Japanese for Busy People: Notes for Lesson 2

Young children should learn how to tell their own address and phone numbers. That's how we can be sure they don't get lost. That's how important learning numbers is. So let's pretend we're at a Sesame Street age and learn numbers.

You'll want to be very solid in your numbers so I recommend practicing whenever you can. When you practice writing your hiragana or katakana, count the strokes. In Japanese, counting from 0-99 is very easy. We're starting with just 0-20. You'll already see something unusual; there are two words for the numbers: 4, 7 and 9. Actually, you might want to add 0 to this list. The Japanese word for zero is れい。

How do we explain this? In the case of zero, the Japanese have just adopted the English word. For 4, 7 and 9, that has to do with superstitions.

In America, we have superstitions about the 2-dollar bill, so to a certain extent that means 2 is unlucky. Of course, we also think that 13 is an unlucky number and you'll rarely see a 13th floor in a building. In the case of Japan, unlucky numbers are connected with homonyms. The number 4, し (四）, sounds like the word for death し（死). Likewise, seven しち(　七）, sounds like しち　（死地）the word for jaws of death or place of death. The number nine, or く　(九）sounds like く（苦）which mean pain.

When you use numbers to express a phone number, you separate the groups of numbers with a particle or postpositional we already know: の。Use this where you would ordinarily use a dash.

The Japanese numbers you are learning can help you count all the way to 99. If you notice, you just as a number, X, and then add 10 and you get the number that is equivalent to X x 10. So twenty is にじゅう and then thirty is さんじゅうand forty is　よんじゅう. In this respect, Japanese is easier than English.

Also in this chapter, we're going to build on the sentence we already know and learn how to negate it. So X is Y, but now X is not Y. 

X は　Y です。

X は　Y では　ありません。
X は　Y じゃ　ありません。

Remember how sometimes in Japanese we can drop things that are understood? You saw this in Lesson 1.

(X は)　Y です。
（わたし は）たなか　Y です。

In this case, the teacher knows the answer, but will likely as you to complete the sentence.
これ　は　（Y　です。）
This is easy, but really this is being asked as a question.
これ　は　（Y　です　か。）
Originally, Japanese didn't have any punctuation and that includes question marks. So post-positionals were used to show the sentence was a question. This is also true in Chinese as well.

We are also going to shorten other things such as the noun phrase that we saw in the last chapter: Noun の noun.

X は　Y　の　Z　 です。
X は　Y　の（　Z）　 です。

If we use a pronoun such as わたし　or あなた, then we change the word.

わたし の　Z means "my Z."
あなた の　Z means "your Z."

In my class, I like to add other nouns by looking at what your average student will have in their bags:

1. かばん : briefcase, sometimes backpack
2. ハンドバッグ: handbag
3. バックパック: backpack 
4. うでとけい : wristwatch ( とけい actually is less specific and means clock)
5. ほん : book
6. えんぴつ: pencil
7. ペン : pen (also まんねんひつ）
8. めがね: glasses

With these words you can also use the words we learned in the last lesson to make these noun phrases:

1. lawyer's briefcase: べんごしのかばん
2. secretary's handbag：ひしょのハンドバッグ
3. student's backpack：がくせいのパックパック
4. teacher's briefcase：せんせいのかばん
5. Chinese language book：ちゅうごくごのほん
6. Japanese language book：にほんごのほん
7. Japanese person's book：にほんじんのほん
8. English language newspaper：えいごのしんぶん
9. Mr. Tanaka's pen：たなかさんのペン
10. Ms. Tanaka's glasses：たなかさんのめがね

If you want to really work on your language skills, try:

1. Japanese language student's book：にほんご　の　がくせい　の　ほん
2. Chinese language teacher's umbrella：ちゅうごくご　の　せんせい　の　かさ

One thing your teacher should be sure to tell you is how you present your name card to people. Even students have name cards and these are very important. Always present the name card or business card with two hands to the recipient and be sure that the words are right-side up to the recipient.

Another thing that you'll see in Lesson 1 and 2 are words that seem to both mean this.

こちら
これ

"This" is the word that refers to something close to the speaker. "That" is the word for something closer to the listener.

そちら
それ

In English we only have this and that, but in some languages there is a third option: that over there (meaning something distant from both the speaker and the listener).

あちら
あれ

The major difference between これ　and こちら is that you never use これ ( それ and あれ) to refer to a person. That would be considered rude. The Japanese language differentiates between animate and inanimate things. This difference between これ ( それ and あれ) 　and こちら (そちら and あちら) is the first one you'll learn in this text.

The literal meaning of the latter set is:

こちら : this direction
そちら : that direction
あちら : that direction over there.

Also, it is important to know that これ ( それ and あれ) 　and こちら (そちら and あちら) are NOT used in the X の Y noun phrases.

You'll learn why in the next lesson.

Guide to Grammar: 'Japanese for Busy People:' Lesson 1

Now let's move on to Lesson 1 and the kana columns for ta （た、ち、つ、て、と）na (な、に、ぬ、ね、の, ha (は、ひ、ふ、へ、ほ) and no （な、に、ぬ、ね、の).

Review
If we were to put the words in the previous exercises into kana order it would be as follows:

• aoi, akai, aki, ika, ue, eki, ōkī, kao, kaki, kiku, kūki, Keiko, koe,  
• aoi, Akasaka, asa, ashi, eki, ōkī, kagi, kaku, kaze, kiku, kūki, Keiko,  koe, koshi, sake, shio, shiso, sushi, zō 

Now practice writing them in hiragana.

More hiragana

You may have noticed something. Long vowels are not always expressed the way you would think. Usually, you can use an kana from the same row as the long vowel and the kana from the "a" (あ）column. For example:

• くうき
• おおきい

A long ō sound can be expressed with a syllabary from the "o" row and an "u" (う）or the syllabary from the "o" row and "o" （お). Examples of this are:

• おおきい
• おはようございます

The other exception would be with the え column.

• せいこ
• ぜいひ
• けいこ

So you take a syllabary from the "e" row and add "i" (い).

Now let's move on to practice with hiragana from あ to ほ. 

Here's more to practice:

• Old words: aoi, Akasaka,  ashi, eki, ōkī, kagi, kaku, kaze, kiku, kūki, Keiko,  koe, koshi, sake, shio, shiso, sushi, zō 
• New words: Asahi, kasa, Hamamoto, Haneda, hebi, mimi, Mikimoto, Momotarō, Nakamura, nanika, nomimono, Ōsaka, roku, Sapporo, sashimi, tadaima, tame, Tanabata, tatemono、tatsukete, tonari

しかしきさみくたみおたにあ

さぎみかけもあろみきなかか

きみぞさあのしうたいばあさ

かきうとしたはあめたたおか

ぜもろなたてねさけだはいお

さとくりすもだひいいまなお

っかくすけのへしこまもかさ

ぽくうしてこびそもしとむか

ろこきさええのきもおおらな

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrMkJAzbWQc

Lesson 1

If you have the kana version of "Japanese for Busy People" you'll see the usage of hiragana and katakana. Think of this as an opportunity to immerse yourself in the language. You may not recognize everything, but by repeated exposure, you'll become familiar with things much like children in Japan. While learning your hiragana, to help you along with katakana, write the corresponding hiragana above the katakana.

You will notice that foreign words are put into katakana such as the names of countries and the names of foreign people. Originally, Japan had Japanese words to express the names of countries and these are still used, especially in abbreviations and in newspapers. 

Remember that previously we discussed that Japanese is an SOV language (subject-object-verb) while English is an SVO (subject-verb-object) language. The basic sentence structure we are looking at for the next few chapters is:

• X は　Y　です。
• X は　Y　ですか。

For the first chapter, we are using a noun for both X and Y. So the basic equation is X=Y. For this we chapter we are going to talk about nationalities and countries as well as occupations or schools.

While it is tempting to translate です as "is" or "to be" remember that in English "is" has various functions. It is used to express existence, a progressive action or a passive voice. Japanese has other verbs for these functions. 

• There is a restaurant around the corner. (existence)
• I am at home. (existence)
• He is reading a book. (progressive)
• In the movie, Lincoln is shot by Booth. (passive voice)

When I am teaching a class with this book,  I usually like to add some words to both lists. See my lists below.

Countries: 

• にほん
• ちゅうごく
• ドイツ
• イギリス
• アメリカ
• オーストラリア
• タイ
• スペイン (Spain)
• メキシコ (Mexico)
• カナダ (Canada)
• フランス (France)
• かんこく(Korea)
• たいわん (Taiwan)

Nationalities: 

• にほんじん
• ちゅうごくじん
• ドイツじん
• イギリスじん
• アメリカじん
• オーストラリアじん
• タイじん
• スペインじん
• メキシコじん
• カナダじん
• フランスじん
• かんこくじん
• たいわんじん

Notice how easy it is to make the word for nationality. You use the country name and then add じん。Be careful that you don't add an "n" sound before じん。

• アメリカじん
• NOT アメリカんじん

Work:

• べんごし
• ひしょ
• がくせい
• エンジニヤ
• かしゃいん
• せんせい (teacher)
• おくさん (housewife)
• いしゃ (medical doctor)
• かがくしゃ (scientist)
• けんきゅうしゃ (researcher)

Kotowaza watch: Fickle or changeable as the autumn weather

Autumn in Japan is beautiful. The humidity of the summer gives way to cool crisp days, but the sting of the dry winter has yet to begin. However, the weather is hard to predict.

The summer rains can take you by surprise and ruin your weekend plans or you can have a wonderful bright and dry day.

So people in Japan will say that autumn weather easily changes.

• 秋の気こうが変わりやすいです。（あきのきこうがかわりやすい　です。）                    The autumn weather is unpredictable. 
• よく変わる秋の天気　（よくかわる　あきの　てんき）often changing autumn weather

You can use the second phrase to compare something or someone. For instance, you can say that someone's opinion easily changes.

• あの人の意見は　よく変わる秋の天気のようです。（あのひと　の　いけんは　よくかわるのあきのてんきのようです。）
• That person's opinion changes like the autumn weather.

単語Time: AA!

Tango time here isn't about dancing and you don't need a partner. Tango time is about increasing your vocabulary and understanding of Japanese.

Today we'll look at a very simple word: ā.

In this case, ā is an exclamatory word or an interjection.

You use it when you want to emphasize what you are saying.

• 花は　きれい　です。(The flower is pretty.)
• ああ、花　は　きれい　です。(Oh, the flower is pretty.)

Remember that originally, Japanese didn't have punctuation like periods or exclamation points. 

A word like this is called 感動詞　[かんどうし] or interjection. 

Guide to Grammar in 'Japanese for Busy People'

When I learned hiragana, I was in Japan taking an accelerated course in Japanese. That was a bit like trial by fire. I didn't use a lot of gimmicks, but I did use flashcards that I made by myself. As a teaching associate at UCLA, our students learned first to read hiragana the first quarter. By the second quarter, they were supposed to be able to write. 

At the back of the book, "Japanese for Busy People," there should be a chart. I would enlarge and photocopy to make simple flashcards. 

Online you can visit Quizlet to quiz yourself. You can also use RealKana.com. I suggest learning one row at a time and maybe two or three the first week. The next week, try three rows. By week three, try to learn rows up to ma through mo. Then in the fourth week, finish off your list. 

Once you've done that pay attention to what happens when you put two dots in the upper right side of the kana. In the case of ka through ko, the kana becomes ga through go. Similar things happen when you use ten-ten (dot-dot) for sa through za, ta through do and ha through ho. For the ha through ho row, notice you can also add a small circle to the upper right part and you get a "p" sound. 

To practice, try using a puzzle like the one below. When I was teaching class, I would divide the students into two groups and one by one, students would be matched against each other to find the words I said on the board. Remember that traditionally, Japanese is read up to down from right to left. A macron represents a long vowel. 

Find the following words: aoi, akai, aki, ika, eki, ue, kaki, kao, Keiko, kiku, koe, kūki, ōkī 

えかおかあ 
あおおいお 
きけきうい 
くいいえか 
うこいきき 
きこかくあ 

Now try this one: Akasaka, aoi, asa, ashi, eki, kagi, kaku, kaze, Keiko, kiku, koe, koshi, kūki, ōkī, sake, shio, shiso, sushi, zō 

しこきいかそおいあ

すしさこぎきあこか

しえけえおくおかさ

かきぞくおあいぜか

くあううきさししけ

Now take the two lists of words and try to put them in the order that they would come in Japanese.

Before we go on to the first chapter of "Japanese for Busy People," lets look at the page of useful daily expressions. There are a few things that you should note. Watch to see when some of the letters are either 1/2 or a third smaller than the other letters. This means the two kana are combined and only given one beat such as じゃ(ja) or ちょ(cho). In the case of a small "tsu" this means there's a double consonant as in いってらっしゃい(itterasshai) or ちょっと(chotto). Listen carefully to your CD and you'll hear a glottal stop. 

1. Notice that in this case there is a long o sound and it is expressed with an ou. おはようございます。You will see this happen again in number 14, 16, 19 and 20.
2. こんにちは　In this case, leave a beat for the "n" sound. In Japanese, it is it's own syllable. Also while in most cases は is pronounced "ha," in this case it is pronounced "wa." You'll see this happen again in number 3.

Just How Hard Is Japanese Language Learning?

I learned Japanese as an adult and attained enough fluency to get around Japan easily and eventually become a teaching associate at UCLA for their beginner classes and even teach my own classes. 

Learning Japanese isn't impossible for an adult, depending upon your skill level, dedication and flexibility. First, I feel that many people have to overcome their fear of Japanese. 

Japanese is not necessarily the hardest language in the world. That would be like saying that the Japanese are somehow intellectually superior to everyone else and that learning English is easy. Ask any second language learner. English is not easy. English is easier if you speak and read a language that has many common denominators. 

If your native language comes from the same language group or has historical ties with that language or culture, learning your target language will be easier. For instance, although English is not a romance language. That is, we don't mean that English is not related to gothic novels or Harlequin romances, but rather that English has not been derived from Latin or Neo-Latin languages. However, historically, French was spoken in the courts of English kings. Further France's proximity to England has also resulted in cultural and linguistic exchanges beyond that. 

In the case of the United States, cities and states along the Mexican border, some of which at one time were a part of Mexico, have been influenced by the Mexican culture and thus have an influx of Spanish words in common usage. 

Spanish and French are both Romance languages and share many common root words. Think of the word for one: uno for Spanish and un for French. There are, of course, more examples, but lets get back to Japanese. 

Japanese historically shares linguistic roots with Mongolian and Korean. That doesn't help the native English speaker, but it makes learning Japanese easier for the Mongolian speaker in some respects and for the Korean speaker in many ways because of proximity and some shared history. Both were heavily influenced by the Chinese although Chinese grammar is closer to English than the Japanese. 

Japanese borrowed their writing system from China as did Korea. Both Korea and Japan adapted the Chinese writing system to suit their individual languages. Chinese is a subject-verb-object language (SVO) like English. For both Chinese and Japanese, the order of the words determines their function within the sentence. This is not true for Japanese. For Japanese, the verb usually comes last. The order of the preceding words is interchangeable, but post-positionals, also called particles indicate how the preceding word functions. 

Consider the difference between English and Japanese: 

• Cat eats fish.
• Fish eats cat.
• ねこ　は　さかな　を　たべる。neko wa sakana o taberu.
• さかな　を　ねこ　は　たべる。sakana o neko ha taberu.

The post positionals expressed in romaji (romanization) as wa and o indicated who is eating whom. In both cases, the cat is eating the fish. Notice that the verb taberu (to eat) ends both sentences. 

For the native Chinese speaker and the native Korean speaker, if they are literate, then they can both read Chinese characters. Many of these will have the same meaning in Chinese, Korean and Japanese although the pronunciation will be different. There are false friends--words that look the same but have different meanings. For instance, the Japanese word for a letter (as in something that one mails to another person) means toilet paper. So looking at the Chinese character in Japanese wont help the Chinese speaker in this case. That happens in many languages. 

There are even differences between dialects of the same language such as British English and American English. Words such as fag, suspenders and gob mean different things in America compared to England. Similar things have happened in the Chinese character usage between Japan and China. The Japanese have adopted different words for the days of the week while the Chinese have not. 

As a native speaker of English, you do have some advantages. Since Japan opened up to Europe and America in the 1850s, Japan has adopted many foreign words, called gairaigo. That means words like cake, dance, orange and ice cream have been brought into the Japanese language, but fitted into the confines of the language. Yet other words such as boot for the hood of a car and jumper for an item of clothing, have been taken from British English. Then there are words taken from French, German, etc. 

There are also some false friends. The Japanese took the first two syllables from "personal" and then from "computer" and made them into paso con. The Japanese also took the word "handicap" and shortened it into "handi" which might confuse speakers of English into thinking the Japanese mean "handy." 

That brings up another issue. The Japanese language incorporates three writing systems: kanji (or Chinese letters), hiragana and katakana. The Chinese characters can often be read in more than one way, but at the beginning, you don't need to worry about this. I do recommend that you learn hiragana first, then katakana and then kanji. What's important to understand before you start learning Japanese is that the language is based on syllables and both hiragana and katakana are syllabary systems. That means that each writing kana symbol represents a syllable. This is very different from English. 

Japanese is not the only syllabary language. Chinese and North American Cherokee and the African language Vai are also languages using syllabaries. For Japanese, this will be important when you pronounce long vowels. Think as if you had a metronome. A short vowel has one count. A long vowel gets two counts. In Japanese, the "n" (ん）also gets one count. By seeing the writing system, you'll begin to understand a few things such as the counts/syllables each word has and not confuse yourself with how you'd pronounce it in English. You'll also come to understand why "k" sounds become "g" sounds and the relations between "h," "b" and "p" sounds. 

Not only should you recognized the hiragana, you should also strive to learn the traditional order. Just like we have an alphabet and it has an order, so does hiragana and katakana. Learning with will eventually help you in verb conjugation and using a Japanese to English dictionary. 

So that may all sound like bad news to you, but here's the good news. Japanese verbs do not conjugate for first person, second person or third person (singular or plural). Nouns in Japanese are not masculine or feminine (as in French and Spanish) nor neutral (as in German). Once you learn to write in hiragana, you don't have to worry about capitalization of proper nouns.