Pikachu was originally translated as 比卡超 (Bei-kaa-chyu) in Hong Kong. Now it is named 皮卡丘 (Pikaqiu). While the name 皮卡丘 in Mandarin sounds similar to the global name Pikachu (as it was always called in China and Taiwan), it reads as Pei-kaa-jau in Cantonese, which doesn’t sound the same at all.On Monday (May 30) morning, dozens of Hong Kong protesters marched to the Japanese Consulate in Central, demanding Nintendo adopt a different Cantonese translation for the new Pokémon video game in Hong Kong.
They held up banners with slogans reading “No Pei-kaa-jau, give me back Bei-kaa-chyu,” and sang the Cantonese Pokémon theme song on their route. The demonstration was co-organized by local Lonely Media and political group Civic Passion. Just a handful of ordinary citizens participated, perhaps because it was a work day.
Nintendo is renaming Pikachu in one of its largest markets, and Hong Kongers are not happy — Quartz