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July 16, 2024
 

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Peter Backhaus
Japan Times
LIFE / Language
Jul 28, 2014
The here and there of who's who and what's what
There are some Japanese words that act like little arrows. They are pointing devices that can be used to indicate a specific part of the wider context of what is being said. Some examples in English are "here" and "there," "this" and "that," "me" and "you." But Japanese does this in a more systematic...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 7, 2014
It's all a matter of character — but which one to choose?
Much has been made of the alleged difficulty of the Japanese language for non-native and even native speakers. My personal impression is that this view is most commonly cherished by two types of people: those who don't know much Japanese (or any at all), and those who only know Japanese.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 1, 2014
Warming up for the Soccer W-Cup
For real soccer fans, the upcoming World Cup in Brazil will be the highlight of the past four years. On top of that, many lukewarm supporters will surely soon discover that they are, in fact, true sports fans. But even those who consider it entirely pointless to watch 22 people running after a ball for...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 18, 2014
Translating movie titles into Japanese can get a bit wairudo
For one of my classes recently, I needed to get the Japanese movie version of Harper Lee's classic novel "To Kill a Mockingbird." When I looked for it on Amazon Japan, I was a little confused because they didn't seem to have it. Instead they kept offering me a DVD titled "Arabama monogatari" (「アラバマ物語」)....
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 30, 2014
The sounds of everyday Japanese life
Living in Japan can be quite a noisy experience. Even in my quiet little neighborhood, rarely a day passes without a great variety of sounds being heard. Four days a week the garbage truck fills the air with its most peculiar orugōru (オルゴール, music box) sound. At least once a week, a second-hand...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 2, 2014
Getting all mixed up with mixed kanji readings
Gyūdon (牛丼, beef-over-rice bowl) and tonjiru (豚汁, miso soup with pork and vegetables) have much in common. Not only are they a nice combo for a quick lunch (and that it's almost noon while I'm writing this), but on closer inspection both terms also turn out to be a little off with regard to...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 2, 2014
It's never too early to start juken
It's that time of year again, when hundreds of thousands of soon-to-be high school graduates are busy taking university entrance exams for the coming academic year. This activity is commonly known as juken (受験), and usually translated into English as "taking an examination." The translation is somewhat...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 29, 2013
So much for nau: What will we say next?
The end of the year is always a good time to reflect on what is, was and will be. With regard to language, one of the most stimulating things I have recently read in this respect was from an article in the journal Nihongogaku (日本語学) about a study in which Japanese university students were asked...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 28, 2013
Hyper, mega, ultra: talking in superlatives
One of the ultra-fascinating facets of Japanese is its super-large arsenal of intensifying prefixes that provide an otherwise neutral expression with some emphatic edge. The best-known (and least spectacular) of them is dai (大), which usually translates as "big." When something went really well, for...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 27, 2013
Oyaji gyagu, more than just cheesy puns
Stop me if you've heard this one. Two men aged around 50 enter a sushi restaurant. One orders a raincoat, the other a garage. What looks like the beginning of a "Monty Python" sketch is in fact the stuff of a most typical oyaji gyagu (おやじギャグ), or old man's joke/gag. Such jokes normally center...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 29, 2013
Bilingual beauty, straight and permed
Beauty must be a bilingual thing. At least that's the impression one gets from looking at signs outside hairdressers, beauty parlors and similar types of businesses in Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 25, 2013
Yoisho! A word to move mountains (and smaller things)
The man from next door says it. My mother-in-law says it. The guy in the grocery store says it. The nurse on TV says it. Seems like everyone says Yoisho! (よいしょ!) It's one of those expressions that appear to be a common part of everyday Japanese life but are not usually taught in Japanese language...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 25, 2013
The Japanese traffic light blues: Stop on red, go on what?
Road traffic in Japan is a complicated affair. Apart from those narrow, crooked streets that sometimes end without warning, you have to get used to unclear right-of-way rules and the national fetish for backward parking.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 31, 2012
Even language has winners and losers
If there's one thing to be sure of in Japan these days, it's that by the end of the year you will have a prime minister different from the one you started out with. This year was the sixth year in succession to follow this pattern. Somewhat differently, though, this year there was a general election...
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 22, 2012
Politicians may ru the day their names became verbs
"Which new words would you like to see added to the dictionary?" A couple of months ago the publishing house Taishukan put this generous question to Japanese high school and junior high school students.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 24, 2012
Indecent proposals: the language of Japanese dating spam
It started with an email from a 20-year-old college student called Emi, who told me she was looking for a Showa umare no dansei (昭和生まれの男性, a man born in Showa, i.e., born before 1989). Next was Norika, a bored housewife in her early thirties asking me to spend some himajikan (ヒマ時間,...
LIFE / Language
Sep 2, 2008
So is it respect for 'the aged,' 'the elderly' or 'the seniors'?
As it is every September, people in Japan are looking forward to keirō no hi, the coming national holiday dedicated to the older members of the population. Respect for the Aged Day provides an annual opportunity to visit one's elderly relatives, get involved in various welfare activities or just...
LIFE / Language
Apr 22, 2008
KY-style Japanese: Express yourself alphabetically
Waiting at the railroad crossing, I couldn't help but overhear the animated conversation that the two students standing behind me were having.
LIFE / Language
Mar 21, 2006
Odd use of foreign loan words a sign of the times
Heed this safety warning: "Caution! Don't lean on the gate. The gate would fall down when lean on it. It occurs you trouble." Having eluded the gate, then follow this health instruction: "The Italian word pomodoro means golden fruit. Tomatoes have vitamin, carotene, potash, pectene, and is good for blood...
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals
Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals

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