Random Japanese Language Learning

はじめましてみんな！今日は「ゲンキ」1週勉強レビューです📚！

Apologies for the rough sentences 😅 I’ve been lacking in my grammar lately!

This week I went through Chapter 1 of the Genki Textbook, as well as continuing my Anki and Wanikani dailies to keep track of vocab/kanji.

(my notes! one for my Genki notes and one for kanji writing practice.)

I originally planned to do a chapter of the workbook and a journal entry but I fell behind on those (which I’ll be catching up with this coming week). I still feel rusty with grammar since it’s hard to check for corrections without a group/teacher, but I’ll look into those once I’m a few chapters in.

暑いですね。。。

It’s been so hot lately it’s hard to focus 🫠 but we press onwards!

あける

① to dawn; to grow light

② to end (of a period, season)

③ to begin (of the New Year)

④ to leave (one's schedule) open; to make time (for)

朝が明けるまで 眠りの中 愛しい君と 夢で逢おう

あさ が あける まで ねむり の なか いとしい きみ と ゆめ で あおう

Until the dawn breaks In sleep My beloved We will meet in a dream

それは最後の最後だからそれを何ですか？ is it because its the very end?

彼らは、最初の会議を憎むべき they should hate first meetings then,

"Doraemon's English Greetings Handkerchief"

こんばんは！今日はレビューの２週は話します。

So far it’s more of the same since Chapter 1 of Genki, learning grammar points and then following up with a video explaining more in depth with examples. (Thank goodness the answer keys are archived, saves me some earlier confusion)

(my notes! learned a lot of body part specific kanji this week alongside chapter 2)

Sentences are still a little choppy to write without several lookups to make sure it sounds legible, so this week’s focus will be more on the writing side!

As usual I’ve been doing my Wanikani studies and Anki practice, though I’ve had to slow down a bit on the former when I got a bunch of lessons coming in one day and it got a bit overwhelming. Gotta remember to pace myself… 😵‍💫

Some vocabulary words for the rainy season in Japan.

梅雨　つゆ　rainy season

梅雨入り　つゆいり　the beginning of the rainy season

梅雨明け　つゆあけ　the end of the rainy season

長雨　ながあめ　prolonged rain; continuous rainfall

小雨　こさめ　light rain; drizzle

土砂降り　どしゃぶり　torrential rain; downpour

豪雨　ごうう　heavy rain; torrential rainfall

湿気　しっけ　humidity; moisture in the air

蒸し暑い　むしあつい　hot and humid; muggy

曇り空　くもりぞら　cloudy sky

水たまり　みずたまり　puddle

雨具　あまぐ　rain gear (umbrella, raincoat, etc.)

五月雨　さみだれ　early summer rain; an old poetic word for the rainy season

入梅　にゅうばい　the beginning of the rainy season (formal/meteorological term)

空梅雨　からつゆ　a dry rainy season with little rainfall

梅雨前線　ばいうぜんせん　Baiu front; seasonal rain front

雨宿り　あまやどり　taking shelter from the rain

じめじめする　to be damp and humid

しとしと降る　しとしとふる　to rain softly and steadily

あんこ anko: sweetened red bean paste used in Japanese confectionery

どんぶり勘定 domburi kanjō: to only keep track of money, resources, etc. by how much remains long-term; lit. “rice bowl accounting”

つうしょう

common name; popular name; nickname; name commonly used

この会社は通称「JR」と呼ばれています。 この かいしゃ は つうしょう 「JR」 と よばれています。 This company is commonly known as "JR."

りゃくする

to abbreviate; to shorten; to omit; to leave out

長い名前を略して呼びます。 ながい なまえ を りゃくして よびます。 We abbreviate the long name and call it by a shorter name.

しゅうげん

wedding ceremony; marriage celebration (traditional/formal)

二人は家族の前で祝言を挙げました。 ふたり は かぞく の まえ で しゅうげん を あげました。 The two held a wedding ceremony in front of their families.

めっそうもない

absurd; outrageous; unthinkable; impossible; far from it (used to strongly deny something)

そんなことは滅相もないです。 そんなことは めっそうもない です。 Nothing could be further from the truth.

Did you know that 鮭 and しゃけ both mean "salmon" in Japanese?

I came across しゃけ in my Marugoto textbook:

I know "salmon" is pronounced さけ, but what does しゃけ mean? Does it also mean "salmon?" 🤔

Yes and no, apparently!

しゃけ is for food while 鮭 is for the living fish

According to WaniKani:

Typically when you refer to the living animal, you use さけ, and when you refer to salmon as a food, it's more likely to be しゃけ (but it can go either way). There might be some generational and regional differences, though.

A quick Google search revealed this fascinating regional difference:

Basically:

鮭 (さけ) is the standard, formal, and written term. It is often preferred when referring to the living fish in nature.

しゃけ is a colloquial, spoken pronunciation. It is very commonly used in daily conversation, especially when referring to the fish as food (cooked, grilled, or as an onigiri filling).

What about サーモン?

サーモン: This term is used—particularly at sushi restaurants and other dining establishments—to refer to raw, farmed salmon. Farmed salmon is apparently more commonly used in sushi because there's less risk of foodborne illnesses such as parasites.

Some words to describe natural scenery

自然景観　しぜんけいかん　natural scenery

谷　たに　valley

峡谷　きょうこく　canyon; gorge

渓谷　けいこく　valley; ravine; gorge

崖　がけ　cliff; precipice

断崖　だんがい　cliff; sheer precipice

平野　へいや　plain; flatland

草原　そうげん　grassland; prairie; meadow

丘　おか　hill; small hill

山脈　さんみゃく

滝　たき　waterfall

海岸　かいがん　coast; shoreline

岩　いわ　rock; boulder

岩壁　がんぺき　rock wall; cliff face

洞窟　どうくつ　cave

火山　かざん　volcano

湿原　しつげん　marsh; wetland

砂丘　さきゅう　sand dune

Today's phrase is "頭剃るより心を剃れ（atama soru yori kokoro wo sore）".

【Vocabulary & Grammar】

1．頭（あたま, atama） It means “head.” Here it refers to shaving one’s head, often associated with monks or symbolic purification.

2．剃る（そる, soru） Verb meaning “to shave.” Used in its dictionary/plain form.

3．より (yori) A particle meaning “rather than,” “instead of,” “more than.” Used to compare two actions or states.

4．心（こころ, kokoro） It means “heart,” “mind,” “spirit,” “inner self.” It refers to one’s inner attitude or moral character.

5．を (wo) Direct object marker. It indicates that 心 is what is being shaved (metaphorically).

6．剃れ（それ, sore） Imperative form of 剃る. Strong command: “shave!” or metaphorically “purify!” “cleanse!”

Put together, 「頭剃るより心を剃れ」 means to value inner purification over outward rituals. It reminds us that true discipline comes not from changing our appearance, but from refining our heart and mindset.

There are people who shave their heads as a sign of remorse. Visually, it may seem effective, but hair isn’t the only thing that needs to be changed. When we express regret, we should also aim to grow in our hearts.

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Today, 7 July, is Tanabata, a Japanese festival centered around stars, the milky way, romance, as well as hopes and aspirations for the future.⭐✨

If you want to find out more about the customs and history of Tanabata in simple Japanese, take a look at the texts and articles below. Most of these texts have a reading level fitting for JLPT N5 and N4 readers and all texts are freely available online!

Hirogaru （ひろがる）

The article on the website hirogaru introduces the star festival with large pictures and few sentences. You can toggle furigana for this text in theory but it might not work depending on your device. However, all text also has a read out loud function. There is also a small reading comprehension quiz at the end.

https://hirogaru-nihongo.jp/hoshi/article/tanabata/

NIHONGOSCHOOL Blog

On Kazue Ono's blog, she writes about the Tanabata festival in three levels: for starters, beginners and intermediate readers. The blog post has audio options for all three levels, can be downloaded as a PDF and also features a reading comprehension quiz here.

https://www.nihongoschool.co.uk/post/にほんごブログ：七月七日

Watanoc （和タのC）

Although the free web magazine Watanoc hasn't had new articles for a while now, their article about Tanabata still holds up and gives a great overview about the festival. You can hover over words and phrases to get the reading as well as a translation into English. After each paragraph you can also click to translate the entire sentence into English as well.

https://watanoc.com/post-1607-tanabata

Matcha Magazine

If you are interested in reading about the street festivals and parades taking place, Matcha Magazine recommends some great Tanabata festivals in the Kanto region to check out. Their article has full furigana and added spaces between words.

https://matcha-jp.com/easy/367

Hukumusume （福娘物語）

There is a legend behind Tanabata and you can read it in a simpler Japanese version on hukumusume, which is a place for free online children's stories. Although this text is not written with learners in mind, it features both furigana and cute colorful illustrations that guide readers along.

Please scroll past the videos at the beginning of the page. The full text is just below.

http://hukumusume.com/douwa/kisetu/tanabata/s5_html/02.htm

Tadoku no Hiroba (たどくのひろば)

For learners approaching intermediate abilities (N4-N3), I can recommend this short story by Tadoku no Hiroba. It is both longer than the articles above and features more complicated grammar points and speech registers, but still features 100% furigana on all kanji.

https://tadoku.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/7gatsu7katanabata_ruby.pdf