漢字: Chinese characters as used in Japanese writing as opposed to the two kana syllabaries and romaji Latin letters.
3
votes
1answer
84 views
Which readings were changed in the 2010 Jouyou kanji reform?
I'm looking for pointers on which readings (on/kun) were changed in the 2010 reform. By that I mean which kanji has additional readings and which kanji has had one or more readings removed? Is there a ...
13
votes
4answers
822 views
Distinguishing certain characters in handwriting and print
Japanese has some sets of characters which look very similar or even identical. Obviously, context is usually more than enough to distinguish which character is intended, but I'm wondering if there ...
8
votes
1answer
343 views
Why censor this one kanji?
I was watching an old Saturday Night Live sketch from the 1970s, called Night of the Moonies, making fun of the Unification Church by putting them in the context of the movie Night of the Living Dead.
...
1
vote
1answer
117 views
Why does Kanji radical not have the same definition for all kanjis
Well radical is a portion of the kanji that is used to list that kanji in the Kanji dictionary. It could represent the "general" meaning (whatever that is), it could represent the sound, or it could ...
3
votes
1answer
83 views
Using 着 Classifier
One of the kanji we recently learned in class was 着. We learned it could be used for to wear 着る, to arrive 着く, and as either a "classifier for arrival" or a "counter for jacket".
In our homework, we ...
4
votes
2answers
196 views
Should I use On reading or Kun reading for numbers?
I've just started to learn Japanese, and I've been looking at the Joyo Kanji. Most of the words have On reading and Kun reading. I was wondering, which one is most popular and when should I use one ...
2
votes
1answer
160 views
Usage of simplified chinese in place of some kanji in handwriting
Of course I'm talking about casual writing as opposed to formal or polite writing.
There are many 新字体 that were kind of "half" simplified in to the equivalent simplified Chinese forms such as 関 and 広 ...
3
votes
3answers
189 views
Usage of kanji for words usually written in kana
From a small discussion on chat, I currently can think of three categories where the word is usually written in:
Hiragana but have kanji (成る, 有る, [炬燵]{こたつ}, etc)
Katakana but have kanji ([頁]{ページ}, ...
3
votes
1answer
119 views
Kanji pairs that mean and are pronounced the same by themselves
I have found several pairs of kanji that are pronounced the same and mean the same when they are used individually:
目 and 眼
足 and 脚
木 and 樹
This especially bugs me because, in Chinese (my native ...
1
vote
1answer
184 views
What does “一味一禪” mean?
I have found a small Shodo fragment stating "一味一禪" - which is not the classical "Zen and Tea are of one taste" (禅茶一味).
What is this supposed to mean? Is it correct Japanese (I suppose it is, coming ...
5
votes
3answers
434 views
How many Kanji characters are there?
I have been searching around, but all the sources give completely different answers ranging from 2,000 to 50,000. So my question is how many Kanji characters that have ever existed since the dawn of ...
2
votes
2answers
167 views
Is there some way that a Japanese (sur)name must be written for it to make sense?
I understand surnames and given names usually have some reason for existing, and have existed for several years. My question, I guess, really is: if someone were making up a completely different name ...
3
votes
1answer
130 views
When we should use kanji?
I just confuse about kanji. I just learn a bit of kanji. But I want to know when exactly we use it? is there a rule about that?
1
vote
1answer
430 views
Why is the Japanese government considering adding kanji such as “cancer” to the jinmeiyō kanji?
The wikipedia article on jinmeiyō kanji states:
Before September 27, 2004, there were 2232 government-designated
jinmeiyō kanji used in personal and geographical names, with plans to
increase ...
9
votes
1answer
139 views
What is the connection between shrimp and old age?
Shrimp(えび) is written several different ways in Japanese. For example, there are the words commonly used in Chinese: 蝦 and 鰕. There is also a compound specific to Japan, 海老, and a kokuji, 蛯. Both of ...
3
votes
4answers
538 views
Is it acceptable in Japanese to write kanji characters in the Chinese style?
In Japanese, is it acceptable to write kanji letters in the Chinese style? For example, is it acceptable to write 田 with the 3rd and 4th strokes swapped, or 着 with the 6th and 7th strokes combined?
7
votes
2answers
403 views
Can kanji-heavy Japanese be easily translated into Chinese?
How much is changed or lost in translating (say) an old Japanese text that's mainly written in kanji into hanzi? How does it compare to translating into a completely foreign language like English? I'm ...
7
votes
2answers
235 views
When to use 聴く vs 聞く vs 訊く?
When should one use 聴く instead of 聞く? Is there a precise rule for which one to use in which situation?
I have a feeling that 聞 is used more when the source of the sound is a person or other living ...
5
votes
3answers
278 views
Are non-base-10 numbers ever written in kanji?
This morning I was thinking about the joke "There are only 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary, and those who don't". Considering if this would translate well to Japanese, I ...
3
votes
1answer
127 views
Origin of 信じる, 感じる, etc?
Wikipedia claims that Japanese verbs are a closed class and that loanwords from Chinese always use する. 信じる, 感じる seems to be an exception. Why aren't they 信をする and 感をする? Maybe because one kanji is too ...
4
votes
0answers
141 views
Which readings are used for 漢文？
If I am reading a Chinese text to a Japanese audience, how can I know which reading to use for each character? Of the 音読み, there can be 呉音, 漢音, and 唐音 to choose from.
Also for pronunciation, would ...
2
votes
2answers
125 views
The 阝-radical (or 部首?) in 部 and 陪
In 部, the right side radical is called the large village radical.
For 陪, the left side radical is called the small village radical.
Why are their names different on different sides even though both ...
3
votes
2answers
165 views
What is the meaning of this Kanji?
Could someone let me know the meaning of the Kanji that is the first character in this phrase? It's in a dialog from a movie scenario.
It doesn't seem to be a 常用漢字 as far as I can tell.
4
votes
1answer
164 views
Method for deciding whether to use katakana or kanji version of the word?
I often see words in sentences written in カタカナ or 漢字 that could be swapped for a common word of the other form. I am aware that there are lots of カタカナ words that do have a 漢字 form, but where the 漢字 ...
2
votes
0answers
116 views
Is there a difference between 名国 and 国? [duplicate]
I'm attempting a translation of a video game manual, and it keeps using compounds like 名国 and 名街. This is not a game where you're able to name the places/characters, and the sentences where the words ...
2
votes
1answer
117 views
What does お察しいたします mean?
The context (manga) is that a family's son is about to die; I think the speaker is trying to express condolences. However, the dictionary meaning seems to be "I make a guess", and I don't think that ...
20
votes
6answers
502 views
Why are some lyrics' words written in kanji whose usual reading is not how it is sung?
Some song lyrics in the official lyric book that accompanies the CD is sung as another word. Usually, the way it is sung is given as a furigana on the kanji:
Written: 君が希望に変わってゆく
...
10
votes
1answer
824 views
Are all kanji compounds considered words?
A friend once commented to me that Japanese has a larger vocabulary than English. I said I didn't think it did, because it wasn't really accurate to call all kanji compounds "words". My friend said I ...
0
votes
2answers
244 views
Vocab vs. Kanji. Should I learn a lot of vocab first before moving to kanji? [closed]
Do you think it makes sense to prioritize vocab learning first, to feel comfortable speaking and listening, and then, after couple of years, catch up with reading and writing?
Currently I concentrate ...
1
vote
1answer
423 views
How many kanji do Japanese people know? [closed]
I am curious how many kanji a normal Japanese person is able to read. Since the Joyo kanji are learned by middle school, I assume that as a person goes through high school and university many more ...
5
votes
1answer
121 views
kanji 有る, usage in the negative be verb
I am curious about a bit of academic pedantry of trivial importance.
If I wanted to put kanji in 日本人ではありません, would I use 有りません? This looks weird to me because 有 has some connotations of possession as ...
0
votes
0answers
115 views
Where can i learn Kanji Free and Easy [closed]
Another one of those Where Questions?
I know what your thinking but i am actually serious about this.
I really would like to learn Kanji.
But I've already looked over a lot of sites but the only ...
14
votes
4answers
370 views
Words made from strokes of a kanji like 女 toくノ一
According to Wikipedia, one theory for the etymology of くノ一 (female ninja) is that it's made up of the strokes of the kanji 女 (woman).
Other theories include that it means nine and one, talking about ...
3
votes
1answer
156 views
What is the difference between 上{あ}げる and 挙{あ}げる?
I searched examples for the verb "ageru - raise" and I found it written with two different kanji:
挙げる
上げる
Mostly their meaning is "raise".
I found them with the following examples:
棚に箱を上げる。Put a ...
0
votes
1answer
198 views
Usage of Traditional style characters vs Simplified Chinese characters adopted in Kanji
As I started peeking in Japanese, I see lots of scripts in hiragana and kanji where the last is used in it's Traditional analogue of Chinese characters (since I'm familiar with hanzi). Like for the ...
8
votes
1answer
300 views
What is the role of 空書 (writing kanji in the air) in modern Japanese?
What is the role of 空書{くうしょ} in modern Japanese?
空書 is tracing characters in the air with your finger (or on a flat surface), a phenomenon which apparently develops only in users of Chinese ...
5
votes
1answer
188 views
Is “豪斯多拉利” an ateji way to write “Australia”?
Several years ago I invested some time and energy digging up more ways to write "Australia" in Japanese than I ever expected would exist:
オーストラリア is the usual spelling these days
濠太剌利 is a rare old ...
14
votes
1answer
554 views
Are kanji characters made up of radicals only or could they contain strokes that are not radicals?
Inspired by this question of rounded or circular strokes in kanji, I got an idea to prove that there is no circular strokes in kanji by examining all kanji radicals, which is a lot less that examining ...
1
vote
1answer
106 views
the reading of this kanji combination 炊煙 and meaning of 人家
I have encountered another sentence while translating some text of Japanese history
The sentence is:
人家の竈（かまど）から炊煙が立ち上っていないことに気づいて租税を免除します。 jinka no kamado kara 炊煙 ga
tachiagatteinai koto ni ...
1
vote
1answer
135 views
pronunciation and meaning of the word 干支崩年
I have this sentence from a text which mentions the death of two emperors, but I cannot find the meaning and pronunciation of 干支崩年 in it. The sentence is:
...
2
votes
1answer
95 views
the kanji 細 which means details
I have a question that might be very trivial
I have encountered this kanji sai 細
I wish to know can I use it this way.
話の細-the details of the story
3
votes
2answers
265 views
Kanji reading: 一人KY、実？中
This morning I took this picture, finding the 一人KY poster amusing:
QUESTION: What is the kanji before 中 ?
In Gjiten I can't find it by combining the radicals of 止 and 残, nor by number of strokes ...
3
votes
2answers
151 views
The surname 粂 【くめ】
The kokuji 粂 【くめ】 exists, defined only as a name. The character is clearly an amalgam of 久 and 米 used in a man'yogana-like manner, but:
Why did this particular surname get a designated character?
...
-1
votes
1answer
275 views
Kana to kanji mapping for a rōmaji keyboard [closed]
I've been tasked with implementing a rōmaji keyboard in a medical device. As I understand the problem, the user is to be permitted to enter katakana, hiragana, and/or kanji via the rōmaji keyboard. ...
3
votes
1answer
122 views
The reading of 砂利
砂利 I am fairly sure is normally read as じゃり but I saw that an alternate reading of ざり exists.
Is the ざり reading at all used in the modern language?
Why じゃ・ざ and not しゃ・さ?
5
votes
2answers
289 views
Japanese don't learn kanji meaning only readings? Does it make sense for a kanji to have a key meaning to identify it?
As I understand it works like this. By the time Japanese kids enter first grade they have more or less decent vocabulary of words they know. So when kanjis are taught I can't even imagine how to tell ...
2
votes
1answer
73 views
「七つの海商社」“7 Seas Trading Co.” as formal name for a company
wanted to ask a question re:company names in 日本語.
Would「七つの海商社」work as a name for a company? Or does this combo of kana+kanji not work in formal business names?
Greatly appreciate any help. Thank ...
3
votes
1answer
71 views
The meaning\reading of 急停止集団巣鴨?
Context: The title of This video by Megwin.
The title of the video is:
トゲ抜き老人が腰抜かす!?急停止集団巣鴨に現る
The second part is confusing me.
Too many kanji in a row for me. I understand it's probably a ...
2
votes
1answer
158 views
Yakiniku (焼き肉 or 焼肉) [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is there any difference for compounds with/without okurigana?
I was reading the wikipedia article about yakiniku.
I noticed that in the title they use: (焼き肉 or 焼肉).
The ...
5
votes
2answers
156 views
Reading 塞 and 省: When on and kun readings go together
I looked up 塞 in my 漢和辞典, and I found four readings:
音：サイ、ソク
訓：とりで、ふさ・ぐ
What I noticed is that サイ is used when the kanji means とりで, and ソク is used when the kanji means ふさぐ:
「とりで」の意味： ...
