Basically, the Japanese use first and last names with nominal suffixes. There are some exceptions here, but more on that later.
In general, the topic of nominal suffixes is huge and there are a lot of nuances that are better to learn in life, rather than in theory. However, in this article I will try to theoretically break down some points and bring a little clarity to this topic.
We won’t go into everything, we’ll go over the top so as not to drag out the article.
Let's start with the most popular nominal suffixes: san, kun and chan .
Suffix "San"
For example, Yamada-san. The suffix “San” is a neutral polite style. It can be compared to some extent with a conversation on “you” .
That is, in essence, the suffix “ San ” is used by juniors in relation to elders; when speaking on equal terms, in official address, whether it is a stranger or a work colleague, they usually use “ San ”.
However, it is worth clarifying here that when using “ San ”, this may not always mean official communication. But let's hold that and move on to the " Tian " suffix.
Nominal suffixes in Japanese
Basically, the Japanese use first and last names with nominal suffixes. There are some exceptions here, but more on that later.
In general, the topic of nominal suffixes is huge and there are a lot of nuances that are better to learn in life, rather than in theory. However, in this article I will try to theoretically break down some points and bring a little clarity to this topic.
We won’t go into everything, we’ll go over the top so as not to drag out the article.
Let's start with the most popular nominal suffixes: san, kun and chan .
Suffix "Tian"
I see errors quite often with this suffix. Most beginners and some textbooks believe that the suffix “Kun” is used in relation to boys, and “chan” is used in relation to girls. Of course this is not true. I honestly admit, I don’t know where it came from, maybe it was like this once or it’s a usage error, I don’t know what I don’t know.
However, if we talk about the Japanese language at the present time, then “ Tian ” in real life is similar to our diminutive suffix . That is, when you say, for example, Yoko- chan - you essentially say Yokochka , or to make it easier in Russian you say Masha - Mashenka . It is used in much the same way as in Russian, that is, in informal speech, and it is a gross misconception to think that “Tyan” is used exclusively for girls, although for some reason many people think so.
So, for example, you can hear when a girl calls a guy Akira- chan and this does not mean that Akira has become a girl.
This is just a diminutive of Akirochka. Or if grandfather is called “Oji-chan”, this will not make him a woman.
But there is one “BUT” : of course, a guy won’t call a guy with the suffix “chan”, because... it will really be strange, although there are such cases. Well, our two guys don’t talk in a diminutive style among themselves.
Program for learning Japanese alphabets
There are many mobile applications that help make this task easier, but when using them, the problem of inability to write on paper arises. In my program I tried to solve this problem.
I want to say in advance that I am not a programmer, nor a designer.
Immediately after launch, you may see an unfriendly checklist. In fact, everything is quite simple. 1. You need to choose the alphabet and series that you plan to cram. 2. Press the Start button as many times as you want, and write down on paper the syllables that appear on the screen, already in hiragana/katakana.
3. Have you written everything? Feel free to click on the Check button and check your result.
4. It is also possible to close the table with a “curtain” to deprive yourself of the opportunity to peek. The curtain is turned on with the “Hide kana” button
I think that's all. I can't share the file, I would be grateful if someone could tell me how to do this. Thank you for your attention (:
Suffix "Kun"
" Kun " is less formal and a little more "friendly". It is also a mistake to believe that Kun is used exclusively for men. Yes, in practice, it mostly turns out this way, but it is not 100% always the case. Those. It’s fair to use “ Kun” to refer to a girl, too, if you don’t want to substitute the suffix “ Tian ,” i.e. when the diminutive form is not entirely appropriate. Kun being used for girls .
Those. If you show graphically the rank of politeness, then you can place Kun San ”, but above “ Tian ”.
And these 3 suffixes should be enough for the first couple of years of study. And then come the following suffixes.
Neutral polite address
There are also suffixes in Japanese that are analogous to addressing by first name and patronymic. It is considered neutral polite and is widely used in all walks of life. This is the suffix “san”, it is added in a conversation between people occupying the same social position, younger to older. It is also often used when communicating with unfamiliar people.
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But there is a peculiarity: in Japan, women add the suffix “san” to all names except children's names. But this does not imply its use as a polite "you". Modern Japanese girls use it as a polite-neutral addition.
Suffix "Herself"
The suffix “Sama” has the highest position in our hierarchy.
It’s hard to translate literally, but essentially as “honorable.” It is quite rare in spoken Japanese, but it does occur. For example, this is how the service staff may address you when they ask 何名様ですか “Nan mei sama deska” - “table for how many people”? Not San, but herself. Or when you are waiting and they read you from the list, for example: 山田様はいらっしゃいますか “Yamada-sama wa irasshaimaska?” That is, we often use the nominal suffix “Sama” in the conversation of service personnel.
Just like with us, Sama can be used as a joke, this is comparable when we say “Sorry, sir” or something similar, when we deliberately raise a person’s rank as a joke.
If we are not talking about colloquial language, then “sama” is used quite often. For example, in letters to the recipient they use Sama.
A little about the unusual in different languages
For example, since childhood you haven’t liked the sound R and you think: I wish you could speak a language that doesn’t have this sound? Please, Chinese is at your service.
And then so that words begin with a vowel? Abkhazian. There are only two vowel sounds. And 80 consonants. Most nouns begin with a-, because it is an article (achay, amashyna, ainstitute, etc.).
Yeah, you say, how about just prefixes and not suffixes? A little more and you will invent Swahili (Tanzania, Africa).
Is that possible without any suffixes, prefixes, or endings at all? Vietnamese.
But what about a suffix inside a word? Indonesian. Or Hebrew, depending on what you mean.
I want it without emphasis! - you say in despair. Okay, Japanese.
And so that it seems like there is an emphasis, but as if there isn’t? No problem, Georgian.
And not to talk, but to sing? To the tune? Are there such languages? Yes, I would just clarify, are 4-5 tonal registers enough for you, as in Chinese dialects, or is it better than six, as in Vietnamese? Or 9-11, as in the languages of the Miao-Yao group (regions of China)? There you need a good ear for music to understand each other, especially in a store (And is one, and I is one hundred million, you feel the difference, right? The words differ only in tonality.)
You ask with interest: are there any stupid consonants in languages? Well, there. Not another word! - I tell you. Because you don’t want three types of L in Tamil (south India)? For one of them you need to pretend as if you want to swallow your tongue. Or the click of your tongue as if you were bursting chewing gum? This is a consonant in Zulu (South Africa). And in the Khoisan languages (southern Africa) there is a kiss sound, which can also be a consonant, and there are letters for it in the alphabet.
You don’t know what else to come up with, and you say at random: is it possible to use a language so that, like Master Yoda, the order of words is topsy-turvy, and the verb is always at the beginning? Classical Arabic is at your service, as well as Irish and Welsh (Wales).
Or in general, mixed up, in any order? Latin knew how to do this, and there is even a term for it: mixtura verborum (mush of words), but still everything is clear.
And the article is not before the word, but after the word, and so that it is written together with the word, which is declined according to cases, and so that it itself is declined, and if there are adjectives, then so that it can be attached to the adjective, and more, more exceptions? At this point you invent the Icelandic language.
Is it possible then without adjectives? Korean.
What about fifty participles? Also Korean.
No past tense? Nivkhsky (Amur region).
So that the emphasis is on P, or on N, or. Czech, Serbian, Japanese, which one do you prefer?
A million verb forms, you ask pleadingly, can I? Basque language (northern Spain and southern France), there are even a little more of them for each verb. True, there are only 20 common verbs, so you only have to learn 20 million conjugation forms, which makes the task incredibly easy.
Well, I still want to invent a language, do you despair, so that everything would be stupid, you say, and so that it would be studied, and so that a lot of people would speak it? And here I will disappoint you: such a language was already invented at the end of the 19th century - the Volapuk language. By the way, its creator knew very little of the language he invented.
Whatever crazy idea comes into your head, it already exists in some of the world’s languages. And I don't know whether I should be happy or sad about this.
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Suffix "Sensei"
Sensei, literally “born before” - this is both a word and a nominal suffix, can be used with a name in those cases when you are addressing a teacher, professor and everyone who is in the subject of education, as well as when addressing a doctor, lawyer, politician , scientist, etc. Those. we can characterize this as certain socially important social figures. Rather, “Sensei” denotes a certain status rather than your attitude towards a person.
In my opinion, the main part of the suffixes is over, now comes the part for the most inquisitive minds who want to know more.
Suffix "Senpai"
“Senpai” is someone who is “senior” in a particular area. For example, for a 1st grade high school student, the senpai will be a 2nd grade high school student, and for a 2nd grade high school student, the 1st grade student will be Kohai.
We can say that they represent both simple words and nominal suffixes, just like Sensei. Those. they can also be used with names, such as Tanaka-senpai. Or you have been working for the company for 2 years, and another person has been working for 5 years. Who do you think he is for you? Right! Senpai! And for him you are Kohai.
To avoid confusion between Senpai and Kohai, use literal translation and mnemonics. Senpai is “comrade in front”, Kohai is “comrade behind”, and in the distance stands Sensei – “born before”.
Those. We imagine a graph where you stand and in the distance stands the Sensei who was born before you, the kanji Sen just hints that they came before you. Also, ahead of you is Senpai. And Kohai is behind you, as indicated by the kanji “after”.
Learn Japanese with Go! Go! Nihon
Using nominal suffixes is much more complex than it seems at first glance, and at times it can be difficult to know when exactly to insert them, but the Japanese generally forgive foreigners such mistakes. But still, if you work in Japan, it is better to be especially careful when using nominal suffixes. Don't hesitate to ask the person directly what they want you to call them if you're not sure.
If you want to learn Japanese but can't travel to Japan yet, then an online course is one of the best ways to start your Japanese language journey. Go! Go! Nihon offers a Japanese course for beginners , developed in conjunction with the Akamonkai Japanese language school. Read more about the course here.
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Suffix "Senshu"
"Senshu" is not only the word for "athlete", but it is also a suffix used for famous athletes.
PS You expected that there would be more nominal suffixes here, but I thought about it and realized that there is nothing more to talk about, so if I remember something, I will definitely update the article.
Now let's talk about when suffixes are not used , because this also happens.
Suffixes do not need to be used in relation to family members when, for example, you are talking to someone.
Also, there is no particular need to use a suffix when addressing by name, because Usually in Japan this indicates a fairly close relationship to the person, so why the suffix? Those. when the relationship with a person is close enough, suffixes are not needed. On the other hand, there are so many nuances that even within the family circle they can use nominal suffixes by name.
How to use nominal suffixes
If you're at all familiar with Japanese culture, you already know that the Japanese rarely use another person's first name, and therefore noun suffixes are often placed after the surname. Simply calling someone by their last name is considered very rude.
Sometimes a nominal suffix is used after a name for special reasons, such as when two people are especially close or when communicating with foreigners. Unlike the Japanese, we usually introduce ourselves by our first name rather than our last name, and the Japanese tend to respect this choice.
Respect is the key to understanding this complex communication system. In Japan hierarchy , based on criteria such as age or social status. Depending on your area of work or position, you may hold a higher, lower, or neutral position in relation to the other person.
All these factors are reflected in the way a person speaks, which creates a more formal language - keigo , which you can read more about here.
Nominal suffixes depend not only on a person's status, but also on other factors such as the person's level of trust, education, and gender. Even as a foreigner, it is important to follow these rules in order to feel welcome in this country.
Please note that noun suffixes should not be when :
