Gender differences in spoken Japanese
Gender-specific forms are an important, well-known, and well-studied part of the Japanese language . The sociolinguistics began to study that women and men in the 1970s with the already longer known in practice fact Japan the language different use, and that the area occupied by women social roles and prevailing with regard to these roles settings in the Defeat language. In fact, differences in language use between girls and boys were noticed as early as three years of age. Gender-based assumptions are “built into” the Japanese language. Indeed, they are so important that these forms are specifically taught to foreign students, as the inability to use them can compromise the fluency or naturalness of the language.
Such differences are sometimes referred to as "gender language". In Japanese, the specific way female speakers use language is also referred to as onna kotoba (女 言葉, 'women's words ') or joseigo (女性 語, 'women's language'). Differences in the use of language reflect social norms and expectations of women and men. According to Edward Sapir , one of the most important functions of language is to show each member of society the place that is occupied by its members.
For example, women use confirmation questions like "..., aren't they?" "..., isn't it?" more often than men. Certain forms of language, such as swear words, are also seen as less suitable for women than for men. Other words are considered more appropriate for women than for men.
In Japanese, the speaker's gender plays an important role in word choice and even sentence structure. Women and men also use different words depending on social status, age, and other factors. There is a complex system of courtesy and formality for all speakers. Women tend to use more polite forms than men. For example, some women use the " honorary form " of nouns ("O- ...") to emphasize their sophistication or femininity.
Problems for Japanese learners
It sounds very unnatural, even ridiculous, for a man to use feminine language. Male actors in female roles and transvestites, on the other hand, consciously use female language to appear feminine. A non-native speaker who unreflectively or unconsciously imitates the way a teacher speaks can give the wrong impression. Perhaps because the vast majority of Japanese teachers are women, or because of personal relationships with Japanese women, male foreign students may inadvertently adopt elements of "women's language" that sound strange or cause embarrassment. Of course, this also applies to women, because no woman can speak Japanese “completely naturally” if she completely avoids female language.
In addition to the use of Japanese personal pronouns in relation to oneself and others, the use of Japanese titles such as -san, -chan and -kun is also heavily influenced by gender-specific overtones. This is another source of potential problems for non-native speakers.
The situation is further complicated by the fact that the practical use of the gender differences given in the table is not so straightforward. The gender differences are superimposed on other factors that create a hierarchical relationship between two interlocutors. These include the position within a company or family, a seller-customer relationship and age.
In many regions it is common for older men to use the personal pronoun boku for themselves ; older women use ore in relation to themselves . Both men and women use wa, but with different meanings and pronunciation.
Mastering the gender differences hidden in Japanese is therefore no easy task. Nevertheless, it is important to achieve complete fluency and naturalness of speech.
Important differences in the use of Japanese
| female speakers | male speakers |
|---|---|
| use polite forms of language more often | use polite forms of language less often |
| use more confirmation questions | use fewer confirmation questions |
| avoid leaving out respectful salutations | skip respectful salutations faster |
| use "feminine" words | use “masculine” words |
| use shapes that make the language appear softer | use abrupt, coarse sounding shapes more often |
| speak in an artificially high pitch | speak in an artificially low voice |
Personal pronoun in the first person
| male or female | ||
|---|---|---|
| 私 | watashi | politely neutral (man and woman) |
| 私 、 わ た く し | watakushi | very formal and polite, man and woman |
| 自 分 | jibun | Man and woman, but in practice more often used by men |
| う ち | uchi | Husband and wife, especially when talking about home and family. |
| Female | ||
| あ た し | atashi | young girls, soft, feminine |
| あ た く し | atakushi | formal form of atashi ; Women, mostly in formal situations |
| あ た い | atai | characteristic of the dialect of the Tokyo lower city (shitamachi); clearly gross |
| male | ||
| 僕 | boku | Boys, men (looks rather modest) |
| 俺 | ore | actually very informal form for men, male adolescents; clearly masculine, sometimes vulgar |
| 乃公 | daikō, naikō | boastful, rude, sometimes vulgar; Men (obsolete). |
| 儂 、 わ し | washi | old men |
| 我 輩 、 吾輩 | wagahai | older men |
| 俺 様 | oresama | pompous, self-glorifying, boys, men |
| 我 、 吾 | would | The “singular” form is rather uncommon, the plural form 我 々 ( wareware, 'we') is often used by older semesters. |
Personal pronoun in the second person
| male and female | ||
|---|---|---|
| 君 | kimi | Men to close friends, lovers, children; Superiors (including women) to subordinates. |
| あ な た | anata | polite standard form (man), standard form (woman); however, it is avoided in favor of addressing by name, as it was often used for people of lower rank |
| あ ん た | anta | informal contraction of anata; possibly offensive |
| male | ||
| 手 前 | temae | literally: "before [my] hand"; offensive, rude, direct, young men, men. Talking to other people with temae (or worse, temee ) is usually looking to start an argument. |
| コ イ ツ ／ ア イ ツ | koitsu / aitsu | Literally: "this / that person", very strange (corresponds to the address in the 3rd person singular "Er ..." in German). Plural コ イ ツ ラ 、 ア イ ツ ラ(koitsura, aitsura) |
| お 前 | grandmae | literally: "before [me]"; direct, abrupt, condescending, can be perceived as impolite |
| Female | ||
| あ な た | anata | when used opposite the husband or a male partner: equivalent to "sweetheart" |
End of sentences
| Female | ||
|---|---|---|
| わ | wa | gives a clearly "soft" effect, in men as an expression of surprise or admiration |
| わ よ | wa yo | informative |
| わ ね | wa ne | ne is a confirmation question, something like "isn't it?" It is sometimes at the beginning of a sentence and makes the language "softer" |
| の よ | no yo | informative / specific |
| の ね | no no | explanatory / confirmation question |
| male | ||
| か い | kai | male form of the question particles ka |
| ゾ | zo | emphatic / informative |
| ゼ | ze | emphatic / informative |
| よ | yo | emphatic / informative; also used by women, but women often soften it by adding wa . |
Further examples
| Female speakers | Male speakers | German | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| お 腹 が す い た | o-naka ga suita | 腹 へ っ た | hara hetta | I'm hungry |
Traditional characteristics of women's language
The word onnarashii (女 ら し い), which is usually translated as “womanly” or “feminine”, refers to the behavior typically expected of a Japanese woman. Just as a certain behavior is expected, to be onnarashii means to conform to a certain style of speech, the characteristics of which, according to Eleanor Jorden, “like a liturgy is repeated everywhere”. Some characteristics of female speech are a high pitched voice, more frequent use of politeness and the use of “typically feminine” words.
"Lady-like" language includes the use of specific pronouns (see table), avoidance of the connective word da, use of feminine sentence endings such as wa, and more frequent use of honorary prefixes such as o- and go-.
According to Katsue Akiba Reynolds, ladylike language is instrumental in keeping Japanese women in traditional roles and reflects Japan's concept of gender differences. For example, there is one possible inconsistency for women in the workplace: to be onnarashii , a woman must speak politely, humbly , and subordinately; but in order to gain respect as a superior, she has to be confident, determined and direct when dealing with male subordinates.
Traditional characteristics of male language
Just as there are modes of language and behavior that are viewed as “typically female”, there are those that are viewed as “typically male”. In terms of language, otokorashii (男 ら し い, "masculine" or "masculine") means to be, to speak with a deeper voice, to use less politeness in fewer situations and to use typically masculine words.
In particular, men use special masculine pronouns, use the informal (da) form of the connective word desu, use masculine sentence endings such as zo, and use honorary prefixes less often than women.
Gender Differences in Modern Society
As women increasingly take on leading roles in Japanese society, the meanings of onnarashisa ('femininity') and otokorashisa ('masculinity'), that is, what is considered appropriate behavior for men and women, have changed over time .
Although some more extreme movements even plead for the abolition of gender differences in the Japanese language, a convergence of language usage is unlikely. Instead, actual language usage shows that women feel more comfortable using traditional forms of women's language (like wa ) but still show a confident attitude towards men. In other words, there is a slow decoupling of language forms from cultural expectations.
Although the characteristics of Japanese male language have been little influenced, there is an increasing sensitivity to different language uses. It can be seen as offensive to refer to mature women as -chan (see Japanese salutation ).
swell
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