Language | NEWS IN NIHONGO Mar 31, 2020
Local governments short on volunteer interpreters in emergencies
A Kyodo story looks at the lack of multilingual volunteers that would be able to help Southeast Asian communities in Japan in an emergency.
Language | NEWS IN NIHONGO Mar 24, 2020
An expert committee that advises the “Mount Fuji World Cultural Heritage Council” working group comprised of prefectures such as Yamanashi and Shizuoka, had confirmed a discussion as of (Feb.) 18th for an entrance fee for Mount Fuji.
Language | WELL SAID Mar 24, 2020
Pointing out the family with 'ni ataru'
by Akemi Tanahashi and Hitomi Toshiro
Mari-chan wa Nana no obasan ni ataru. (Mari is Nana’s aunt.) ...
Language | BILINGUAL Mar 24, 2020
Can’t find tissues? Get some towels, it’s moving time
by Kaori Shoji
It’s a bad time to run out of toilet paper and tissues. March is a month of big life changes in Japan such as 入学 (nyūgaku, entering university), 入社 (nyūsha, entering a company) and 転勤 (tenkin, company transfers), and those will often require your ...
Language | BILINGUAL Mar 17, 2020
Looking for luck in Japanese amid a pandemic
by Haruka Murayama
It's St. Patrick's Day and with the spread of coronavirus taking place it's a good time to talk about lucky charms.
Language | WELL SAID Mar 17, 2020
Celebrating special occasions with 'ni atatte' and 'ni saishite'
by Akemi Tanahashi and Hitomi Toshiro
A more formal construction, "ni atatte" is used when you are marking the occasion. "Ni saishite" has a similar nuance, think of both as a fancy way to say "when."
Language | NEWS IN NIHONGO Mar 17, 2020
Tradition has come down with the flu this year as the virus known as COVID-19 has people rethinking their party plans.
Language | NEWS IN NIHONGO Mar 10, 2020
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a "request" to close schools, not an "order." Let's look at the language of a Kyodo News piece on the subject.
Language | BILINGUAL Mar 7, 2020
Your Japanese vocabulary can expand as the new coronavirus spreads
by Daniel Morales
When news of a virus began to surface we took the opportunity to review the Japanese for things like "symptoms" and "cough." Now we're learning terms like "pandemic" and "state of emergency."
National Mar 4, 2020
Some areas short of Japanese-language teachers for foreign youth
Some areas in Japan are struggling to secure enough public school staff to teach Japanese to children with foreign roots, amid a recent surge in the number of such students in the country, a Kyodo News survey showed Wednesday. The city of Yokohama, Saitama Prefecture ...
Language | BILINGUAL Mar 3, 2020
'Emergency' Japanese can help build fluency
by Daniel Morales
One trick to improving your fluency in Japanese is to keep a list of stock phrases that can be deployed in multiple situations.