あいさつ - Basic Hellos and Goodbyes
Let’s start with the basics! Here are some simple greetings, and what you need to know about them!
おはよう (ohayoo) - Good morning (casual)
おはようございます (ohayoo gozaimasu) - Good morning (polite)
Ohayoo is mostly used between friends and family members, while ohayoo gozaimasu is used with less intimate acquaintances or strangers. A basic rule of thumb is that if you’re on first-name basis with the person, then you can use ohayoo.
こんにちは (konnichiwa) - Good afternoon
こんばんは (konbanwa) - Good evening
おやすみ(なさい) (oyasumi(nasai)) -Good night
Oyasumi follows the same rules as ohayoo. Also, my professor elaborated that we often use konbanwa during the time that the sun is setting, or afterwards.
Goodbyes get a little tricky in Japanese! Here’s some examples:
さようなら (sayoonara) - Goodbye (long term)
じゃあ、また (jya, mata) - See you
しつれいします (shitsureishimasu) - Goodbye (formal)
Sayoonara is often only used when you are saying goodbye to a person for a long time, or don’t expect to see them again. An example would be a friend moving to another country.
Jya, mata, on the other hand, is a casual goodbye between friends and family, classmates, and close acquaintances. It’s a casual way of saying see you again! My professor actually preferred us using this departing term, as it is more common and he wishes to see us again soon!
Shitsureishimasu is a formal goodbye. Though it’s a mouthful, it’s used a lot! Japanese is a language based on politeness! An example of when you would shitsureishimasu is when you are leaving your bosses’ office!
Thats it for this lesson! じゃまた！
