Close friend, best friend, childhood friend, BFF – we describe our friendships in English using adjectives before the word ‘friend’. We can also use other words for people we know from work and school, such as colleague, acquaintance, peer, and so on. So it should come as no surprise that Japanese has more than one … Read more
Ever wondered what to do when celebrating your birthday in Japan? Or how the Japanese celebrate birthdays? Or most importantly – how to say ‘happy birthday’ in Japanese? We’ve got you covered! Up until the 1950s, celebrating birthdays in Japan was not customary. In fact, they considered every new year a common birthday for everyone! … Read more
When we say ‘yes’ in Japanese, there is actually more than one way to express our agreement depending on the situation and who we’re talking to! The first word we encounter when we’re learning how to say ‘yes’ in Japanese is hai (はい). But there are many other words and phrases you can use together … Read more
The first thing you need to know about saying ‘you’ in Japanese is that… you probably shouldn’t say it! Anata (あなた) is the direct translation of ‘you’ but it’s rarely used by native speakers and sounds offensive if not used correctly. If you really need to say it, the unspoken rule of how to say … Read more
The leaves are changing colour, the days are getting shorter, there’s a nip in the air… Autumn is here! (Or fall, depending on where you’re from ? ) Perhaps you already know that the seasons are very important in Japan. In Japanese culture, people honour the changes in the seasons with foods, drinks, customs, festivals … Read more
Chances are you already know that watashi means ‘I’ in Japanese. We hate to break it you but… there are more than 10 other ways to say ‘I’. Yikes! We’ve decided to help you out by writing an entire article on how to say I in Japanese. Just like Japanese honorifics, deciding how to say … Read more
The Japanese are known for their politeness, but because of their polite nature, it can be hard to say no in a straightforward way. That’s why there are many ways to say no in Japanese! The most direct way to say ‘no’ in Japanese is iie (いいえ). But just like in English, there are many … Read more
We all know that Japan is famous worldwide for being a polite culture. Japanese honorifics are one of the ways that people show this respect when speaking to each other. “Honorific” means to give or show honor or respect. Honorifics are small words that come before a name (a prefix) or after a name (a … Read more