Thread: Translation of the word combination

I have a word combination to translate into German from Russian. What I need is making it slightly poetic but still recognizable as a form of address to a person. It is "идущий к Cолнцу" (something like "Suntender" in English).

If you have any versions, I'd be grateful for your help!

Uh, that's not easy.

Any additional context?

No specific context, Konstantin. I would only add that it must be like a name of American Indian.

Originally Posted by Rtyom

No specific context, Konstantin. I would only add that it must be like a name of American Indian.

Well, I'd say that's enough context. But it doesn't make the task easier, though.

We would say in German that das Problem ist zweierlei (the problem has two aspects).

You can translate the russian "идущий" - it would be "gehend", but it can be used in "names" because it sounds very unusual, even if one would want to make up an native American name. "der .... geht" sounds better, but it is a word contruction - with all the consequences.

to tend (towards) can be translated as tendieren zu, but you can't use it with Sonne (sun). OK, you can, but it will be misunderstood for sure and sounds stupid. So we will probably need another word cosntruction here.

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Long story made short:

More or less literally it would something like (if I've got the English version right):

Den es zur Sonne (hin) zieht (The one who is attracted by the sun)

From more precise and long to more compact and inprecise:

Der sich nach der Sonne richtet (The one who is guided by the sun)
Sehnsucht nach Sonne (yearning for the sun)
Sonnenanbeter (sun worshipper) (nowadays Sonnenanbeter are also people who simply like sunny days)

But native American names should sound more like "Sitting Bull"
I would suggest you to go by "Kind der Sonne". (child of the sun). It has the same variaty of possible interpretations as in English. (A listener would ask you: Child? How do you mean it? Child of a sun goddess? Someone who likes the sun very much?)

Or Sohn der Sonne/Tochter der Sonne.
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Sorry, but I've no idea at the moment. It's really difficult. Maybe video games and TV destroyed my imagination as a kid, I don't know, I probably should have read more German books.

The best advice I can give you is to ask at Город переводчиков.

Thank you for your extensive answer! I will think it over.

Mein deutscher Freund hat mir gesagt:

"Entweder "Sonnen-Geher" oder "Der-der-zur-Sonne-geht".. vielleicht auch lieber "Mann-der-zur-Sonne-geht".
So klingen die meisten Indianer-Namen auf Deutsch. ;)
Das erste "der" m

"Der zur Sonne hin geht" is very literally, but it sounds pretty much O.K. for me too. It also lacks the English "-tender"-conotation, while my 'den es zur Sonne (hin) zieht' is probably a little bit overinterpretated. Most native American names I have heard in German did NOT sound this way. The were like "Fliegender Adler" (flying eagle). Plain and simple.

I tend to associate longer constructions as names in German with Central/South American indians or maybe those in the Himalayas.

Sonnen-Geher is nonsense, like солнцеход or something. It's way tooo literally, without any preposition. OK, in Russian you could probably name a solar vehicle солнцеход (<- луноход), but in German it is just pure nonsense.

@Rtyom
Do you speak any German?