  • The idiom is ひどい目(め)に遭(あ)う, “have a terrible experience”. Yamazaki leaves 遭(あ)う unsaid, and the ellipsis makes the fate sound ominous.

Vocabulary

(To know)

知(し)る means to learn or come to know a fact or person. In the form 知っている, it describes already knowing.

(Ancient times)

古代(こだい) means ancient times or antiquity, especially in historical writing.

(Duel)

決闘(けっとう) means a duel between two opponents. It has a formal, dramatic ring.

(Method)

方法(ほうほう) means a method or way of doing something.

See Also

カードキャプターさくら © its respective creators. It is used here for educational commentary.