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【No. 0942】Kiseru (キセル)

Jul 17, 2017 18:07
A kiseru is a kind of smoking tools in Japan, and its structure and form are similar to pipes.

General pipes are made of metals (except bowls), whereas kiserus use metals only for mouthpiece parts and bowls, and use bamboo for other parts.

Therefore, you can suck on the kiseru about only three times after you light it.

The term, "kiseru," can also mean an act of cheating on a train fare.

This is derived from kiseru's structure -- there are metals only on the entrance and the exit.
(In Japan, 金 of 金属 (which means metals) can imply money.)

Incidentally, it's thought that the word "kiseru" comes from "ksher," which means pipe in Cambodian language.
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【No. 0941】Narai-juku (奈良井宿)

Jul 16, 2017 22:29
Today was a holiday, so I went to Nagano Prefecture with my friends.
(We really love Nagano.)

Originally, we planned to climb a mountain, but we changed to go to Narai-juku because of the bad weather.

Narai-juku is an inn town that has flourished with a lot of travelers, and traditional Japanese buildings and houses still remain there as Groups of Traditional Buildings.

Since there are many shops that sell traditional things, such as woodworks, lacquerware and local foods, we could enjoy a lot.

After that, we went to "Tateshina Amusement Suizokukan," which is a aquarium located in the highest attitude in the world.

It was relatively small aquarium with only freshwater fish, but it was interesting because there were a lot of unusual fish.

It was a fulfilling day, however I got caught in a terrible traffic jam on my way home, I was really exhausted.
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【No. 0940】Kaminari and Inazuma (雷と稲妻 - Thunder and Lightning)

Jul 15, 2017 11:03
"Kaminari" (雷) is a natural phenomenon that generates light and sound due to discharge in the air, and is often translated as "thunder."

The etymology of "kaminari" is simple -- it comes from "kami no narasu oto" (神の鳴らす音), the literal meaning of which is "the sound rung by God."

On the other hand, there is another word "inazuma" (稲妻), which has the same meaning of "kaminari," though "inazuma" is often translated into "lightning."

The "ina" (稲) of "inazuma" means "rice," and "zuma/tsuma" (妻) means "husband" here.
(Note that "tsuma" means "wife" now, but once it could mean both "wife" and "husband.")

Thunder/lightning often occurs from summer to autumn, which is when rice grows.

Because of this, it was thought that lightning is a husband of rice (ine/ina no tsuma/zuma), and we have come to call lightning "inazuma."
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【No. 0939】Oku-san (奥さん)

Jul 14, 2017 17:37
Japanese people often refers to other's wife as "oku-san" (奥さん).

The literal meaning of "oku" (奥) is a deep inside of something, or a place that is far from the entrance.

Because of this, it has come to mean a room far from the entrance, furthermore, a person (woman) living there.

"San" of "oku-san" is a polite suffix that is often added to a person's name.

If you want to express it more polite, you can say "oku-sama" (奥様) by adding "sama" (様) instead of "san."

This word comes from the fact that people considered that women should be in a room that is far from the entrance.

However, note that "oku" (奥) is not a word that put women down.

In fact, the adjective "okuyukashii" (奥ゆかしい), which uses "oku," is a praise term for almost all Japanese women.
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【No. 0938】Yamai ha Ki kara (病は気から - Care Killed the Cat)

Jul 13, 2017 10:49
It has been thought that people become physically sick or recover from it due to their mind.

In fact, there is the prverb, "yamai ha ki kara" (病は気から), which says the thought.

Here "yamai" (病) means "sick," and "ki kara" (気から) means "come from a mind."

There is also the English proverb, "Care killed the cat."

This thought is not just a superstition -- according to a recent study conducted by Osaka University, experiments proved that mental factors such as stress affect immune reactions.

Now further scientific evidences are studying.
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【No. 0937】Wakage no Itari (若気の至り - Folly of Youth)

Jul 12, 2017 16:09
Young people tend to do something indiscriminate or thoughtless.

Such behavior of youths is called "wakage no itari" (若気の至り) in Japanese.

Here "wakage" (若気) means "youth," and "itari" (至り) means "course/result of something."

Therefore, "wakage no itari" is a term that suggests the fact something like that immature young people tend to do something indiscriminate as a result of letting matters take their course.

This term is often used when a youth want to consider his/her failure to be due to youth or someone want to protect youth's failure.
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【No. 0936】Kakeochi (駆け落ち - Elope)

Jul 11, 2017 12:14
Have you ever been opposed by your parents about your association with your girlfriend/boyfriend?

In such a case, you might want to escape with only two people to a distant place where parents don't know.

This act of escaping with two people is called "kakeochi" (駆け落ち) in Japan.
(It seems to be called "elope" in English.)

"Kakeochi" was once written as "欠け落ち," here "欠け" (kake) means "lack" and "落ち" (ochi) means "fall," so it meant to just escape/withdraw from a group.

Later, "駆け" (kake), which means "run," has come to be used instead of "欠け," and it has come to mainly mean that a couple escape to a distant place secretly.
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【No. 0935】Takabisha (高飛車 - Overpowering)

Jul 10, 2017 10:17
In Japan, there are many terms born from shogi (Japanese chess).

Today I will talk about the term, "takabisha" (高飛車), which means to apply coercive pressure or be overpowering.

"Taka" (高) of "takabisha" means "high," and "bisha/hisha" (飛車) means a kind of shogi pieces, that can move horizontally or vertically as much as you want just like a rook in chess.

Originally "takabisya" is a strategy moving a hisya (rook) to the highest place of your territory.

Since this strategy was aggressive and intimidating to the opponent, takabisha came to have the above meaning.
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【No. 0934】Shime Shime (しめしめ)

Jul 9, 2017 15:39
What kind of terms do you say when something go as planned and you rejoice at it secretly.

In such a case, you can say "shime shime" (しめしめ) in Japan.

"Shime shime" is a term made by overlapping the Japanese verb, "shimeru" (占める), which means to occupy something.

For example, it is used like "shime shime, umakuittazo" (しめしめ、うまくいったぞ), which means just something like "Thank God, my plan is working."

Actually, I often heard this term especially in manga, but recently it may not have been used very much.
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【No. 0933】Itachi no Saigoppe (イタチの最後っ屁)

Jul 8, 2017 21:30
Previously, I introduced the Japanese idiom, "itachi gokko" (いたちごっこ), which means that two people repeat the same thing to each other.
http://lang-8.com/kanotown/journals/336384032876116770444877313398606169134

In Japan, there is another famous idiom that uses the animal "itachi" (イタチ - weasel).

It is "itachi no saigoppe" (イタチの最後っ屁), the literal meaning of which is "weasel's final fart."

"Itachi no saigoppe" means to use the last resort when you are in trouble or thrust into a bad situation.

This comes from the fact that weasels give off a terrible smell to escape when they are driven by an enemy.
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【No. 0932】Nomi Houdai (飲み放題 - All-you-can-drink)

Jul 7, 2017 21:25
In weekends in Japan, you can find people who are too drunk on a train or a street.

I think that one of the reasons is because there are many taverns that offer "nomi houdai" (飲み放題 - all-you-can-drink) in Japan.

As far as I know, such supplied services are often something like that you can have any drinks including alcohol on menu for for two hours with a charge of 1500 to 2000 yen (13 to 18 dollars).

According to the Internet, such services seem to be rarely offered overseas.

Especially in France and some American states, such services are prohibited by statue.
(Furthermore in France, all-you-can-drink excluding alcohol is also banned.)

Japan is very loose to drinking now, but since people with bad manners are increasing, regulation of alcohol is being considered.
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【No. 0931】Okaeri (おかえり - Welcome Back)

Jul 6, 2017 10:49
Yesterday, I introduced the expression "tadaima" (ただいま), which means "I'm home."

In Japanese homes, people who were at home usually say "okaeri" (おかえり) or "okaerinasai" (おかえりなさい) as a reply to "tadaima."

"Okaeri" is an expression that corresponds to "welcome home" or "welcome back" in English.

In Japan, people say "tadaima" and "okaeri" on a routine basis, whereas in English-speaking countries, "welcome back" is mainly used only when someone come home/country after a long time.

Incidentally, several Japanese blogs introduced something like -- Native speakers don't use both "I'm home" and "welcome back" on a routine basis -- but I have doubt about this information.

When I watch American dramas, indeed "welcome" back is rarely used, but I think that I often hear the phrase "I'm home."
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【No. 0930】Tadaima (ただいま - I'm home)

Jul 5, 2017 08:25
In Japan, people often say "tadaima" (ただいま) when they arrive at their homes.

This is short for "tadaima kaerimashita" (ただいま帰りました), which is more polite and formal than saying just tadaima.

Here, "tada" means "just," "ima" means "now," and "kaerimashita" means "I'm home" or "I'm back."

Hence "tadaima kaerimashita" means "Just now I'm home," but somehow kaerimashita which means "I'm home" has come to be abbreviated and tadaima has come to have the same meaning as kaerimashita.

It might be derived from the fact that tadaima is easier to say or more approachable than kaerimashita.
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【No. 0929】Finished Watching Friends

Jul 4, 2017 12:45
Today I finally finished watching the TV drama, Friends, from season one to ten.

Since all characters has grown nicely through the ten years, I feel nostalgic when I think back on the first season.

I watched all episodes with Japanese subtitles, but from now on, I will watch them again from the first episode with English subtitles.

Incidentally, one episode of this drama is about 22 minutes, and there were totally 238 episodes, so it means that I watched them for a total of about 87 hours.

On the other hand, it is said that you need about 500 hours listening if you want to an acquire English ability that is enough to travel abroad.

The milestone will be attained if I watch all episodes six times, but it looks like a tough road.
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【No. 0928】Mouth and Tongue

Jul 3, 2017 09:21
There are many idioms that use a part of a body in both English and Japanese.

Today I found an interesting rule in such idioms.

The rule is that Japanese idioms tend to use mouth, whereas English idioms tend to use tongue instead of mouth.

For example, to say something unnecessary is expressed as "kuti ga suberu" (口が滑る - slip one's mouth) in Japanese, wheares it's expressed as "make a slip of the tongue" in English.

Also, to be silent is expressed as "kuchi wo tsumugu" (口をつむぐ - hold one's mouth), wheares it's expressed as "hold one's tongue" in English.

Furthermore, to be careful in one's speech is expressed as "kuchi no kikikata ni kiwotukeru" (口の利き方に気をつける -watch the usage of one's mouth), whereas it's expressed as "watch one's tongue" in English (it seems also be expressed as "watch one's mouth," though).

I think that these are interesting differences.
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【No. 0927】Poop Kanji Workbook

Jul 2, 2017 09:22
Japanese people learn about 2000 kanji characters before graduating from junior high school.

Also, it is said that general Japanese adults can read about 3000 to 4000 kanji characters, but young people tend to be not good at kanji.

Meanwhile, "unko kanji doriru" (うんこ漢字ドリル), the literal meaning of which is "poop kanji workbook," became a bestseller throughout Japan.

In this kanji workbook, all example sentences of kanji characters include unko (うんこ - poop).

For example, for the kanji "今" (ima - now), "ここで今すぐうんこをすることもできるんですよ" (I can poop right here right now).

For the kanji "英" (ei - English), "英語さえわかれば、アメリカ人ともうんこの話ができるのに" (if I could speak English, I would talk about unko (poop) with Americans).

I don't know what will become popular.
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【No. 0926】Setogiwa (瀬戸際 - Brink)

Jul 1, 2017 17:24
Have you ever teetered on the brink of life-or-death or win-or-lose.

Such a situation is called "setogiwa" (瀬戸際) in Japan.

"Seto" (瀬戸) of setogiwa means a strait that is narrowed by two land masses, and "giwa" (際) means a boundary.

That is to say, the original meaning of setogiwa is a boundary between a strait and sea.

By extension, setogiwa has come to refer to an important branch point in our lives.

In English, it seems to be expressed as "brink" or "edge" -- I think that the etymology of setogiwa is almost same as these words.
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【No. 0925】Wanpaku (わんぱく - Mischief)

Jun 30, 2017 17:10
We sometimes call a child who is naughty and beyond control of adults "wanpaku" (わんぱく).

Wanpaku is written as "腕白" in kanji, here "腕" means "arm" and "白" means "white."

However, since these kanjis are just phonetic symbols, there is no relationship between wanpaku and white arms.

The most widely accepted theory of its etymology is that kanpaku changed into wanpaku.

Kanpaku refers to a bureaucratic position that do politics instead of the Emperor.

That is to say, wanpaku children can exert their powers as a kanpaku with authority can.
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【No. 0924】Hiyokko (ひよっこ - fledgling)

Jun 29, 2017 14:02
In English, the call of chicks is expressed as "cheep-cheep" or "peep-peep," while in Japanese, it's expressed as "piyo piyo" (ピヨピヨ) or "hiyo hiyo." (ヒヨヒヨ)

The Japanese name of chicks, "hiyoko" (ひよこ), comes from the sound "hiyo hiyo."

Furthermore, hiyoko is sometimes called "hiyokko" (ひよっこ) by using the choked sound.

Of course hiyokko can mean hiyoko (chicks), but if you say hiyokko, it often refers to a person with little experience or a young person.

The etymology is very simple -- it was derived from the fact that newborn chicks are immature and inexperienced.

As a similar expression, there is "shiri ga aoi" (尻が青い - blue hip).
http://lang-8.com/kanotown/journals/81406964592254932562079633885566370862
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【No. 0923】Chichin Puipui (ちちんぷいぷい)

Jun 28, 2017 08:17
I think that almost all Japanese people have heard the spell, "chichin puipui."

This spell is mainly used to relieve pain when a child is injured.

In the actual situation, it's often used like "chichin puipui, itaino itaino tondeike" (here "itaino" means "pain" and "tondeike" means "blow away something").

In the past, it was chanted as "chichin puipui goyo no ontakara" (ちちんぷいぷい 御代の御宝), and it's thought that this came from "chijin buyu goyo no ontakara" (智仁武勇御代の御宝)

Chijin means "knowledge," buyu means "force," goyo no ontakara means "our treasure," and it is said that a foster mother of Iemitsu TOKUGAWA, the third Shogun, used this phrase when she made her son stop crying, with the feeling that please don't cry because you are our treasure with both knowledge and power.