How Japan Compares With The World In English Proficiency When it came to Japanese Cartography, we found out that Japan lagged behind a bit. So what about other things, like English Language Proficiency? Education First recently released their report on worldwide English language proficiency, showing some interesting results. Instead of talking about the Japanese language today, I thought it would be interesting to talk about the English language in Japan (and the rest of the world). How does Japan compare? Let’s find out. How They Tested “English Proficiency” One of the main challenges faced was that there’s not “standard” way across every country to test English Proficiency. One thing to note is that they tested adults. Where Japan Stands One thing to take into consideration is the test itself. Overall, compared to the other countries tested, Japan was number 14 out of the 44 listed. Click for bigger view (or download the study, link at the top of this post) As you can see, Europe did pretty well on these tests, which makes sense.
About Bento Bento, or o-bento, refers to a packaged, single-portion, portable meal that is usually eaten at lunch, but also comes in larger sizes meant for use at picnics, dinner, and parties. A bento generally consists of rice or noodles and some form of protein (e.g., meat, poultry, fish, tofu) accompanied by side dishes of raw, simmered, or pickled vegetables. There are many different types of bento boxes, ranging from traditional handcrafted wooden lacquerware to disposable containers – see Bento Boxes and Accessories for examples. Most bento boxes have compartments or internal dividers for separate dishes. Bento is an art form in Japan. The bento I pack are not quite so fancy. If you haven’t tried making bento yet, you should give it a go! Back to the top
The Japanese Alphabets “When I was having that alphabet soup, I never thought that it would pay off.” - Vanna White There are going to be a few people out there (most likely not you) who are going to immediately say “the Japanese don’t use ‘alphabets,’ they use ‘syllabaries,’ duh!” Before you do that, let me talk about something really quick. This also gives me a great opportunity to talk about something interesting about learning and education (as well as how TextFugu is different). “The Curse Of Knowledge” is when someone knows too much about a subject. It causes teachers to make too many assumptions about what people know (and don’t know), which then causes them to be abstract and confusing. When you’re a kid, you learn that electrons circle the nucleus just like planets circle the sun. That being said, I’m using the word “alphabets” to describe the syllabaries that make up the Japanese language. Speaking of progress, it’s time for you to learn about all the Japanese syllabaries alphabets… all four of them.
A Akihabara, les Maids réchauffent les coeurs et refroidissent Tokyo ! - Blog photos du Japon - voir le Japon autrement ! Alors, pour ceux qui ne seraient pas au fait des news d'Akihabara, le quartier organise régulièrement des petits évènements et autres Matsuri. Mais comme j'ai pas toujours le temps de répondre aux invitations, j'en rate pas mal... sauf le week-end dernier car ça faisait longtemps que je voulais photographier cette coutume ! Ainsi, j'ai eu droit à une belle brochette de Maids (vous savez ces jeunes filles habillées en soubrettes -mais pas seulement- et qui servent le café en faisant plein de roupoutou et dessins de coeurs -bon après y'a plein de variantes-, aux Otaku et autres Salaryman en manque d'affection.... mais aussi aux nombreuses jeunes femmes -oui c'est surprenant- qui y viennent prendre un café -et choper un futur mari docile ? ) jetant de l'eau dans la rue pour rafraîchir la ville en ces périodes de fortes chaleurs. PS : pour ceux qui se demandent... on a bien ressenti le tremblement de terre...
Goroawase: Japanese Numbers Wordplay (i.e. How To Remember Japanese Telephone Numbers) Goroawase means “wordplay” but I think it’s quite a bit more interesting than that. In English, when I think of “wordplay” I think of comedy’s highest and most elegant form of humor: Puns. In Japanese when I think of wordplay I think almost purely of mnemonics (wordplay that helps you to remember things better). [box type="info"]This post is probably going to make the most sense to people who are at a high-beginner (though probably more like intermediate plus) level of Japanese. Goroawase And Phone Numbers One cool thing about Japanese is that there are basically multiple ways to read some of the same things and there are also multiple alphabets being used (don’t know about this? On’yomi reading(s) of numbersKun’yomi reading(s) of numbersEnglish reading(s) of numbers Keep in mind that there are often multiple readings for each section (you’ll see what I mean in a second). Also, as you might have noticed in this chart, a lot of these actually are shortened versions of the real thing. [hr]
DramaWiki The Kana, They Are A-Changin’ Bob Dylan, esteemed Japanese linguist Languages are always changing. The English that you and I speak today is almost completely different than that English people spoke a hundred years ago, and it’s even a little different than the English people spoke in the 90s. (Who says “tubular” anymore?) Japanese is the exact same way, but some people don’t really realize how much Japanese has changed. Reform! Why does language change? There isn’t really an organization in Japan equivalent to the Academy of the Hebrew Language, but over the years there have been efforts by the Japanese government to curate the Japanese language. Post-War Changes In 1946, right after WWII, the Japanese were open to all sorts of big change. Dammit MacArthur, what’d I say about using romaji?! Some Japanese wanted to adopt another language altogether. Lots of people were fine with Japanese, but wanted to streamline the language a bit more. But it wasn’t just kanji that was changed after the war. The Kana You Never Learned
Apprendre une Langue Etrangère en 7 Règles | iShift.fr Dans le monde anglophone on qualifie de « hack » beaucoup de choses. Il ne s’agit pas seulement de ce que les francophones en ont fait. Pour nous un hacker est un vilain méchant filou qui télécharge des tas de chansons pour… les écouter WOW !!! « Hack a language » signifie donc trouver des moyens pour apprendre une langue beaucoup plus vite qu’en temps normal. Sans plus attendre, voici les hack les plus importants à connaitre pour apprendre l’anglais, l’allemand et en fait n’importe quelle langue étrangère. Number One : Pour apprendre 4X plus vite, apprenez par phrases et pas par mots. De nombreuses études montrent qu’apprendre des mots étrangers est plus difficile que des phrases. Le contexte manque, ce qui fait qu’on ne sait jamais comment utilisé le mot en question.La grammaire manque, ce qui fait que vous devrez l’apprendre de manière séparée (comme à l’école… et vive les mêmes dégâts) La grammaire est bonne… mais uniquement quand on atteint une certaine aisance. Comment ? 10jan
Japonêsです: Why There Are So Many Japanese People in Brazil If you live in South America and love Japan, then a visit to the Land of the Rising Sun might be closer than you think. Well, kind of. Brazil is not only the home to awesome things like bossa nova and Pelé, but the biggest Japanese population outside of Japan is – believe it or not – in Brazil. But why Brazil, of all places? Why? It seems like practically every post I write I talk about the Meiji Restoration; and for good reason. The Meiji Restoration is a Big Effin’ Deal when it comes to modern Japanese history. The structural reforms of the Meiji Restoration had put Japan in a pretty tenuous situation. The historically Japanese neighborhood of Liberdade in Sao Paulo, Brazil Some found that opportunity in Brazil, where an increasing demand for coffee and the abolition of slavery meant that there was a big need for laborers. Few Japanese went to Brazil with the intention of staying there for good, but planned on returning back to Japan later. Discrimination Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu P.S.
Actionable Ways To Make Japanese Obvious To You [Obvious] In this series of “obvious” posts, we’ve gone over several things. First, we talked about epiphanies and how to get them. Then we went over confusion, and why it’s such a good thing. Lastly, we looked at conscious competence to show you why you’re having trouble (as well as the four stages one goes through to reach the “obvious-land”). Now, instead of talking about theory and the steps one goes through in order to reach “Japanese-is-obvious” levels, we’re going to talk about solid things you can do (and do right now) that will get you to this oh-so-awesome mountain peak of Japanese learning. I should warn you though… you’ll still have to think long term. The Long, Difficult Trail First, before we start, I just want to mention that the path is long. There is good news, though – the longer you stick with it, the stronger your legs will get (paralleling your mind, and how it gets stronger as you practice learning, in this case, Japanese). 5 Actionable Ways To Make Japanese More Obvious
Les langues, c’est pas pour les nuls, ou 17 raisons d’aller causer aux étrangers Comme disait Pierre Desproges, les étrangers sont nuls. Mais comme il l’a aussi dit dans un autre contexte, il faut bien vivre avec. J’ai toujours été très intéressé par l’apprentissage des langues, je me sens donc en complète cohérence en accueillant aujourd’hui Solal, l’énergique blogueur d’Astuces Langues, afin qu’il nous expliquent en quoi s’intéresser aux parlers étranges et incompréhensibles peut avoir un quelconque intérêt. Solal est un passionné qui partage régulièrement ses trucs et méthodes pour apprendre les langues étrangères plus efficacement sur son blog. Après l’anglais et l’allemand et le japonais, il s’est lancé un nouveau défi: apprendre l’espagnol en 6 mois et quasi gratuitement. Le maître des lieux s’efforce ici de vous donner les clés d’une vie moins conne et je me suis dit qu’il serait de bon ton d’aider à compléter le trousseau. Je sens que je vous ai un peu perdu là. Avoir l’air intelligent (ou l’être tout court): Avoir une vie: Avoir une vie pas comme les autres:
Remembering the Kanji I: A Complete Course on How Not to Forget the Meaning and Writing of Japanese Characters Vol. 1 4th Edition (Japanese Edition) (9784889960754): James W. Heisig