Hello! Welcome to the introductory lesson of Japanese! ^_^
If you have any questions please let me know.
In this lesson, I will cover:
Simple Introductions
Honorifics
Simple Introduction
These are a couple of phrases you can use while introducing yourself.
Hajimemashite: This is the first thing you say when you introduce yourself. It means something like "How do you do?" but isn't expected to be answered (i.e. I'm fine).
Douzo yoroshiku: This is what you end your introduction with. It's similar to "Pleased to meet you".
Honorifics
I'm sure many of you know what these are, but I will cover them just in case. Honorifics are titles that you put after a person's name in Japanese. They are similar to titles in English like Mr. and Ms.
Honorifics can be used on either the first or last name of the person you are talking to. You never use honorifics on your own name when referring to yourself as it is considered very rude.
I will only cover four honorifics that are most commonly used in Japanese.
-San: This honorific can be used for basically anyone regardless of gender, as long as they are not an elder or of a significantly higher class than you. It's very generic but also shows respect. Use this honorific if you're not sure which of the other ones to use.
For example, let's say you started a new school year and are talking to/about a fellow student named Takeshi. Whenever you say his name, it's respectful to say Takeshi-san.
-Kun: An informal honorific used mainly for boys. You can add it to the name of a close friend.
-Chan: Another informal honorific used mainly for girls and children. Also used toward very close friends, but more often used toward ones that are girls (although it can be used toward close guy friends, it's not very common). It can also be added to a lover's name making it similar to a pet name. This one is only added on the first name and adds a sense of cuteness to the name it is added to.
-Sensei: A very respectful honorific used for people of respected professions like Doctors and Teachers.
Also, you can omit an honorific if the person is a really close friend or a close family member.
Conclusion
Well, that's all for this lesson. I would like to request that you now refer to other members with an honorific when you mention their name while posting on this blog, (at least use -san) I hope you enjoyed the lesson. Jaa mata ne! ^_^
Please be the look out for my next part called "Japanese Learning: Lesson 1" which includes:
1. Vocabulary
By @Sai Drawings
