Japanese 101

[CDLviking]

Another one I forgot and probably can't spell, matte -- wait.

[Htom Sirveaux]

Mr. Sparkle no charenji ni ojimatsu!

"I accept the challenge of Mr. Sparkle!"

That's all I know of it, though.

[termyt]

Here's a fun word or two that you may be able to use in real life, if you aren't conserned with people understanding you (Note in spelling - vowels only have one sound (for the most part) - "a" is a short a, "i" is a long e, "u" is a short u, "e" is a long a, and "o" is a long o.:

oishi - delicious (as in food)
kawaii - cute
Daijobudesuka - "Are you OK?"
mo ichido - say it again
ohaio - good morning. Adding gozaimasu to the end means the same, it's just more polite.

and finally:
nihongo o hanasemasen - "I can't speak Japanese"

[shooraijin]

<pedantic mode again>
oishii (lengthen the 'i' at the end)
moo ichido (not the English 'oo' sound ... lengthen the 'o' at the end)
ohayoo
</pedantic mode>

[Mithrandir]

mo ichido - say it again

Acutally, that just means "also, one time." Try:
Moo ichido itte kudasai

Please say it (itte kudasai)
one time (ichido)
more (moo).

And as shooby said, that's NOT the ew sound, as in "'Moo, said the cow." It's a long O as in, "'Oooooh!' he said, finally understanding."

[Bobtheduck]

[quote="shooraijin"]> I think it's spelt Annou...but don't quote me on that.

Okay, because it really *is* spelled あ]

I've always romanized the う　after an o as u, not o, because it's basic Japanese to know that ou is pronounced like oo, and some words are not spelled おう　but rather as おお so I try to romanize it using exactly what syllables are used... I'm inconsistant with へ　and を　romanization, though (as he and wo sometimes, e and o others)

As for ohayou, I had no clue they were connected like that... I guess I should pay more attention...

[Mithrandir]

Actually, it depends on the standard you are following. If you just make one up, then you aren't following any standard. The two most common systems are the Hepburn (widely known) and the Jordan (named after the author of the "Beginning Japanese" books) systems. Both of them, to the best of my knowledge, use the double o notation. Since there really aren't that many exceptions to the oo = おう system, I don't think it worth it to invent a system. But hey, if it works for you, fair enough.

To further shooby's point, konnichi wa is from kon (this) nichi (day) wa (regarding). Or... How is this day? Same for kon ban wa. Notice that nichi is the word for day, as in the whole day (as opposed to only daylight hours). Which is why some japanese will say "konnichi wa" even at night.

[susuki]

Yea...I've learned some. But my favorite one I've caught off an anime isn't even really a word. "ORO!"-Kenshin humira lol. That is an active word used in my vocab!

[Bobtheduck]

[quote="oldphilosopher"]Actually, it depends on the standard you are following. If you just make one up, then you aren't following any standard. The two most common systems are the Hepburn (widely known) and the Jordan (named after the author of the "Beginning Japanese" books) systems. Both of them, to the best of my knowledge, use the double o notation. Since there really aren't that many exceptions to the oo = お]

Yeah, but the official systems do get confusing when it comes to words that are spelled おお I can read the official systems, but I may not be able to write the kana out when I learn a word that way... I won't know if it is a おう　word or a おお　word...

Of course, if the idea is to get me to learn, then it is worthless for me to write them that way, so whatever... It's still confusing for me... Why not romanize it the way it's written? Of course I never romanize the particle wa as ha, but I suppose I make particles an exception because that is the only way to differentiate, or rather I make the oo and ou the exceptions... Regardless, I think it was a stupid practice to romanize the おう kana as oo... It just causes problems for the person learning the language, when they want to learn おお words...

[shooraijin]

Actually, Bob is using Kunrei without even realizing it ^^ Kunrei is now the "official standard" but it's still used far less frequently than Hepburn.

Hepburn actually doesn't have the problem Bob states above because *real* Hepburn uses o-with-a-macron for おう and oo for おお. Unfortunately, most character sets don't have Hepburn macron vowels, so IPA 7-bit transcription and modified Hepburn uses lengthened vowels. Since Hepburn was intended as a bridge between phonetic and written Japanese, the use of macrons vs doubled vowels is, IMHO, appropriate.

[shooraijin]

Actually, Bob is using a form of Kunrei without even realizing it ^^ Kunrei is now the "official standard" but it's still used far less frequently than Hepburn.

Hepburn actually doesn't have the problem Bob states above because *real* Hepburn uses o-with-a-macron for おう and oo for おお. Unfortunately, most character sets don't have Hepburn macron vowels, so IPA 7-bit transcription and modified Hepburn uses lengthened vowels. Since Hepburn was intended as a bridge between phonetic and written Japanese, the use of macrons vs doubled vowels is, IMHO, appropriate.

[Mithrandir]

LIB. Ya learn somin' new every day!

[KBMaster]

I've learned a few from Inuyasha:
Houshi(low-level ranking buddhist priest)
Bokushi(Okay I didn't really learn this from Inuyasha, but that's what got me to look it up. It means Pastor)
A lot of titles(mainly sister(ane-ue, onee-sama) and parents(chichi-ue and I can't really spell the rest...))
Osuwari(sit)
Oni(ogre, troll, moster-type thing)
sama, kun, jii-chan, babaa, stuff like that
I learned baka from a japanese-english dictionary and cheesecake!!(chizukeki) and cheeseburger(chizubaga)!!

[YoukoKurama]

I've found myself saying otaku, nani, baka, and urusai.

[youngWilliam]

I'm geting books from the library to help me learn Japanese, and I can't remember what I learned from T.V. anymore

[Chichiri]

Just saw some stuff that I thought i'd correct. Hope people find this helpful.

Nani!?
Sempai
Doushite
E-tatata!

Sempai = Senpai. m cannot be without a verb after it. n's can also sound like m before some consanants, so this is understandable.

as someone else said, I think by "etatata", you mean the adj itai. hurts, painful, whatever.

ike saying "itadakimasu" before eating and "ittedekimasu" before leaving the house

ittedekimasu doesn't really make sense. Gone having being able. What you thinking is itte kimasu. Gone having come. Meaning I'll go (and then come back). Itadakimasu is also an honorific verb to eat.

okari

okawari? okawari = seconds (like food). okari as far as I know doesn't exist..

In real life I have observed that they tend to nod their head deeply when greeting or saying their farewells (sayonara, ja mata).

I don't hear sayounara that much. Friends tend to say something like "ja ne" or "mata ashita". If you're talking to your teacher, I usually say something like "mata <day> ni aimashou ne?" which means "let's meet again on <day>, right?" It's a handy phrase. If you're saying goodbye, you could also say "shitsurei shimasu" or "osaki ni shitsurei shimasu" (if they are still staying in the classroom).

For 'huh?' usually I just hear, 'eeee?' (pronounce it like a lengthened short "e", like the /e/ in "head").

I think you mean "heee". Most students cant say it with a straight face. It usually goes from low to high in voice intonation (or whatever).

you can say "ee" for huh/what, but it's not usually drawn out long. Just a short simple ee?

as for de mo, there are lots of different ways to say but, however. Just keep that in mind

Also, I've learned a couple interjections, such as "wai" and "kawaii" ... and the extreme broadness of the word "hai" (Notice how it's used for nearly every affirmative answer?)

I hear "ee" and "n" just as often. it all matters who you are talking to.

Osuwari(sit)

Suwaru is better for standard use.

</nitpick>Yeah i'm nitpicky. sorry. And just a note... If you don't know the exact meaning and politeness of a word, you really shouldn't use it except with friends. When watching anime, you pick up a lot of words that seem okay to use, but they aren't. Some people might not care, but it's better to be more cautious than to have people think you're being rude.

As far as the whole ou, ei, thing. I always use the hiragana to romanji type spelling (ex: arigatou, ohayou, etc). It makes it easier for people to learn the correct way to spell it, assuming you're not learning the kanji.

[John316]

Anime is pretty much where I get my Japanese vocab. Recently I've picked up a few from Naruto:

Konjou (Guts)
Fukushuusha (Avenger)

Another thing about "oro", I believe it's actually something used by women older than late 20s to mean "oh?" as in "oh? what is this here?". Which of course makes it even funnier when Kenshin says it.

[Chichiri]

i believe what you're referring to is "ara". My teacher, who is a middle aged woman, says it all the time.

[John316]

Yes, "ara" as well. "Oro" appears to be a less-used version that means the same thing.

[plutogrl03]

I got interested in learning Japanese after getting to see a few fansubs of Sailor Moon years ago. My first Japanese word: bakarou (sp?) for "idiot". I'm teaching myself Japanese now. I always get excited when I hear word(s) spoken in Japanese when I'm watching subbed anime and I understand without reading the subs. I couldn't watch a whole episode of anime in Japanese without subtitles but I'll take any small victory.

[Chichiri]

Don't feel bad. Students can easily go through 4 semesters of Japanese class and still not begin to understand anime without subtitles. It's very difficult because they use a lot of words you don't hear in class, they use rough language, and they often throw in dialect. All of which you don't learn in class for a looong time.

and just baka = stupid/idiot. yaro is another word altogether which is like "*******". Both are strong words in Japanese.

[plutogrl03]

Thanks for the encouragement Chichiri.

[KOBUSHInoTENSHU]

do You Kno How Desperate I Want To Learn Japanese????????!!!!!!!!!!! My Dad Is Taking A Long Time To Put Me In A Class!

[Azier the Swordsman]

Well, as a student of Japanese, it's probably easier for me to pick up new words from anime than the averge 外人 (foreigner) who watches anime. Actually, I can pick up new ways of saying phrases I already know, new forms of words, ect.

But I have picked up so many individual words from anime I couldn't possibly list them all.

*btw* If anyone is interesting in learning Japanese, click the link in my sig.

[KOBUSHInoTENSHU]

thanx ^_^

[TrigunX89]

I really wanna learn Japanese too, Kobushi! I probably won't be able to take a class until next year. Darn. But hey, that's what this thread is for, right?

[agasfas]

"Hi." I believe that is a word used in a number of sayings: yes, sure, correct, hello etc.. Kind of like a universal acknowledgment word.

[Ashley]

I think you mean "Hai"

[agasfas]

I think you mean "Hai"

Yeah, I think you may be right. Darn Fan-subs....*goes outside w/ his pitch fork looking for the translator guy* "Over there behind the bushes!" >.> II <.< *runs...*
(story to be continued...)

[Azier the Swordsman]

I really wanna learn Japanese too, Kobushi! I probably won't be able to take a class until next year. Darn. But hey, that's what this thread is for, right?

*cough*link in sig*cough*