A Bit of the Language
Contents
- Introduction
- Vowel Pronunciation Guide
- Consonants
- Alphabets
- Japanese Onomatopoeias and Mimetic Words
- What the Animals Say
- Fractured English
Introduction
As the title suggests, this is not an in-depth look at all the complexities of the Japanese language. I simply intend to provide a brief look at the language in order to introduce some of the fun and quirks that budding students of Japanese can look forward to. (And also so they'll have a little idea of what they're in for....)
© 1998 - 2008 Tim R. Matheson
Vowel Pronunciation Guide
Japanese vowels are easy. If you have taken Spanish, you'll quickly see that they're the same. Unlike crazy English, vowels in Japanese are always pronounced the same, so once you've got them down you'll be well on your way to correct-sounding Japanese. (And then you can attack the consonants.)
Here are the five basic Japanese vowels, in Japanese alphabetical order:
- a - pronounced "ah"
- i - pronounced "ee"
- u - pronounced "oo"
- e - pronounced "eh"
- o - pronounced "oh"
Let's look at the word "house." In Japanese it's ie. Just say "ee-eh." Now a little faster. Got it?
The next important thing you must remember about vowels is to elongate double vowels, giving each one its own "time." Again, "house" in Japanese is ie. The word for "no" is iie. It's not as hard as it looks. Said slowly, "house" is "ee-eh," and "no" is "ee-ee-eh." Said at natural speed, the "ee" in iie should sound about twice as long as the "ee" in ie.
While we're at it, let's look at two more that foreign speakers seem to have a tough time with: obasan and obaasan. Obasan (aunt) is pronounced "oh-bah-san," and obaasan (grandmother) is "oh-bah-ah-san." Just remember to give each vowel equal time and you'll be all right.
Consonants
The consonants used in Japanese are k, g, s, z, t, d, n, h, f, b, p, m, y, r, and w; and they are pronounced the same as you would in English, except for the following:
- r - this is like the Spanish r, so ri should sound like a lightly pronounced dee
- d - because r sounds like a light d, d has a more distinct d sound
Japanese consonants are not thought of as having their own sound, except for n. All of the others always appear combined with a vowel, with the vowel coming after the consonant, like ka, for example. This combination of one consonant and one vowel makes only one "letter" in the Japanese alphabet, and to the Japanese mind represents only one sound. This is a very important point to remember when studying Japanese.
There are also a few letters which have combined consonants like shi, chi, and tsu. Again, each of these look like 3 letters to us, but they are each viewed as one in Japanese.
As with vowels, consonants also have doubles. Doubled consonants are found in compound words like ippun, which means "one minute." The difficulty in pronouncing the double consonant is that there's nothing to pronounce; it's just the trick of "holding" the pronunciation so that the "time value" of the double is recognized, just like with the vowels. When pronouncing ippun, you should be giving equal time to the 4 syllables: i-p-pu-n, with the second syllable being just a silent rest and preparation to pronounce the third. This will be barely noticed during normal speech, but it is important. Doubles not pronounced correctly will be noticed by native listeners. When said correctly, ippun will be heard as "eep-poon," not "ee-poon."
Alphabets
There are 4 alphabets used in Japan today: hiragana, katakana, kanji, and romaji. Here they are in a nutshell:
Hiragana
Hiragana is the first system you want to learn, as they are phonetic symbols or "pronunciation guides" for kanji, and have an extensive role in Japanese grammar. Hiragana is the first alphabet that children learn, and, at any age, is the "default" alphabet used when a particular kanji is unknown or forgotten.
Here are the basic 46 hiragana with their readings:
The nice thing about Japanese is that once you can read and say these, you can read and say longer words, which are simply combinations of the individual letters. Let's try some:
Easy, right? Now let's move on to the modified hiragana.
There are 4 groups of hiragana that are modified by two small quote-like marks added just above and/or to the right of the letter. They are the ka, sa, ta, and ha groups. The ha group alone has an additional mode of modification which is made by adding a small degree-like circle. Here are the modified hiragana with their readings:
It will be noticed that two ji 's and two zu 's are created, but the ones in the sa group are used most of the time. Accurate knowledge concerning differentiation and use of these is not important until the student is well into the study of kanji.
Let's try these:
Next up are the combined hiragana, which are made by adding a small ya, yu, or yo to letters in the second line, namely ki through ri, including the modified ones mentioned above. For example, ki + ya = kya; chi + yu = chu; and so on. Here they all are:
The ri group is usually the hardest for foreign speakers to master, but that's because they're still trying to pronounce the r like the English r. If you just pronounce them dya, dyu, dyo, with just a light d, they'll sound fine.
Try these:
The last thing that needs to be mentioned about hiragana at this time is the small tsu, which indicates double consonants. As one becomes familiar with kanji, this will become easier to understand. Here are some good examples. Remember to hold the double as mentioned in consonants.
This should be enough about hiragana for the time being. All the examples used here are words that are usually written in kanji, but are shown in hiragana to show what they look like and how they work together.
Hiragana also play an important role in Japanese grammar as subject and object indicators, prepositions, and other particles.
You can learn or review hiragana using my Hiragana Driller.
Katakana
For every hiragana there is a corresponding katakana, which are more angular. Here they are:
Katakana are used to write foreign words and names, and the names of some Japanese companies. They are also often seen expressing the sounds of various noises in comic books.
Most of the rules that apply to hiragana also apply to katakana. One exception is when a vowel sound is elongated: katakana vowels are not doubled, but use a dash (—) to show an extended vowel sound.
Here are a few that are often seen:
The worst thing about katakana is that they are sometimes used as a phonetic guide for pronouncing English words. Tiny katakana can sometimes be seen running above or below English sentences in textbooks — books that I would never recommend. While it is true that katakana will give Japanese students of English an idea of how a word is pronounced, those who rely on katakana to learn English form bad habits in pronunciation that become very difficult to overcome in the future.
You can learn or review katakana using my Katakana Driller.
Kanji
Kanji are characters which were originally adopted from the Chinese. Though similarities still exist, Japanese kanji have evolved and changed differently than their Chinese counterparts, and now have forms and readings all their own. Kanji are used for the core parts of a sentence: nouns and the root forms of verbs and adjectives. Hiragana are used as the "cement" between the kanji to indicate their relationship to each other, and to conjugate verbs.
You need to know around 2,200 kanji to read a Japanese newspaper. The study of kanji can be fascinating, however, and the more you study them the more sense they make (excepting the exceptions), making it easier to learn more.
This just barely scratches the surface, but here are a few of the easiest kanji of the 76 taught to first graders in elementary school:
Romaji
Romaji are simply the ABC's we all know and love, but the Japanese like to use them, too. Large, international companies usually have logos and emblems with their names written in the Roman letters. Internationally known organizations and other names and titles like OPEC, FBI, NASA, AIDS, and VIP are left as-is.
Finally, there is a certain "fashion appeal" in using foreign words on products and product packaging, and it is practically impossible to buy something here that doesn't have some silly message written in English. It may be in poor English but comprehensible, or it may have no clear meaning at all. It's for fashion only, I've been told. English letters, words and phrases may be combined just as an artist doing an abstract will combine colors together. In this way, romaji become an enemy to the serious student of English in pretty much the same way as katakana do, as mentioned above. The successful student will always keep "fashion English" and correct English completely separate.1
Japanese Onomatopoeias and Mimetic Words
Students of Japanese often find the Japanese giseigo and gitaigo amusing and fun to use. These words are made up of 2 Japanese syllables said twice in succession, for a total of 4. The giseigo are onomatopoeias: words used to describe a sound. Gitaigo are mimetic words which describe a certain feeling or condition.
Here are some that are often heard in everyday conversation, arranged in Japanese alphabetical order. Remember to pronounce those vowels correctly!
This list is only a
sample of the hundreds that are actually used. Some
are dialectal and will be heard only in specific regions. Some will
have meanings which overlap with others, with some being both giseigo
and gitaigo. Also, some will have a dialectal usage
that has evolved from its original one. For example, according to the
dictionary bishobisho
is used for "it drizzles," but people in the area where I live use it
to describe their clothes after they come in from the rain without an
umbrella: "soaked to the skin."
Giseigo
karikari: crispy
garigari: crunchy
gyugyu: squeak; creak
guigui: gulp down
kusukusu: giggle; snicker
guzuguzu: complain; grumble
korokoro: rolling over and over
zakuzaku: walking on gravel or similar surface
jabujabu: splash and play in water
janjan: clang-clang; a jangling sound
dondon: beating (drums); heavy rainfall
batabata: flap; to bustle about
bishobisho: drizzle; soaked
pichapicha: water lapping against a shore or
object
berabera: chatter; jabber
potsupotsu: (rain) falling in drops
Gitaigo
iraira: to be impatient
gyugyu: to squeeze; pack
guragura: loose, as in a loose tooth
gungun: steadily
sakusaku: a light crispness
sarasara: light; smooth; dry
zarazara: rough, like dry skin or sandpaper
sansan: to shine brilliantly
jimejime: damp; wet; moist
soyosoyo: gently; softly
sowasowa: to be restless
tsuntsun: to be stuck-up; stiff-mannered
dokidoki: nervousness; a fast heartbeat
nukunuku: warmly; snugly; comfortably
hakihaki: quick; smart; brisk
harahara: to be in suspense; thrilling
bishibishi: severely; rigorously
pichipichi: lively
pyonpyon: hop; skip along
hirahira: flutter
hirihiri: smart; tingle; burn
piripiri: to be on edge; testy
furafura: to feel dizzy or light-headed
fuwafuwa: light; soft
betabeta: to feel sticky
perapera: fluently
hokahoka: warm
botsubotsu: gradually
hodohodo: in moderation
mukamuka: to feel sick; be disgusted
meramera: go up in flames
meromero: to be terribly upset
wakuwaku: to be excited
What the Animals Say
These are just some of the sounds that animals make, according to the Japanese. It is interesting to note that there are some that do not exist in English, like the elephant's paoon. (I verified this with the people at Webster's, just to make sure.) These are written in romaji (Romanized Japanese), so please remember to pronounce them correctly. For example, the horse's hi-hiin is pronounced "hee-heen," etc. If necessary, go back and review vowel pronunciation.
cat - nyaao ;
(purring) gorogoro
dog - wan-wan ; (growling) uuuu
mouse - chuu-chuu
horse - hi-hiin
cow - moo
sheep - mee-mee
pig - buu-buu
chicken - (clucking) kokkokko
rooster crowing - kokekokkoo
duck - gaa-gaa
sparrow - chun-chun
owl - hoo-hoo
fox - kon-kon
elephant - paoon
monkey - kyakkyaa
A real kick, right? These are great to memorize and bring out at boring parties.
Fractured English
When I first began working in Japan there was a strange word that I would hear several times a day. It was pasokon, and it didn't sound like Japanese to me. That's because it wasn't, and isn't; but in a way it is. It has to be, because it's not English, nor any other language for that matter. In fact, it's only one of the thousands of wasei eigo words (Japanized English) that are used all the time here, with more and more coming in every year.
The paso in pasokon is the Japanese pronunciation of the first part of the word "personal," and the kon is short for "computer." So when you hear pasokon in Japan you know that someone is talking about personal computers. Yes, it would be much easier to say "PC," but that's not used very often; pasokon or konpyuuta is preferred.
There are thousands and thousands of these, from simple ones like keeki (cake) to ones a bit more complex like puranetariumu (planetarium). When the English is made up of two words, the Japanese will usually be a compound made from the beginnings of both, like rimokon (remote control), eakon (air conditioning), dejikame (digital camera), and pasokon mention above. And there are oddballs like baito, which comes from arbeit, the German for "work"; but in Japanese it means only a "part-time job."
Here are a few more:
sooseeji:
sausage
suteeki: steak
orenji: orange
shatsu: shirt
masukomi: mass communication
fuakkusu: fax
marason: marathon
sofuto: software
hoteru: hotel
shinpojiumu: symposium
kurejitto kaado: credit card
chokoreeto: chocolate
rasshu awaa: rush hour
intaanetto: internet
Notes
1 For many more examples showing the strange and interesting ways English is used (and abused), please visit Engrish.com.
