94468
My question is about the sentence "領にでも行かなきゃ分かる訳ないだろ", meaning: "You'd have to
go to the territory to find out (what is happening)"

I know that **なきゃ** from **行かなきゃ** is an abbreviation of なければ, and when used
together with a verb means that it is something one must do, on this case it
would translate to **" Must go"**

I also know that 訳ない when used together with a verb adds a meaning of "there's
no way to do X", on this case, ****" there's now way to know"****

And given that でも means "But" and 領 means "territory", I can't seen to
understand how this sentence can mean "You'd have to be in X to know that".
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-11T00:44:31.883
94464
2022-05-11T14:18:32.680
50789
question
meaning
Meaning of なければ + 分かる訳ないだろ
> なきゃ from 行かなきゃ is an abbreviation of なければ

This is absolutely correct.

* * *

> it would translate to "Must go"

This is not wrong, but not necessarily correct in this context.

* * *

# 行かなければ / 行かなきゃ

The literal translation is, "If I don't go...". That's it. With a couple of
words attached the following may happen:

  * "行かなければいい" (Don't need to go)
  * "行かなければ宝くじが当たる" (Win the lottery if I don't go)
  * "行かなければ結婚して幸せになれる" (Marry and live a happy life if I don't go)

What about now? Do you really have to go? I'd rather stay.

* * *

But as you mentioned, if you just say "行かなければ…", which no one actually says in
real life excepts for emo kids, this **implicitly** is equivalent to "行かなければ
**ならない** ". This would mean "If I don't go, (it) won't work" = "I shall/must
go".

But in your case, the consequence of not going is "not being able to know":

> 行かなければ (if one doesn't go) 分かる訳ない (there's no way one will know)

Notice it never says one **must** go.

* * *

# Outcome

With the above in mind, translate as follows:

  * 領にでも + 行かなきゃ + 分かる訳ない
  * To the 領 + if one doesn't go + (there's) no way to know

Shuffle them around:

  * There's no way to know (what is happening) if one doesn't go to the 領

Which matches your translation:

  * You'd have to go to the territory to find out (what is happening)

* * *

# にでも

> でも means "But"

Again, you are not wrong, but not correct here as it's "〜 **に** でも". Check out
this post for the usage: ["事故にでもあったのではあるまいか。" grammar help please?
[duplicate]](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/29499/%e4%ba%8b%e6%95%85%e3%81%ab%e3%81%a7%e3%82%82%e3%81%82%e3%81%a3%e3%81%9f%e3%81%ae%e3%81%a7%e3%81%af%e3%81%82%e3%82%8b%e3%81%be%e3%81%84%e3%81%8b-grammar-
help-please) . It's tagged as a duplicate but I think this is the better match
for your case.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-11T01:28:36.263
94468
2022-05-11T01:45:18.043
2022-05-11T01:45:18.043
48366
48366
94464
answer
I wanted to add a more detailed breakdown here, since this seems to be the
core of what caused the initial difficulty.

> when used together with a verb means that it is something one must do

なければ is two separate parts: the な is the leftover part of ない (in turn from
transforming 行く into 行かない), and then ければ transforms that i-adjective [by
making it conditional](https://www.tofugu.com/japanese-grammar/i-adjective-
conditional-form-kereba/).

It simply considers the _hypothetical of not_ doing something. "When used
together with a verb", the connotation of "must" comes from the bad
consequence in that verb. So it's not "I must go" (with some unclear
relationship to the following verb), but "... if I don't go". In this case,
_there's no way to understand what is happening, unless I go._

Japanese doesn't have "have to" as a modal the way that English does; the
general pattern is this kind of hypothetical + consequence construct. See also
constructs like Xしてしかない: not "must do X", but "other-than-doing-X does not
exist" (in more natural English, "doing anything but X is not an option").

* * *

You might also find it worthwhile to understand 訳ない as more than just a
collocation. 訳 is a noun with glosses like "reason, method, way"; the entire
preceding clause (not just the verb, though such a clause could consist of
only a verb - as it does here, with 分かる) is used attributively to describe
that noun - thus, X訳 is "a way that X [could be the case]". Then, that whole
thing is the が-marked subject of ない - the が has been dropped here, but is
sometimes used explicitly; see for example the anime title 俺の妹がこんなに可愛いわけがない.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-11T14:18:32.680
94476
2022-05-11T14:18:32.680
627
94464
answer