The Petra Zone

This is for Adrinux and anyone else who is interested in learning how to speak Sushi.
- - -

1. Single Vowels

Japanese has the same 5 vowel sounds as Spanish:
a - "ah" (like the "o" in Bob)
e - "ay" (like the "a" in Dave)
i - "ee" (like the "e" in Pete)
o - "oh" (like the "oa" in whoa)
u - "oo" (like the "ue" in Sue)

In Romanized Japanese, these 5 letters always have the same sound. With one exception: sometimes the i and the u are silent. Examples are:

arimashita (ah-ree-mahsh-tah) - the i is silent.
arimasu (ah-ree-mahss) - the u is silent.

When there is a line (macron) above the vowel, hold the vowel sound twice as long as you normally would. Since I cannot type macrons, I will use accents instead. (�, �, �, �, �)
- - -

2. Vowel combinations

Basically, just combine both vowel sounds (with no space in between). These are vowel combinations that appear frequently in Japanese:

ae - "ah-ay"
ai - "ah-ee" (like the English word "I)
ao - "ah-oh"
au - "ah-oo"
ei - just the "ay" sound held out twice as long
ie - "ee-ay"
ii - hold the "ee" sound twice as long
iu - "ee-oo"
oe - "oh-ay"
oi - "oh-ee"
ou - "oh-oo"
ue - "oo-ay"
ui - "oo-ee"
uo - "oo-oh"

(You get the point. . .)
- - -

3. Pronunciation: Consonants

b - like the "b" in ball
ch - like the "ch" in check
d - like the "d" in dog
f - the sound you make when blowing out a candle
g - like the "g" in gold
h - like the "h" in hot
j - like the "j" in jump
k - like the "k" in kite
m - like the "m" in man
n - like the "n" in net or the "n" in pen
p - like the "p" in pond
r - similar to the Spanish "r" - touch the tongue to the roof of your mouth. Kind of like the "l" sound.
s - like the "s" in saw
sh - like the "sh" in sheep
t - like the "t" in toe
w - like the "w" in want
y - like the "y" in yes
z - like the "z" in zoo

When a consonant letter is doubled ("kk," "pp," "ss,""tt"), hold out the consonant sound.

hakka (hahk - kah)
juppai (joop - pai)
kesshite (kes - shtay)
kitte (keet - tay)

If you see a n followed by an apostrophe and a vowel or y, pronounce the n like the "ng" in "king."

Ren'ai (lang - "eye")
Kin'y�bi (king - yohh - bee)

Before a b, p, or m, pronounce the n like the "m" in "gum."

Konban (kohm - bahn)
Shinpai (sheem - "pie")
Banmeshi (bahm - may - shee)
- - -

If this is confusing, try to find an opportunity to listen to native Japanese speakers - if you don't have Japanese friends you see often, you might be able to find a recording of spoken Japanese in a bookstore. Listening frequently to the language will help tremendously with your understanding of the pronunciation.

Come to think about it, you're probably as likely to find recordings of Japanese in stores as you are to find Petra albums. Your best bet might be libraries or really huge bookstores like Borders; I don't know. Merchandising is not where my expertise lies.
- - -

4. Kana syllables

Unfortunately, the Japanese language is not traditionally written in Roman letters (darn!) What's used are two systems of phonetic characters (kana) which are really hard for us Western language speakers to read because they look very different from what we're accustomed to.

One of those two is hiragana - this system is used in words original to the Japanese language. Most of them are made of loops and curves, so they are rather squiggly-looking.

One of those two is katakana - this system is used for words or names borrowed from languages foreign to Japanese (usually English). They are made of mostly straight lines, so they look kinda like chicken scratches.

Since I cannot type in Japanese characters on the Petra Zone, you will need to consult a book (or friend) to see how they are written. It will take months of practice, probably even years, to memorize them all. (And to write them neatly.)

Both kana systems are arranged the same way phonetically: (have fun reading it out loud)

. . ._ .k .s . .t . .n . h . m .y . r .w
. ._________________________
a | a ka sa .ta .na ha ma ya ra wa .n
i .| i .ki .shi chi .ni . hi . mi __ ri __ __
u | u ku su .tsu nu fu mu yu ru __ __
e | e ke se .te .ne he me __ re __ __
o | o ko so .to .no ho mo yo ro .o . __

. . g . z . d . b . p
. ._____________
a |ga za da ba pa
i .|gi .__ __ bi pi
u |gu zu zu bu pu
e |ge ze de be pe
o |go zo do bo po

. . .ky . sh . ny . hy . my .ry . gy . j .by . py
. .___________________________________
a | kya sha nya hya mya rya gya ja bya pya
u | kyu shu nyu hyu myu ryu gyu ju byu pyu
o | kyo sho nyo hyo myo ryo gyo jo byo pyo

(Confusing to unfamiliars, yet funny looking!!!)

Other, non-traditional, syllables such as ti and di are used only in words or names borrowed from foreign languages, and you will rarely ever see them. They are represented by katakana only, of course. They are:

ti di che she je fa fi fe fo

Examples of words using them:

merod� (melody)
jetto (jet)
fakkusu (fax)

Lastly, there are also symbols in both kana that represent extended vowels (ex. �) and extended consonants (ex. kk).
- - -

Those of you interested, don't worry if you can't remember or understand all of this yet. Heck, it took a few years for myself to get all this craziness stuck in my brain.

5. Kanji characters

Kanji is the name of the thousands of written characters used in both Chinese and Japanese. Although the Chinese language is written entirely in kanji, Japanese uses a combination of kanji and kana.

What is the difference? Kanji characters are ideographic, which means they represent ideas, rather than sounds - although they do have sounds.

Some kanji characters are simple, and others are very complex. Some of them are still difficult for me to write, because of how detailed and compact they are. Most of the more complex characters can be divided into smaller sections; if you look carefully, they're just made of several little objects stacked together

The simplest kanji character is just a straight horizontal line, which means "one" (ichi). This is pretty much what it looks like:
___

The character for "ten" (j�) looks like a cross, or a plus sign: (ignore the period)

_|_
. |

The character for "tree" (ki / moku) is a cross with two diagonal lines extending down from the middle: (ignore the period)

_|_
./|\

"Day" (hi / nichi) looks like a two-paned window, or a square number 8:
.__
|__|
|__|

The character for "rice field" (ta / da), which is commonly used in people's names (such as Tanaka, Iwata, Yoshida). It looks like a four-paned window.
.___
|_|_|
|_|_|

"Mountain" (yama, as in Yamasaki or Yamamoto ) is like a letter E on its side: (ignore the two periods)

| .|. |
|_|_|

Here's an example of an even more complex kanji: "bird" (tori)

/___
|___|
|___|
|___
|_____
, , , , /

Kanji characters are really beautiful-looking, and I really enjoy writing them. However, they are extremely hard to read and understand. I have yet to memorize the pronounciations and meanings of most kanji. I've heard that students in Japan need to have memorized the sounds and meanings of 1,000 kanji before they graduate from high school. Yikes.

6. Common words and phrases (Finally!! The fun stuff!!!)

This is a list (unfortunately, a long list ) of common conversational phrases that you might use when meeting people, greeting friends, or politely requesting stuff. If you are traveling to Japan, these phrases are important to know, because you may have to use (or hear) them very often. You might be familiar with some of them already (probably kon'nichi wa and sayonara.)

Yeah, I know, the list is long - but I want to be as resourceful as I can.

You may refer back to the pronunciation rules if necessary. Note: the word desu (to be) sounds like "dess." Usually in words that end with "su," the letter "u" is silent. (Not always)
- - -

Kon'nichi wa. Hello
Ohay� gozaimasu. Good morning
Konban wa Good afternoon / good evening
Oyasumi nasai Good night (when going to bed)

Ogenki desu ka? How are you?
Genki desu. I'm fine.
Genki ja nai desu. I'm not okay.
Anata wa? And you?
(Note: anata (you) is an informal word; it is more polite to refer to a person by their name, rather than anata.)

Onamae wa nan desu ka? What is your name?
Watashi no onamae wa Yamasaki-san desu. My name is Mr. Yamasaki.
Watashi wa Yamasaki-san desu. I am Yamasaki.
Hajimemashite. Nice to meet you. ("hah jee may mosh tay")

D�zo. Please.
Onegai shimasu. Please.
Yorokonde. Absolutely. / With pleasure.
(D�mo) arigat� gozaimasu. Thank you (very much).
Okagesama de. Thank you.
D� itashimashite. You're welcome. (ends with "shtay")
Gomen nasai. I'm sorry.
Ii desu. It's all right.

Irasshaimase. Welcome. (not "irasshaimashite,[/i] which I thought it was for years)
Irasshai. Welcome.
Y�kosu. Welcome.
Nihon e y�kosu. Welcome to Japan.
D�zo ohairi kudasai. Come in!

Hai. Yes.
Iie. No. ("eee - yay")
Iya. No.
Osoraku Maybe.
Tabun Maybe.
Hai, wakarimasu. Yes, I know.
Iie, wakarimasen. No, I don't know.

Sayonara. Good-bye
Dewa mata. See you later
Mata ne. See you later
Ato de aimash�. See you later
Dewa ashita. See you tomorrow.
Ganbatte. Good luck.

7. Pronouns (and plenty of 'em!!)

watashi - I *
anata - you (singular)
kare - he
kanojo - she
ano hito - that person

watashitachi - we *
ware-ware - we ("wah-ray wah-ray")
anatatachi - you all
karera - they (male)
kanojora - they (female)
ano hitotachi - those people

* Watakushi and watakushitachi are more formal. The "ta" syllable is accented in those words, not the "ku."

As mentioned before, anata is informal and most often used with close friends. Or if you are talking to someone whose name you don't know, go ahead and use anata - it's probably okay. You won't get slapped or anything.
- - -

8. Demonstrative nouns and adjectives (i.e. this, that)

Nouns:
kore (koh - ray) - this one
sore (soh - ray) - that one
are (ah - ray) - that one (way over there)
dore? (doh - ray) - which one?

Adjectives:
kono - this
sono - that
ano - that (way over there)
dono ___ ? - which ___ ?

Notice they follow a ko - so - a - do pattern. Is that cool or what?? (No, I don't think so either.)

Examples:
kono hon - this book
sono hon - that book
ano tatemono - that building (way over there)
Dono tatemono desu ka? - Which building is it?
- - -

9. Possessive

This is pretty darn easy. Just add the particle "no" after the noun or pronoun. (In Japanese, "no" does not mean "no.")

watashi no - my / mine
anata no - your / yours
kare no - his
kanojo no - her
watashitachi no - our / ours
ano hitotachi no - their / theirs
Taka no - Taka's

watashi no uchi my house
kanojo no kaminoke her hair
Umeko no inu Umeko's dog

Watashi no hon desu. That's my book.
Yoshida wa kare no tomo desu. Yoshida is his friend.
Anata no enpitsu desu ka? Is this your pencil?

10. Days, months, seasons
- - -
hi; -nichi day (the first sounds like the English word "he," not "hi" as in yo was'sup)
sh�; sh�kan week
tsuki month
toshi; -nen year
kisetsu season
- - -
Getsuy�bi Monday
Kay�bi Tuesday
Suiy�bi Wednesday
Mokuy�bi Thursday
Kin'y�bi Friday
Doy�bi Saturday
Nichiy�bi Sunday

By the way, the days of the week have interesting meanings:
Mon. - "moon day"
Tue. - "fire day"
Wed. - "water day"
Thu. - "tree day"
Fri. - "gold day"
Sat. - "earth day"
Sun. - "day day" (or "sun day")
- - -
Names of months are basically number + gatsu. (See next lesson for names of numbers. Exciting.)
Ichigatsu Jan.
Nigatsu Feb.
Sangatsu March
Shigatsu April
Gogatsu May
Rokugatsu June
Shichigatsu July
Hachigatsu August
Kugatsu Sep.
J�gatsu Oct.
J�ichigatsu Nov.
J�nigatsu Dec.
- - -
haru spring
natsu summer
aki autumn
fuyu winter
- - - - -

11. Numbers, yo.

s�; s�ji number

0 rei; zero
1 ichi
2ni
3 san
4 yon; shi
5 go
6 roku
7 nana; shichi
8 hachi
9 ky�; ku
10 j�
- - -
From 11 on, it just follows a system (and ya can't beat it, yo!)

11 j�ichi 12 j�ni 13 j�san 14 j�yon 15j�go
16 j�roku 17 j�nana 18 j�hachi 19 j�ky�
- - -
20 nij� 30 sanj� 40 yonj� 50 goj�
60 rokuj� 70 nanaj� 80 hachij� 90 ky�j�

Others:
21 nij� ichi 22 nij� ni 34 sanj� yon 47 yonj� nana 99 ky�j� ky�
- - -
100 hyaku 200 nihyaku 300 sanbyaku
400 yonhyaku 500 gohyaku 600 roppyaku
700 nanahyaku 800 happyaku 900 ky�hyaku

101 hyaku ichi 110 hyaku j�, 325 sanbyaku nij� go,etc.

(Note: 300, 600, and 800 change the -hyaku spelling.)
- - -
1,000 sen 2,000nisen 3,000 sanzen
4,000 yonsen 5,000 gosen 6,000 rokusen
7,000 nanasen 8,000hassen 9,000ky�sen

1,001 sen ichi, 1,100 sen hyaku, 1,290 sen nihyaku ky�j�,
,etc.

(Note: 3,000 and 8,000 change the -sen spelling.)
- - -
For ordinal numbers, just add banme. It's that easy. No new vocab to learn for this.

ichibanme - first
nibanme - second
sanbanme - third
yonbanme - fourth
j�ichibanme - eleventh
- - -
I think I need to take a break. . .

When saying hello as a greeting, you say kon'nichi wa (also spelled konnichi wa. An apostrophe between two n's is optional, but I like to use it because it looks cool.)

However, when picking up the telephone, you instead would say, moshi moshi. This was on the Simpsons episode when Homer found a Japanese dish detergent box with a face on it that looked a lot like his.

Guy on telephone: "Moshi moshi?. . . Hai . . . hai . . . hai . . . hai . . . bai."

That episode cracked me up!

12. Colors, yo.

iro color
kurai dark
usui light (adj.)
akarui bright
kusundeiru dull

When stating the name of the color as a noun:

aka red
orenji-iro orange
kiiro yellow
midori green
ao blue
murasaki purple
kuro black
haiiro; nezumiiro gray
shiro white
momoiro; pinku pink
chairo, kasshoku brown
b�ju beige

When using colors as adjectives to describe something: either add i or no

akai
orenji-iroi
kiiroi
midori no
aoi
murasaki no
kuroi
hai-iroi, nezumi-iroi
shiroi
momo-iroi
chairoi, kasshoku no

YO. . .

seichu kaisho wrote:Hai, wakarimasu. Yes, I know.
Iie, wakarimasen. No, I don't know.

Actually, wakarimasu means I understand and wakarimasen means I don't understand.

I don't know for sure how to say "I know" in Japanese, but it might be shitte imasu.

'll have t' ask one of my friends.