It's a phone message. Basically it says that no one is around, at the beep please leave your name and number.

I have found some interesting sites on learning japan, maybe you can add it to the front page to share with others .

Tae Kim's Japanese guide to Japanese grammar

Jim Breen's WWWJDIC Japanese-English Dictionary

Kiki's Kanji Dictionary

By the way, does anyone have the guide for learning Japanese from the Chinese approach? I myself is a chinese and feel that learning Japanese from Chinese is easier..

Added the links to the first post.

how do we say "Do u like japanese song?"

Do any one of you have a vidoe link that we can easily learn the japanese language.

Nihongo no uta ga suki?

Seems none of the gurus here motivated to help, so here's a challenge:

I'll choose the material, something everyone can buy at Jusco,


LET'S SEE YOU CREATE A LESSON FOR US!
-----------------------
TOPVALU AWASE MISO

即席 みそ汁　　１０食入
切り口
写真はイメージです。　
------------------------
信州米みそ使用
合わせみそ　　　生みそタイプ。
２　種類　の信州米みそをあわせて、ごくのある味仕上げました。
庄内麩、わかめ、ねぎ入り。
----------------------------------------------------------
[Instructions on the back]
お召し上がり方
具　　みそ　　外袋　　
(１)　袋の中にわは、みそが１０袋ずつつながった具が２セット入っています。
確認をお願いします。
（２）　お椀に　「みその袋」と「具の袋」の中身を１つずつあけます。
*　「具の袋」はミシン目よりきりはなしてからあけてください。
（３）　熱湯約１６０ｍｌを注ぎ，よくかきまぜてからお召し上がりくダサい。
*　熱湯はお好みにより加減してください。
*　製造日からの日数が経過するとみその色が赤みを帯びてきますが品質には問題ありません。
！注意　　調理時、飲用時には、熱湯でのやけどに十分ご注意ください。
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gambare,

111

This post has been edited by oneeleven: Apr 17 2007, 12:04 AM

What does sama means? Watch anime quite a lot and some ppl are call by sama in the end of the name. Like Hokage Sama, Jiruyi Sama.. What is this sama? Is it for hi ranking ppl?

I think Sama(様） means Mr/Mrs/Miss.

hmmm...みそ汁this one is nice...eventho it is from Jusco's TopValue brand..

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Added on April 19, 2007, 1:07 pmOh it's mr huh? Orochimaru sama. Hmm Mr Orochimaru?? Mr. Hokage? R u sure??

This post has been edited by adriankhoo153: Apr 19 2007, 01:08 PM

It's more to higher rank "Master/Lord" than a regular rank "Mr./Mrs.".

様
n. (Hira=さま,よう) appearance, semblance; kind, manner;
Mr., mister, title of courtesy placed before a man's last name,
Mrs., mistress, title prefixed to the name of a married woman,
Ms., title of respect prefixed to an unmarried woman's name

Extracted From Babylon Japanese English Dictionary

This post has been edited by guybrush: Apr 21 2007, 10:54 AM

Hey where are the Sensei, in Japan?!?! (Can still e-mail from there.....)

111

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Added on April 24, 2007, 11:58 pmGuess the Senseis find your question too simple, not worth their time.....

In addition to what the others said, the LORD meaning (just like English MR=MASTER) is probably used only in manga with feudal or gang leaders, since modern Japanese don't have much to do with royalty.

In everyday usage, you'd probably only see it on envelopes after the addressee's name. Occasionally with a name at a ceremonial function or formal speech at a company party.

111 (NOT a JP lang teacher!)

This post has been edited by oneeleven: Apr 24 2007, 11:58 PM

You will not dare call the Tenno as "-san" in public, right, since he is the Japanese EMPEROR and bears no family name, right, one11?

What do you mean by "public" ? With friends, just say Tenno. As for me making a formal speech in front of audience in suits? -- muridayo!

111

Ettiquette is an essential part of Japanese language and culture. Perhaps more than English, the usage of the language clearly delineates the social status of the speaker relative to the listener as well as any 3rd person that they may be talking about. From Day 1 in any basic Japanese language course, we are taught that it is wrong to address oneself as ~~san. The usage of ~~san is reserved only for the listener or a third person.
In order to understand the correct usage of the correct suffix when addressing people or referring to a 3rd party, one must understand the concept of "me ue no hito　目上の人" and "me shita no hito 目下の人"　The first refers to people in a superior social standing relative to oneself, while the latter refers to those who are of a socially inferior standing.
Whether the person you are referring is socially superior again depends on whom you are talking to, whether the listener is from within or without one's social circle. One also has to take into account the occasion as well

Some basic concepts:
1." ~~san" - this is the safest to use in almost all everyday situations that one is likely to encounter. One uses it to refer to everyone else except oneself and people from within one's own social circle

2."~sensei" this is typically used for people that is respected and knowledgable, e.g., teachers, doctors

3. "~kun" this is typically used when you refer to person who are socially inferior (e.g. kids, juniors) or close to you and of equal standing.

4. "~chan" is usually reserved for addressing kids or females of a younger persuasion....and usually used in a less formal occasion

5. "~sama" is usually used for highly exalted persons. The emperor is always 目上 relative to everyone else, and ought to be addressed or refered to as Tenno sama

6. ~buchou/kachou (misc. titles) In the workplace, one ought to address one's superiors by their appropriate position titles

The concept of social circles:
Example:
when you talk to your mother, you refer to her as okaasan "お母さん" because she is
socially superior to you. However when you talk to someone who is not family (i.e. not from your own social circle, e.g. friends/outsiders) you refer to her as 母(haha) when talking to an outsider.

Similarly, you refer to your boss who is director-level as ~~buchou when you talk to him or refer to him when talking to colleagues, but when you talk to outsiders (e.g clients and customers), you refer to him only as ~~san because you consider him part of your own group relative to the person you are speaking to.

Other things to becareful about is to differentiate between the usage of keigo(敬語) or polite speech, and normal speech. Even in keigo, you have to differentiate between 尊敬語sonkeigo (referential) 謙遜語kensongo (humble) and 丁寧語teineigo (polite language)
If that hasn't gotten you confused yet you also have to becareful about the differences between male and female-specific vocabulary. (e.g., sentence endings like ~~~~zo are usually used by males, while ~~~kashira or ~~~~wa are usually used by females)...

@oe_kintaro

i would have to agree with everything u just posted except the 'okasan' n
'haha' part. i used to refer my mom as 'haha' or my brother as 'ani' when i got here but it just feels weird. i've not heard a japanese say it! yes, grammar wise, it might be the right thing but in today's society, no one uses it anymore...

I have to control myself if a female refers to Father as chichi, which can also mean....

111

you refer to your own mother as okaasan when you address her but refer to her as haha when you are talking to others about her.
Likewise, you refer to your brother as ani when you are talking to others but you call him oniisan　when you address him. Nothing has changed regarding this, except that maybe these days some kids may prefer more modern terms like "mama" or affectionate terms like okaachan etc. Perhaps also there is the issue of the perceived decline in language standards and etiquette among the young. Some of my Japanese acquaintances complain that every time they go back home to Japan, they don't understand what the youngsters are saying anymore
I'm not denying what you said, but what you experienced is perhaps partly due to the social environment you are in. Since I tend to deal more with older Japanese, usage of the language tends to be more "correct" in a sense.