Japanese Counter Words

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_counter_word In Japanese, counter words or counters (josshi) () are used along with numbers to count things, actions, and events. In Japanese, as in Chinese and Korean, numerals cannot quantify nouns by themselves (except, in certain cases, for the numbers from one to ten; see below). For example, to express the idea "two dogs" in Japanese one must say inu nihiki (), literally "dog two-small-animal"). Here inu means "dog", ni is the number 2, and hiki is the counter for small animals. The counters are not independent words and always appear with a number before them. Counter words are similar in function to the word "sheet" in "two sheets of paper" or "cup" in "two cups of coffee", but in Japanese, (almost) all nouns require a counter. In this sense, all Japanese nouns are mass nouns. This grammatical feature can result in situations where one is unable to express the number of a particular object in a grammatically correct way because one does not know, or cannot remember, the appropriate counting word. The problem is partially solved for the numbers from one to ten by using the traditional numbers (see below) which can be used to quantify some nouns by themselves. For example, "four apples" is ringo yonko () where ko () is the counter), but can also be expressed using the traditional numeral four as ringo yottsu (). These traditional numerals cannot be used to count all nouns however; some, including people and animals, require the proper counter. Counters can also be intentionally misused for humorous, sarcastic, or insulting effects. For example, one might say (Otoko ippiki nano ni; "I am only one man..."). Using the counter hiki (), the counter for small animals, humorously suggests that the person is overpowered by massive obstacles. Some of the more common counters may be used instead of less common ones. For example, hiki (see below) is often used for all animals, regardless of size. However, many speakers will correct themselves and use the traditionally "correct" counter, t, when speaking of horses, for example. Japanese Counter Words 04.01.2008

Just as in English, different counters for the same thing can be used to convey different meanings. In English, one can say one loaf of bread or one slice of bread, and the referent is different. In Japanese, the same effect is made by saying pan ikkin, literally "bread one-loaf" versus pan ichimai, literally "bread one-flat piece".

Table of traditional numerals

Numeral 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 20 Japanese Table of Traditional Numerals Pronunciation (Rmaji) Pronunciation (Hiragana) hitotsu futatsu mittsu yottsu itsutsu muttsu nanatsu yattsu kokonotsu t hatachi (used for age)

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List of Japanese Counters

This list also includes some counters and usages that are rarely used or not widely known. List of Japanese Counters Pronunciation ba ban ban bi bu bun by chaku ch ch ch dai dai danraku do/tabi fuku, puku fuku, puku fun, pun furi Japanese Use Scene of a play Nights (see also: ya) Sports matches Small fish and shrimps (used in the fish trade; most people say hiki instead) Copies of a magazine or a newspaper Sentences Seconds Suits of clothing (see also: mai) Guns, sticks of ink, palanquins, rickshaws, violins Tools, scissors, saws, trousers, pistols, cakes of tofu, town blocks Town blocks Generations, periods, reigns Cars, bicycles, machines, mechanical devices, household appliances Paragraphs Occurrences, number of times (see also: kai). Bowls of matcha (powdered green tea); packets or doses of powdered medicine Hanging scrolls (kakejiku) Minutes Swords

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Japanese Counter Words

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gatsu/tsuki go gon/koto gu gy haku hai hai hari hashira hatsu, patsu heya hiki, piki hin, pin ho, po hon, pon,bon ji ji ji jikan j ka Japanese Counter Words

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Months of the year. Month-long periods when read tsuki (see also: kagetsu) Words Words Suits of armour, sets of furniture Lines of text Nights of a stay Cups and glasses of drink, spoonfuls, cuttlefish, octopuses, crabs, squid, abalone, boats (slang) Losses (sports bouts) Umbrellas, parasols, tents Gods, memorial tablets Gunshots, bullets, aerial fireworks Rooms Small animals, insects, fish, reptiles, amphibians Parts of a meal, courses (see also: shina) Number of (foot)steps Long, thin objects: rivers, roads, ties, pencils, bottles, guitars; also, metaphorically, telephone calls, movies (see also: tswa). Although also means "book", the counter for books is satsu. Letters, Kanji, Kana Children. As in "father of two (children)", etc. Hours of the day Hour-long periods Tatami mats. The Kanji is also read tatami and is the same one used for the mats. The room size of a washitsu in Japan is given as a number of mats, for example 4 j Frames http://mementoslangues.com/ Japonais

kabu kagetsu kakoku kakokugo kaku kai kai kan kan ken ken ki ki kire ko ko k k koma ku ku kuchi

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Stocks; nursery trees Month-long periods (see also: gatsu). is normally abbreviated using a small Katakana in modern Japanese. Alternatively , Hiragana , small Katakana and full-size Katakana & can also be seen, but only is frequent. Countries (National) languages Strokes in Kanji Occurrences, number of times (see also: do) Number of floors, stories Pieces of nigiri-zushi Warships Abstract matters and cases Houses Aircraft, machines Graves, wreaths, CPUs, reactors, elevators, dams Slices (of bread, cake, sashimi etc.) General measure word, used when there is no specific counter. is also used for military units. Houses ( means "door") Schools Drafts of a manuscript Frames, panels. is virtually not used nowadays. Sections, city districts Haiku, senry (Bank) accounts, donations ( means "opening" or "entrance") http://mementoslangues.com/ Japonais

Japanese Counter Words

kumi kurasu kyaku kyaku kyoku kyoku mai maki maku mei men mon mon nen nichi nin ninmae pji rin ry sai sao satsu

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Groups, a pair of people (twins, a husband and a wife, dancers, etc.) School classes Desks, chairs, long-stemmed glasses Pairs of cup and saucer Pieces of music Board game matches (chess, Igo, Shogi, Mahjong); radio stations, television stations Thin, flat objects, sheets of paper, photographs, plates(dishware), articles of clothing (see also: chaku) Rolls, scrolls Theatrical acts People (polite) ( means "name") Mirrors, boards for board games (chess, Igo, Shogi), stages of computer games, walls of a room, tennis courts, Cannons Questions Years, school years (grades); not years of age Days of the month (but see table of exceptions below) People (but see table of exceptions below) Food portions (without exceptions, unlike nin above) Pages Wheels, Flowers Railway cars Years of age Chests of drawers, flags Books http://mementoslangues.com/ Japonais

Japanese Counter Words

seki seki shina sha sh shu sh shurui/shu soku tai tawara teki ten t ts tswa toki tsubo wa wa ya zen

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Seats, Rakugo shows, (drinking) parties Ships Parts of a meal, courses (see also: hin) used for businesses, i.e. (gaisha) Wins (sports bouts) Tankas (small japanese poems) Weeks Various types of things Pairs of footwear, pairs of socks, stockings, and tabis. Images, person's remains Bags of rice Drops of liquid Points, dots Large animals, cattle, elephants ( means "head") Letters Telephone calls (see also: hon) Time periods, a sixth of either day or night (in the traditional, obsolete way of telling time). See also: jikan Commonly used unit of area equal to 3.3 square metres. Birds, rabbits* (because of their ears); means "feather" or "wing". Bundles Nights (see also: ban) Pairs of chopsticks; bowls of rice

Japanese Counter Words

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Exceptions *Japanese Buddhist monks weren't allowed to eat any meat other than birds, but they liked rabbit meat so much that they came up with contrived evidence that rabbits are actually birds, their ears being like unusable wings. Nowadays hiki is the usual counter. The traditional numbers are used by and for young children to give their ages, instead of the usual age counter sai. Some counters, notably nichi and nin , use the traditional numerals for some small numbers, usually one through three; exceptional cases for these counters are given in the table below. Others include and and are usually restricted to certain phrases. Futatabi (two times, another time), although normally written instead of , is very common though. Counters beginning with h~ (including fu~) undergo (almost) regular changes in sound, when preceded by the numerals 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10. The table below illustrates the process for hon but the same changes apply to fun , hai , hiki etc. Exceptions Numeral 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 14 20 24 nichi tsuitachi* futsuka mikka yokka itsuka muika nanoka yka kokonoka tka jyokka hatsuka nijyokka nin hitori futari yonin*** roppon shichinin happon juppon/jippon** jukkai/jikkai** hon ippon sanbon kai ikkai sangai

*When counting the number of days rather than days of the month, ichinichi is used. But ippi is also heard. **J is replaced by either ju- or ji- (/) followed by a doubled consonant before the voiceless consonants (i.e., /t k s/); furthermore, p is used instead of h, as noted above. Ji- is the older form, but it has been replaced by ju- in spoken language by young generations. ***In remote rural areas (ie. Northern Honshu and Eastern Hokkaido) older speakers might use yottari. Note that ("third floor") can be read either sankai or sangai, while ("three times") can only be read sankai.

Ordinal numbers
In general, the counter words mentioned above are cardinal numbers and in that sense, they indicate a quantity. To transform a counter word into an ordinal number that denotes a position in a sequence, me () is added to the end of the counter. Thus "one time" would be translated as ikkai (), whereas "the first time" would be translated as ikkaime (). This rule is inconsistent, however, as counters without the me suffix are often used interchangeably with cardinal and ordinal meanings. For example, sankai () can mean both "three floors" and "third floor".

Period of time
To express a period of time one may add kan () to the following words: by , fun , ji , nichi (and its irregular readings aside from tsuitachi), sh

, kagetsu and nen . Usage varies depending on the word. For example, omitting kan in the case of jikan would be a mistake, whereas
shkan and sh are both frequently used. What's more, kagetsukan is rarely heard due to being essentially superfluous, the ka already expressing the length.

Japanese Counter Words

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Tableau des Hiragana et Katakana a i u e o ya yu yo ka ki ku ke ko kya kyu kyo sa shi su se so sha shu sho ta chi tsu te to cha chu cho na ni nu ne no nya nyu nyo ha hi fu he ho hya hyu hyo ma mi mu me mo mya myu myo ya yu yo ra ri ru re ro rya ryu ryo wa o n ga gi gu ge go gya gyu gyo za ji zu ze zo ja ju jo da ji zu de do ba bi bu be bo bya byu byo pa pi pu pe po pya pyu pyo
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