Untranslatable words (Japanese to English)

[Akya]

Of course many people know about "ganbatte" or "yoroshiku" as they don't always translate the same into English and it loses the emotion behind the original word. Today I came across a totally new word for myself proving I'm yet to learn a lot more about Japanese (I probably have more to learn about English despite it being my native language).

Here's the URL I found it on!

http://visual.ly/11-untranslatable-words-other-cultures

[SpiralArchitect]

I ve always wondered what moshi moshi literally means. I know its used by people in Japan as a means of salutation on phone but what does it actually mean.

[BWL]

No two languages are exactly alike and inter-language translation often requires the translator to make a conscious effort to give as close a meaning to the words of the original language as possible.

I think I first heard of "komorebi" from the lyrics of a Japanese song; I can't remember which one.

[Akya]

I ve always wondered what moshi moshi literally means. I know its used by people in Japan as a means of salutation on phone but what does it actually mean.

Moshi moshi comes from the keigo/polite Japanese for "I'm speaking". The neutral form is "iimasu" and the polite form is "moushimasu". It's basically like "I'm speaking I'm speaking". I don't know how 100% accurate this is but this is how I learned it three years ago in Japanese language school from the Japanese teacher.

If you want a more similar English version, it's like when we say "Hello? Hello?" on the phone.

[SpiralArchitect]

Moshi moshi comes from the keigo/polite Japanese for "I'm speaking". The neutral form is "iimasu" and the polite form is "moushimasu". It's basically like "I'm speaking I'm speaking". I don't know how 100% accurate this is but this is how I learned it three years ago in Japanese language school from the Japanese teacher.

If you want a more similar English version, it's like when we say "Hello? Hello?" on the phone.

Thanks. That does seem to make sense.

Doesn't moshi mean 'if'?

[Miya]

^Yes, depending on the context, 'moshi' can also mean 'if'.

('moshi moshi' doesn't mean 'if if' though)

[mccanono]

^Yes, depending on the context, 'moshi' can also mean 'if'.

('moshi moshi' doesn't mean 'if if' though)

I remembered my Japanese student describing Nihongo as a language that is dependent on context. Haha A single word may entail different meanings depending on the context.

[Miya]

Yup. In Japanese, there are lots of words that are written and pronounced the same. The only way to tell the difference is by context or by intonation.

[SpiralArchitect]

^Yes, depending on the context, 'moshi' can also mean 'if'.

('moshi moshi' doesn't mean 'if if' though)

Would be weird if it did. Picking up the phone and saying 'if if' will pretty much confuse anyone on the other side.  :grin:

[Mim]

Onomatopeia is hard to translate for me.

For example, "fuwa fuwa" is one of my favorite words but I have no idea how I can translate it. The meaning can be translated (softly or airy), but somehow the feeling is lost.

[Miya]

Would be weird if it did. Picking up the phone and saying 'if if' will pretty much confuse anyone on the other side.  :grin:

The intonation is different so you don't get the two messed up.

[OddVisions]

I can think of the word 'kimochi' which sort of translates or means to feel nice. I sometimes think that word when I'm patting my tummy or someone messes up my hair. Though, as for a word to translate to directly in English, I can't really think of anything.

[petrushka]

It's not really untranslatable because there are approximations but the name suffixes (e.g., -san, -kun, -chan) and personal pronouns are rather hard to convey in English since some don't have a direct translation. Not to mention which suffix is used can denote the relationship type between two people and which personal pronoun is used can be a distinguish character of a person.

I mean, I doubt a normal Japanese person will introduce themselves as "俺さま" but anyone who might already gives off a feeling of their personality, doesn't it?

Similarly, when you call someone "-chan" and both of you are not toddlers/young children, it gives a feeling of closeness. I've seen this sometimes translated to as "[name] dear" but while it fits some situations, it doesn't really fit in with others.

If you're supposed to meet people for business and you see two business-attired people with no hint in their body language of whose higher in the hierarchy, you can figure out who's who by listening if someone addresses themselves as "boku" or if someone address the other by "-kun". How do you translate that in English, right?