Haii minna, today we're gonna discuss Japanese suffix and honorifics!
Have you guys ever wondered what is the meaning of -san, -chan,-tan,-chii,-senpai,-sensei and other Japanese suffix ? Im gonna explain at least the basics.. heree wee goooo....
Politeness has always been a critical facet of Japanese Culture. Ever since the feudal era, when Japan was a highly stratified society,use of honorifics, which can also be defined as polite speech that relationship or status-has played an essential role in the Japanese language. When addressing someone in Japanese, a honorific usually takes the form of a suffix attached to one's name (example for me , Sachi-san) , is used as a title at the end of one's name (its just like Mr or Mrs in simple english) OR, it can appear in place of the name itself (example:"Nishikawa-sensei", or simply "sensei"!).
Honorifics can be expressed of respect or endearment. In the context of anime and manga, honorifics give insight to the nature of the relationship between characters. Many english translators leave out these important honorifics and therefore distort the feel of original Japanese (which I hate fyi TT^TT)
-san : the most common honorific and is equivalent to Mr.,Mrs.,Miss, or Ms.Its the all-purpose honorific and can be used in any situation where politeness is required
-sama : this is one level higher than -san.
-dono : this comes from the word "tono", which means "Lord" . It is an even higher level than "-sama" and confers utmost respect
-kun : this suffix is used at the end of boys' names to express familiarity or endearment. It is also used sometimes by men among friends, or when addressing someone younger or of a lower station.
-chan : it is used to express endearment, mostly toward girls. It is also used for little boys, pets and even among lovers.It gives a sense of childness cuteness
Bozu : this is an informal way to refer to a boy, similar to the english terms "kid" and "squirt".
Sempai/senpai : this title suggests that the addressee is one's senior in a group or organisation. It is most often used in a school setting, where underclassmen refer to their upperclassmen as "sempai" . It can also be used in a workplace, such as when a newer employee addresses an employee who has a seniority in the company.
Kohai : this is the opposite of "senpai" and is used towards underclassmen in school or newcomers in the workplace.It connotes that the addressee is of a lower station
Sensei : Literally meaning "one who has come before" . This title is used for teachers, doctors or masters of any proffesion or art.
-(blank, no honorific used) : This is usually forgotten in these lists, but is the most significant difference between Japanese and English. The lack of honorific means that the speaker has permission to address the person in a very intimate way.Usually, only family, spouses,or very close friends have this kind of permission. Known as yobisute, it can be gratifying when someone who has earned the intimacy starts to call one by ones' name without a honorific.But when that intimacy hasn't been earned, it can be very insulting
truly very proud of Japan, theyr politeness, theyr calmness when that 9M earthquake struck them, so diciplined, so clever .. I LOVE JAPAN!!!!
Have you guys ever wondered what is the meaning of -san, -chan,-tan,-chii,-senpai,-sensei and other Japanese suffix ? Im gonna explain at least the basics.. heree wee goooo....
Politeness has always been a critical facet of Japanese Culture. Ever since the feudal era, when Japan was a highly stratified society,use of honorifics, which can also be defined as polite speech that relationship or status-has played an essential role in the Japanese language. When addressing someone in Japanese, a honorific usually takes the form of a suffix attached to one's name (example for me , Sachi-san) , is used as a title at the end of one's name (its just like Mr or Mrs in simple english) OR, it can appear in place of the name itself (example:"Nishikawa-sensei", or simply "sensei"!).
Honorifics can be expressed of respect or endearment. In the context of anime and manga, honorifics give insight to the nature of the relationship between characters. Many english translators leave out these important honorifics and therefore distort the feel of original Japanese (which I hate fyi TT^TT)
-san : the most common honorific and is equivalent to Mr.,Mrs.,Miss, or Ms.Its the all-purpose honorific and can be used in any situation where politeness is required
-sama : this is one level higher than -san.
-dono : this comes from the word "tono", which means "Lord" . It is an even higher level than "-sama" and confers utmost respect
-kun : this suffix is used at the end of boys' names to express familiarity or endearment. It is also used sometimes by men among friends, or when addressing someone younger or of a lower station.
-chan : it is used to express endearment, mostly toward girls. It is also used for little boys, pets and even among lovers.It gives a sense of childness cuteness
Bozu : this is an informal way to refer to a boy, similar to the english terms "kid" and "squirt".
Sempai/senpai : this title suggests that the addressee is one's senior in a group or organisation. It is most often used in a school setting, where underclassmen refer to their upperclassmen as "sempai" . It can also be used in a workplace, such as when a newer employee addresses an employee who has a seniority in the company.
Kohai : this is the opposite of "senpai" and is used towards underclassmen in school or newcomers in the workplace.It connotes that the addressee is of a lower station
Sensei : Literally meaning "one who has come before" . This title is used for teachers, doctors or masters of any proffesion or art.
-(blank, no honorific used) : This is usually forgotten in these lists, but is the most significant difference between Japanese and English. The lack of honorific means that the speaker has permission to address the person in a very intimate way.Usually, only family, spouses,or very close friends have this kind of permission. Known as yobisute, it can be gratifying when someone who has earned the intimacy starts to call one by ones' name without a honorific.But when that intimacy hasn't been earned, it can be very insulting
truly very proud of Japan, theyr politeness, theyr calmness when that 9M earthquake struck them, so diciplined, so clever .. I LOVE JAPAN!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment