by Wen Spencer
Otaku—“Fan” with the implication of extreme. What the person is a fan of can vary even though in the US, otaku is used as a fan of anime/manga.
Oyakodon—A rice bowl with sautéed onions, chicken and egg. Sometimes given nicknames like “mother and child,” generation bowl, etc., to indicate that both the chicken and the egg are the same creature, just different stages of its life. (And yes, this is one of my favorite Japanese dishes.)
Ryokan—A bed and breakfast where the rooms are traditional Japanese with tatami mats and futon bedding. The style of the rooms and method of dealing with the guests is what makes it a ryokan versus a hotel. It may or may not have a hot spring bath. If it does, then it’s a ryokan onsen.
Sake—Rice wine.
Salaryman—A cobbled-together English phrase to mean someone who earns a salary, but typically refers to a man who wears a business suit.
Seme—The aggressor or “Pitcher” in a yaoi manga. The related term, Uke, is used for the “Catcher.”
Shide—A streamer made of paper that has been folded into a zigzag shape. Sometimes they are tacked on to objects to create a ward or mark the item as holy. Other times they are attached to wands and used in rituals. The wand is called a haraegushi, or lightning wand. When it is waved, it makes a rustling noise. The wand is often used by Shinto priests and shrine maidens in cleansing rituals.
Shikansen—Bullet train.
Shintai—The vessel of a Shinto god, or physical object serving as a repository for the god.
Shoji—A door consisting of paper covering a wooden frame. Because the paper is nearly translucent, a great deal of natural light is able to shine through the door while still being able to block out dust and insects. The paper is sold in sheets and routine maintenance on the door is to remove the old paper as it is torn and glue new paper into place.
Soto soto!—“Outside, outside.”
Sumimasen—Basically means “I’m sorry,” but in the nature of “I’m sorry to bother you” or “Excuse me.”
Tabi—Traditional socks that have a notch between the big toe and the second toe so that the foot fits easily into a sandal.
Taiko—Large drums usually played by an ensemble group. The drums are made from wooden sake barrels with skin stretched over one end. They’re played with two wooden sticks.
Takoyaki—Fried octopus dumplings, a very common “street” food often found at food courts, train stations, and festivals. It’s topped with a BBQlike sauce and sometimes mayonnaise. It originated in Osaka. It’s usually found in eight packs, reflecting the Japanese sense of humor and the fact that octopi have eight tentacles.
Tanuki—A common animal found in Japan that fills the niche of “raccoon,” complete with face mask but is more doglike in build. It is often referred to as “raccoon dog.” (While on Miyajima Island we came face-to-face with one in a back alley one night—they are scary large despite their name.) The name also refers to a trickster spirit (yokai) that can transform its appearances from someone the person knows to an object. For some reason, they’re the patron saint of restaurants and statues of them are often found by the front door of an eating establishment.
Tansu—Traditional wooden storage cabinets, often bound with metal. They are considered portable and designed to be easily moved. They could be used for storing food, clothing, medicine, or weapons. They were custom built for one specific item so varied widely in size and shape. Some were chests, others drawers, and others wardrobes. Occassionally they were built with a wheel-base to make them easy to move long distances. My favorite tansu are drawers stacked up in a manner that allow them to also serve as a staircase to a second floor.
Tatami—Straw bound into rectangular mats, which are about two inches thick. Room sizes in Japan are measured by the number of tatami mats that can be laid down on the floor, thus the room might be a four tatami or eight tatami room. While new, they smell strongly of cut hay fields. The scent fades over time although high humidity can renew the scent. Japanese never walk on the tatami mats with shoes on and don’t place chairs on these mats. In modern homes, only the living room might be set up with tatami mats. In older, more traditional homes, the bedrooms and the dining room will also have mats.
Toire—Toilet or bathroom.
Toire wa doko desu ka—“Where is the bathroom?”
Torii—A structure of two posts supporting a crossbeam, often translated as “gate” although there’s no swinging gate or barrier walls involved. They represent crossing from the real world to the spiritual world. The kanji for this means “Bird Rest.”
Toryanse—A traditional children’s song, original unknown, that’s been sung by Japanese children for generations. It is much like “London Bridge” in that the children play a group game which involves two people holding hands forming a “gate” and the other children “passing through the gate” while the song is sung. The child under “the gate” when the song ends is caught and held prisoner. For some reason, the Japanese decided when they first added sound to crossing lights to have this song played. I love the melody but unfortunately the song has been slowly changed over to a very piercing beep.
Tsuba—The hilt of a samurai sword. It is fashioned separately from the blade and can be changed if the sword is dismantled into its separate pieces. Generally it’s a disc of metal, several inches across, with a slot in the center for the blade. Each tsuba is handcrafted and has artwork painted onto the surface. The artwork often relates to the samurai’s family mon.
Uchiwa—A fan that doesn’t fold, sometimes made of plastic, traditionally made of bamboo and paper. At festivals, plastic versions are passed out, often with pretty pictures on one side and festival sponsors’ names listed on the other. Fans from restaurants with pictures of popular food dishes and their prices are often given out. Because festivals are in the summer, are crowded, and have countless food stalls pouring out heat, one often needs a fan and something cool to eat or drink. You see uchiwa tucked up against the kidneys of people wearing everything from yukata to blue jeans.
Uke—The “Catcher” in a yaoi manga. This is normally the character that is caught off guard by the approach of the other character. Often the uke is smaller and prettier than the seme.
Wakarimasen—“I don’t understand.”
Yakuza—Japanese organized crime syndicates. Like most things Japanese, they are steeped in tradition. Yakuza members often sport elaborate and colorful full-body tattoos, but they only reveal them to fellow yakuza. As a penance for failing some task, they sometimes cut off parts of their fingers, starting with the pinkie. This apology is the origin of “pinkie promise” in Japan. Such self-mutation was in order to weaken the man’s ability to fight, thus making him the need protection of his organization more.
Yaoi—Homosexual comics, graphic in nature. (Nongraphic homosexual comics are considered “boy’s love.”) The two main characters are divided into the roles of uke and seme in terms of which character is the aggressive personality in the relationship. Oddly, the readership is mostly female.
Yen—Japanese monetary unit. One yen is roughly a penny. A hundred yen is roughly a dollar. A thousand yen is ten dollars. A hundred thousand yen is a hundred dollars. Unlike Americans, Japanese embrace coins. In addition to one-, five-, ten-, and twenty-five-yen coins, they also have a fifty-yen coin, a hundred-yen coin and a five-hundred-yen coin. Men’s wallets normally have a coin section to make carrying these coins easier. That said, Japan is quickly moving to a cashless society with pre-paid cards and cell phone payments being accepted in vending machines and many stores. Credit cards, however, are quite rare.
Yokai—Supernatural being that generally falls into the “monster” range as opposed to kami which are more “god.”
Yukata—A summer kimono, less formal than a proper kimono, often worn to festivals. Normally only teenage girls wear them, but there are male versions. The girls’ yukatas are bright, flowery gowns, often in pastel colors. Boys’ are usually much plainer and run towards tan
and navy.
Yuri—Lesbian comics, sometimes graphic in nature, but not as graphic as Yaoi.
Yuri—Lily. Often used as an old-fashioned girl’s name. (Yes, I gave Pixii lily flowers on her yukata for a reason.)
And the French!
Mon Ami—My friend
Monsieur Minon—Mister pussycat
Pour penser, il faut un cerveau—for thinking, a brain is necessary
