English translations of Asterix
| Industry | Publishing, Translation |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1969 |
| Founder | Anthea Bell, Derek Hockridge |
| Products | English translations of Asterix comic series |
All Asterix tales, originally crafted by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, have been rendered into English. Most of these translations were undertaken by Anthea Bell and Derek Hockridge, who first introduced Asterix the Gaul to English readers through Brockhampton Press in 1969. Bell stepped down in 2016 due to health issues and passed away in 2018; Hockridge died earlier, in 2013. Presently, Adriana Hunter is responsible for translation work, beginning with Asterix and the Chariot Race.
Translating names
Numerous French original names rely on wordplay rooted in absurdity for comedic effect. For instance, the bard’s name, Assurancetourix, is a pun related to "comprehensive insurance," which doesn’t connect directly to his role but adds a layer of silliness. To retain this humor, translators modify names to reflect character traits; thus, the bard is renamed Cacofonix in English, alluding to cacophony, emphasizing his notoriously unpleasant singing.
This method extends to characters like Geriatrix (French: Agecanonix, meaning extremely old), while nonsensical English names such as Dubius Status are assigned to minor figures. Playful fictional place names remain consistent across versions, including the quartet of camps surrounding Asterix’s village: Compendium, Aquarium, Laudanum, and Totorum (a pun on "Tot o' rum"). In French, one camp is named "Babaorum," a wordplay on the dessert baba au rhum.
Lost in translation
Bell and Hockridge earned acclaim for capturing the essence and wit of the French originals despite the inherent difficulty of translating puns between unrelated languages. For example, in Asterix and the Chieftain's Shield, a French pun involving spa pools is cleverly transformed into "Pooling your resources" in English, creating a double meaning that replaces the original joke.
Certain jokes resist translation entirely. In Asterix in Britain, a scene where Obelix comments on a man’s "melon" hat (the French term for bowler hat) loses its pun when translated into English. To compensate, the British edition substitutes this with a nod to the rhyme "London Bridge Is Falling Down". Additionally, British characters adopt an archaic manner of speech to make up for humor lost from Goscinny’s use of English words within French text.
Occasionally, translators introduce their own humorous touches where appropriate. For instance, in Asterix and the Goths, the Goth leader’s original line "Faut pas chercher à comprendre" ("We shouldn't try to understand") becomes "Ours is not to reason why," referencing Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade".
Comparison of names of major characters
| Original name (French) |
Meaning | Description | British name | American name (newspaper) |
American name (album) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Astérix | asterisk (star symbol), also reflecting his small stature | Gaulish warrior | Asterix | Asterix | Asterix |
| Obélix | obelisk (large stone column; also a footnote symbol †) | Menhir delivery man | Obelix | Obelix | Obelix |
| Idéfix | idée fixe (obsession) | Obelix's dog | Dogmatix | Dogmatix | Dogmatix |
| Panoramix | Panoramique (panoramic) | Druid | Getafix | Readymix | Magigimmix |
| Abraracourcix | à bras raccourcis ("with all his might") | Village Chief | Vitalstatistix | Vitalstatistix | Macroeconomix |
| Bonemine | Bonne mine (good looks) | Chief's Wife | Impedimenta | n/a | Belladonna |
| Agecanonix | âge canonique (canonical age) | Village elder | Geriatrix | Geriatrix | Arthritix |
| Assurancetourix | Assurance tous risques (comprehensive insurance) | Bard | Cacofonix | Cacofonix | Malacoustix |
| Cétautomatix | c'est automatique (it's automatic) | Blacksmith | Fulliautomatix | ||
| Ordralfabétix | ordre alphabétique (alphabetical order) | Fishmonger | Unhygienix | Fishtix | Epidemix |
| Iélosubmarine | Yellow Submarine | Wife of Fishmonger | Bacteria | ||
| Falbala | falbala, meaning a frilly ornament on a dress; pejorative | Minor recurring character | Panacea | n/a | Philharmonia |
Earlier English versions—such as those appearing in Valiant and Ranger/Look and Learn—used different character names.
Valiant comic
Beginning on 16 November 1963, an adapted rendition of Asterix the Gaul was featured in Valiant, a boys' comic published by Fleetway Publications. This color strip appeared on the back page and was set in Britain during 43 AD. Initially named Little Fred and Big Ed, it centered on Little Fred alongside the stonemason Big Ed living in Nevergivup village, which was encircled by eight Roman military camps. Their druid character was called Hokus Pokus. After Obelix was removed from the storyline, the series was retitled Little Fred, the Ancient Brit with Bags of Grit, concluding on 4 April 1964.
Ranger magazine
Published between 1965 and 1966, the British boys' periodical Ranger included a localized adaptation of Asterix and the Big Fight, renamed Britons Never, Never, Never Shall Be Slaves!. The characters were renamed to align with British historical themes. This story wrapped up in issue 40, after which Ranger merged into Look and Learn. The merged publication began featuring a version of Asterix and Cleopatra titled In the Days of Good Queen Cleo.
William Morrow
In 1970, William Morrow released English-language editions of three Asterix albums—Asterix the Gaul, Asterix and Cleopatra, and Asterix the Legionary—targeted at the American audience. Although these translations were well-crafted, sales remained limited, resulting in the discontinuation of further volumes following the third release.
National Geographic
The May 1977 edition of National Geographic included an article named "The Celts: Europe's Founders," which featured a unique Asterix comic strip created specifically for this issue. This initiative was part of a deliberate strategy by Asterix’s creator to boost brand awareness within the United States. This special strip was subsequently reprinted in the collection Asterix and the Class Act.
American newspaper syndication
Between November 1977 and early 1979, five complete Asterix albums along with a portion of a sixth were serialized across North American newspapers. These comics were reformatted into daily and Sunday strips, necessitating extensive modifications to both artwork and dialogue to cater to family-friendly readerships. Changes were made to character names, humor, and illustrations to ensure political correctness and idiomatic accessibility, producing versions that differed significantly from their originals. The albums were presented out of chronological order, with syndication ceasing after under eighteen months.
An introductory series ran from November 14 to 27, 1977; newspapers starting with Cleopatra received a shorter introduction in February 1978.
The serialized titles included:
- "Asterix the Gladiator" (Nov 28, 1977 – Feb 26, 1978)
- "Asterix and Cleopatra" (Feb 27 – May 28, 1978)
- "Asterix and the Great Crossing" (May 29 – Aug 27, 1978)
- "Asterix and the Big Fight" (Aug 28 – Nov 26, 1978)
- "Asterix in Spain" (Nov 27, 1978 – Feb 25, 1979; many papers discontinued it earlier)
- "Asterix in Britain" commenced on Feb 26, 1979 in select newspapers such as the Windsor Star, concluding March 10
Transitions between stories took place during the final week’s Thursday or Friday strips extending through Monday, blending conclusions with introductions to upcoming narratives.
American editions
Robert Steven Caron was responsible for translating five volumes into American English for the international division of Dargaud: Asterix and the Great Crossing (1984), Asterix the Legionary and Asterix at the Olympic Games (1992), as well as Asterix in Britain and Asterix and Cleopatra (1995). Due to copyright restrictions, many character names were altered. Because of limited success in the U.S. market, this series of re-translations ended after these editions, leading to confusion among American readers since later volumes up to Asterix in Belgium used the British versions.
In 2019, The New York Times revealed that Papercutz would begin releasing new Americanized translations starting in May 2020. Joe Johnson, a Professor of French and Spanish at Clayton State University, serves as the translator. These Papercutz editions reinstate original French names such as the village druid Panoramix and modify other minor character names. The publisher issues omnibus collections in chronological order, each containing three albums, while recent titles like Asterix and the Chieftain's Daughter and Asterix and the Griffin are available as individual books.
Simplified language
In 2023, German publisher Egmont Ehapa introduced a special Easy Language version of Asterix for the Special Olympics World Games held in Berlin. Ursula Semlitsch adapted Bell and Hockridge’s translation specifically for readers with limited English skills.