Japanese Lesson of the Week: Week #7.

As stated in the past two lessons, being polite and respectful is very important in Japan. When you're interacting with someone it is always best to err on the side of caution and greet them as formally as possible - or so we were told at our Newcomer's Brief.

The only Japanese individuals I have come across in our short six months here that have not always been to-the-book formal. For example last week we talked about thank you  - arigatou gozaimasu. There are many variations of this and some of the variations that I've heard are: domo, arigatou, domo arigatou, and then of course every once in awhile arigatou gozaimasu.

The gate sentries at USMC bases are Japanese and they see hundreds of people go in and out of the gates every day. It's no wonder they aren't saying "thank you" in the most formal way. Heck, I'm not sure I'd want to say "thank you" at all for someone showing me their ID card so any sort of thanks is quite polite.

This is the only situation that I can think of that you may notice a Japanese individual not be exceptionally formal. If you're out in town eating at a restaurant you can bet your bucks that when you leave they'll say "arigatou gozaimasu". Or when you're entering a store or restaurant most of the employees may look up and greet you in chorus.

I'm not sure how to say "Hey, what's up?" in Japanese but that's just fine because I'd never have a reason to address someone like that but here are some ways you can greet your Japanese friends.

If you're interested in audio clips, you can go to this website. Click on the Japanese characters and it will pop up in another screen with the sound bite. If you want to know more about etiquette in Japan you can visit good ol' Wikipedia; "Etiquette in Japan" has its very own page.

Hello / Good Afternoon - konnichiwa
Goodbye - sayonara

Until next week, sayonara!