Questions tagged [rendaku]

連濁. A phonological phenomenon in Japanese by which the first consonant of the second component of a compound word often becomes voiced (k→g, s→z, t→d and h→b).

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Rules or criteria for 連濁: Voiced or unvoiced syllables in compound words

Examples first. 空 {そら}. Almost all compound nouns for which 空 is the second component pronounce it as ぞら zora: 青空 {あおぞら} 夜空 {よぞら} 星空 {ほしぞら}. There is at least one exception though: 美空 {みそら}. 蕎麦 {...
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Bridging tsu ("つ") when joining two kanji

I am currently studying Japanese grammar through Japanistry's Grammar Guide (https://www.japanistry.com/the-number-system/) I've come across a section when it says that a reading changes when two ...
Steve Woods's user avatar
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Why is Katakana not pronounced Katagana?

I am a beginner in Japanese and I've noticed that when two words are compounded into one word the first letter of the second word changes. hira + kana = hiragana ko + hayashi = kobayashi ori + kami ...
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What is the difference between tori vs. dori?

In Aikido, different dojos seem to latch on to using either dori or tori when describing grabbing attacks. For instance one dojo might say: Katate Dori Another would say: Katate Tori Each dojo ...
Jack B Nimble's user avatar
4 votes
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Why does this unvoiced ほ sound become a voiced ぼ sound?

I've seen a couple videos of a Japanese translation of the song Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. This Japanese version is titled 「きら きら ぼし」. However, star is 「ほし」. Why is the ほ sound voiced in the title? ...
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