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April 29, 2025
 

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NIHONGO

Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 5, 2016
'Tis the season for 'tegami' — and for facing your Japanese letter-writing fears
There are elements of etiquette involved in letter-writing that can make students of Japanese stop before they even start.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Dec 5, 2016
In denial with 'wake ga nai' and 'hazu ga nai'
Introducing two expressions — u308fu3051u304cu306au3044 and u306fu305au304cu306au3044 — that express strong denial.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Dec 5, 2016
AI robot fails to get into Tokyo University
A team of researchers has failed to develop a robot smart enough to get into Japan's top university.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 28, 2016
Some Japanese find frustration, others freedom in foreign tongues
The Japanese have never been skilled at communication, but they have been able to fall back on the belief that everyone understood each other without saying anything. Unfortunately, this has never applied to non-Japanese.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Nov 28, 2016
Be inspiring, break the news gently or just buy some time with versatile 'saa'
Introducing some uses of the interjection u3055u3042 (saa), which is often heard in spoken language.
LIFE / Language
Nov 28, 2016
Record 20 million foreign visitors to Japan estimated for year so far
Sample newspaper article
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 21, 2016
Painful bloopers in Japanese can be valuable learning experiences
While working on the island of Guam in the early 1970s, I had regular business dealings with the expat Japanese business community — basically a good-natured crowd who were used to hearing locals mangle their language on a daily basis.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Nov 21, 2016
Taking things to the wire with 'girigiri' and 'suresure'
Introducing the proper uses of two similar expressions — u304eu308au304eu308aand u3059u308cu3059u308c .
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 14, 2016
Japanese translators forced to grab the Trump bull by the horns
A look at how the U.S. president-elect's words have been relayed in Japanese may help explain the source of uncertainty and concern here about his election.
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Nov 14, 2016
With 'bun,' get your share in Japanese — or as much as you put in
Introducing some expressions using u5206 (u3076u3093), which means 'share,' 'part' or 'portion.'
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Nov 14, 2016
Bob Dylan wins Nobel Prize in literature
U.S. music legend Bob Dylan is the first songwriter to win the Nobel Prize in literature in the award's 115-year history.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 7, 2016
Strength and tradition draw women back to sumo world
Let's face it, where else are we going to watch a lot of large, near-naked men wrestle each other in a tiny dirt arena?
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Nov 7, 2016
Articulating the unknown, unreliable or just plain dodgy with 'ayashii'
Introducing some uses of the adjective u3042u3084u3057u3044, which means 'dubious' or 'strange.'
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Nov 7, 2016
Pepper gets to work in Taiwan
Pepper, SoftBank Corp.'s humanoid robot, has started work at a bank and a life insurer in Taiwan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 31, 2016
Why you won't learn natural Japanese from dubbed foreign TV
It seems that in Japanese dubbing there is always something found rather than lost in translation — something that wasn't in the English original and is not part of regular Japanese either.
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Oct 31, 2016
Using 'kiri' in Japanese to leave it at that
Introduce some uses of u304du308a, which is used to set limits on things.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Oct 31, 2016
Tokyo University ranked 4th best in Asia
The University of Tokyo ranked 39th in this year's Times Higher Education list, making it the fourth best institution of higher learning in Asia.
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Oct 24, 2016
Getting quite a lot across with 'kanari' and 'daibu'
Introducing the use of two adverbs, u304bu306au308a and u3060u3044u3076, that show the degree of something.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Oct 24, 2016
Tokyo cell scientist gets Nobel prize
Japanese scientist Yoshinori Ohsumi was awarded this year's Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for explaining the processes whereby proteins are degraded and recycled.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 24, 2016
Whenever you meet katakana, expect the unexpected
A second dive into some of the many ways the katakana syllabary is put to use when writing Japanese.
China seizes disputed reef near key Philippine military outpost
China Coast Guard officers unfurl a national flag on Sandy Cay reef, near the Philippine-held Thitu Island, in disputed waters of the South China Sea this month in this screen shot taken from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami
A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
California says it overtakes Japan to become world’s No. 4 economy
Vehicles travel along the 110 freeway in downtown Los Angeles. California's GDP has overtaken Japan's to become the world's fourth largest economy, according to the U.S. state.
Arunima Mazumdar: ‘Japanese literature has a niche but deeply engaged readership in India’
Arunima Mazumdar, a New Delhi-based communications professional, began sharing her love of Japanese literature online in 2022. The platform has grown into a robust community known as Dokusha Book Club.
Counting the reasons why there are so few American cars in Japan
Tesla's store in Tokyo's Shibuya district. While sales of American cars in Japan appear to be shrinking, Tesla's presence in the country is growing.
U.S. secretary of the navy weighs ‘dual-use’ shipbuilding with Japan
John Phelan at a Senate confirmation hearing for U.S. secretary of the navy in Washington in February
Expo '25 gives the world a masterclass in mascots
2025 Osaka Expo mascot Myaku-Myaku dances on the stage during the event's official opening ceremony on April 12.
Japan struggles with gray zone of AI deepfakes exploiting children
AI-generated content — including those made using pictures of real people, which are known as “deepfakes” — is not explicitly covered under Japan's current legal framework, nor are human-drawn illustrations that depict child abuse.
‘Wildcat Dome’ challenges Japan's historical narratives
On the surface, "Wildcat Dome" tells a personal story of damaged children — now adults — bound together by tragedy. Underneath, there’s a constant undercurrent of political consequence, invisible and pervasive like radioactive particles.
Reclaiming Sanya, one meal at a time
Magokoro Yoshihira (center) is the managing director of Yui Associates, which operates the neighborhood fixtures of Sanya Cafe and Juyoh Hotel. Yusuke Takahashi (left) met Yoshihira during a difficult period in his life and now works as the cafe’s chef. Nancy Anne (right) has worked for over 10 years at Juyoh Hotel and enjoys the multicultural environment.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami
By Alex K.T. Martin

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