Japanese What's with the..

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Sebastien, Feb 24, 2003.

  1. Sebastien

    Sebastien Guest

    I was wondering, what's with all the -Chan stuff.. I watch japanese animes sometimes and I havent got a clue.. Somethimes they say Something-Chan, sometimes Something-San and Something-Sama.. What's the difference between the three?
     
    #1
    Sebastien, Feb 24, 2003
  2. Izzy

    Izzy moo. moo. moo!
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    Well, okay, here we go.

    Suffixes are ways to express titles, or respect, or affection.

    -chan would be said to someone you're close to, usually by girls or *to* girls. Since you are a sailormoon fan, "Mako-chan" is a term of endearment. Or, even to an older person to a younger person, -chan can be used.

    -sama is used for those who get the utmost respect. The emperor of Japan would be one of those you'd say -sama to. Or your boss, though I think -san would be used more often in its place nowadays.

    -san is for just people. An acquaintance, or whatever. There's also a measure of respect there. You usually call people this before befriending them (or even after) because you respect them.

    -kun is what you can use for your peers or people younger than you, like -chan. I thought it was mostly used by guys to each other, but girls use it to each other *and* to guys too.

    -sensei is also a suffix, as you can put their familial or personal name before it.

    -sempai means an upperclassman...a term of respect. Like...a freshman would call an upperclassman, "Kuno-sempai." Get it?

    There are lots of other suffixes, like "-dono" and a few others. Kenshin is a fan of "-dono". You can also use familial positions as suffixes, at times, like, "Haruka-basan" which would be "Aunt Haruka."

    Thus ends Izzy's early morning Japanese lesson.
     
    #2
    Izzy, Feb 24, 2003
  3. kyrie

    kyrie New Member

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    OH!!! I wondered why Yuki (a real girl from my school) kept using that suffix to girls. I had thought it was only for guys as well.
     
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    kyrie, Mar 4, 2003
  4. Yamigirl930

    Yamigirl930 New Member

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    Sorcy, I'm glad you asked cuz i wanted to know those too. I was wondering what that all means. thanks for clearing it up Izzy Izumi. You're all cool!!!!!
     
    #4
    Yamigirl930, Mar 4, 2003
  5. The Jackal

    The Jackal New Member

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    -tachi is a group of people isn't it? like, randomperson-tachi is randomperson and everyone with him/her.. correct me if I'm wrong!
     
    #5
    The Jackal, Mar 6, 2003
  6. Izzy

    Izzy moo. moo. moo!
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    That's generally right.

    -tachi *is* a group of people, depending on your prefix.

    Boku-tachi means "we". So does Watashi-tachi.

    Kimi-tachi means "you guys". As does anata-tachi.

    name+tachi means "name and the group near him". Or "name and his friends" or "those around name".

    Good catch Jackal.
     
    #6
    Izzy, Mar 6, 2003
  7. seraphinx

    seraphinx Oy, Artista!

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    I got a lil bit of heebie-jeebies when a Japanese exchange student called me by my name with the "-kun" honorific. It was the first time anyone used "kun" with me, and it was pretty cool since the year before that I learned that it was reserved mostly for close guy's names. In Japanese class the teacher would use "-san" with my name, which wasn't really interesting.

    Now I'm taking Korean in college, which is pretty trippy. In Korean, you use "-sshi" as the honorific suffix. (It's pronounced just like the American word, she.)
     
    #7
    seraphinx, Mar 7, 2003

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