Learn Japanese Language Vocabulary,Grammar and Kanji's

Introduction to Japanese Language (Nihongo)

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Japanese (日本語Nihongo) is a language spoken by over 130 million people, mainly in Japan, but also by Japanese emigrant communities around the world. It is an agglutinative language and is distinguished by a complex system of honorifics reflecting the hierarchical nature of Japanese society, with verb forms and particular vocabulary to indicate the relative status of speaker, listener and the person mentioned in conversation. The sound inventory of Japanese is relatively small, and has a lexically distinct pitch-accent system. Early Japanese is known largely on the basis of its state in the 8th century, when the three major works of Old Japanese were compiled; but smaller amounts of material, primarily inscriptional, are older. The earliest attestation of Japanese is in a Chinese document from 252 A.D.
The Japanese language is written with a combination of three different types of scripts: Chinese characters, kanji, and two syllabic scripts, hiragana and katakana. The Latin alphabet, rōmaji, is also often used in modern Japanese, especially for company names and logos, advertising, and when inputting Japanese into a computer. Western style Arabic numerals are generally used for numbers, but traditional Sino-Japanese numerals are also commonplace.

Japanese vocabulary has been heavily influenced by loans from other languages. A vast number of words were borrowed from Chinese, or created from Chinese models, over a period of at least 1,500 years. Since the late 19th century, Japanese has borrowed a considerable number of words from Indo-European languages, primarily English. Because of the special trade relationship between Japan and Holland in the 17th century, Dutch has also been influential, with words like bīru (from bier; "beer") and kōhī (from koffie; "coffee") being of Dutch origin.

Classification

Some historical linguists who specialize in Japanese agree that it is one of the two members of a Japonic language family, the other member being Ryūkyūan. Others, however, regard the kinds of speech found in the various Ryūkyū islands as dialects of Japanese, since it is not yet clear when and how the various islands came to be settled by members of this linguistic and cultural group.
The genetic affiliation of the Japonic family is uncertain. Numerous theories have been proposed, relating it to a wide variety of other languages and families, including extinct languages spoken by historic cultures of the Korean Peninsula; the Korean language; the Altaic languages; and the Austronesian languages, among many others. It is also often suggested that it may be a creole language combining more than one of these. The various theories are detailed in the main article. At this point, no one theory is generally accepted as correct, and the issue is likely to remain controversial.

Geographic distribution

Although Japanese is spoken almost exclusively in Japan, it has been and is still sometimes spoken elsewhere. When Japan occupied Korea, Taiwan, parts of the Chinese mainland, and various Pacific islands during and before World War II, locals in those countries were forced to learn Japanese in empire-building programs. As a result, there were many people in these countries until 1970's, who could speak Japanese in addition to the local languages. Japanese emigrant communities (the largest of which are to be found in Brazil) frequently employ Japanese as their primary language. Japanese emigrants can also be found in Peru, Australia (especially Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne), and the United States (notably California and Hawaii). There is also a small emigrant community in Davao, Philippines. Their descendants (known as nikkei 日系, literally Japanese descendants), however, rarely speak Japanese fluently. There are estimated to be several million non-Japanese studying the language as well; many schools, both primary and secondary, offer courses.

Politeness

Unlike most western languages, Japanese has an extensive grammatical system to express politeness and formality.
Since most relationships are not equal in Japanese society, one person typically has a higher position. This position is determined by a variety of factors including job, age, experience, or even psychological state (e.g., a person asking a favour tends to do so politely). The person in the lower position is expected to use a polite form of speech, whereas the other might use a more plain form. Strangers will also speak to each other politely. Japanese children rarely use polite speech until they are teens, at which point they are expected to begin speaking in a more adult manner. See uchi-soto.
Whereas teineigo is commonly an inflectional system, sonkeigo and kenjōgo often employ many special honorific and humble alternate verbs: iku "to go" becomes ikimasu in polite form, but is replaced by irassharu in honorific speech and mairu in humble speech.
The difference between honorific and humble speech is particularly pronounced in the Japanese language. Humble language is used to talk about oneself or one's own group (company, family) whilst honorific language is mostly used when describing the interlocutor and his/her group. For example, the -san suffix ("Mr" or "Ms") is an example of honorific language. It is not used to talk about oneself or when talking about someone from one's company to an external person, since the company is the speaker's "group". When speaking directly to one's superior in one's company or when speaking with other employees within one's company about a superior, a Japanese person will use vocabulary and inflections of the honorific register to refer to the in-group superior and his or her speech and actions. When speaking to a person from another company (i.e., a member of an out-group), however, a Japanese person will use the plain or the humble register to refer to the speech and actions of his or her own in-group superiors. In short, the register used in Japanese to refer to the person, speech, or actions of any particular individual varies depending on the relationship (either in-group or out-group) between the speaker and listener, as well as depending on the relative status of the speaker, listener, and third-person referents. For this reason, the Japanese system for explicit indication of social register is known as a system of "relative honorifics." This stands in stark contrast to the Korean system of "absolute honorifics," in which the same register is used to refer to a particular individual (e.g. one's father, one's company president, etc.) in any context regardless of the relationship between the speaker and interlocutor. Thus, polite Korean speech can sound very presumptuous when translated verbatim into Japanese, as in Korean it is acceptable and normal to say things like "Our Mr. Company-President..." when communicating with a member of an out-group, which would be very inappropriate in a Japanese social context.
Most nouns in the Japanese language may be made polite by the addition of o- or go- as a prefix. o- is generally used for words of native Japanese origin, whereas go- is affixed to words of Chinese derivation. In some cases, the prefix has become a fixed part of the word, and is included even in regular speech, such as gohan 'cooked rice; meal.' Such a construction often indicates deference to either the item's owner or to the object itself. For example, the word tomodachi 'friend,' would become o-tomodachi when referring to the friend of someone of higher status (though mothers often use this form to refer to their children's friends). On the other hand, a polite female speaker may sometimes refer to mizu 'water' as o-mizu merely to show politeness; this contrasts with the more abrupt speech of rude men (though men may also use very polite forms when speaking to superiors).

Learning Japanese

Many major universities throughout the world provide Japanese language courses, and a number of secondary and even primary schools worldwide offer courses in the language. International interest in the Japanese language dates from the 1800s but has become more prevalent following Japan's economic bubble of the 1980s and the global popularity of Japanese pop culture since the 1990s. About 2.3 million people studied the language worldwide in 2003: 900,000 South Koreans, 389,000 Chinese, 381,000 Australians, and 140,000 Americans study Japanese in lower and higher educational institutions. In Japan, more than 90,000 foreign students study at Japanese universities and Japanese language schools, including 77,000 Chinese and 15,000 South Koreans in 2003. In addition, local governments and some NPO groups provide free Japanese language classes for foreign residents, including Japanese Brazilians and foreigners married to Japanese nationals.
The Japanese government provides standardized tests to measure spoken and written comprehension of Japanese for second language learners; the most prominent is the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT). The Japanese External Trade Organization JETRO organizes the Business Japanese Proficiency Test which tests the learner's ability to understand Japanese in a business setting. See also British Association for Japanese Studies.

Preliminary & Final Greetings

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Expressions Used in Letters

The difference between written language and conversational language in Japanese is much greater than in English. Japanese letters often use classical grammar patterns which are seldom used in conversation. Although there are no particular rules when writing to close friends, there are many set expressions and honorific expressions (keigo) used in formal letters.

Opening and Closing Words

The opening and closing words in letters, which are similar to English's "Dear" and "Sincerely" etc., come in pairs.

Haikei - Keigu
拝啓 - 敬具
The most common pair used in formal letters. Women sometimes use "Kashiko（かしこ）" as a closing word instead of "Keigu."

Zenryaku - Sousou
前略 - 草々
This pair is less formal. It is usually used when you don't have time to write a long letter, so that the preliminary greetings are omitted. "Zenryaku" literally means, "omitting the preliminary remarks."

Preliminary Greetings

Ogenki de irasshaimasu ka.
お元気でいらっしゃいますか。
Have you been doing well?(very formal)

Ogenki desu ka.
お元気ですか。
Have you been doing well?(casual)

Ikaga osugoshi de irasshaimasu ka.
いかがお過ごしでいらっしゃいますか。
(very formal) How have you been?

Ikaga osugoshi desu ka.
いかがお過ごしですか。
(Casual) How have you been?

Okagesama de genki ni shite orimasu.
おかげさまで元気にしております。
(very formal) Fortunately I'm doing well.

Kazoku ichidou genki ni shite orimasu.
家族一同元気にしております。
The whole family is doing well.

Otegami arigatou gozaimashita.
お手紙ありがとうございました。
Thank you for your letter.

Nagai aida gobusata shite orimashite moushiwake gozaimasen.
長い間ご無沙汰しておりまして申し訳ございません。
(very formal) I apologize for neglecting to write for such a long time.

Gobusata shite orimasu.
ご無沙汰しております。
I'm sorry I haven't written for a long time.

These expressions or seasonal greetings can be combined in a variety of ways to form the preliminary greeting. The Japanese have long admired the seasonal changes, therefore it seems too abrupt to start a letter without the proper seasonal greeting. Here are some examples.

Gobusata shite orimasu ga, ogenki de irasshaimasu ka.
ご無沙汰しておりますが、お元気でいらっしゃいますか。
I'm sorry I haven't written for a long time, but have you been doing well?

Sukkari aki rashiku natte mairimashita ga, ikaga osugoshi de irasshaimasu ka.
すっかり秋らしくなってまいりましたが、いかがお過ごしでいらっしゃいますか。
It has become very autumn like; how have you been?

Samui hi ga tsuzuite orimasu ga,ikaga osugoshi desu ka.
寒い日が続いておりますが、いかがお過ごしですか。
Cold days continue; how have you been?

Final Greetings

Douka yoroshiku onegai itashimasu.
どうかよろしくお願いします。
Kindly look after this matter for me.

~ ni yoroshiku otsutae kudasai.
～によろしくお伝えください。
Please give my regards to ~.

Minasama ni douzo yoroshiku.
皆様にどうぞよろしく。
Please give my regards to everyone.

Okarada o taisetsu ni.
お体を大切に。
Please take care of yourself.

Douzo ogenki de.
どうぞお元気で。
Take care of yourself.

Ohenji omachi shite orimasu.
お返事お待ちしております。
I look forward to hearing from you.

い & な　 Adjectives

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There are two types of adjectives in Japanese:

i-adjectives and na-adjectives.

Japanese adjectives differ from their English counterparts. Although Japanese adjectives have functions to modify nouns like English adjectives, they also function as verbs when used as predicates. For example, "takai" in the sentence "takai kuruma" means, "expensive". "Takai" of "kono kuruma wa takai" means not just "expensive" but "is expensive". When i-adjectives are used as predicates, they may be followed by "~ desu" to indicate a formal style. "Takai desu" also means, "is expensive" but it is more formal than "takai".

Common い Adjectives

I-adjectives all end in "~ i," though they never end in "~ ei" (e.g. "kirei" is not an i-adjective.)

新しい(atarashii)　-　new
古い(furui)　-　　old

暖かい(atatakai)　-　warm
(suzushii)     -    cool

厚い（atsui） -    hot
寒い（samui）   -     cold

おいしい（oishii）   -      delicious
まずい（mazui）    -        bad tasting

大きい（ookii）    -      big
小さい（chiisai）    -      small

遅い（osoi）    -       late, slow
早い（hayai）    -      early, quick

面白い（omoshiroi）    -         interesting, funny
つまらない（tsumaranai） -      boring

暗い（kurai）    -     dark
明るい（akarui）   -      bright

近い（chikai）     -       near
遠い（tooi）    -      far

長い（nagai）    -       long
短い（mijikai）    -      short

難しい（muzukashii）     -        difficult
優しい（yasashii）    -     easy

いい（ii）    -     good
悪い（warui）    -     bad

高い（takai）    -      tall, expensive
安い（yasui）    -     cheap

低い（hikui）    -     low
若い（wakai）    -     young
忙しい（isogashii）    -      busy
煩い（urusai）   -     noisy

Common な Adjectives

意地悪な（ijiwaruna）..--..--..mean
親切な（shinsetsuna）..--..--..kind

嫌いな（kiraina）..--..--..distasteful
好きな（sukina）..--..--..favorite

静かな（shizukana）..--..--..quiet
賑やかな（nigiyakana）..--..--..lively

危険な（kikenna）..--..--..dangerous
安全な（anzenna）..--..--..safe

便利な（benrina）..--..--..convenient
不便な（fubenna）..--..--..inconvenient

綺麗な（kireina）..--..--..pretty
元気な（genkina）..--..--..healthy, well
上手な（jouzuna）..--..--..skillful
有名な（yuumeina）..--..--..famous
丁寧な（teineina）..--..--..polite
正直な（shoujikina）..--..--..honest
頑固な（gankona）..--..--..stubborn
派手な（hadena）..--..--..showy

Conversation Openers and Fillers

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In conversations, openers and fillers are used quite often. They don't always have specific meanings. Openers are used as signals that you are about to say something, or to smooth communication. Fillers are usually used for pauses or hesitation. English also has similar expressions such as "so," "like," "you know," and so on. When you have opportunity to hear native speakers' conversation, listen carefully and examine how and when they are used. Here are some openers and fillers frequently used.

Marking a new topic
Sore de - So
De - So (informal)

Saying something off the topic
Tokorode - By the way
Hanashi wa chigaimasu ga - To change the subject
Hanashi chigau kedo - To change the subject (informal)

Adding to the current topic
Tatoeba - For example
Iikaereba - In other words
Souieba - Speaking of
Gutaiteki ni iu to - More concretely

Bringing up the main topic
Jitsu wa The fact is ~ To tell the truth

Shortening the preliminary topics
Sassoku desu ga - May I come straight to the point?

Introducing someone or something you have just noticed
A, Aa, Ara "ara" is mainly used by female speakers.

Note: "Aa" can also be used to show that you understand.

Hesitation Sounds
Ano, Anou - Used to get the listener's attention.
Eeto - Let me see ...
Ee - Uhh ...
Maa - Well, say ...

Asking for repetition
E - (with a rising intonation) What?
Haa - (with a rising intonation) What? (informal)

Greetings for Special Occasions (Birthday, Marriages etc.)

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Greeting with appropriate words is important for socializing. Here are some useful expressions for special occasions.

Omedetou gozaimasu.
おめでとうございます。..........Congratulations.

Omedetou.
おめでとう。..........Congratulations.(casual)

The form "gozaimasu（ございます）" is more polite. It is added when you are talking with somebody who is not a family members or a close friend.
To reply, "Arigatou gozaimasu（ありがとうございます）" or "Arigatou（ありがとう）" is used.

O-tanjoubi omedetou gozaimasu.
お誕生日おめでとうございます。
(formal)...........................Happy Birthday.

Tanjoubi omedetou.
誕生日おめでとう。
(casual)...........................Happy Birthday.

Go-kekkon omedetou gozaimasu.
ご結婚おめでとうございます。
(formal)...........................Congratulations on your wedding.

Kekkon omedetou.
結婚おめでとう。...........................Congratulations on your wedding.
(casual)

The honorific "o（お）" or "go（ご）" can be attached to the front of some nouns as a formal way of saying "your". It is very polite.

Guai wa ikaga desu ka.
具合はどうですか。.............How are you feeling?(Literally means,
How is your condition?)

Kaze wa dou desu ka.
風邪はどうですか。.............How is your cold?

Okagesama de yoku narimashita.
おかげさまでよくなりました。 Thanks to your help,I have gotten better.

"Okagesama de（おかげさまで）" can be used whenever you announce good news in answer to someone's concerned inquiry.

Odaiji ni.
お大事に。 Please take care of yourself.

To reply "Odaiji ni（お大事に）", "Arigatou gozaimasu（ありがとうございます）" is used.

Seeing someone after a long absence

Gobusata shite imasu.
ご無沙汰しています。
(very formal)...................I haven't seen you in a long time.

Ohisashiburi desu.
お久しぶりです。
(formal)........................Long time no see.

Hisashiburi!
久しぶり！.......................Long time no see.
(casual)

There is a Japanese song titled "Ohisashiburi ne（お久しぶりね）". "Ne（ね）" is a sentence particle. Ne is used to seek confirmation and is similar to English expressions such as "right?" or "don't you agree?".
To reply to "Gobusata shite imasu," "Kochira koso (Same here)" is used. In casual conversations among friends, simply repeat "Hisashiburi!" or "Hisashiburi ne".

The New Year is the most important time of the year in Japan. (just like Christmas in the west).

At the end of the year:

Yoi otoshi o omukae kudasai.
よいお年をお迎えください。
(formal)...............I wish you will have a good new year.

Yoi otoshi o!
よいお年を！
(casual)...............I wish you will have a good new year.

During New Year's days (Jan.1st to 3rd), up to the middle of January:

Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.
あけましておめでとうございます。
(formal).........................Happy New Year.

Akemashite omedetou.
あけましておめでとう。
(casual)

"Akemasu" literally means "to open". "Kotoshi mo yoroshiku onegaishimasu (I look forward to our continued relationship over this year)" is often added after "Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu". To reply, "Kochira koso" is used.

Counters

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Counters

Each language has different ways of counting objects. Japanese uses counters. They are similar to English expressions such as "a cup of ~," "a sheet of ~" and so on. There are a variety of counters, often based on the shape of the object. The counters are attached directly to a number (e.g. ni-hai, san-mai). When combining a number with a counter, the pronunciation of the number or the counter might change. Click the link for each counter to learn about the phonetic change.
Another thing I want to mention is when grouping objects, Japanese divide them into groups of five and ten unlike six and twelve in the West. For example, sets of Japanese dishes or bowls are sold in units of five. Traditionally, there was no word for dozen, though it has been used because of Western influence.

Objects

hon
本...........Long, cylindrical objects: trees, pens, etc.

mai
枚...........Flat, thin objects: paper, stamps, dishes, etc.
ko
個...........Broad category of small and compact objects

hai
杯...........Liquid in cups, glasses, bowls, etc.

satsu
冊...........Bound objects: books, magazines, etc.

dai
台...........Vehicles, machines etc.

kai
階...........The floor of a building

ken
件...........Houses, buildings

soku
足...........Pairs of footwear: sock, shoes, etc.

tsuu
通...........Letters

Duration

Things which are not clearly categorized or shapeless are counted by using native Japanese numbers.

jikan
時間.........Hour, as in "ni-jikan (two hours)"

fun
分...........Minute, as in "go-fun (five minutes)"

byou
秒...........Second, as in "sanjuu-byoo (thirty seconds)"

shuukan
週間.........Week, as in "san-shuukan (three weeks)"

kagetsu
か月.........Month, as in "ni-kagetsu (two months)"

nenkan
年間.........Year, as in "juu-nenkan (ten years)"

Animals

hiki
匹............Insects, fish, small animals: cats, dogs, etc.

tou
頭............Large animals: horses, bears, etc.

wa
羽............Birds

Frequency

kai
回............Times, as in "ni-kai (twice)"

do
度............Times, as in "ichi-do (once)"

Order

ban
番............Ordinal numbers, as in "ichi-ban (first place, number one)"

tou
等............Class, grade, as in "san-too (third place)"

People

nin
人............"Hitori (one person)" and "futari (two people)" are exceptions.

mei
名............More formal than "nin."

Others

sai
歳/才............Age, as in "go-sai (five years old)"

When using a counter, pay attention to the word order. It is different from English order. A typical order is "noun + particle + quantity --- verbs." Here are examples.

1. Hon o ni-satsu kaimashita.
.....本を二冊買いました。........I bought two books.

2. Koohii o ni-hai kudasai.
.....コーヒーを二杯ください。........Please give me two cups of coffee.

Talking on the Phone

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Phone Call in Japan

Even though you start understanding a language better, it is always difficult to talk on the phone in a that language. You can't use gestures which help a lot most of the time. Also, you can't see the other person's facial expressions or reactions. You have to listen very carefully to what the other person says. Talking on the phone in Japanese might be especially harder, since there are some formal phrases customarily used in phone conversations. (The Japanese normally talk very politely on the phone unless talking with a friend.) Let's learn common expressions used on the phone. Don't be intimidated by phone calls. Practice makes perfect!

Phone Call in Japan

Most public phones (koushuu denwa) take coins (at least a 10 yen coin) and telephone cards. Only designated pay phones allow international calls (kokusai denwa). All calls are charged by the minute. Telephone cards can be purchased in almost all convenience stores, kiosks at train stations and vending machines. The cards are sold in 500 yen and 1000 yen units. Telephone cards can be customized. Some companies even use them as marketing tools. Some cards are very valuable, and cost a fortune. Many people collect telephone cards just like postage stamps are collected.

Telephone Number

A telephone number consists of the three parts, for example, (03) 2815-1311. The first part is the area code (03 is Tokyo's), and the second and last part are the user's number. Each number is usually read separately, linking the parts with the particle "no." In telephone numbers 0 is often pronounced as "zero," 4 as "yon" and 7 as "nana" to reduce confusion (as 0, 4, 7 and 9 each have two different pronunciations). If you are not familiar with Japanese numbers. The number for directory enquiries (bangou annai) is 104.
The most essential phrase is "moshi moshi." It is used by the caller when connected. It is also used when one can't hear the other person well, or to confirm if the other person is still on the line. Although some people say "moshi moshi" to answer the phone, "hai" is used more often in business.
If the other person speaks too fast, or you couldn't catch what he/she said, say "Yukkuri onegaishimasu (Please speak slowly)" or "Mou ichido onegaishimasu (Please say it again)." "Onegaishimasu" is a useful phrase when making a request.

At the Office

Business phone conversations are extremely polite. The mark * indicates the caller's phrases.

* Yamada-san (o) onegaishimasu.
Could I speak to Mr. Yamada?

Moushiwake arimasen ga,tadaima gaishutsu shiteorimasu.
I'm sorry, but he's not here at the moment.
Shou shou omachi kudasai.
Just a moment, please.

Shitsurei desu ga,dochira sama desu ka.
Who's calling, please?

* Naiji goro omodori desu ka.
Do you know what time he/she will be back?

Chotto wakarimasen.
I'm not sure.

Mousugu modoru to omoimasu.
He/she should be back soon.

Yuugata made modorimasen.
He/she won't be back till this evening.

* Nanika otsutae shimashou ka.
Can I take a message?

Onegaishimasu.
Yes, please.

Iie, kekkou desu.
No, it's O.K.

O-denwa kudasai to otsutae negaemasu ka.
Could you please ask him/her to call me?

Mata denwa shimasu to otsutae kudasai.
Could you please tell him/her I'll call back later?

To Somebody's Home

* Tanaka-san no otaku desu ka.
Is that Mrs. Tanaka's residence?

Hai, sou desu.
Yes, it is.

* Ono desu ga, Yuki-san (wa) irasshaimasu ka.
This is Ono. Is Yuki there?

* Yabun osokuni sumimasen.
I'm sorry for calling so late.

* Dengon o onegaishimasu.
Can I leave a message?

* Mata atode denwa shimasu.
I'll call back later.

How to Deal with Wrong Number

Iie chigaimasu.
No, you have called the wrong number.

* Sumimasen. Machigaemashita.
I'm sorry. I have misdialed.

Download Japanese Language Mobile Softwares (Flash Cards)

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1. Hiragana Flash Cards

2. Katakana Flash Cards (Type 1 , Type 2)

3. Kanji Flash Cards

          a. School Grade wise
                 Grade 1
                 Grade 2
                 Grade 3
                 Grade 4
                 Grade 5
                 Grade 6
                 Grade 7
                 Grade 8

          b. Exam wise
                 JLPT Level 2
                 JLPT Level 3
                 JLPT Level 4
                 International Baccalaureate AB Initio
                 International Baccalaureate B Read+Write
                 International Baccalaureate B Read Only
                 GCSE (Edexcel, UK)

Lesson 20 : MURA,MAMORU,TERA,DERA,TOKI & MOTSU Kanji's Derivations

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