College of Engineering, Architecture, and

Technology
NIHONGGO
BY: JENNY ANN CORNEPILLO
HANNAH BEL TACUYAN

INTRODUCTION: JAPAN
JAPAN: 日本, ‘Nihon’, or ‘Nippon’
The kanji for ‘Nihon’ (日本) literally means ‘origin of the sun’. It is called as “The land of the
Rising Sun” because the sun rises first in Japan and then in any other part of the world. Talking about
Japan is like talking about a country which is perfect on its own. Its capital is “Tokyo”.

Japan’s Geography:

• Japan is an archipelago, or string of islands, on the eastern edge of Asia.

• It consists of 6,852 islands, most of which are mountainous and many are volcanic.

• There are four main islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

• Within these islands, there are 47 prefectures with a total population of 127 million (11th in
the world).
HONSHU

• The largest island of Japan is Honshu, with a total area of 227,962 square kilometers.

• Honshu is also the 7th largest island in the world, stretching at 1,300 kilometers long.

• Some of the world’s greatest cities are on Honshu, including Japan’s capital, Tokyo.

• You can also find cultural sites here, including the country’s highest peak! Mt. Fuji stands
3,776 meters tall, inviting many tourists to hike up the snow-capped mountain.

HOKKAIDO

• The northernmost island of Japan and perhaps the most preserved of the main islands is
Hokkaido.

• The island’s total area of 83,453 square kilometers has a mountainous center, which spreads
out to coastal plains. 

• Hokkaido’s largest city and capital is Sapporo (札幌), which is said to mean “important river
flowing through a plain” in the indigenous Ainu language.

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• This is the youngest of Japan’s major cities, having begun major developments at the
beginning of the Meiji Period (1868-1912). 

KYUSHU

• Southern Japan has a subtropical climate and is highly agricultural.

• This is Japan’s 3rd largest island with an area of 35,640 square kilometers over 7 prefectures.
Kyushu is home to many historical sites and preserves its natural beauty amid the bustling
modern cities.

• Kyushu is extensively mountainous with the volcanic terrain of the Kuju mountain range.
Japan’s most active volcano, Mt. Aso, is also on this island.

• The most famous is probably the steaming town of Beppu, where you can find the
ornamental “Hells of Beppu” hot springs.

• This is the rainiest place in Japan, with a local exaggerating that the area sees 35 days of rain
in a month.

SHIKOKU

• East of Kyushu is the similarly subtropical island Shikoku. As the smallest of Japan’s major
islands, most people overlook the charms that this island has to offer.

• With 18,800 square kilometers spread over 4 prefectures, the Shikoku landscape varies in
each cardinal direction.

• Shikoku is perhaps best known as home to several haiku masters and for its many Buddhist
temples. In fact, you can embark on one of the world’s oldest Buddhist pilgrimages on
Shikoku. 

• The island has a 1,200-kilometer pilgrimage route, with 88 temples along the way. This is
taken as a journey to honor the Buddhist monk and founder of Shingon Buddhism, Kūkai
(known today as Kōbō-Daishi).

Japan’s Flag:
• There are two “rising sun” flags associated with Japan, whose very name in Japanese means
“the sun’s origin.” One is the country’s national flag, called “nisshoki” or “hinomaru,” which
has a red disc on a white background. The other one also has a red disc, but it is surrounded
by 16 rays that extend outward. Called “kyokujitsuki,” this one has led to vehement protests
from some of Japan’s neighbors.

• The Japanese flag is made up of a red circle, symbolizing the sun, against a white
background. It is known as the hinomaru in Japanese, meaning "circle of the sun." Because

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Japan lies at the far West of the Pacific Ocean, the sun rises spectacularly over the sea to the
East. The flag was officially adopted by Japan in August 1999, when the National Flag and
Anthem Law was enacted by the Diet (Japan's national assembly).

• The Japanese national anthem, which became officially recognized as such in 1999, is called
"Kimigayo." The national flag was also just officially established in 1999 and is called the
Hinomaru.

HISTORY OF JAPAN
Japan was settled about 35,000 years ago by Paleolithic people from the Asian mainland. At
the end of the last Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago, a culture called the Jomon developed. Jomon
hunter-gatherers fashioned fur clothing, wooden houses, and elaborate clay vessels. According to
DNA analysis, the Ainu people may be descendants of the Jomon.

The second wave of settlement by the Yayoi people introduced metal-working, rice
cultivation, and weaving to Japan. DNA evidence suggests that these settlers came from Korea.

The first era of recorded history in Japan is the Kofun (A.D. 250-538), which was
characterized by large burial mounds or tumuli. The Kofun were headed by a class of aristocratic
warlords; they adopted many Chinese customs and innovations.

Buddhism came to Japan during the Asuka period, 538-710, as did the Chinese writing
system. At this time, society was divided into clans. The first strong central government developed
during the Nara period (710-794). The aristocratic class practiced Buddhism and Chinese calligraphy,
while agricultural villagers followed Shintoism.

Samurai lords, called "shogun," took over the government in 1185, and ruled Japan in the
name of the emperor until 1868. The Kamakura Shogunate (1185-1333) ruled much of Japan from
Kyoto. Aided by two miraculous typhoons, the Kamakura repelled attacks by Mongol armadas in
1274 and 1281.

A particularly strong emperor, Go-Daigo, tried to overthrow the shogunate in 1331, resulting
in a civil war between competing northern and southern courts that finally ended in 1392. During
this time, a class of strong regional lords called "daimyo" increased in power; their rule lasted
through the end of the Edo period, also known as the Tokugawa Shogunate, in 1868.

That year, a new constitutional monarchy was established, headed by the Meiji Emperor.
The power of the shoguns came to an end.

After the Meiji Emperor's death, the emperor's son became the Taisho Emperor. His chronic
illnesses kept him away from his duties and allowed the country's legislature to introduce new

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democratic reforms. During World War I, Japan formalized its rule over Korea and seized control of
northern China.

The Showa Emperor, Hirohito, oversaw Japan's aggressive expansion during World War II, its
surrender, and its rebirth as a modern, industrialized nation.

JAPANESE LITERATURE
Japan’s Language
• Japanese (Nihongo, 日本語) belongs to the Japonic language family.

• This official language is heavily influenced by the Chinese language because it is composed
mainly of Chinese characters called – “kanji.”

Modern Japanese consists of three alphabets:

• Hiragana (a phonetic Japanese alphabet)

• Katakana (a phonetic alphabet used for foreign words)

• Kanji (logographic Chinese characters)

The development and widespread use of Katakana is illustrative of Japan’s recent adoption
of Western cultures, ideas and words.

1. HIRAGANA

• Hiragana is the backbone to all Japanese learning. It helps you learn the basics of
pronunciation in Japanese and start to understand the building blocks of the
language. This type of chart, called the gojuuon, is a 50-block chart that organizes
the kana sounds into something like alphabetical order. It’s always written this way.
It doesn’t include the extra sounds made with dakuten (the double accent marks:
ﾞ ), handakuten (the small circle: ﾟ ), sokuon (which is a small っ that doubles the
consonant sound and makes a “stop” in the word), or yoon (the small Y-row
characters: ゃ , ゅ , ょ ). These are special characters added on to these 46 basic
sounds to make the additional sounds in Japanese.

For instance, adding the dakuten to き makes it ぎ (“gi”). Handakuten are only used
with H-row characters, to change the sound from H to P. So, は (“ha”) becomes ぱ
(“pa”).The most common sokuon is the small っ (tsu), which is added in between
characters to double the consonant of the second syllable. A common word using
this is かっこいい (kakkoii, “cool”). When pronouncing it, the “k” in “ko” is given a

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strong accent that adds a “stop” sound to the middle of the word. And lastly, yoon
characters are the small Y-row that can combine with any of the the I-row of
consonants + vowels. So, if you added や (“ya”) to き (“ki”), it becomes きゃ (“kya”).
If you add よ (“yo”) to ち (“chi”) it becomes ちょ (“cho”). You drop the “i” vowel
and add the “ya/yu/yo” to the consonant, except for “chi” and “shi”. These two
sounds become “cha/chu/cho” and “sha/shu/sho” when you add yoon characters.

2. KATAKANA

• The katakana chart is laid out exactly like the hiragana chart, as they
coordinate with each other. New learners often have a hard time memorizing
katakana, especially because some characters look very similar, like ツ (tsu) and
シ (shi). Conveniently, the katakana character set covers the same sounds as
hiragana. Some of the characters even look a bit similar, like ‘mo’ – も and モ –
and ‘ya’ – や and ヤ. And for combinations, we use smaller versions of the y-
vowels ya (や), yu (ゆ), and yo (よ) to make new sounds, like sha (しゃ), chu
(ちゅ), nyu (にゅ), and gyo (ぎょ). So spelling out gyoza in hiragana is actually a
great example of both modifications and combinations in action – ぎょうざ.

3. KANJI

• Kanji are symbols that mean a whole word or idea. Many of them were borrowed
from Chinese characters at different times over the past several centuries

• Each character has a whole-word meaning and combine with other kanji to create
compounds and deeper meanings. There are thousands of kanji, and around 2,000
that are considered essential for everyday reading and writing. But these 100 are a
great place to start and get a feel for kanji. Writing was introduced to Japan from
China in the 5th century via the Korean peninsula. The oldest surviving works are
two historical records, the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, which were completed in the
early 8th century. In the 11th century, during the peak of the Heian Period, the
world's first novel, The Tale of Genji, was written in Japan. During the Meiji
Period (1868-1912), an influx of foreign texts spurred the development of modern
Japanese literature. Influential authors of the time include Higuchi Ichiyo, whose
image is on the 5000 yen bill; Natsume Soseki, who is best known for
his Matsuyama-based novel "Botchan"; and Miyazawa Kenji, a poet and children's
literature author from Iwate best known for his work "Night on the Galactic
Railroad". Since then, Japan has maintained a vibrant literary culture, and
contemporary writers such as Kawabata Yasunari and Oe Kenzaburo have won the
Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968 and 1994 respectively.

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1. EHIME PREFECTURE
• Matsuyama

Matsuyama is home to three famous Japanese writers: Natsume Soseki and Shiba Ryotaro,
who both set their novels in Matsuyama; and poet Masaoka Shiki. Each author has museums,
monuments and statues dedicated to them around the city.

2. KYOTO PREFECTURE
• Uji

The Tale of Genji is an 11th-century work of fiction written by a Japanese noblewoman

describing the intrigues of court life during the Heian Period. The town of Uji is frequently
mentioned in the novel, and several locations around the town are marked by statues and plaques.
Visitors can also visit the Tale of Genji Museum to learn more about this novel that has stood the
test of time.

3. IWATE PREFECTURE
• Tono

Tono is well known for its collection of folklore involving legends of spirits, animals and
supernatural creatures. This rich oral tradition was eventually transcribed and collated into a book in
1910 - the "Legends of Tono". The legends continue to be told today and visitors can attend these
story telling performances (in Japanese) at the folk villages, museums and at some of the hotels
around town.

4. OKAYAMA PREFECTURE
• Kibi Plain

The Kibi Plain was the center of the Kibi Kingdom. The area is known for the legend of Prince
Kibitsuhiko, which serves as the foundation of the famous folktale "Momotaro". The folktale
chronicles the journey of a boy, who was born of a peach (momo) and defeated a band of ogres who
were terrorizing the land. Visitors can follow a cycling route that loosely follows the legend of Prince
Kibitsuhiko, passing several important shrines, temples and burial mounds along the way.

JAPANESE CULTURE AND SOCIETY

Culture

 Early Japanese culture was heavily influenced by China. During the Edo era, Japan exercised
a strict isolationist policy, closing its doors to all relationships with the outside world. This
cultivated a distinct Japanese culture.

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 After the fall of that era in 1868, Japan reversed this practice, adopting cultural practices
from all over the world and mixing them with what was established during the Edo era. Over
the years, Western culture has influenced all aspects of Japanese culture including art,
lifestyle and food.

Religion

 There are two main religions in Japan: Shinto and Buddhism. Shinto is a Japanese religion,
while Buddhism was imported in the 6th century from China. A recent poll found that 39% of
Japanese people identify as Buddhist, 3.9% as Shinto and 2.3% as Christian.

Family Structure

 The traditional family unit in Japan is called "Kazoku," comprising of a mother, father and
their children. Traditionally, the Kazoku often live with their elderly parents. However, more
recently, three generation household numbers have fallen in favor of more modern
arrangements.

Sports

 Sports play a significant role in Japanese culture. Sumo, judo and karate are traditional
Japanese sports and baseball, soccer and rugby have been adopted from other cultures.

 Sumo is the national sport of Japan and to this day is primarily practiced only in Japan.
Modern sumo was formed during the Edo era and little has changed since. Baseball is the
most-watched sport in the country. It was first introduced to the country in 1872 and has
grown in popularity ever since.

16 INTERESTING LIFESTYLE FACTS ABOUT JAPAN

 Remove your shoes

In Japanese culture, it is seen as good and essential manners to remove your shoes upon
entering a home, as well as some restaurants, to ensure the floors and tatami mats stay as clean as
possible.

 Bow when greeting

But as a baseline, tradition is that you should bow when greeting someone out of respect. That
can vary from a slight nod of the head to completely bending down at the waist.

 No tipping is required

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In the Japanese culture, it’s easy: you don’t have to do any quick math or remember specific
percentages because tipping is not customary. Not in the traditional restaurants, hotels or for cabs.

 Omiyage: Bring the Gift of Food

The concept of ‘omiyage’ translates as a souvenir to bring back to your loved ones and work
colleagues from any trips, long or short, international or domestic, that you go on. That’s why you’ll
notice that at train stations and airports there are entire shops filled with a plethora of food
products.

 It’s Ok to Slurp Your Noodles

Although noisy eating in general is seen as something to frown upon in Japan, interestingly
enough it’s simultaneously regarded almost preferable that you slurp your noodles.

 Don’t Slam the Taxi Doors

Of Japanese customs, this one may especially get you going “wait what” at first sound. But it’ll
make sense to you as soon as you hear that the Japanese taxis’ back doors opening automatically,
meaning you won’t even have to touch the door handles.

 Know The Importance of Business Cards

Called ‘meishi’ in Japan, also translating as ‘business card’, exchanging business cards is an
important part of Japanese culture and tradition, and especially of its business world; you must
know it in detail if you hope to conduct business with the Japanese.

 Wearing a Kimono Properly is Important

Kimono is an integral part of Japanese traditions, and therefore it’s important to know how to
wear a kimono properly if intending to wear one at all.

 Dressing Up in Anime is POPULAR

It’s popular and totally normal to go around the city dressed up as your favorite anime character
now, especially in a big city like Tokyo. If you want to spot some amazing cosplay and Lolita outfits,
on any regular day, or better yet want to dress up yourself, head over to Tokyo’s Harajuku.

 Conservatively Dressing is the Norm

In big cities like Tokyo, and especially neighborhoods like Harajuku, you may see all sorts of
risqué outfits these days, but especially in the smaller towns and rural places the dress code is
conservative, whether an everyday casual outing or a formal party.

 Being Punctual is Serious Business

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Punctuality is another important part of Japanese culture. When it comes to your workplace,
you’re expected to arrive some 10 minutes before the start of your shift, and it will actually be a
huge deal if you arrive even a minute late.

 Hospitality is Key Part of the Culture

Defined by the word ‘omotenashi’, in many ways the Japanese hospitality as it is today was
brought on by the way tea ceremonies were hosted. Hospitality is a key part of the Japanese culture,
as it is seen important to offer a service that comes from the bottom of your heart – and it shows.

 Know How to Use Chopsticks

From sushi to noodles, all dishes are eaten using chopsticks as a tool, and you’ll find yourself in
trouble trying to find a Japanese person who wouldn’t know how to hold them perfectly.

 Use Proper Etiquette When Visiting Onsen

To start off with, you ought to be totally naked when dipping into one; it may make you hesitate
at first, but try not to worry about it too much as it’s totally normal and everyone around you will be
just as butt naked as you.

 Follow the Subway Rules

The biggest ones you’ll want to know about is that you shouldn’t take too much space (like
leaving your luggage on the seat next to you), you should keep quiet (that means your phone as
well!), leave the priority seats empty, and get in and out of the train in neat order.

 Eating Horse Meat is Common

Although horses aren’t native to Japan, since their introduction, they’ve been popular to use in
dishes. There have been periods throughout the history where horse meat has disappeared off the
menu, but in the modern days it’s nearly as common to eat horse meat as it is beef, pork and
chicken.

JAPAN BASIC WORDS AND PHRASES

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FAMILY MEMBERS

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NUMBERS

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COLORS

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REFERENCES:

• https://theculturetrip.com/asia/japan/articles/where-does-japans-name-come-from/

• https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/geography/countries/article/japan#:~:text=respectful
%20of%20copyright.-,Japan%20is%20an%20archipelago%2C%20or%20string%20of
%20islands%2C%20on%20the,Korea%20and%20China%20farther%20south

• https://motto-jp.com/media/lifestyle/exploring-the-four-main-islands-of-japan/

• https://www.mustgo.com/worldlanguages/japanese/

• https://web-japan.org/kidsweb/faq/society01.html

• https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-07-23/japan-rising-sun-olympic-flag-
provokes-anger#:~:text=There%20are%20two%20%E2%80%9Crising%20sun,disc%20on
%20a%20white%20background

• https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-07-23/japan-rising-sun-olympic-flag-
provokes-anger

• https://www.busuu.com/en/languages/japanese-alphabet

• https://www.fluentin3months.com/japanese-alphabet/

• https://www.thoughtco.com/japan-facts-and-history-195581

• https://www.fluentin3months.com/japanese-alphabet/

• https://www.globalizationpartners.com/2017/12/11/japanese-culture-and-tradition/

• https://www.transparent.com/learn-japanese/phrases.html

• https://www.iwillteachyoualanguage.com/learn/japanese/japanese-tips/basic-japanese-
phrases

• https://www.fluentu.com/blog/japanese/easy-japanese-words-phrases/

• https://www.learn-japanese-adventure.com/japanese-family.html

• https://www.coscom.co.jp/learnjapanese101/wordcategory/basicwords_numbers.html

• https://cotoacademy.com/colors-japanese-use-japanese-color-words/

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