Monday, December 5, 2011
さくぶん３：にじゅうねんごのわたし
こんいちは、わたしはアニドルです。わたしはにほんのちばにいます。しんいちブルーイングではたらきます。わたしのしごとはとてもたのしいです。そして、にほんのせいかつがすくです。まいあさろくじにおきます。げつようびからきんようびまでしちじはんからごじまではたらきます。わたしのうちからかいしゃまでちかてつでにじゅっぷんかかります。どようびからにちようびまではたらきません。わたしはきれいなかぞくとあそびます。わたしのかぞくはとてもおおきいですから、せいかつはおもしろいです。じゅうにんです。つまとわたしたちのこどもです。ごにんのおんなのことよにんのおとこのこです。そして、わたしのきょうだいはアメリカからいちねんにいっかいきます。そして、みんなはおまつりにいきます。とてもたのしいです。わたしのせいかつはすてきです。
Katakana Literary Work Final Draft
So, for this project, I thought it would be fun to mash up one of the classic cartoon strips from my childhood with the expressionistic katakana of Japanese manga. I also threw in a couple of Japanese proverbs for fun. Enjoy!
Guide #1: カルビントホッブスでワッターサン- Calvin and Hobbes by Watterson
ジリリ - beep beep (alarm, watch)
ワク - happy excitement, anticipation
ヒュン - woosh (fast movement)
ソロリソロリ - sneaking movement
スパー - dashing movement
ドチャ - charging movement
ただいま - "I'm back", "I'm home"
オリャア - cry of attack, warcry
ギャア - agghhh!! (panicked, fearful cry)
おかえりなさい - "Welcome home"
アグー - grunt
どおも - "thanks"
guide#2:
プクー - blowing up a balloon (exhaling air)
ピイ - sudden awareness
ギラ - evil grin ("like the deadly shine of a blade")
シャ - whoosh (running water)
ヒュン - whoosh (fast movement)
ソロリソロリ - sneaking movement
ウトウト - light sleeping / dozing off
ばかわしななきゃなおらない - "Only death will cure a fool."
ビタ - hesitation, stopping an action because of realization
Guide #3:
ウニ - "yawn", waking up
べべ - putt putt putt (mechanical motor sound)
グー - "zzz" (sleeping)
ポリポリ - scratch scratch
スヤスヤ - sleeping peacefully, "zzzzzz"
グリ - rub rub (rubbing)
スカー - feeling of refreshment, good feeling
クチュ - stroke (petting)
ウキウキ - happy floating feeling, buoyant
プハー - sigh (happy sigh)
ンゴーンガー - sleepy muttering
ワーーー - "yeaaaahhhh", cheerful exclamation, contented happiness
げんきくばり、えがおくばり - "Be generous with your energy, be generous with your smiles."
Source
Watterson, Bill. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes, 1st edition. Kansas City, Mo. : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2005.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Katakana Analysis Final Draft
As with many of my classmates, I was interested in why Japanese companies would use katakana to represent their brands. This is done by many brands across a wide variety of industries. It seemed odd to me that the companies of a country that is famous for its national pride and traditional business acumen would use a spelling widely known to be used for foreign words. As I looked closer, I found many reasons why katakana is used (and that my ignorance was a bit anglocentric.)
Katakana is used by many companies to brand their products. This can be done for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is to grab attention. Examples of this can be film titles, food products, and, of course, company names. Many seem to think katakana stands out and will be noticed by potential consumers better than hirigana or kanji. Another reason, at least for certain companies, would be katakana's ties to the technical and scientific industries. Many advances and introductions to the world of science and technology at first came from outside Japan. Since they were foreign words they were translated into katakana. Since then, the trend was set and many things related to those industries use katakana. One other reason, among many, for the use of Katakana may be the desire for a global market position. Many Japanese companies, while still using the three traditional Japanese scripts, use romaji translations of their company names to create a world-recognized branding. To look further into this, I decided to look at the history of Japan's largest company - Toyota.
The offshoot of a successful automated loom company, Toyota traveled a long road to become the global automotive giant we know today. The company was founded by Sakichi Toyoda in the early 1930's (using the kanji representation) and as it became a global player it held a contest to rename the company to be suitable for Japanese as well as American markets. A majority of votes were put forth for a simple change, トヨタ or Toyota. There are many reasons why this change is thought to be so popular, but the most prevalent is the reduction from 10 strokes to 8. The number eight in Japanese culture is thought, by some, to hold significant meaning and luck. But this did not mean they would stop using the highly honorific kanji. For their first production model, the Toyota AA, the company emblazoned the hood with an emblem that stated the company name with both highly-stylized kanji characters and the katakana spelling underneath (see picture below.) As neat as that all sounds, the road to Toyota was a little more complex and underscores the importance of a global view when developing a successful brand.
In 1957, Toyota began a real push into the American market with a car that had been very successful in Japan. The Crown 2-door sedan was wildly popular in Japan and earned the nickname "Toyopet" due to its small size and tiny motor. The name and car were so popular that Japan decided to launch the American debut under the actual brand name of Toyopet or トヨペット。But, at this time especially, Americans were obsessed with gigantic cars and gas-guzzling, powerful engines and the cute little Crown didn't stand a chance. Never a culture to accept defeat lightly, Japan's Toyota reworked their international strategy until they developed the larger, faster Crown model for the American market. In 1965, they would drop the トヨペット name (which in America was too connotative of "toys" and "pets" which reminded people of the tiny cars previously available) altogether and began using トヨタ。
So all of this history of a single brand name would speak to the various explanations given by so many sources on the topic of Katakana usage. In the case of Toyota we have such aspects as: marketing, science and technology, and foreign influence (or, maybe more apt, the desire for global positioning.) All of which have been successfully harnessed to create such an influential global corporation. Toyota showed great finesse, as well as a sort of humble resilience, in analyzing and handling reactions to its brand name and products. I have no doubt this directly influenced what we see now as a company that can not only produce top-notch vehicles sold around the world, but survive (incredibly well) the rare occasion when its products show signs of technical defects and the storm of negative media that follows, especially in the US. The recent events involving product failure and recalls appears to be only a minor note in the story of Toyota.
Katakana is used by many companies to brand their products. This can be done for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is to grab attention. Examples of this can be film titles, food products, and, of course, company names. Many seem to think katakana stands out and will be noticed by potential consumers better than hirigana or kanji. Another reason, at least for certain companies, would be katakana's ties to the technical and scientific industries. Many advances and introductions to the world of science and technology at first came from outside Japan. Since they were foreign words they were translated into katakana. Since then, the trend was set and many things related to those industries use katakana. One other reason, among many, for the use of Katakana may be the desire for a global market position. Many Japanese companies, while still using the three traditional Japanese scripts, use romaji translations of their company names to create a world-recognized branding. To look further into this, I decided to look at the history of Japan's largest company - Toyota.
The offshoot of a successful automated loom company, Toyota traveled a long road to become the global automotive giant we know today. The company was founded by Sakichi Toyoda in the early 1930's (using the kanji representation) and as it became a global player it held a contest to rename the company to be suitable for Japanese as well as American markets. A majority of votes were put forth for a simple change, トヨタ or Toyota. There are many reasons why this change is thought to be so popular, but the most prevalent is the reduction from 10 strokes to 8. The number eight in Japanese culture is thought, by some, to hold significant meaning and luck. But this did not mean they would stop using the highly honorific kanji. For their first production model, the Toyota AA, the company emblazoned the hood with an emblem that stated the company name with both highly-stylized kanji characters and the katakana spelling underneath (see picture below.) As neat as that all sounds, the road to Toyota was a little more complex and underscores the importance of a global view when developing a successful brand.
In 1957, Toyota began a real push into the American market with a car that had been very successful in Japan. The Crown 2-door sedan was wildly popular in Japan and earned the nickname "Toyopet" due to its small size and tiny motor. The name and car were so popular that Japan decided to launch the American debut under the actual brand name of Toyopet or トヨペット。But, at this time especially, Americans were obsessed with gigantic cars and gas-guzzling, powerful engines and the cute little Crown didn't stand a chance. Never a culture to accept defeat lightly, Japan's Toyota reworked their international strategy until they developed the larger, faster Crown model for the American market. In 1965, they would drop the トヨペット name (which in America was too connotative of "toys" and "pets" which reminded people of the tiny cars previously available) altogether and began using トヨタ。
So all of this history of a single brand name would speak to the various explanations given by so many sources on the topic of Katakana usage. In the case of Toyota we have such aspects as: marketing, science and technology, and foreign influence (or, maybe more apt, the desire for global positioning.) All of which have been successfully harnessed to create such an influential global corporation. Toyota showed great finesse, as well as a sort of humble resilience, in analyzing and handling reactions to its brand name and products. I have no doubt this directly influenced what we see now as a company that can not only produce top-notch vehicles sold around the world, but survive (incredibly well) the rare occasion when its products show signs of technical defects and the storm of negative media that follows, especially in the US. The recent events involving product failure and recalls appears to be only a minor note in the story of Toyota.
Sources:
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
かんしゃさいおめでとう！
みんなさん、かんしゃさいおめでとう！きょでんしゃでロングアイランドへかえります。NYC からうちまででんしゃでいちじかんはんぐらいかかります。とてもべんりです。かんしゃさいのばんごはんはとてもおいしいです。たくさんたべものをたべます。そしてたくさんのみものをのみます。たべもののなかでパイがいちばんおいしいです。わたしはパイがすきです。コロンビアだいがくへにちようびにかえります。でもこのしゅうまつはにほんごをべんきょします。
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Katakana Project
So, for this project, I thought it would be fun to mash up one of the classic cartoon strips from my childhood with the expressionistic katakana of Japanese manga. I also threw in a couple of Japanese proverbs for fun. Enjoy!
Guide #1: カルビントホッブスでワッターサン- Calvin and Hobbes by Watterson
ジリリ - beep beep (alarm, watch)
ワク - happy excitement, anticipation
ヒュン - woosh (fast movement)
ソロリソロリ - sneaking movement
スパー - dashing movement
ドチャ - charging movement
ただいま - "I'm back", "I'm home"
オリャア - cry of attack, warcry
ギャア - agghhh!! (panicked, fearful cry)
おかえりなさい - "Welcome home"
アグー - grunt
どおも - "thanks"
guide#2:
プクー - blowing up a balloon (exhaling air)
ピイ - sudden awareness
ギラ - evil grin ("like the deadly shine of a blade")
シャ - whoosh (running water)
ヒュン - whoosh (fast movement)
ソロリソロリ - sneaking movement
ウトウト - light sleeping / dozing off
ばかわしななきゃなおらない - "Only death will cure a fool."
ビタ - hesitation, stopping an action because of realization
Guide #3:
ウニ - "yawn", waking up
べべ - putt putt putt (mechanical motor sound)
グー - "zzz" (sleeping)
ポリポリ - scratch scratch
スヤスヤ - sleeping peacefully, "zzzzzz"
グリ - rub rub (rubbing)
スカー - feeling of refreshment, good feeling
クチュ - stroke (petting)
ウキウキ - happy floating feeling, buoyant
プハー - sigh (happy sigh)
ンゴーンガー - sleepy muttering
ワーーー - "yeaaaahhhh", cheerful exclamation, contented happiness
げんきくばり、えがおくばり - "Be generous with your energy, be generous with your smiles."
Source
Watterson, Bill. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes, 1st edition. Kansas City, Mo. : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2005.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Composition 2 Final Draft
山田さんへ、
はじめまして。わたしはリンチアニドリユーです。ニューヨークからきました。そしてコロンビアだいがくのがくせいです。コロンビアだいがくはむずかしいですがおもしろいです。そしてきれいなだいがくです。やまださんはニューヨークへきましたか。
にほんのせいかつはどうですか。ろくがつついたちにひこうきでにほんへいきます。ごぜんはちじになりたこくさいくうこうであいませんか。こうべはどんなまちですか。
わたしはにほんごをべんきょうします。むずかしいですが、とてもおもしろいです。ひらがながよくわかります。そしてかたかなとかんじがすごしわかります。やまださんはわたしににほんごをおしえますか。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。リンチアニドリュー。
Monday, October 31, 2011
Katakana Analysis draft
As with many of my classmates, I was interested in why Japanese companies would use katakana to represent their brands. This is done by many brands across a wide variety of industries. It seemed odd to me that the companies of a country that is famous for its nationalism and traditional business acumen would use a spelling widely known to be used for foreign words. As I looked closer, I found many reasons why katakana is used (and that my ignorance was a bit anglocentric.)
Katakana is used by many companies to brand their products. This can be done for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is to grab attention. Examples of this can be film titles, food products, and, of course, company names. Many seem to think katakana stands out and will be noticed by potential consumers better than hirigana or kanji. Another reason, at least for certain companies, would be katakana's ties to the technical and scientific industries. It would seem that many advances and introductions to the world of science and technology at first came from outside Japan. Since they were foreign words they were translated into katakana. Since then, the trend was set and many things related to those industries use katakana. One other reason, among many, for the use of Katakana may be the desire for a global position. Many Japanese companies, while still using the three traditional Japanese scripts, use romaji translations of their company names to create a world-recognized branding. To look further into this, I decided to look at the history of Japan's largest company - Toyota.
The offshoot of a successful automated loom company, Toyota traveled a long road to become the global automotive giant we know today. The company was founded by Sakichi Toyoda in the early 1930's (using the kanji representation) and as it became a global player it held a contest to rename the company to be suitable for Japanese as well as American markets. A majority of votes were put forth for a simple change, トヨタ or Toyota. There are many reasons why this change is thought to be so popular, but the most prevalent is the reduction from 10 strokes to 8. The number eight in Japanese culture is thought, by some, to hold significant meaning and luck. But this did not mean they would stop using the highly honorific kanji. For their first production model, the Toyota AA, the company emblazoned the hood with an emblem that stated the company name with both highly-stylized kanji characters and the katakana spelling underneath (see picture below.) As neat as that all sounds, the road to Toyota was a little more complex and underscores the importance of a global view when developing a successful brand.
In 1957, Toyota began a real push into the American market with a car that had been very successful in Japan. The Crown 2-door sedan was wildly popular in Japan and earned the nickname "Toyopet" due to its small size and tiny motor. The name and car were so popular that Japan decided to launch the American debut under the actual brand name of Toyopet or トヨペット。But, even back then, Americans were obsessed with gigantic cars and gas-guzzling engines and the cute little Crown didn't stand a chance. Never a culture to accept defeat lightly, Japan's Toyota reworked their international strategy until they developed the larger, faster Crown model for the American market. In 1965, they would drop the トヨペット name (which in America was too connotative of "toys" and "pets" which reminded people of the tiny cars previously available) altogether and began using トヨタ。
So all of this history of a single brand name would speak to the various explanations given by so many sources on the topic of Katakana usage. In the case of Toyota we have such aspects as: marketing, science and technology, and foreign influence. All of which have been successfully harnessed to create such an influential global corporation.
Katakana is used by many companies to brand their products. This can be done for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is to grab attention. Examples of this can be film titles, food products, and, of course, company names. Many seem to think katakana stands out and will be noticed by potential consumers better than hirigana or kanji. Another reason, at least for certain companies, would be katakana's ties to the technical and scientific industries. It would seem that many advances and introductions to the world of science and technology at first came from outside Japan. Since they were foreign words they were translated into katakana. Since then, the trend was set and many things related to those industries use katakana. One other reason, among many, for the use of Katakana may be the desire for a global position. Many Japanese companies, while still using the three traditional Japanese scripts, use romaji translations of their company names to create a world-recognized branding. To look further into this, I decided to look at the history of Japan's largest company - Toyota.
The offshoot of a successful automated loom company, Toyota traveled a long road to become the global automotive giant we know today. The company was founded by Sakichi Toyoda in the early 1930's (using the kanji representation) and as it became a global player it held a contest to rename the company to be suitable for Japanese as well as American markets. A majority of votes were put forth for a simple change, トヨタ or Toyota. There are many reasons why this change is thought to be so popular, but the most prevalent is the reduction from 10 strokes to 8. The number eight in Japanese culture is thought, by some, to hold significant meaning and luck. But this did not mean they would stop using the highly honorific kanji. For their first production model, the Toyota AA, the company emblazoned the hood with an emblem that stated the company name with both highly-stylized kanji characters and the katakana spelling underneath (see picture below.) As neat as that all sounds, the road to Toyota was a little more complex and underscores the importance of a global view when developing a successful brand.
In 1957, Toyota began a real push into the American market with a car that had been very successful in Japan. The Crown 2-door sedan was wildly popular in Japan and earned the nickname "Toyopet" due to its small size and tiny motor. The name and car were so popular that Japan decided to launch the American debut under the actual brand name of Toyopet or トヨペット。But, even back then, Americans were obsessed with gigantic cars and gas-guzzling engines and the cute little Crown didn't stand a chance. Never a culture to accept defeat lightly, Japan's Toyota reworked their international strategy until they developed the larger, faster Crown model for the American market. In 1965, they would drop the トヨペット name (which in America was too connotative of "toys" and "pets" which reminded people of the tiny cars previously available) altogether and began using トヨタ。
So all of this history of a single brand name would speak to the various explanations given by so many sources on the topic of Katakana usage. In the case of Toyota we have such aspects as: marketing, science and technology, and foreign influence. All of which have been successfully harnessed to create such an influential global corporation.
Sources:
Monday, October 24, 2011
HabuSake
わたしのあにわにほんへいきました。おきなわでおみやげをかいました。わたしわわたしのあににはぶさけをもらいました。のみませんでした。yet... I am going to try and translate the label now that we are learning kanji. I am afraid it won't be as interesting as I imagine though...
Monday, October 10, 2011
All study and no play makes Andrew a dull boy...
わたしはせんしゅうのきんようびからにちようびまでべんきょうしました。にほんごとじんるいがく(biology)とせいぶつがく(anthropology)とえいごをべんきょうします。ちゅうかんしけん(midterm exams) はこんがつです。わたしはおうくの (ooku no = a lot) べんきょうします。びじゅつかんへいきません。バーへいきません。えいがげきじょう(movie theater) へいきません。レストランえいきません。わたしはかなしいです。(kanashii = sad)
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Another reason to love Japan... Beer
わたしはビールがすきです。I also brew my own when I can. にほんのビールはおいしいです。わたしはさっぽろとあさひとおりおんときりんがすきです。These mainstream beers use about 30% rice which gives the beer its crisp and refreshing taste. ちいさなビールじょうぞうしょもあります。Japanese craft beer is called じビール("local beer") or more recently クラフトビア。The best I have had, so far, is Hitachino Nest red rice ale.
I would also like to get one of those gigantic cans of beer in the lower left of this picture...
I would also like to get one of those gigantic cans of beer in the lower left of this picture...
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Why Japanese?
I can thank both of my older brothers for exposing me to Japanese culture. My oldest brother has been obsessed with film and television for as long as I can remember. He would always find the most brilliant movies from cultures all over the world. This started my own obsession with Japanese cinema, especially from the 60's and 70's. I was utterly fascinated by the culture I saw in these films.
My other brother ended up stationed in Iwakuni at a US Marine base and had great stories of a wonderful people. But more importantly he brought me back a book that profoundly impacted my life, Taiko by Eiji Yoshikawa. It is a wonderful story of humanity.
I have taken an elementary Japanese course at community college prior to coming to Columbia, and it is a good thing I did. We move much faster here at Columbia and I am glad to have a base of knowledge to draw upon. But as intensive as it feels, I feel I am learning more than ever.
I look forward to supplementing my school learning with the availability of Japanese cinema, past and present, here in NYC. It is not uncommon for Akira Kurosawa films to play, and I would love to see them on the big screen.
Self-Introduction
はじめまして。わたしはアンドルです。コロンビアだいがくのがくせいです。わたしはてんそうがくせいです。にじゅはっさいです。ニュウヨオクにすんでいます。ロングアイランドからきました。どうぞよろしく。どうもありがとうございます。
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