Ask John: Is it Alucard or Arucard?

Question:
I just wanted to say that whoever made the site wrote the main Hellsing character’s name wrong. It’s Alucard not Arucard. It’s suppose to be Dracula backwards.

Answer:
We’re aware that the name of the primary vampire in Hellsing is supposed to be “Alucard,” a reverse spelling of “Dracula,” but the official American spelling of the character’s name used by Pioneer, the company that produced the American Hellsing anime DVDs, and ODM, the American licensed manufacturer of Hellsing t-shirts, is “Arucard.” It’s only Dark Horse Comics, which translates the Hellsing manga, that uses the spelling “Alucard.”

But technically, either spelling should be considered correct because the “R” and “L” sounds are interchangable in Japanese language. While “Alucard” may be a more appropriate translation in regard to creator Kouta Hirano’s original intention, the spelling “Arucard” is not grammatically wrong. You may find it interesting that in Japanese the spelling of Alucard’s name contains neither an “L” nor an “R.” In Japanese, the character’s name is spelled with katakana as “Aakaado.” When “Aakaado” is spoken with a Japanese accent, it sounds like “Alucard/Arucard.”