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~~ Indira Gandhi National Open University

~ School ofF oreign Languages
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BASIC JAPANESE :1

Introduction to Japanese Language 1

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"Education is a liberating force, and in

our age it is also a democratising force,
cutting across the barriers of caste 'Jnd
class, smoothing out inequalities imposed
by birth and other circumstances. "
- Indira Gandhi

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f) Indira Gandhi
National Open University
School of Foreign Languages Basic Japanese: 1

Block

1
INTRODUCTION TO JAPANESE LANGUAGE
UNIT 1
Structure 7

UNIT 2
Pronunciation 9

UNIT 3
Writing System 10

UNIT 4
Writing Hiragana and Katakana 15

UNIT 5
Cultural Input 16
Prof. Sushama Jain IGNOU Faculty
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Prof. Renu Bhardwaj
New Delhi
Prof. Santosh Panda
Ms. Neera Kongari
Jawaharlal Nehru University Prof. Rita Rani Paliwal
New Delhi
Prof. Anju Sehgal Gupta
Ms. V. Ramalakshmi
University of Delhi, Delhi
Mr. Tatsuya Hiraga
Japan Foundation New Delhi Office
New Delhi
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Course Preparation & Editing

Prof. Sushama Jain Mr. Tatsuya Hiraga
Jawaharlal Nchru University Japan Foundation New Delhi Office
New Delhi New Delhi
Ms. Neera Kongari
Jawaharlal Nehru University
New Delhi
1\1. vt Ramalakshmi
University of Delhi
Delhi III () ( , ., n 1 _r

'Programme Coordinator T\rr. Shivajt R' as' ':'11'

Illustrations Ms. Konomi Hoshina

Audio Recording Mr. Ryo Shiga, Ms. Izumi Asakuno
Production
Sh. Ashwani Kaura Sh. K. Mohanan
Dy. Registrar(P) Section Officer(P)
IGNOU IGNOU
M-I <)-0/1:
© Indira Gandhi National Open University,
ISBN·978·81·266·3604-4

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form, by
mimeograph or any other means, without permission in writing from the Copyright
holder.
Further information on the Indira Gandhi National Open University courses
may be obtained from the University's office at Maidan Garhi, New Delhi-l l 0
068 or the official website of IGNOU at www.ignou.ac.in.

Printed and published on behalf of Indira Gandhi National Open University, New
Delhi by Director, School of Foreign Languages, IGNOU.
Laser typeset by : HD Computer Craft, WZ-36A Lajwanti Garden, New Delhi-46
Printed at :Berry Art Press, A-g. Maya Puri, Phase-1, Oelhi-11 0064
BLOCK INTRODUCTION

This is the first block of this course in which we will introduce to you the basic
structure of the Japanese language and also its similarities with the Indian languages.
We will familiarize you with the Japanese sounds. We have also provided you
with ; '.
. a video programme, Gateway to Japan which wi 11help you to learn the
Japanese sounds and syllables.

We will teach you some aspects of Japanese culture which a learner of the
language is expected to know in the initial stages. After completion ofthis b.ock.you
will be able to read and write hiragana. We expect you to practice hiragana
well and be able to read and write before proceeding to Block 2, where you will
start learning the language.

The activities given in this Block will further help you understand the structure and
pronunciation of Japanese language and also to get an idea of some aspects of
Japanese culture.

We hope you enjoy learning Japanese language and culture introduced in this
block and find the audio and video programmes useful.
I~) .
PROGRAMME INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the Certificate Programme in Japanese Language!

India's contact with Japan dates back to the sixth Century AD when Buddhism
reached Japan from India via China and Korea. Bodhisena was the first Buddhist
scholar-monk to set foot on Japanese soil from India on the occasion of the
consecration of the statue of Great Buddha at Todaiji temple in Nara. In those
days, our country was known to the Japanese people as Tenjiku.

With the opening ofthe Indian economy, Indo-Japan relations have grown beyond
the realm of religion and culture. The strengthening of economic relations between
the two countries has led to an increase injob opportunities for people knowing
Japanese language in India. This, in turn, has resulted in a rapidly growing interest
in the study of Japanese language in the country. However, educational institutions
offering Japanese language courses are few in number and limited to metropolitan
cities, and thus are unable to meet the ever growing demand for Japanese language
studies. This Certificate Course in Japanese Language is being launched to fill this
gap, and we hope that it will facilitate the learning of Japanese language in remote
areas ofthe country. It also needs to be mentioned and with great satisfaction that
for the first time in India, a programme in Japanese language is being offered
through distance mode.

This Certificate programme comprises 4 courses of 3 blocks each and a total of

58 units.

The block-wise arrangement of the 16 credit Certificate Programme is as follows:

Block 1 (Units 1~5) Introduction to Japanese Language

Block 2 (Units 6~ 10) Greetings and Self-Introduction

Block 3 (Units 11~ 15) Days, Dates; Counting in Japanese

Block 4 (Units 16~20) Describing Things

~lock 5 (Units 2l~25) Kinship Terms; Seasons in Japan

Block 6 (Units 26~30) Conjunctions; Verbs of Giving and Receiving

Block 7 (Units 31~35) Talking About Daily Activities

Block 8 (Units 36~40) Expressing Desires

Block 9 (Units 41~45) Talking Over the Phone

Block 10 (Units 46~50) Making a Request, Talking About One's Experience

Block 11 (Units 51~54) Making Comparisons, Talking About lllnesses

Block 12 (Units 55~58) Aspects of Japanese Life and Culture

The print material is integrated with an audio CD being provided to you along
with the material.
UNIT 1 STRUCTURE
Japanese language is not very difficult for Indians to learn.

There are many similarities between Japanese and Indian languages.

Order of words in a sentence

Sentences in Japanese follow the SOY order i.e. subject-object-verb order.

The object and verb follow the subject, and verb comes at the end of the
sentence, which is similar to Indian languages.

Ex:

(subject) (object) (verb)

watshiwa hon'o yorrumasu.

I book read

This is different from English where the word order in a sentence is subject-verb-
object (SVO).

(subject) (verb) (object)

I read the book.

There are other similarities between the two languages, which we willleam in due
course. However, there are some basic differences too. It is characteristic of
Japanese that the verbs are not affected by number, person and I or gender. In
other words, whether the subject is singular/plural/masculine/feminine or whether
it is first/second/third person, the verb does not change. This makes it easy to
learn Japanese.

Ex:

(Singular) Ladka kitab padhata hai. Otoko no ko ga hon' 0 yomimasu.

(Plural) Ladke kitab padhate hain. Otoko no ko ga hon' 0 yomimasu.

Please note that in the case of Japanese, unlike in Hindi, there is no change in the
verb.

(Masculine, third person) Ladka kitab padhata hai. Otoko no ko ga hon'o

yomimasu.

(Feminine, third person) Ladki kitab padhati hai. Onna no ko ga hon'o

yomimasu.

(Feminine, first person) Main kitab padhati hoon. Watashiwa hori'o

yomimasu.

'7
Introduction to Particles
Japanese Language

Unlike the prepositions in English which occur before nouns, particles in

Japanese are post positions i.e. they follow the nouns. In this respect too,

Japanese is similar to Indian languages.

Ex:

Arun went to school. Arunsanwa gakkoog ikimashita.

Arun school to went

Activity

Given below are some sentences in English and their meanings in Japanese written
in Roman letters. The Japanese equivalents ofthe English words are also given.
Appropriate particles have been added to the words.

Choose the correct sentence in Japanese.

1. Usha went to the bank. (went = ikimashita, bank = ginkoo)

a) Ushasanwa ikimashita ginkooe.

b) Ushasanwa ginkooe ikimashita.

2. Hema will go to Japan. (Japan = Nihon, will go = ikimasu)

a) HemasanwaNihone ikimasu.

b) Hemasanwa iki masu Nihone.

3. Anju wrote a letter. (wrote = kakimashita, letter=tegami)

a) Anjusanwa kakimashita tegamio.

b) Anjusanwategamio kakimashita,

4. Akash read the newspaper. (read = yomimashita, newspaper = shimbun)

a) Akashsanwa yornimashtia shimbuno.

b) Akashsanwa shimbuno yomimashita.

5. Arun learns Japanese language.

(learns = naraimasu, Japanese language = nihongo)

a) Arunsanwa nihongoo naraimasu.

b) Arunsanwa naraimasu nihongoo.

8
UNIT 2 PRONUNCIATION
Vowels

There are five vowels, a, i, u, e and o. They are pronounced more or less as -
31 ~ '3l lJ; and .m in Hindi.

The long vowels are pronounced roughly double the length of the short vowels.

The vowels are treated as separate syllables, so the word 'gozaimasu' will be
pronounced as "go-za-i-ma-su '. Long and short vowels should be pronounced
clearly to convey the correct meaning.

Some examples are given below to show the importance of correct pronunciation:

Kuki stalk, stem kuuki aIr

Kite kudasai please come kiite kudasai please listen

For indicating long sounds the vowel is repeated.

Ex: aa 11 uu ee 00

Please refer to the videos .programme, Let's Learn Hiragana, and learn
the correct pronunciation.
 UNIT 3 THE WRITING SYSTEM
Origin of the writing system in Japan

Japanese did not have a writing system of their own till around the fifth century
A.D. when they borrowed the pictorial script (Kanji) from China. Later they
developed their own phonetic scripts, Hiragana and Katakana. Hiragana is the
simplified version of Kanji and Katakana is a part of Kanji.

Ex Kanji Hiragana Katakana Romanization

71; 0) / no
.l), It \

fA r:/) me

1= ~~ n

~ It. na

Hiragana is used to write words of Japanese origin and Katakana is generally

used to write words borrowed from foreign languages. For instance, names of
places and people in India are to be written in Katakana. Modem Japanese is
written using all the three scripts, hiragana, katakana and kanji.

Ex: C'To (I am Usha)

Kanji Hiragana Katakana Hiragana

10
 • Writing System
a 1 u e 0

~
19J tt' ? '"
A. :to
k tJ~ ~ < ~t --
'--
ka ki ku ke ko

s ~ L -9 it ~

sa shi su se so

t t-c.. 'b -o -C ~

ta chi tsu te to

n it. ~~ 'd;l t1 (J)

na nl• nu ne no

h ,:t '(} ~
./'...,.
~1
ha hi fu he ho

m ~
:Ij- tf ~ t
ma rm• mu me mo

y ~ ~
cl:
ya yu yo

r c:, ~ Q tL 0
ra rl
. ru re ro

w V ~

wa 0

Iv
n
11
Introduction to
Japanese Language g iJ~ ri'
.
<~ ~f -"go
'--
ga gI gu ge

z ~' e.. --r if 7C

za JI zu ze zo

d r: e.. --r if 7C
da JI zu ze zo

b 'i V ~ ~ " ,t
ba bi bu be bo

p ~t lJ ~ ~
0
,£
pa pI
. pu pe po

~~ ~~ ~J:
kya kyu kyo

ri'~ ri'~ ri'J:

gya gyu gyo

~~ ~~
,
~J:
sha shu sho

e~ e~ eJ:
.
Ja
.
JU
.
JO

i:J~ i:J~ i:JJ:

cha chu cho

~~~ ~~ ~ ~~ J:
nya nyu nyo
1'7
 Writing System
O~ O~ OJ:
bya byu byo

V~ V~ VJ:
bya byu byo

V~ V~ V~
pya pyu pyo
J-;..~ J-;..~ J-;..J:
my a myu myo

~~ ~ ~ ~ J:
rya ryu ryo

•
a I u e 0

7 -1 1) .::r: /.t

k jJ :t- ? Jr ::z
ka ki ku ke ko

s ~ V A --e '/

sa shi su Se so
...-
t ~
7- 'Y T r
ta cbi tsu te to

n T - )(
-* /
na
.
nl nu ne no
13
Introduction to
1:: 7 .r<;
h
*
Japanese Language /'\

ha hi fu he ho

m ~
...•.
...•.
...••. A I- .::c
ma nu
. mu me mo

y -y .;::L :3
ya yu yo
-t
,

r -
7 !J It" i- tr

ra rl
. ru re ro

w ? '7
wa 0

n .'

Activity

I Answer the following questions.

i) Which ofthe following is a hiragana?

~li
IHJ t +
ii) Which of the following is a katakana?

iii) Which of the following are kanji scripts?

11 Practise writing hiragana.

14
UNIT4 WRITINGHlRAGANAANDKATAKANA
It is very important to follow the correct stroke order while writing Hiragana and
Katakana.

15
 UNIT 5 CULTURAL INPUT
A language is embedded in the culture ofthe country where it is spoken. Hence
it is very important to learn a little about Japanese culture before we start learning
the language.

In this unit we will introduce to you some aspects of Japanese culture.

1. Greetings (Aisatsus

Some of the common Japanese greetings are as follows:

1. Ohayoo gozaimasu. -when one gets up and meets a person for the first time in
the morning.

2. Oyasuminasai- is said when one goes to bed.

3. Itadakimasu- when one begins to eat a meal.

4. Gochisoosama deshita- when one finishes eating a meal.

5. Itte kimasu- when one leaves home.

6. Tadaima- when one returns home.

7. Itte irrashai- when one sees off someone.

8. Okaerinasai- when one welcomes someone back home.

9. Sayoonara, ja mata- when one parts with someone who is not a family
member.

10. Konnichiwa- when one meets someone during the day.

11. Kombanwa- when meeting someone in the evening after sunset.

12. Omedetoo Gozaimasu- when one wants to congratulate someone

13. Ojama shimasu- while entering someone's house

14. Gomen kudasai- at the entrance of someone's house, shop etc. to draw
attention when nobody can be seen around/inside.

15. Dewa, shitsurei shimasu- when excusing oneself to take leave of others.

16. Hajimemashite, doozo yoroshiku- When meeting someone for the first time.

17. Ohisashiburi desu / shibaraku desu - when meeting someone after a long
time.
16
18. Doomo- It is an informal, convenient and frequently used greeting, which is Cultural Input

uttered when passing by someone on the way, or for saying thank you, sorry,
or excuse me.

Besides these there are some non-verbal greetings of which bowing in front of
others is the most characteristic.

The Japanese avoid physical contact such as handshaking, embracing etc. when
greeting each other.

There are three kinds of bow:

1. Deep bow is used when one is introduced formally/ while accepting a gift / when
asking one's senior/superior for a favor etc.

2. A light bow- used when meeting friends and acquaintances.

3. A very light bow is used towards one's subordinates or juniors, or while

passing by an acquaintance. The Japanese like to maintain a physical distance
between the speaker and the hearer.

The distance should be such that while greeting, the heads do not bang into each
other.Also, the Japanese feel uncomfortable being too close to a person physically.

2. Visiting someone's house

When visiting a Japanese house one must take off one's shoes near the entrance
inside the house and change into slippers which are kept there ready to be worn.
This is because, traditionally, the Japanese people sit, sleep and eat on the floor
in a Japanese style room which is fitted with "tatarni" (straw mats).

The rooms generally do not have any furniture, except a low table.

The rooms inside the house are partitioned by sliding doors called "fusuma"
which are opaque. "shooji" another type of sliding door which leads one to the
outside of the house.

3. Terms of address

It is not customary in Japan to address a person by the first name. They are
usually addressed by their surname followed by 'san', which is equivalent to 'ji'
in Hindi, or by the kinship term such as 'oj isan', 'uncle' or 'obasan', ' aunt' ,
"oneesan", "oniisan" and so on. However, the younger members ofthe family are
addressed by their first names, and usually the younger girls are addressed by
their first names to which 'chan', a variation of san is suffixed.

Besides the surnames, people are addressed by their occupation to which 'sari'
is suffixed. For instance, 'yaoyasan' is used for a green grocer(yaoya means a
vegetable and fruit shop) or by their titles, e.g. 'shachoo', President of a company.

l7
Introduction to Teachers, instructors, physicians, artists, writers, lawyers and politicians are
Japanese Language addressed as 'sensee'. 'Anata' which is a semi-polite 'you' is generally avoided
by the speaker.

In conversation both the first person pronoun 'watashi' ( I ) and the second
person pronoun 'anata' (you) are often dropped as it can easily be understood
from the context and the use of these may seem superfluous.

4. Polite Expressions

It is customary that the Japanese people take great care, while speaking, not to
hurt the other person's feelings. Even when the speaker is older and senior, ifthe
listener is an outsider, the speaker uses the polite and humble form ofthe speech.

The Japanese society is marked by vertical hierarchy, which is reflected in their

speech too.

Some polite forms, and only a few set honorific expressions / phrases will be
taught in this course. They can be used by the speaker safely with people of all
ages and ranks.

5. Short responses (Aizuchi)

Aizuchi are short responses to assure the speaker that the listener is attentive to
his talk. 'Hai' is the most commonly used aizuchi which does not have the meaning
of 'yes' but means 'certainly', 'O.K.', 'very well', 'I see' and 'ji' or 'accha' in
Hindi.

6. Exchange of Visiting Cards

The Japanese people exchange name cards when they meet for the first time,
irrespective of their position in the company or office.

While handing over the visiting card, it should be held with both hands in such a
I

way that the receiver is able to read the name as he receives the card without the
need to turn it around. Of course, the person should bow while handing over the
card.

Activity

1. What do you say in Japanese on the following occasions?

i) When you meet someone for the first time.

ii) When you finish eating a meal.

ill) While entering someone's house.

18
 iv) When meeting someone after a long time. Cultural Input

v) When you leave home.

2) Which ofthe following is the term of address for your teacher?

a) san b) sensee c) shachoo

19
NOTES
 SOFL-IGNOU-P.O.1 T/Sept, 2008

ISBN-978-81-266-3604-4