Archive for the year 2008
Japanese Writing System Posted by Ginny on Dec 12, 2008
For those of you who are completely new to the Japanese language, this post might be interesting to you. The Japanese language consists of three different writing systems. Learning all three writing systems is one of the challenges that Japanese learners face. Let’s start with the most common writing system, the hiragana (ひらがな). Hiragana (ひらがな)…
Japanese Numbers: Suuji (すうじ) Posted by Ginny on Dec 11, 2008
Learning Japanese suuji (すうじ) or numerals can be confusing and daunting at the same time. In particular, the number four can pose some tricky problems. Do not fear, I’m here to save the day! Aren’t you glad I’m here! Haha, just kidding. Let’s go on with our discussion of numbers. For starters, the numeral four…
Japanese Food: Shoochuu (しょうちゅう) Posted by Ginny on Dec 9, 2008
Next to sake (さけ) shoochuu (しょうちゅう) is easily one of the more preferred alcoholic drinks in Japan. A lot of people mistake shoochuu (しょうちゅう) for sake (さけ), but the two are very different from each other. Shoochuu (しょうちゅう) is a lot stronger than sake (さけ) in terms of alcohol content. Kyuushuu (九州) an island province…
Japanese Funerals Posted by Ginny on Nov 16, 2008
Have you ever seen or experienced the traditional rites that are carried out in a Japanese funeral? Talking about death and thinking about the prospect of death can be a bit depressing, but hopefully you’ll still get something educational out of this post. Before the funeral takes place, the relatives of the dead place six coins…
Japanese Culture: Shichi-Go-San (七五三) Festival Posted by Ginny on Nov 15, 2008
Today is a day of pride for parents who have three, five or seven year old girls or boys. Every year on the 15th of November, children ages 3, 5, and 7 celebrate a rite of passage on the Shichi-Go-San (七五三) festival. Shichi (七) means seven in Japanese, while go (五) = five and accordingly san…
Japanese Food: Kyoodo Ryoori (郷土料理) Posted by Ginny on Nov 14, 2008
Kyoodo ryoori (郷土料理) translates to “regional specialities” in English. By “specialities” I mean a dish or cuisine that a particular region in Japan is famous for; and in which tourists flock to the region to try out the local cuisine. Every month or so I plan on highlighting a particular region with the food they…
Japanese Food: Ocha (おちゃ) Posted by Ginny on Nov 13, 2008
Ocha (おちゃ) is the Japanese word for tea. Japanese tea is important to the Japanese culture. It serves many important functions. Sometimes ocha (おちゃ) is served for the purpose of relaxation, sometimes for ceremony, and at other times it can serve as a source of treatment for one’s health. There are many different kinds of tea…