Japanese is a challenging language for most who didn't learn it as children. On these pages, I present some of the basic principles of grammar and usage in a way that probably doesn't resemble your textbook
As the title suggests, this is not an in-depth look at all the complexities of the Japanese language. I simply intend to provide a brief look at the language in order to introduce some of the fun and quirks that budding students of Japanese can look forward to. (And also so they'll have a little idea of what they're in for....)
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Vowel Pronunciation Guide
Japanese vowels are easy. If you have taken Spanish, you'll quickly see that they're the same. Unlike crazy English, vowels in Japanese are always pronounced the same, so once you've got them down you'll be well on your way to correct-sounding Japanese. (And then you can attack the consonants.)
Here are the five basic Japanese vowels, in Japanese alphabetical order:
•a - pronounced "ah"
•i - pronounced "ee"
•u - pronounced "oo"
•e - pronounced "eh"
•o - pronounced "oh"
Let's look at the word "house." In Japanese it's ie. Just say "ee-eh." Now a little faster. Got it?
The next important thing you must remember about vowels is to elongate double vowels, giving each one its own "time." Again, "house" in Japanese is ie. The word for "no" is iie. It's not as hard as it looks. Said slowly, "house" is "ee-eh," and "no" is "ee-ee-eh." Said at natural speed, the "ee" in iie should sound about twice as long as the "ee" in ie.
While we're at it, let's look at two more that foreign speakers seem to have a tough time with: obasan and obaasan. Obasan (aunt) is pronounced "oh-bah-san," and obaasan (grandmother) is "oh-bah-ah-san." Just remember to give each vowel equal time and you'll be all right.
Here are the five basic Japanese vowels, in Japanese alphabetical order:
•a - pronounced "ah"
•i - pronounced "ee"
•u - pronounced "oo"
•e - pronounced "eh"
•o - pronounced "oh"
Let's look at the word "house." In Japanese it's ie. Just say "ee-eh." Now a little faster. Got it?
The next important thing you must remember about vowels is to elongate double vowels, giving each one its own "time." Again, "house" in Japanese is ie. The word for "no" is iie. It's not as hard as it looks. Said slowly, "house" is "ee-eh," and "no" is "ee-ee-eh." Said at natural speed, the "ee" in iie should sound about twice as long as the "ee" in ie.
While we're at it, let's look at two more that foreign speakers seem to have a tough time with: obasan and obaasan. Obasan (aunt) is pronounced "oh-bah-san," and obaasan (grandmother) is "oh-bah-ah-san." Just remember to give each vowel equal time and you'll be all right.
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Consonants
The consonants used in Japanese are k, g, s, z, t, d, n, h, f, b, p, m, y, r, and w; and they are pronounced the same as you would in English, except for the following:
•r - this is like the Spanish r, so ri should sound like a lightly pronounced dee
•d - because r sounds like a light d, d has a more distinct d sound
Japanese consonants are not thought of as having their own sound, except for n. All of the others always appear combined with a vowel, with the vowel coming after the consonant, like ka, for example. This combination of one consonant and one vowel makes only one "letter" in the Japanese alphabet, and to the Japanese mind represents only one sound. This is a very important point to remember when studying Japanese.
There are also a few letters which have combined consonants like shi, chi, and tsu. Again, each of these look like 3 letters to us, but they are each viewed as one in Japanese.
As with vowels, consonants also have doubles. Doubled consonants are found in compound words like ippun, which means "one minute." The difficulty in pronouncing the double consonant is that there's nothing to pronounce; it's just the trick of "holding" the pronunciation so that the "time value" of the double is recognized, just like with the vowels. When pronouncing ippun, you should be giving equal time to the 4 syllables: i-p-pu-n, with the second syllable being just a silent rest and preparation to pronounce the third. This will be barely noticed during normal speech, but it is important. Doubles not pronounced correctly will be noticed by native listeners. When said correctly, ippun will be heard as "eep-poon," not "ee-poon."
•r - this is like the Spanish r, so ri should sound like a lightly pronounced dee
•d - because r sounds like a light d, d has a more distinct d sound
Japanese consonants are not thought of as having their own sound, except for n. All of the others always appear combined with a vowel, with the vowel coming after the consonant, like ka, for example. This combination of one consonant and one vowel makes only one "letter" in the Japanese alphabet, and to the Japanese mind represents only one sound. This is a very important point to remember when studying Japanese.
There are also a few letters which have combined consonants like shi, chi, and tsu. Again, each of these look like 3 letters to us, but they are each viewed as one in Japanese.
As with vowels, consonants also have doubles. Doubled consonants are found in compound words like ippun, which means "one minute." The difficulty in pronouncing the double consonant is that there's nothing to pronounce; it's just the trick of "holding" the pronunciation so that the "time value" of the double is recognized, just like with the vowels. When pronouncing ippun, you should be giving equal time to the 4 syllables: i-p-pu-n, with the second syllable being just a silent rest and preparation to pronounce the third. This will be barely noticed during normal speech, but it is important. Doubles not pronounced correctly will be noticed by native listeners. When said correctly, ippun will be heard as "eep-poon," not "ee-poon."
