When learning a foreign language, words can be grouped into two categories: those that map easily to some word in the speaker’s native language, or those that do not. The latter are, of course, generally more difficult to master. From a translation perspective, words in the second category are also often more difficult to translate,… Read More »
In this post I’d like to go over the word “nite”, which is generally written in hiragana as にて. While one of my Japanese/Japanese dictionaries has a full six meanings for this word, fortunately in modern Japanese the use is somewhat limited and easy to understand. “nite” is classified as a “case particle” (格助詞), which… Read More »
When reading a Japanese novel recently I came across the following phrase: うまくやんなよ (umaku yan na yo) At first I was a little confused as to the meaning here, but eventually I figured it out. In this article I’ll go over this phrase in some detail. First is the word うまく (umaku), which is the… Read More »
(This is part of a series about my recent trip to Japan. See this page for other articles in it.) Furitakiya Onsen Hotel We stayed for several days in the Furutakiya Onsen Hotel (古滝屋) that resides in Iwaki city (岩城) in Fukushima prefecture (福島県). This is a historically significant place that has been around since… Read More »
(This is part of a series about my recent trip to Japan. See this page for other articles in it.) Hato Bus Tour I’d say that less than half of our trip this time involved touristy stuff (like visiting Tokyo Tower), but we did go on a day tour (日帰りツアー) run by the Hato bus… Read More »
Ever since I began training in the martial art of Ki Aikido (more formally known as 心身統一合氣道, shinshin touitsu aikido) in Oregon, I was always curious what it would like to train in a dojo in Japan where the training (稽古、keiko) was done in Japanese––though rather than merely a curiosity, I guess you could say… Read More »
(This is part of a series about my recent trip to Japan. See this page for other articles in it.) Sakura, Sakura We planned our trip this time to coincide with the blooming of the sakura (cherry blossom, 桜) trees around Tokyo. This is really a wonderful time because the amazing natural beauty of the… Read More »
(This is part 1 in a series about my recent trip to Japan) For self-taught learners of Japanese, there is no better teacher than actually living in Japan itself; even from just traveling there you can learn so much. Of course, even if you aren’t learning Japanese, there are so many things about Japan that… Read More »
In this post I’d like to focus on the Japanese word “choudo” that can be written in hiragana as ちょうど or in kanji as 丁度. This word and I go long back since it was one of the first words I learned, and I still use it frequently many years later. Unlike some words in… Read More »
For learners of Japanese I often suggest children’s picture books because they are typically shorter, easier to understand, and have less kanji (if any) when compared to teen- or adult-oriented books. I’ve reviewed a few of them on this blog (this, this, and this). While you can learn much about Japanese language and culture from… Read More »