Ask a Japanese Teacher! Why does DESU sound like DESS?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ส.ค. 2024
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In series, Japanese teacher extraordinaire Hiroko will take the questions you've been asking and lay them out in an easy-to-follow format. Turn those question marks into exclamation points and get on with your Japanese study!
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I learned you don't fully leave the "u" you kinda "swallow" the letter
It's easy for me as in my first language (hindi) there is a character (उ) pronounced same as Japanese u haha..
From India
Yum. Alphabet soup.
I noticed the u is whispered, barely spoken, but still there
I have wanted to know why the I and U were often voiceless but no one has ever been able to definitively explain when or why. This makes so much sense!!!! ありがとう！！！
I always thought that if you said the す in です and ます was sort of like the equivalent of "baby talk" in English. You know, trying to sound cute.
Yeah it is actually. Popular in Anime but not used in real life, only rarely. XD
Yeah, you see it in anime a lot where characters who are designed to be very kawaii will really emphasise the 'u' in the desu and masu.
Thank you! I've wanted to know this forever
*****
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Team JapanesePod101.com
I live in Japan, the point is... Some japanese people say DESU or MASU, and others DESS and MASS...
I think both are ok, maybe some people have a different accent...
Day Koto A friend in Japan told me, that it's a Tokyo dialect (to say "dess" and "mass").
Day Koto I was in Tokyo last week and only heard 1 person the whole time say MASU; maybe he was from out of time! Thanks for clarifying.
I feel like it is always older people who say masu. When they do it is clearly pronounced. By that I mean it is not just a little more pronounced than mas it is masU. I always pronounce the su with elders.
Because there are not from japan
My Japanese course made the same point this video does, and I know all the silent consonants and so on, but in the audio tracks I have from the course (which is a super helpful resource to me!) one of the vocalists explicitly pronounces the 'silent' Us and it drives me crazy. I guess your comment is the closest I'll get to peace on the matter, that some people just do it differently. They clearly are native Japanese speakers recording voice lines for the sole purpose of supplementing the language learning course. Well, English breaks it's own rules all the time too, and there are many accents, so it's one of those things I suppose..
so the u is just like a silent e in english?
+Lily Louie Yeah I think so
That's how I thought before. But it's different because the "u" at the end doesn't symbolize anything other than not saying it. It's serves no purpose as far as I can tell.
Silent "e" tells you to pronounce the vowel preceding it by saying the letters name. Like actually saying the letter "a" in "name" instead of the "ah" sound.
***** Ah yeah, that makes sense.
+Lily Louie What's the silent e in english?
+Sky Bound when you pronounce the words: write, because and others with the E in the end not being pronounced.
Oh my lord I love this girl!!!!!!!! you must keep making videos! excellent teacher !
にほんのアニメがすきです。
Yeah, I love nihon.
Same. I love there culture also. I've never been there yet but by all the beautiful pictures I've seen it looks 10x more beautiful than America's. Yes I know what Nehon means. I'm learning there laguage right now and it's not actually very hard. But I'm still a beginner.
@@nightcorefan1440 nihon*
@@janabroflovski2572 Your correction is more than a little bit redundant (like this comment, ahahaha....)
Well try to use more kanji for eg. Where you wrote Nihon you can write it in kanji...it makes sentence short sweet and as in a modern style...👍🏻✨
I always thought that the sounds sort of "disappeared" because of the speed of pronunciation by a native that already knows what's being said by context and, as time goes on, ends up eliminating sounds that should be there. That's what happens in Spanish.
ありがとう ございます for this video the question was asked by me
I have been learning for 3 days now. I have yet to memorize the alphabets but japanese seems like an easy language to learn..I can really understand it well. Also the way this channel teaches it makes it super easy for an absolute beginner. All japanese teachers on this channel are amazing. I do realize that I have to work really hard to learn kanji. Anyways, thanks for the free lessons. Arigato Gosaimasu.
are you fluent yet?
Thank you so much! I have been learning Japanese for a few weeks via your videos as I am travelling to Japan very shortly. You are an amazing teacher! This video, along with your other videos, is very clear and to the point - making it that much easier to learn Japanese. 😎
This video is sooo helpful! ありがとございます！:)
Very very helpful. I'm learning so much with this channel. I'm really thankful
Arlekin Vergeltungswaffe
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Thank you so much for posting these videos!! I need them badly. And thank you also for your consistency and patience teaching us Japanese online! Much obliged. 😁😁
FletcherLee97
Thank you for the positive comment!
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This also happens with shi as well I've noticed, like in "hajime mash(i)ta"
Sometimes.
Did Hiroko spend any time in Australia, only I'm getting a slight accent?
I caught that too. Might be Aussie, might be South African, might even be from certain corners of sunny ol' England.
accents are a b***** to place.
Thank you for this excellent and clear explanation.
it would be even more fun if you'd answer the question of the video. "Why does DESU sound like DESS". in this video you basically say: "because we pronounce it that way". The linguistic reason or history would've been fun to explain :)
Isn't that the same in Dutch language? Why is "vrolijk" pronounced as "vroluk" and why is "politie" pronounced as "polietsie". Why do we write "thee", but pronounce it as "tee" (although in English it's the same for this word).
linguistically, there are phonological rules and historical reasons behind each and every one of those... language is never random..
Because when you write in Hiragana, there aren’t any characters that are just pronounced “s”. There’s su. So, you use that instead. When it’s romanized, it’s taken from hiragana so it would be desu instead of dess. I’m not Japanese, I’m just learning! But I hope it makes sense?
@@Lyndeflor No, it doesn't make sense. It's not the actually reason. In Japanese phonetics there is no concept of closed vowels, and it's not like they wanted to write "des" and couldn't come up with a different solution. It's simply because high vowels (u and i) become unvoiced when surrounded by unvoiced consonants or not followed by any sound. Even with an unvoiced vowel, it's still 1 mora. And one more thing. The vowel is still there. It's unvoiced, so can barely be heard, but it's still there.
The historical reason of why such a phonological phenomenon came to be is unknown to me though.
Thank you Hiroko san . So useful video...love it .
Aww, I was sooo looking forward to learning if it actually matters to say des and mas or desu and masu in specific situations. Because like another person posted, I DO hear native Japanese people saying both. And not Japanese people from different parts of Japan. I hear the same people saying BOTH des and desu at different times, but I can't figure out why.
jinamerica From what I understand, when a person uses desu instead of dess, it’s for emphasis. Like if I wanted to say, “I reeeeeally want this” instead of saying it normally. It doesn’t have to be said and it’s more common to say it normally but people tend to place emphasis where they like.
This was very helpful and easy to understand! Thank you and I like your lessons, they are very helpful.
Gary Tipton
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Team JapanesePod101.com
Thanks for clearing this up, understanding is better than just immitating
I found this explanation useful. I was on the bus with two strangers from Kobe, Japan, and tried to say that "Aikatsu Deski" what I really needed was "Nihon no anime ga suki desu". We don't get many visitors from Japan in Ottawa, Canada. I think they were surprised that I could tell they were speaking Japanese. :)
Yeah, I hear more native Chinese speakers in Ontario than any other foreign language. Only time I really hear Japanese is when I go to Wind (An amazing Japanese and Thai Restaurant in Ontario)
Thank you. Short answer that made a lot of sense.
Very good video. It has helped my daughter and me a lot. Thank you. Looking forward to more videos.
You're and teacher and Japanese so i'm not saying you're wrong but I personally always noticed even different languages but especially ones like Japanese you if you pronounce the word fast enough the letter seems to disappear. Even in english certain accents simply come from how people pronounce certain words often times seemingly leaving out certain letters but if you actually say the word and still here the letters if you listen carefully. Once you're comfortable with a language especial your home one you tend to speak and this pronounce words faster. If you say Desu witha certain speed and without emphasis it's going to sound like dess. Like in the popular anime Naruto, Americans with no knowledge of the language (or no respect for languages apart from american english with an american accent) call one of the main characters (Sasuke)Sa-sue-kay, you hear the syllables vs the actual pronunciation which sounds like sas-ke. I realised if you say Sa-sue-kay fast enough it still comes out sounding like Sas-ke. I may be wrong, I'm no university graduated linguist but I noticed it and it seems like more than just a coincidence.
Update: I was halfway through the video when i made that comment and when i started watching it again Hiroko basically confirmed what I noticed. She said we actually do pronounce the letters but our vocal cords don't vibrate fast enough for it to be prominent. I still think it all stems from speak a language you're comfortable with fast and how linguistic habits get passed down through generations to become modern language but okay, I'll go with what the teacher said lol
love these kind of videos short and simple.
Ah! I always wondered why some people pronounce the U whereas others do not. Now I know the correct way. Thank you.
can you guys do a video about how often we should use sumimasen/suimasen?
I had always wondered about this. It's very helpful if you use phonological terminology, or at least to me because I'm a sworn translator of Spanish and English and I had two subjects in the syllabus that dealt with phonology.
The i is also frequently devoiced in Japanese, although not as much as the u.
thank you very much that very interesting
this is really useful thank you for your time
I love it when the Japanese speak with voiceless consonants I want to recognize them all to sound native !
Thats not what makes you sound native, pitch accent does that and thats very hard
excelente muchas gracias por la aclaración
tank you so much
Thank you it was confusing me, the videos are helping massively
Ohh, thanks about the hints, it really helps. :)
subscribed. I'm linking this to everyone I know
Thanks for the video!!!
Thanks Hiroko... looking great!
Hirokooo senseiiii!! I watched ur video rn and it was posted 11 years ago,,,sugoiii (wow) you sure did become pretty PRETTYYYY
I'm a beginner from India the way original Japanese speaking and my teacher speaking is different. In what ways I can improve my speaking skills..
+ganesh s Hello,
Thank you for posting.
To watch Japanese TV or/and to make Japanese friends are recommended.
Keep studying Japanese with JapanesePod101
Regards,
Team JapanesePod101.com
POO IN LOO
Such a helpful lesson. I thought I had a problem, now I knowwww.
long wondering about this and finally found a GREAT explanation and now I can keep learning. (I was aways confused when in the books there was "desu" and the contributing audio was "des" this left me totally confused and it was NOT explained in this learning lessons)
In that example sentence, it also applies to the shi in yoroSHku. 🙂
it applies to every "i" thrown in the same situation (when between two voiceless consonants or at the end of the word after the voiceless one)
Great video series! Love these bite-size explanations. :) Can you explain why you have the word 'ga' in the example you used? "Nihon no anime GA suki desu." I thought 'ga' meant 'but'?
Ga can mean but, but it’s not like the particle ga. It’s hard to explain, I’ll come back with an explanation soon! XD
Great video, very informative! Could you explain (if you haven’t already) the pronunciation of “shi” like in Hajimemashite, or Dōitashimashite?
when should I use the particle が。 and can you explain when we should use が、は、へ、andを
沢俠斯鮴 Hello, 沢俠斯鮴
Thank you for posting. They are all particles.
が is subject
は is topic
ヘ is destination
を is connector with transive verb and object
Keep studying Japanese with JapanesePod101
Regards,
Team JapanesePod101.com
brilliant explanation!
very useful and important video even after 06 years
Wow!!! This video has helped me so much.
Domo Arigato!
Thanks to your efforts
This was very nicely done. Many thanks.
JoachimderZweite
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Team JapanesePod101.com
Very useful video .. thanks a lot ..
I am mindblown. Thanks for this video. :3
japanese: often ignoring the u sound at the end of a sentence
also japanese: SUDA- BAKKUSU
thanks for your video....its very usefull
Great explanation
awesome video, thank you!
I swear I'm not a weeb.
ひろこ is such a cute teacher 🔥✨🥺❤️
This video is really useful and interesting 🤗
Please made top ten most asked question answer on japanese interview .. huge fan ..
This was so helpful!
Very useful thank you!!!
Could you please also explain where and how we need of pronunciation of Ka, ki, Ku, ke, ko and Kha, khi, khu, Khe, kho where and how? Explain with word for example ください vs くだもの
Very helpful, thank you!!
bdmyriam
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Team JapanesePod101.com
Thank you!
Thx Hiroko san!!
Thanks a lot for detailed teaching! By the way, how to sound out the letter T in Japanese ? To me, it sounds like the letter D in English, am I correct ? For example, how do you pronounce the romaji ANATA ? Thanks again! 😇
+Bobby G. Hello,
Thank you for posting.
T sounds not D. ANATA is あ な た
「た」is not DA
Keep studying Japanese with JapanesePod101
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Team JapanesePod101.com
hi I have a question
can I use the combined sounds concept other than the やゆよ group
please answer asap
こんにちはI love your videos and it is really easy to understand. Though im still struggling on は and わ. And youre also pretty.
You guys are so usefully thanks for the free lessons
I subed to you guys but can you tell us about
The top 10 foods in Japan I'm so curious also
can you teach how to say ''you" in japanese
you all are great
Jeez thanks a lot!!!
Oh my god, this makes so much more sense now. I've been struggling with saying "I'm a student at X university" because "X daigaku no gakusee" just would not roll off my tongue properly. Thank you!
It's pretty easy to understand
Plz make a video on difference between hiragana and katakana
Excellent !!!!
I notice Hiroko says the native Japanese pronunciation of "anime." Most people in the English speaking world pronounce it like it's a shortened form of "animation" (which it actually is). The extreme anime otaku pronounce it "Ah-nee-may" and criticize other people for pronouncing it "wrong." They have a superficial understanding of Japanese phonics that tells them that a Japanese "a" is pronounced "AH" and a Japanese "i" is pronounced "ee." But every time I hear a native speaker say it, it sounds like the more common pronunciation.
HIROKO I love you so much 😍💙💙 you are really amazing onna , you are very useful 💙💪 I am Arabic girl from Saudi Arabia and I am learning Japanese by myself , I hope speak Japanese like you 💙🏮 *Sorry for bad English*
Ty Now i know it Ty for The Helpfull vids ☺️
Awesome video
you think you can explain the "wo" marker next ?
wo ai ni
Sensei,you look very serious in this clip as oppose to some other clips.
Can you make a video about the Katakana for shi, tsu, ri, n and so...... they're really difficult to tell the difference
The Exile uh... yeah you can...... plus I asked the JapanesePod101.
It actually is for some people.
***** Hi. Thanks for the tips! I actually saw a youtube video similar to what you said a while ago and really got the differences down :) (You should make a video about it, it would help a lot of people) I remember by doing, "Shi is looking up but Su is looking slightly down!" So and n are just a matter of strokes and position for me. I wish you luck on learning Japanese! :D
Very useful!
You have a great accent. I wanna be as good as you in Japanese !
Oh okay, kinda like a lot of the recent slang is dropping the vowel at the end - interesting
I I noticed in some songs they pronounce the u as in aruki desu.
Assignment brought me here 😁
Hi, thanks for posting this video. It was really helpful! Can you also post a video on how to use the word no in japanese like in the sentence: Nihon no anime ga sukidesu? thanks
+FiveADay Kanji thanks 😊!
so su drops the u just in the 2 situations? for example すみ how to read? sumi or smi? cuz it is not the end of phrase and the mi is not voiceless constant.
It’s pronounced su in sumimasen. Because it is pronounced su before all “m” sounds, and because it seems to make more of a “su” sound when it comes before the “m” I hope this helped!
Helpful!
Could you please explain the use of ますが and ですが? This is the one concept I haven't really understood. Thank you very much!
You can translate the "ga" as "but" or the "ga" is just a way to connect two sentences.
Teach us Teacher!
My question is when *do* you actually sound out the "U"?
I'm still unsure what you mean by "voiceless consonants", too.
I'm still figuring out the first question too. However, I do know that voiceless consonants do not use the vocal cords to produce their hard, percussive sounds. Like k, t, f, s, ch etc.
I heard that sometimes in kansai ben the desu sounds with the u.
I've heard suki fully voiced before in songs.