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So in English, we might talk about a family by saying (for example) "the Johnson family" or "the Johnsons." Is there an equivalent you use in Japanese? And would you use the same language when talking to a member of the family you're referring to and when talking about that family to a third party?

Thanks!

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  • 息子、家族へようこそ Welcome to the family, son.
    – user15827
    Commented Jun 20, 2016 at 13:52
  • What is that supposed to be?
    – macraf
    Commented Jun 20, 2016 at 14:09
  • 1
    Look at the user name ("Dad"). That, the comment, and the lack of other answers seems to suggest it was intended as a joke rather than as a real answer. I will guiltily admit I giggled a little.
    – WeirdlyCheezy
    Commented Jun 20, 2016 at 14:44

1 Answer 1

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Let us suppose the family name is [山田]{やまだ}.

Most commonly, we would say:

「山田[家]{け}」 ← 「家」 is read 「け」 for this usage.

「山田[一家]{いっか}」

Formally, we could say:

「山田[一族]{いちぞく}」

「一族」is not an everyday word. It could sound too dramatic or theatrical if used in a casual convo.

"And would you use the same language when talking to a member of the family you're referring to and when talking about that family to a third party?"

The same phrase can be used on both occasions.　

enter image description here
(source: k-img.com)
enter image description here
(source: so-net.ne.jp)

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    Bonus: although uncommon in real life, [一族]{いちぞく} might be seen more often in fictional work such as the anime Naruto, where it is the word of choice for this.
    – Pedro A
    Commented Jun 20, 2016 at 10:39

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