Dracula — Page 2

English → Japanese CHAPTER I Level 7/10

Having had some time at my disposal when in London, I had visited the British Museum, and made search among the books and maps in the library regarding Transylvania; it had struck me that some foreknowledge of the country could hardly fail to have some importance in dealing with a nobleman of that country.

ロンドンにいた時に自由な時間があったので、大英博物館を訪れ、図書館でトランシルヴァニアに関する書籍や地図を調べた。その国についてある程度の予備知識を持つことは、その国の貴族と接する際に何らかの重要性を持たずにはいられないと感じたのだ。

I find that the district he named is in the extreme east of the country, just on the borders of three states, Transylvania, Moldavia and Bukovina, in the midst of the Carpathian mountains; one of the wildest and least known portions of Europe.

彼が名指しした地区は、カルパティア山脈の只中に位置し、トランシルヴァニア、モルダヴィア、ブコヴィナという三つの国の境界が接する国の極東に当たり、ヨーロッパで最も荒野で知られていない地域の一つであることがわかった。

I was not able to light on any map or work giving the exact locality of the Castle Dracula, as there are no maps of this country as yet to compare with our own Ordnance Survey maps; but I found that Bistritz, the post town named by Count Dracula, is a fairly well-known place.

この国にはまだ我々の陸地測量部の地図に匹敵するような地図が存在しないため、ドラキュラ城の正確な位置を示す地図や文献を見つけることはできなかった。しかし、ドラキュラ伯爵が名指しした郵便局のある町ビストリッツは、かなりよく知られた場所であることがわかった。

I shall enter here some of my notes, as they may refresh my memory when I talk over my travels with Mina.

ミーナと旅の話をする時に記憶を呼び起こす助けになるかもしれないので、ここにいくつかの覚書を記しておこうと思う。

In the population of Transylvania there are four distinct nationalities: Saxons in the South, and mixed with them the Wallachs, who are the descendants of the Dacians; Magyars in the West, and Szekelys in the East and North.

トランシルヴァニアの住民には四つの異なる民族がいる。南部にはザクセン人がおり、彼らに混じってダキア人の子孫であるワラキア人がいる。西部にはマジャール人がおり、東部と北部にはセーケイ人がいる。

I am going among the latter, who claim to be descended from Attila and the Huns.

私はアッティラとフン族の末裔であると主張する後者の人々の中へ向かうところである。

This may be so, for when the Magyars conquered the country in the eleventh century they found the Huns settled in it.

これはそうかもしれない。なぜなら、マジャール人が十一世紀にその国を征服した時、すでにフン族がそこに定住しているのを見出したからだ。

Vocabulary

に: ni — Particle indicating location, time, or direction.
いた: ita — Past tense of 'to be' (animate, location).
時: toki — Time, moment, or occasion.
自由: jiyū — Freedom, liberty; free and unrestricted.
な: na — Adjectival particle linking na-adjectives to nouns.
時間: jikan — Time, hours; a period or duration of time.
が: ga — Subject-marking particle in Japanese sentences.
あった: atta — Past tense of 'to exist' or 'to have' (inanimate).
ので: node — Conjunction meaning 'because' or 'since.'
大英: Daiei — Great Britain; prefix referring to the British.
博物館: hakubutsukan — Museum; a place exhibiting cultural artifacts.
を: wo — Object-marking particle indicating direct object.
訪れ: otozure — To visit or call upon a place or person.
図書館: toshokan — Library; a place to borrow or read books.
で: de — Particle indicating location of action or means.
関する: kansuru — To relate to, concern, or be about something.
書籍: shoseki — Books, publications, written volumes of text.
や: ya — Particle listing examples, meaning 'and' or 'or.'
地図: chizu — Map; a diagram representing geographical areas.
調べ: shirabe — To investigate, research, or look something up.
た: ta — Past tense auxiliary verb ending in Japanese.
その: sono — That; demonstrative adjective referring to nearby thing.
国: kuni — Country, nation, or homeland.
ついて: tsuite — About, concerning, or regarding a topic.
ある: aru — To exist, to have (inanimate things).
程度: teido — Degree, extent, or level of something.
の: no — Possessive or linking particle between nouns.
予備: yobi — Preliminary, preparatory, or spare knowledge/resource.
知識: chishiki — Knowledge, information, or learning about something.
持つ: motsu — To hold, carry, or possess something.
こと: koto — Thing, fact, or nominalizer for verb phrases.
は: wa — Topic-marking particle highlighting sentence subject.
貴族: kizoku — Nobleman, aristocrat; member of noble class.
と: to — Particle meaning 'with,' 'and,' or quotation marker.
接する: sessuru — To come into contact with, meet, or interact.
際: sai — Occasion, time when, or circumstance of an event.
何らか: nanraka — Some kind of, some sort of, certain.
重要: jūyō — Important, significant, or of great consequence.
性: sei — Suffix indicating nature, quality, or characteristic.
持た: mota — Negative stem of 'to hold/possess' (持つ).
ず: zu — Negative auxiliary, meaning 'without doing' something.
い: i — Stem of auxiliary verb 'iru,' indicating ongoing state.
られ: rare — Passive/potential auxiliary verb suffix.
ない: nai — Negative auxiliary; 'not' or 'does not exist.'
感じ: kanji — Feeling, sense, or impression of something.
だ: da — Copula; plain form of 'is' or 'are.'
彼: kare — He, him; third-person masculine pronoun.
名指し: nazashi — Naming specifically, singling out by name.
した: shita — Past tense of する (to do).
地区: chiku — District, zone, or designated geographical area.
山脈: sanmyaku — Mountain range; a series of connected mountains.
只中: tadanaka — Right in the middle, very heart of something.
位置: ichi — Position, location, or place of something.
し: shi — Conjunctive form of する or listing conjunction.
という: to iu — Called, known as, or named (quotation pattern).
三: san — Three; the number 3.
つ: tsu — Counter for general objects (one, two, three...).
境界: kyōkai — Boundary, border, or dividing line between areas.
極東: kyokutō — Far East; the easternmost regions of something.
当たり: atari — Around, vicinity of, or per unit area/time.
最も: mottomo — Most, extremely; superlative degree adverb.
荒野: kōya — Wilderness, wasteland, or desolate uncultivated land.
知ら: shira — Stem of 'to know'; (here) 'known' in passive.
れ: re — Passive verb suffix indicating an action received.
て: te — Conjunctive particle connecting sequential verb actions.
地域: chiiki — Region, area, or local zone of land.
一: ichi — One; the number 1; also meaning 'one of.'
わかっ: wakatt(e) — Past/conjunctive of 'to understand' or 'to know.'
この: kono — This; demonstrative adjective for nearby things.
まだ: mada — Still, yet; something not completed or ongoing.
我々: wareware — We, us; formal first-person plural pronoun.
陸地: rikuchi — Land, terra firma, dry land area.
測量: sokuryō — Survey, measurement of land or terrain.
部: bu — Section, department, or part of an organization.
匹敵: hitteki — To be equal to, rival, or be comparable with.
する: suru — To do; general-purpose action verb.
よう: yō — Seeming like, appearing as if, or in order to.
存在: sonzai — Existence, presence; to exist as an entity.
ため: tame — For the purpose of, because of, due to.
城: shiro — Castle, fortress, or stronghold building.
正確: seikaku — Accurate, precise, exact in detail.
示す: shimesu — To show, indicate, or point out something.
文献: bunken — Literature, documents, or written references.
見つける: mitsukeru — To find, discover, or locate something.
でき: deki — Stem of できる; to be able to do something.
なかっ: nakatt(e) — Past negative stem of ない (did not exist/occur).
しかし: shikashi — However, but; conjunction indicating contrast.
伯爵: hakushaku — Count or earl; European noble title rank.
郵便: yūbin — Mail, postal service; delivery of letters.
局: kyoku — Office or bureau (as in post office).
町: machi — Town, street, or small urban community.
かなり: kanari — Fairly, considerably, quite a lot.
よく: yoku — Well, often, or frequently; adverb of manner.
場所: basho — Place, location, spot, or venue.
旅: tabi — Travel, journey, or trip to distant places.
話: hanashi — Story, talk, conversation, or account.
記憶: kioku — Memory, recollection, or remembrance of events.
呼び起こす: yobiおkosu — To evoke, call up, or awaken memories.
助け: tasuke — Help, aid, or assistance given to someone.
なる: naru — To become or to serve as something.
かも: kamo — Might, perhaps; expresses uncertainty or possibility.
しれ: shire — Potential stem of 'to know'; used in かもしれない.
ここ: koko — Here, this place; proximal location pronoun.
いくつ: ikutsu — How many; several, a number of things.
か: ka — Question particle or indefinite marker (some/any).
覚書: おboegaki — Memorandum, note, or written reminder memo.
記し: shirushi — To write down, note, or record something.
おこう: okō — Let's do in advance; volitional of おく.
思う: omou — To think, feel, or believe something.
住民: jūmin — Residents, inhabitants, or local population.
四: shi / yon — Four; the number 4.
異なる: kotonaru — To differ, vary, or be different from.
民族: minzoku — Ethnic group, people, or nationality group.
いる: iru — To exist (animate); to be present somewhere.
南部: nanbu — Southern part or southern region of area.
人: hito / jin — Person, people, or human being.
おり: ori — Conjunctive form of おる (formal 'to be/exist').
彼ら: karera — They, them; third-person plural pronoun.
混じっ: majitt(e) — Mixed in, blended, or mingled among others.
子孫: shison — Descendants, offspring, or posterity of ancestors.
西部: seibu — Western part or western region of an area.
東部: tōbu — Eastern part or eastern region of an area.
北部: hokubu — Northern part or northern region of an area.
私: watashi — I, me; first-person singular pronoun.
族: zoku — Tribe, clan, or ethnic group suffix.
末裔: matsuei — Descendant, last scion of a lineage.
主張: shuchō — Claim, assertion, or argument put forward.
後者: kōsha — The latter; the second of two mentioned things.
人々: hitobito — People, persons; plural form of person.
中: naka — Inside, middle, or among a group.
へ: e — Directional particle meaning 'toward' or 'to.'
向かう: mukau — To head toward, face, or proceed in direction.
ところ: tokoro — Place, point in time, or circumstance.
これ: kore — This; proximal demonstrative pronoun.
そう: sō — So, that way; indicating agreement or likelihood.
なぜ: naze — Why; asking for reason or cause.
なら: nara — If, if it is the case that (conditional).
十一: jūichi — Eleven; the number 11.
世紀: seiki — Century; a period of one hundred years.
征服: seifuku — Conquest, subjugation, or taking over by force.
すでに: sudeni — Already, by now, previously completed action.
そこ: soko — There, that place; medial location pronoun.
定住: teijū — Permanent settlement, settling down in a place.
見出し: midashi — To find out; also headline or heading of text.
から: kara — From, because of; particle of origin or reason.

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