•Unit I• ( Japanese for Beginners)

[Saga]

 

 

I guess,it's hard to learn Japanese on and by yourself. It's hard to find inspiration and strength to do so when there is no one to help you. I can't promise that you'll learn Japanese. I can't promise that you'll be able to understand be it songs,movies,anime,manga,or even games you do play in Japanese. But what I can promise you,and you should know I rarely put my promises in my speech, is if you keep working hard on it,there is no way to not get better. Getting better at something is actually the path of success. And what kind of success you want,it's up to you.

Go for it!

 

SOV - JAPANESE SENTENCE CONSTRUCTION

 

I decided to talk about something very essential and something very confusing at the same time in Japanese as a language. It's the sentence order. I know that not all people on YaoiOtaku come from parts where the native language is English. That makes it harder for those that aren't English fluent,or native. It would be way easier to give you lessons and examples in your mother language,but the situation is not giving me a chance to do so.

At least,if you are able to understand my lessons it means you have a basic knowledge in English. Cheer up now.

 

For native and these that have learned English, you know that the order in a simple English sentence is SVO (Subject-Verb-Object).

Sample:

I eat sushi.

 

That was a simple sentence in English. The order is pretty much obvious and you see where the subject stands,followed by the verb and then the certain object which appearantly is a kind of our theme - sushi.

Remember,we talk about the simple sentences and most of all,about these that are not ordered in a way to stress a certain part of the sentence.

 

Here comes the Japanese sentence structure. It's SOV(Subject-Object-Verb).

Yes,it's different from English and I am completely sure none of you were expecting the same structure.

Here a sample with our sushi,but in Japanese order.

Sample:

I sushi eat.

 

At first you will make mistakes,especially when the sentence becomes longer and more complicated.

But try to follow the rocks a teacher puts you in a lake(Japanese). The teacher will and supposedly know what kind of information your brain can consume. Do not stray from the rock path put by the teacher,or you'll get to drown in the lake.

And, don't be afraid to make mistakes. They are your best teacher.

 

UNIT I

Introduction and Basic Greetings

Now, before anything I should first say, in the first few lessons I will not use kanji. I will start using kanji when I decide. And with every new kanji I will give,you'll get the readings,explanations and the order of its writing. Rest assured. For now we will work with Kana(Hiragana+Katakana).

 

 

How to introduce yourself in Japanese

I will give you a small dialog between two males that meet in a classroom. I will first write it in romaji(with Latin letters,in brief,using English letters) and then with Kana. I will advice you to not skip reading the Kana,although you'll get first the romaji. (:

Then you'll see the translation.

 

Romaji:

X: Hajimemashite! Watashi wa Jon desu! Douzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu!

Y: Hajimemashite,Jon san. Boku wa Takano desu! Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!

 

Kana:

X: はじめまして！わたしはジョンです！どうぞよろしくおねがいします！

Y: はじめまして、ジョンさん。ぼくはたかのです！よろしくおねがいします！

 

Translation:

X: How do you do?/Nice to meet you! I am John! Pleased to meet you!

Y: Nice to meet you,(Mr.) John. I am Takano. Pleased to meet you!

 

_________________________________________________________________

 

Simple Grammar

 

I am sure that if you are a complete newbie,you might not get some things from what I wrote. Easy there, don't get scared. It's pretty easy and not difficult to understand as long as you keep your mind away from questions for now.

 

''Hajimemashite'' is more like a greeting. But Japanese are simply polite and really,really formal. I am talking about these Japanese that you'll get to meet in firms, or these that are over their 30's. Every country has its teens and gangsters,trying to bend the language into whichever way they like. I won't mention the modern and bent Japanese with dialects. I am talking about the formal language. And you should keep in mind that a foreigner better be polite and formal. For your own good. (:

 

So, ''hajimemashite'' can mean a few things at the same time. I said it's more like an opening to the conversation. It's not completely 'Nice to meet you',or 'How do you do', or 'Hello'. No,it's like a polite way to start a conversation. Japanese translate it as 'Nice to meet you'.

 

I bet you noticed that they both are males but use a different way to say 'I'.

Here comes my explanation.

Watashi - for women.

Boku - for men.

 

But why they use different ways to say it though both are males? No =_= John is not bi-sexual. XD

It comes from the history. In fact, long time ago there weren't any specific things to use in speech if you are a woman,or a man. But when schools start welcoming ladies and when geisha schools open gates,the speech changes. Ladies start to use some 'weird' language compared to men. With time it turned to be a rule.

In Edo era it would be funny to use 'Watashi' if you are a samurai,for example.

But now, in daily Japanese,you'll meet men that use 'watashi' and such that use 'boku'. Depends on how they feel like expressing themselves. While women would never use 'boku' to refer to themselves. Keep it in mind, if it's not some rude girl,spitting around and cursing,a complete boy-ish personality(hey now, I don't say men do such things. I just create you a rude image of a girl.) don't expect her to use 'watashi' freely.

 

Another thing you'll notice. In romaji you saw 'wa' but in kana I wrote 'ha'.

It's a rule. In some situations 'ha' is read and pronounced as 'wa',but still written as 'ha'. And in our 'Watashi wa' it' s this certain rule.

 

''Yoroshiku onegaishimasu'' and ''Douzo yoroshoki onegaishimasu'' are equal to meaning,but not to formality. It is a closing to your speech when introducing. Translated 'Pleased to meet you'.

How formality works? Imagine stairs,it works same way. As higher you get so formal you sound.

Here 'Pleased to meet you' stair:

Yoroshiku ≦ Yoroshiku onegaishimasu≦ Douzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu

 

Let me tell you what where to use better.

In a situation, your friend drags you outside to a karaoke club. You meet new people there, but your personality is not the timid one and you are kind of 'cool' styled. Like some handsome and funny person,making people blush around you. Supposedly, on this karaoke people are your age, you can end the introduction with 'yoroshiku'. Not so formal since you are supposedly a cool guy/girl and they are your age.

 

In a situation, your mother has some old classmate as guest. They both joke and you go by a chance in the kitchen. Your mother wants to introduce you to her old friend. You choose,to be extra-formal,formal or just be some punk and say 'Yo' and leave. But well,let's make the situation this way, you see the woman is stylish and not so narrow-minded,so as an ending you'll say 'yoroshiku onegaishimasu'. She is not your age and you should show respect more or less.

 

In a situation, you are out to hunt for a job. Finally someone gives you a green light and you get to meet with the chief. As an ending to your introduction,you MUST use 'douzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu'. Why? The person might be not your age,you can't be sure how old are they. They will be your new boss, you should make a good impression. That's why.

 

 

As a first lesson, I don't think it's a good idea to dump you with much information,especially if a newbie. So, let's do this. Whoever wants might introduce themselves in this thread. I will try to reply to whoever posts. (:

I am open to questions if there is such.

Good luck!

 

Saga©

[chiakaiyuki]

Saga-sensei, you once again amaze me with your teaching ability. XD

I already know most of this, but the formality levels will always need clarifying. ^^

 

So... 'yo' is said by someone really rude, instead of yoroshiku?

 

Well, here's my intro, I've never wrote it down before, only said it out loud. >.

 

はじめまして。わたしはチアです。よろしくおねがいします。

hajimemashite. watashi wa chia desu. yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

 

Q: usualy when doing an intro I just say 'chia desu' Is it ok to omit the watashi?

Q: also, my real name maisie is hard to write in japanese... maishi, mashi, maiji?

instead of writing it in katakana, can i write it in romaji? eg. わたしはmaisieです。

 

sorry for the trouble >.

[Saga]

Depends on the situation.

Of course,if your mother proudly introduces you to someone...you can't just say 'yo,there' and leave. Imagine how it will look from aside. =/

But,for example, you get to meet someone your age and you want to shorten the formal-distance,to show to the other it's okay to get chit-chatty, you can use it. Be careful though, two things:

- you are a foreigner and as much as I love Japan,I can't say there isn't a racism over there. So be careful with whom you'll use it.

- you might make the other person feel uncomfortable with it, since you'll look (sorry for the expression) one cool of a motherf***** using it.

 

はじめまして、チアちゃん。わたしはさがです。よろしくおねがいします。

Hajimemashite,Chia chan. Watashi wa Saga desu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

 

A: It's a matter of formality. If you omit 'watashi wa' you might as well say, ''Yo,Chia desu. Yoroshiku.''

But as I said,be careful about the age difference,status and the person themselves. Usually young people don't bother with formality. So,it's okay. But as a foreigner, gotta say at least include a formal,''yoroshiku onegaishimasu''. (:

A: It's Maishi, マイシー. You can omit the marker for a long vowel,but supposedly 'sie' should be marked somehow. As well, it's up to you how you want to write your name. You can use katakana,kanji or simply the English writing. But never hiragana.

 

Hope I helped and no worries. (:

[chiakaiyuki]

Aha, Maishi sounds nothing like my name Maybe Meishi? or is it set, so you can't change it?

 

Thanks Saga! I think I said before, but I'm always very formal, even with friends, so there's no way I'll be using Yo and offending/scaring the non-gaijin. XD

 

Sorry for spamming you with questions, but I heard somewhere that there's a reply word when greeting... -looks it up-

A. hajimemashte....

B. kochira koso, hajimemashite....

is this only used when trying to be very formal?

 

And I promise I'll stop now XD

[Saga]

Well, I thought your name is pronounced 'mai' not 'mei' since you put it this way. It'd be rude of me to play with your name,not knowing if there is some exception in general with it. So,better put transcriptions next time. (: If it's not any exception,as parents decide it, and it's how normally pronounced,sure. It's Meishi.

Very nice name to find a kanji combination for it,just saying. (:

 

In fact,I was thinking about 'Kochira koso' while typing the lesson.

Kochira koso - Likewise.

That's its meaning. (: And has nothing to do with formality,just depends how you feel like expressing yourself.

[chiakaiyuki]

Ah, sorry... my names weird.. said more like may-zi or mei-zi XDDD I'll go with メイシ

[Saga]

If that's the case, you really should type it 'Meiji' which makes me recall a Japanese era. XD

[chiakaiyuki]

The meiji era, 'enlightened rule' 1868-1912, start of morden japan. I think thats a little grande for me. XD

But in katakana it dosn't have the same meaning as the kanji?

[Saga]

No,it doesn't have the same meaning as in kanji. (:

[chiakaiyuki]

I know I said I'd stop, but if you're not too busy...

 

What could you say after hajimemashite, yoroshiku....

Maybe げんきですか？(genki desu ka?) or some other greeting?

 

(ps, I feel like I'm hogging the sensei, is there no other people around?)

[Saga]

Not really.

Depends on the current situation. Depends on where you met the certain new person. ''Genki desu ka'' is both a greeting and a question. I decided to stop with the first lesson as it is on purpose. You are going in another level which I shouldn't mention here as newbies will get confused. (:

[chiakaiyuki]

Ah, ok. Thanks anyway. ^^

-goes back to learning animals... two words for duck XD-

[Tsunade-hime]

ohhh this is pretty interesting and useful! thanks you did a good work ^^

[Suiseki]

waaa this is omonshiro (not sure if I write it well... ) well I tried to say interesting XD

 

I'm taking japanese class, this will be a great practice ^^

 

Hajimemashite! Watashi wa Suiseki desu! Dozo Yoroishiku Onegaishimasu!

はじめまして わたし は すいせき です どぞ よろしく よろしくおねがいします

[chiakaiyuki]

@Suiseki that would be omoshiroi

 

はじめましてすいせきさん、わたしはチアです。よろしくおねがいします！

hajimemashite suiseki-san, watashi wa chia desu. yoroshiku onegaishimasu!!

[Saga]

@Suiseki,

Try to use punctuation. And as Chia said it's ''omoshiroi''.

[Saga]

@Chia,

Avoid using things I haven't wrote in the lesson.

[chiakaiyuki]

Sorry Saga XD

[nitta]

Iam here too.

Hajimemashite minna san! watashi wa nitta desu. Douzo yoroishiku onegaishimasu!

 

Back to the topic, correct word according to gender, age and status. i going to ask about "thank you" "you are welcome"

O: sankyuu -- arigatou -- arigatou gozaimasu

O: domo -- dooitamashite

Saga sensei could u explain just like the way u explained before

[nitta]

:leaf13: wait a sec, do i same as chia san? out of this lesson zone? :hamtaro-005 (5):

u may ignore it then.

Lets another ques, for example i asking to sensei and chia san "who is she/he?" and the answer is "my bf/gf"

sensei : boku no koibito

chia : atashi no koibito

what do u think sensei, am i rite?

[Saga]

Try writing with kana,I mean the introduction.

 

Hajimemashite,Nitta san. Watashi wa Saga desu. Douzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

はじめまして、ニッタさん。わたしはさがです。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。

 

 

Ahahaha,all your questions are out of the lessons zone. So,better ask them in other place,like help center we have created for users to ask questions. i don't want to mix themes and lessons. Newbies shouldn't be more confused. (:

[nitta]

Roger :hamtaro-005 (9):

I'll see u in help center desk then

[RedHurtz]

Ooh, this looks interesting... I'll try.... :hamtaro-005 (10):

 

Hajimemashite. Watashi wa Stacey desu. Douzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

はじめまして。わたし　わ　Stacey　です。　　どうぞ　よろしく　おねがいします。

 

Would that be right? (Just wondering... how would I write my name in Kana? ._.' xD)

 

EDIT: wouldn't it be 'わたし　は'? Sorry, confused myself xD

[Saga]

Red,

If you have read the lesson,you'd see I've explained the rule about ''wa''.

Another thing you'll notice. In romaji you saw 'wa' but in kana I wrote 'ha'. It's a rule. In some situations 'ha' is read and pronounced as 'wa',but still written as 'ha'. And in our 'Watashi wa' it' s this certain rule.

 

Next time make sure to read the whole thing.

 

Your name would be with katakana, Suteishii (ステイシー)

 

はじめまして、ステイシーさん。わたしはさがです。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。

[mecayoyen]

Saga-sensei, I am really interested in learning the language i don't have books around to help me out.So, this is the only way to learn. Been watching some anime with english sub while I am watching it I read the sub and at the same time trying to listen the japanese word. In your lesson re:about the word "I" it's watashi for women and boku for men, right? My Question is, all those times that I am listening to some anime and reading the sub I hear the "Ore" when i read the english sub it means "I" for men. Is it also part of the japanese language?

 

hope to hear from you soon saga-sensei. ^^,)

 

 

Thanks.