Nerv

[Rikku~]

Ive always thought about this, what does NERV stand for? I searched the net but I couldnt find anything

[Shin-seiki]

Ive always thought about this, what does NERV stand for? I searched the net but I couldnt find anythingDoesn't stand for anything; it's German for 'nerve'. Note also: GEHIRN = 'brain', and SEELE = 'soul'.

[Rikku~]

Oh thank you ^_^

[Ark]

Anyone know why german/y is soo significant in EVA?

[evolve]

other than the fact that Gehirn is in Germany (please don't kill me if I'm wrong on this one)?

a non-literal reason is that so much of Eva's thematic content is based on the works and words of Carl Gustav Jung, a Swiss-German psychoanalyst.

[Reichu]

Seele is in Germany (due probably in no small part to the fact that an evil German cyborg is the mastermind behind everything). The Third Branch of Gehirn was in Germany, before it became the Third Branch of Nerv.

The Japanese seem to have a soft spot for them Deutschers. I guess it's because they were allies in WWII or something?

[HeWhoPostsStuff]

Anyone know why german/y is soo significant in EVA?
Because everything sounds more serious and official in German: heck, if they'd just called the corporation "Nerve" or the like it just wouldn't have been impressive to say it...but say "Nehrf!" and you've instantly got the power to make people want to salute for no particular reason. Even "Soul" isn't enough...you need "Zeh-leh!" to get the blood flowing.

[Reichu]

Because everything sounds more serious and official in German: heck, if they'd just called the corporation "Nerve" or the like it just wouldn't have been impressive to say it...but say "Nehrf!" and you've instantly got the power to make people want to salute for no particular reason.

But people still pronounce it like it's "Nerve" anyway. ;;p

[uriel]

nerv: never eating red vermin ^_^

[Knives]

But people still pronounce it like it's "Nerve" anyway. ;;p
... NERV is supposed to be pronounced "Nehrf"? ... Like a "Nerf" football? :huh: That's stupid ...

[NakedEYE666]

But people still pronounce it like it's "Nerve" anyway. ;;p

True, but still, the subtle loss of that troublesome "e" at the end makes the word infinitely more powerful. :D

[Reichu]

... NERV is supposed to be pronounced "Nehrf"? ... Like a "Nerf" football? :huh: That's stupid ...

How is it stupid? It's not pronounced the same as the company name (which rhymes with "surf"); I'm not sure how you got that impression.

[The Eva Monkey]

The Japanese language itself is riddled with loan words. The vast majority of this is English and German. Much of the day to day vocabulary, from aisukurimu (ice cream) to konpyuutaa (computer) is English, while a lot of the scientific and mathematical jargon is German. It is for the reason that nerves are biological and scientific, that Nerv is "Nerv" and not some word in Japanese. They more than likely do not have an actual word for it, the loan word nerv (or however it is japanized) is most likely they're day to day word for refering to nerves. That or the commonly use this in place of a pre-existing japanese word.

[Reichu]

EvaMonkey, there is definitely a word in Japanese for nerve! It is shinkei, and you hear it a LOT in NGE.

The only everyday German "loan word" I can actually think of offhand is "A-BAITO", taken from "arbeit" (to work) to mean a part-time job. (This refers to Kaji's "part-time jobs", BTW.)

[HeWhoPostsStuff]

... NERV is supposed to be pronounced "Nehrf"? ... Like a "Nerf" football? :huh: That's stupid ...
It's not quite the same pronunciation (despite what ReDeath would suggest): the foam-ball company is more "Nurf": the German pronunciation makes the "e" into an "eh" sound, sort of like the beginning of "elevator." I've even seen the pronunciation rendered "Nairf," to put it a different way...I tend to prefer "Nehrf," though.

[Dan]

Yea, in case anyone is curious, Nerv isnt really pronounced with such a hard "f" sound. HWPS got it pretty accurate. And Seele is completely mispronounced through loaning. Its meant to be ZELL-uh.(as opposed to SAY-lay)

Hope I help, but excuse if this is moot.

[Reichu]

It's more like "ZEHL-eh", but I digress... A German accent is difficult to describe through typing.

[Springymajig]

Don't forget to rrrrrrrrrrroll those rrrrrrrrrrrrrr's!

I think... pretty sure about that anyway...

[Soluzar]

Don't forget to rrrrrrrrrrroll those rrrrrrrrrrrrrr's!

I think... pretty sure about that anyway...

Hmm... Not sure. I have a German lecturer, and she never rolls any Rs. She does tend to pronounce a V at the end of a word as though it was an F though. Maybe I can get some input from her on these three all-important words.

[evolve]

EvaMonkey, there is definitely a word in Japanese for nerve! It is shinkei, and you hear it a LOT in NGE.

The only everyday German "loan word" I can actually think of offhand is "A-BAITO", taken from "arbeit" (to work) to mean a part-time job. (This refers to Kaji's "part-time jobs", BTW.)

yup. I think Nerv is something used specifically in Eva, not a borrowed word that's common in Japanese vocabulary.

also, don't the Japanese use a lot of French phrases as well? like coux de gras and coux de tas (forgive my terrible spelling there)? stuff like that? this could be just because all intellectuals tended to use French (and Latin) to spice things up in the 90's.

[Soluzar]

It's definitely true that the French language went through a period of being fashionable for intellectual types, but it lasted a lot longer than the 90s. English has been scattered with loanwords and loanphrases from french for decades, and I think that there was a time when French was considered to be an essential language for international travellers, as it was so widely understood.

[Reichu]

also, don't the Japanese use a lot of French phrases as well? like coux de gras and coux de tas (forgive my terrible spelling there)? stuff like that? this could be just because all intellectuals tended to use French (and Latin) to spice things up in the 90's.

Coup de grace and coup d'etat. Yeah, I have seen some French turn up in Japanese; they probably use it for the same reasons that we English-speakers do.

[Soluzar]

Coup de grace and coup d'etat. Yeah, I have seen some French turn up in Japanese; they probably use it for the same reasons that we English-speakers do.

Dare I suggest that reason is in the belief that it will lend their words a certain Je ne sais quoi ? :lol:

[Knives]

Dare I suggest that reason is in the belief that it will lend their words a certain Je ne sais quoi ? :lol:
Evil <_< .

( :D )

[JFaulkner]

other than the fact that Gehirn is in Germany (please don't kill me if I'm wrong on this one)?

a non-literal reason is that so much of Eva's thematic content is based on the works and words of Carl Gustav Jung, a Swiss-German psychoanalyst.

Just to nit-pick, Jung is a Swiss psychoanalyst who knew German.

[Reichu]

The truth is... he was actually a quarter German.

[JFaulkner]

The truth is... he was actually a quarter German.
OK, Jung had Swiss nationality, but also German roots. Swiss-German implied that he was half-half, at least in my interpretation anyway.

[Reichu]

I think I was making a two-way joke. Did you take that seriously? ;)

[Vaikyuko]

Hmm... Not sure. I have a German lecturer, and she never rolls any Rs. She does tend to pronounce a V at the end of a word as though it was an F though. Maybe I can get some input from her on these three all-important words.

Vs are sometimes pronounced as Fs. The German word for bird, vogel, is like that. Kewl, neh?

[Soluzar]

Vs are sometimes pronounced as Fs. The German word for bird, vogel, is like that. Kewl, neh?
Pretty cool, but the post to which you were responding is ancient, dude. I mean, it's from the days when I used to post in the Eva forum. That alone should show you how old it is. In all seriousness, it's more than two years old. Amazing that these threads haven't been purged yet.

[Samurai Drifter]

Damn, talk about a thread revival.

[Vaikyuko]

Pretty cool, but the post to which you were responding is ancient, dude. I mean, it's from the days when I used to post in the Eva forum. That alone should show you how old it is. In all seriousness, it's more than two years old. Amazing that these threads haven't been purged yet.

OH SHI--

Wow, I didn't even notice. Then again, I didn't pay much attention back then to specific topics that didn't immediately concern my interests. =p

[Ridley-X4]

Misato from ReDeath: It's Nerv or nothing!

[KatayokuのTenshi]

Pretty cool, but the post to which you were responding is ancient, dude. I mean, it's from the days when I used to post in the Eva forum. That alone should show you how old it is. In all seriousness, it's more than two years old. Amazing that these threads haven't been purged yet.


IT'S ALIVE!! :w00t:

Why does no one ever use the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) it would make things like Seele and Nerv soo much easier for the less well informed (me!) to pronounce.

[Reichu]

Why does no one ever use the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) it would make things like Seele and Nerv soo much easier for the less well informed (me!) to pronounce.
Because no one wants to learn the IPA.

[KatayokuのTenshi]

You don't have to know something by heart to reference it just get the info from something like this. (http://www.antimoon.com/how/pronunc-soundsipa.htm)