You may already know that, in Japanese, you add a polite little something at the end of someone's name: ~san, ~sama, ~chan, ~kun... actually, there are lot more honorific name enders than that. And there are a lot of rules for using them correctly, too. The Tofugu team discusses seven common names enders and how to use them, not to mention nine historical/obscure name enders that are good to know. For more honorific goodness, check out the article we wrote, Listenersan: https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/name-enders/
Have you ever wondered why Ren " is hitobito and not hitohito, or even hitopito? Or why it's tegami instead of tekami, or kusabana and not kusahana? It's all because of a little thing called rendaku, or "sequential voicing," which we talk about in this episode. While most Japanese teachers will just say, "it's a mystery," we'll teach you the rules that make things rendaku or not, and the exceptions in between. Of course, we couldn't explain EVERYTHING. For that, you'll have to jump over to our very in-depth rendaku article on Tofugu: https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/rendaku
Hi, it's me, Sensei Jeff. I'm here to teach all you white belts how to count in Japanese. Punch! Punch! Punch! (Actually, we teach you how to count from zero to uh... a mysterious number. And, we teach you how to count in the Japanese style, rather than the Chinese style that's more common. It's a pretty neat episode, despite sounding so basic. Read more about it in our article!) https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/counting-in-japanese Featuring: Koichi, Michael, and Mami (for the first time!)
Get Brian's Book, Japanese Whisky: The Ultimate Guide to the World's Most Desirable Spirit - https://amzn.to/2NAEqPR Michael and Koichi interview Brian Ashcraft-author of several Japan-related books-about his latest book, Japanese Whisky: The Ultimate Guide to the World's Most Desirable Spirit. He tells us what makes Japanese whisky "Japanese" as well as what a whisky rookie should try first (and where to get it).
Read more about Genki: http://www.tofugu.com/japanese/genki-meaning/ Everyone learns "o genki desu ka" when they begin their Japanese language education. But the truth is real people don't say it that much. So, how do you ACTUALLY use genki? We cover genki's use cases, its history, etymology, and more.
Read more about chiyotsuto in our article: http://www.tofugu.com/japanese/chotto/ We talk about chiyotsuto. At first it seems like a simple, little word. But, it actually has many meanings and ways to use it. We cover most of them, I think.
In this episode we get into Japanese pronunciation. Whether you are a beginner, advanced, or fluent, you'll find something in this episode that will help you to improve your pronunciation. To read more, check out our (really in-depth) guide: https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/japanese-pronunciation/
Prefer reading instead? We wrote a whole article about this (even more example sentences included!) https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/komu-compound-verbs Have you ever seen the Japanese verb Ip mu? On its own, it means "to be packed" or "to be crowded." But, this verb is also used in compound verbs... 255+ of them, in fact! You may have seen examples of this in your studies: Ru riIp mu, Qie riIp mu, Qu keIp mu, the list goes on and on. The problem is, the way that Ip mu affects the first verb (we'll call that V1) differs from word to word. In this podcast, we explore those inconsistencies, coming up with four "rules" you can follow to figure out the meaning of a Ip mu compound verb. It's both easier, and more difficult, than you think. Listen to the podcast to learn more, or check out our article for additional explanation and way more example sentences.
The Tofugu Podcast is taking a break for a couple of weeks while we prepare Season 2 of our prolific podcast and interview a special guest that is near and dear to our hearts!
Traveling around Japan in a large group (10 or more) may seem impossible. But let me tell you, friends, it is very possible. In fact, the Tofugu team recently went on a trip to Japan organized and led by our very own Koichi. In this episode, he tells you how he planned an weeklong international trip for 15 people. He got everything together, led everyone around, made sure everyone was taken care of--all with zero mishaps. If you dream of showing your friends Japan, listen to this episode so you can have a successful, enjoyable friend-cation.