JAP601: Japanese-I

Unit 1: まいにちのあいさつとひょうげん (Mainichi no Aisatsu to Hyōgen) — Daily Greetings, Expressions, and the Hiragana Syllabary

1. Introduction to the Japanese Writing System (日本語の文字)

The Japanese language utilizes a sophisticated, tripartite writing system augmented by Roman alphabet transliteration:

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                            THE JAPANESE WRITING SYSTEM
                                         │
        ┌───────────────────┬────────────┴────────────┬───────────────────┐
     HIRAGANA            KATAKANA                   KANJI               ROMAJI
    (ひらがな)          (カタカナ)                 (漢字)              (ローマ字)
 Native grammatical    Foreign loanwords,       Ideographic logograms   Roman alphabet
 words, particles,     scientific terms,        borrowed from China;    used for learners,
 inflections, furigana onomatopoeia, emphasis   convey core meanings    acronyms, keyboards

The Functional Hierarchy:

1. Hiragana (ひらがな): 46 fundamental phonetic characters. Derived from cursive Chinese calligraphy (man'yōgana). Used for native Japanese words where no Kanji exists, grammatical particles (e.g., は, が, を, に, で), verb and adjective conjugational suffixes (okurigana), and phonetic reading aids placed above complex Kanji (furigana).
2. Katakana (カタカナ): 46 phonetic characters corresponding 1-to-1 with Hiragana sounds, characterized by angular, sharp strokes. Used exclusively for foreign loanwords (gairaigo, e.g., コンピューター konpyūtā), foreign personal and geographical names, animal sounds and onomatopoeia, and visual emphasis (analogous to italicization).
3. Kanji (漢字): Morphographic Chinese characters adopted between the 4th and 6th centuries CE. Each Kanji represents both sound (on'yomi / kun'yomi) and semantic meaning (e.g., 木 = tree, 本 = book/origin, 日本 = Japan).
4. Rōmaji (ローマ字): Transliteration of Japanese phonetic sounds into the Latin alphabet (principally using the Hepburn system), utilized in computer input methods (IME), international signage, and introductory pedagogy.

2. The Hiragana Syllabary: Phonetic Architecture

Japanese is a mora-timed language. Unlike English syllables which can have complex consonant clusters (e.g., "strengths"), Japanese morae (beats) almost always consist of an open consonant-vowel ($CV$) pair, a standalone vowel ($V$), or the singular nasal coda $N$ (ん).

A. The 46 Basic Sounds (Gojūon - 五十音図)

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┌───────────┬───────────┬───────────┬───────────┬───────────┬───────────┐
│ Consonant │  A (あ)   │  I (い)   │  U (う)   │  E (え)   │  O (お)   │
├───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│ **Vowels**│ あ [a]    │ い [i]    │ う [ɯ]    │ え [e]    │ お [o]    │
│ **K-row** │ か [ka]   │ き [ki]   │ く [kɯ]   │ け [ke]   │ こ [ko]   │
│ **S-row** │ さ [sa]   │ し [ɕi]*  │ す [sɯ]   │ せ [se]   │ そ [so]   │
│ **T-row** │ た [ta]   │ ち [tɕi]* │ つ [tsɯ]* │ て [te]   │ と [to]   │
│ **N-row** │ な [na]   │ に [ɲi]   │ ぬ [nɯ]   │ ね [ne]   │ の [no]   │
│ **H-row** │ は [ha]   │ ひ [çi]   │ ふ [ɸɯ]*  │ へ [he]   │ ほ [ho]   │
│ **M-row** │ ま [ma]   │ み [mi]   │ む [mɯ]   │ め [me]   │ も [mo]   │
│ **Y-row** │ や [ja]   │     —     │ ゆ [jɯ]   │     —     │ よ [jo]   │
│ **R-row** │ ら [ɾa]   │ り [ɾi]   │ る [ɾɯ]   │ れ [ɾe]   │ ろ [ɾo]   │
│ **W-row** │ わ [wa]   │     —     │     —     │     —     │ を [o]*   │
├───────────┼───────────┴───────────┴───────────┴───────────┴───────────┤
│ **Nasal** │ ん [n / m / ŋ] (Syllabic Nasal Mora)                      │
└───────────┴───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Critical Phonetic Exceptions (*):

• し (shi): Palatalized voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative, pronounced [ɕi] like English "she", NOT [si].
• ち (chi): Voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate, pronounced [tɕi] like English "cheese", NOT [ti].
• つ (tsu): Voiceless alveolar affricate, pronounced [tsɯ] like the "ts" in "cats", NOT [tu].
• ふ (fu): Voiceless bilabial fricative [ɸɯ], formed by gently blowing air between both lips without touching the upper teeth to lower lip, NOT the English labiodental [f].
• を (wo -> o): Historically pronounced [wo], in modern Japanese it is pronounced identically to お [o]. It is reserved strictly as the direct object grammatical particle and is never used inside standard vocabulary words.

B. Voiced Sounds (Dakuon - 濁音) and Semi-Voiced Sounds (Handakuon - 半濁音)

By appending diacritical marks to specific consonant rows, unvoiced consonants become voiced or semi-voiced:

1. Dakuten (濁点 - ゛ / "tenten"): Turns voiceless plosives/fricatives into voiced consonants ($K \to G$, $S \to Z$, $T \to D$, $H \to B$).
2. Handakuten (半濁点 - ゜ / "maru"): Turns voiceless $H$-row consonants into bilabial plosives ($H \to P$).

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┌──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┐
│ Category     │  A-column    │  I-column    │  U-column    │  E-column    │  O-column    │
├──────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┤
│ **G-row**    │ が [ga]      │ ぎ [gi]      │ ぐ [gɯ]      │ げ [ge]      │ ご [go]      │
│ **Z-row**    │ ざ [za]      │ じ [dʑi]*    │ ず [zɯ]      │ ぜ [ze]      │ ぞ [zo]      │
│ **D-row**    │ だ [da]      │ ぢ [dʑi]*    │ づ [zɯ]*     │ で [de]      │ ど [do]      │
│ **B-row**    │ ば [ba]      │ び [bi]      │ ぶ [bɯ]      │ べ [be]      │ ぼ [bo]      │
│ **P-row**    │ ぱ [pa]      │ ぴ [pi]      │ ぷ [pɯ]      │ ぺ [pe]      │ ぽ [po]      │
└──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┘

Important Homophones in Modern Japanese:

• じ (ji) and ぢ (dji -> ji) are phonetically identical in standard Tokyo Japanese ([dʑi]). じ is standard; ぢ is used only in historical spellings or compound words (e.g., はなぢ hanaji = nosebleed).
• ず (zu) and づ (dzu -> zu) are phonetically identical ([zɯ]). ず is standard; づ occurs in compounds (e.g., つづく tsuzuku = to continue).

C. Contracted Sounds (Yōon - 拗音)

Formed by combining an I-column consonant (き, し, ち, に, ひ, み, り, ぎ, じ, び, ぴ) with a miniature subscript version of ゃ (ya), ゅ (yu), or ょ (yo).

• Crucial Rule: A Yōon combination counts as a single mora (one beat), NOT two!

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┌───────────┬─────────────────────┬─────────────────────┬─────────────────────┐
│ Base Row  │ + Small ゃ (ya)     │ + Small ゅ (yu)     │ + Small ょ (yo)     │
├───────────┼─────────────────────┼─────────────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│ **K**     │ きゃ (kya)          │ きゅ (kyu)          │ きょ (kyo)          │
│ **S**     │ しゃ (sha) [ɕa]     │ しゅ (shu) [ɕɯ]     │ しょ (sho) [ɕo]     │
│ **T**     │ ちゃ (cha) [tɕa]    │ ちゅ (chu) [tɕɯ]    │ ちょ (cho) [tɕo]    │
│ **N**     │ にゃ (nya)          │ にゅ (nyu)          │ にょ (nyo)          │
│ **H**     │ ひゃ (hya)          │ ひゅ (hyu)          │ ひょ (hyo)          │
│ **M**     │ みゃ (mya)          │ みゅ (myu)          │ みょ (myo)          │
│ **R**     │ りゃ (rya)          │ りゅ (ryu)          │ りょ (ryo)          │
│ **G**     │ ぎゃ (gya)          │ ぎゅ (gyu)          │ ぎょ (gyo)          │
│ **J**     │ じゃ (ja) [dʑa]     │ じゅ (ju) [dʑɯ]     │ じょ (jo) [dʑo]     │
│ **B**     │ びゃ (bya)          │ びゅ (byu)          │ びょ (byo)          │
│ **P**     │ ぴゃ (pya)          │ ぴゅ (pyu)          │ ぴょ (pyo)          │
└───────────┴─────────────────────┴─────────────────────┴─────────────────────┘

D. The Double Consonant / Choked Sound (Sokuon - 促音)

Represented by a small subscript っ (tsu).

• It produces a glottal stop or geminate consonant pause lasting exactly one mora (one beat) before $K, S, T, P$ sounds.
• Examples:
  • きって (kitte - postage stamp): 3 morae [ki - t - te].
  • がっこう (gakkō - school): 4 morae [ga - k - ko - o].
  • ざっし (zasshi - magazine): 3 morae [za - s - shi].
  • けっこん (kekkon - marriage): 4 morae [ke - k - ko - n].

E. Long Vowels (Chōon - 長音)

In Japanese, vowel length is phonemically contrastive; extending a vowel by one mora completely changes the semantic meaning:

• A-row long vowel: Add あ (e.g., おばあさん obāsan = grandmother [4 morae] vs. おばさん obasan = aunt [3 morae]).
• I-row long vowel: Add い (e.g., おじいさん ojīsan = grandfather [4 morae] vs. おじさん ojisan = uncle [3 morae]).
• U-row long vowel: Add う (e.g., ゆき yuki = snow [2 morae] vs. ゆうき yūki = courage [3 morae]).
• E-row long vowel: Add え for native exceptions (おねえさん onēsan = elder sister) or い for standard words (せんせい sensei $\to$ pronounced sensē).
• O-row long vowel: Add う in standard Hiragana orthography (e.g., とうきょう Tōkyō, がくせい gakusei, おとうさん otōsan), or お in rare native words (おおきい ōkii = big, とおい tōi = far).

3. Japanese Numerals (数字 - Sūji) and Applications

A. Basic Numbers from 0 to 10

Japanese numerals possess alternative readings derived from Sino-Japanese roots (on'yomi) and indigenous Japanese roots (kun'yomi):

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┌───────┬─────────┬──────────────┬───────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Digit │ Kanji   │ Hiragana     │ Rōmaji        │ Linguistic Notes & Preferred Contexts    │
├───────┼─────────┼──────────────┼───────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 0     │ 〇 / 零 │ ゼロ / れい  │ zero / rei    │ "zero" common in phone numbers; "rei" formal│
│ 1     │ 一      │ いち         │ ichi          │ Standard counting base                   │
│ 2     │ 二      │ に           │ ni            │ Standard base                            │
│ 3     │ 三      │ さん         │ san           │ Causes voicing in counters (san-bon, etc)│
│ 4     │ 四      │ よん / し    │ yon / shi     │ **"yon" preferred**; "shi" avoided (sounds like 死 = death) │
│ 5     │ 五      │ ご           │ go            │ Standard base                            │
│ 6     │ 六      │ ろく         │ roku          │ Becomes "roku-" / "ropp-" in counters    │
│ 7     │ 七      │ なな / しち  │ nana / shichi │ **"nana" preferred**; avoids confusion with "hachi" and "shi" │
│ 8     │ 八      │ はち         │ hachi         │ Becomes "happ-" in counters (happun)     │
│ 9     │ 九      │ きゅう / く  │ kyū / ku      │ **"kyū" standard**; "ku" used in time (ku-ji = 9 o'clock) │
│ 10    │ 十      │ じゅう       │ jū            │ Base 10 building block                   │
└───────┴─────────┴──────────────┴───────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────┘

B. Numbers from 11 to 99: Additive and Multiplicative Logic

Japanese numbers follow an exceptionally regular mathematical base-10 structure:

• 11 to 19 (Additive: $10 + N$):
  • 11 = じゅういち (jū-ichi)
  • 12 = じゅうに (jū-ni)
  • 14 = じゅうよん (jū-yon)
  • 17 = じゅうなな (jū-nana)
  • 19 = じゅうきゅう (jū-kyū)
• 20 to 90 (Multiplicative: $N \times 10$):
  • 20 = にじゅう (ni-jū)
  • 30 = さんじゅう (san-jū)
  • 40 = よんじゅう (yon-jū) [NOT shi-jū]
  • 50 = ごじゅう (go-jū)
  • 60 = ろくじゅう (roku-jū)
  • 70 = ななじゅう (nana-jū) [NOT shichi-jū]
  • 80 = はちじゅう (hachi-jū)
  • 90 = きゅうじゅう (kyū-jū) [NOT ku-jū]
• Compound Numbers ($N \times 10 + M$):
  • 25 = にじゅうご (ni-jū-go)
  • 48 = よんじゅうはち (yon-jū-hachi)
  • 73 = ななじゅうさん (nana-jū-san)
  • 99 = きゅうじゅうきゅう (kyū-jū-kyū)
  • 100 = ひゃく (hyaku)

C. Reading Telephone Numbers (電話番号 - Denwa Bangō)

• In phone numbers, each digit is read individually.
• The hyphen (-) separating area codes and local numbers is pronounced as the particle の (no):
  • Example: 0120-45-6789 $\to$ ゼロいちにゼロ の よんご の ろくななはちきゅう (zero-ichi-ni-zero no yon-go no roku-nana-hachi-kyū).

D. Asking and Stating Age (〜さい - sai)

Age is expressed by adding the counter 〜さい (歳 / 才 - sai) to numbers, with key irregular phonetic assimilations:

• 1 year old: いっさい (issai) [geminate sokuon]
• 8 years old: はっさい (hassai) [geminate sokuon]
• 10 years old: じゅっさい / じっさい (jussai / jissai)
• 20 years old (Special Cultural Reading): はたち (hatachi) (Traditional coming-of-age year; does NOT use the suffix sai!).
• Question: なんさいですか (Nan-sai desu ka) or polite おいくつですか (O-ikutsu desu ka).

4. Daily Greetings and Conversational Expressions (まいにちのあいさつ)

Greetings in Japanese society reflect situational awareness, hierarchical relationships (senpai-kōhai, in-group / out-group: uchi-soto), and mutual social harmony (wa).

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┌──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Japanese Expression          │ Rōmaji                       │ Context, Temporal Window & Politeness Nuance           │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **おはようございます**       │ Ohayō gozaimasu              │ Formal morning greeting (dawn until ~10:30 AM).        │
│ **おはよう**                 │ Ohayō                        │ Informal morning greeting used with close friends/family.│
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **こんにちは**               │ Konnichiwa                   │ General daytime greeting (~10:30 AM until dusk).       │
│                              │                              │ *Note: Written with は (ha), pronounced [wa].*         │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **こんばんは**               │ Konbanwa                     │ Evening greeting (from nightfall onwards).              │
│                              │                              │ *Note: Written with は (ha), pronounced [wa].*         │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **おやすみなさい**           │ Oyasuminasai                 │ Formal "Good night" said immediately before sleeping.  │
│ **おやすみ**                 │ Oyasumi                      │ Informal "Good night" to peers or younger individuals. │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **さようなら**               │ Sayōnara                     │ Final / definitive parting ("Farewell" for long period)│
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **じゃあ、また** / **またね**│ Jā, mata / Mata ne           │ Casual parting among friends ("See you later/again").  │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **しつれいします**           │ Shitsurei shimasu            │ Formal parting / entering / leaving a room or office   │
│                              │                              │ (Literally: "I am going to commit a rudeness").        │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **ありがとうございます**       │ Arigatō gozaimasu            │ Formal present-tense gratitude ("Thank you very much").│
│ **ありがとうございました**   │ Arigatō gozaimashita         │ Formal past-tense gratitude for completed actions.     │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **どういたしまして**         │ Dōitashimashite              │ "You are welcome" / "Don't mention it".                │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **すみません**               │ Sumimasen                    │ Multipurpose: "Excuse me", mild apology, or thank you  │
│                              │                              │ for inconvenience caused.                              │
├──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **ごめんなさい**             │ Gomennasai                   │ Direct, personal apology ("I'm sorry") to peers.       │
└──────────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Mealtime Etiquette Greetings:

• いただきます (Itadakimasu): Uttered before eating with palms pressed together in front of the chest. Literally means "I humbly receive", expressing deep gratitude to the ingredients, farmers, cooks, and nature.
• ごちそうさまでした (Gochisōsama deshita): Uttered after finishing a meal. Literally translates to "It was an honorable feast / you ran around with great effort", thanking the host or chef for preparing the food.

Home Departure and Arrival Rituals:

• Leaving Home:
  • Person leaving says: いってきます (Ittekimasu) ("I will go and return").
  • Person staying replies: いってらっしゃい (Itterasshai) ("Please go and come back safely").
• Returning Home:
  • Person returning says: ただいま (Tadaima) ("I have returned right now").
  • Person inside replies: おかえりなさい (Okaerinasai) ("Welcome home").

Checking Well-being:

• Inquiry: おげんきですか (O-genki desu ka) — "How are you? / Are you well?" (Prefix お is honorific).
• Response: はい、げんきです (Hai, genki desu) — "Yes, I am healthy/fine."

5. Essential Classroom Vocabulary and Teacher Commands

In a Japanese academic setting, instructions and classroom interactions adhere to clear ritualized protocols:

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┌──────────────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Japanese Command / Phrase            │ Rōmaji                       │ English Functional Meaning               │
├──────────────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ **はじめましょう**                   │ Hajimemashō                  │ Let us begin (the lesson/exam).          │
│ **おわりましょう**                   │ Owarimashō                   │ Let us finish / conclude.                │
│ **やすみましょう**                   │ Yasumimashō                  │ Let us take a recess / break.            │
│ **きりつ**                           │ Kiritsu                      │ Stand up (formal classroom salute).      │
│ **れい**                             │ Rei                          │ Bow (mutual respectful greeting).        │
│ **ちゃくせき**                       │ Chakuseki                    │ Sit down / Take your seats.              │
│ **本を 開いてください** (ほんを ひらいて)│ Hon o hiraite kudasai       │ Please open your book.                   │
│ **本を 見てください** (ほんを みて)    │ Hon o mite kudasai           │ Please look at your book.                │
│ **聞いてください** (きいてください)    │ Kiite kudasai                │ Please listen carefully.                 │
│ **読んでください** (よんでください)    │ Yonde kudasai                │ Please read aloud.                       │
│ **書いてください** (かいてください)    │ Kaite kudasai                │ Please write this down.                  │
│ **言ってください** (いってください)    │ Itte kudasai                 │ Please say / repeat it.                  │
│ **もう いちど お願いします**         │ Mō ichido onegaishimasu      │ Once more, please (repeat).              │
│ **わかりました**                     │ Wakarimashita                │ I understood / I got it.                 │
│ **わかりません**                     │ Wakarimasen                  │ I do not understand.                     │
└──────────────────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────┘

Essential Classroom Nouns:

• ほん (Hon): Book
• ノート (Nōto): Notebook
• じしょ (Jisho): Dictionary
• えんぴつ (Enpitsu): Pencil
• ボールペン (Bōrupen): Ballpoint pen
• かみ (Kami): Paper
• きょうしつ (Kyōshitsu): Classroom
• せんせい (Sensei): Teacher / Professor
• がくせい (Gakusei): Student

6. Japanese Cultural Etiquette and Non-Verbal Communication

A. The Art of Bowing (お辞儀 - Ojigi)

Bowing is the fundamental non-verbal cornerstone of Japanese communication, communicating gratitude, apology, greeting, and social deference:

CODECopy Code
                             THE THREE ANGLE TIERS OF OJIGI
                                          │
        ┌─────────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┐
  1. ESHAKU (会釈)                  2. KEIREI (敬礼)                3. SAIKEIREI (最敬礼)
      ~15 Degrees                       ~30 Degrees                       ~45 Degrees
 Casual greeting to peers,         Business encounters,             Deepest reverence, solemn
 colleagues of equal rank;        greeting clients, customers,     apologies, praying at Shinto
 passing acquaintances.           teachers, senior managers.       shrines, meeting the Emperor.

• Bowing Technique: Stand with spine straight, hands resting at sides (men) or clasped gently in front of the lower abdomen (women). Bend from the hips, keeping the neck and back in a straight plane. Inhale when bending, pause at the apex for 1 beat, and exhale slowly while rising.

B. The Honorific Prefix お (o-) and ご (go-)

• Used as Bikago (美化語 - Beautification Language) to elevate speech and demonstrate refinement.
• お (o-): Prefixed primarily to native Japanese (wago) words:
  • お茶 (o-cha - tea), お金 (o-kane - money), お酒 (o-sake - alcohol), お水 (o-mizu - water), お名前 (o-namae - name).
• ご (go-): Prefixed primarily to Sino-Japanese (kango) compound words:
  • ご家族 (go-kazoku - your family), ご飯 (go-han - meal/rice), ご連絡 (go-renraku - contact/notice).

7. Comprehensive Viva Voce Assessment Guide

1. Q: Explain why the grammatical particles は, へ, and を are pronounced differently from their standard Gojūon phonetic readings.
   A:

   • は: In standard vocabulary, it is pronounced [ha] (e.g., はい hai, はな hana). When functioning as the grammatical topic marker particle, it is pronounced as [wa] due to historical sound shifts (gen'on henka) where intervocalic /p/ shifted to /w/.
   • へ: In vocabulary words, it is read [he] (e.g., へや heya). When used as the directional particle meaning "towards", it is read [e].
   • を: Historically represented [wo]. In modern Japanese, it is pronounced [o] and is preserved solely to mark the direct object of a transitive verb.

2. Q: Contrast the phonetic and moric distinction between Sokuon (促音) and Yōon (拗音).
   A:

   • Sokuon (促音): Represented by a miniature subscript っ (small tsu). It does not possess a vowel; it creates a one-beat glottal pause (geminate consonant) before unvoiced plosives and fricatives ($K, S, T, P$). Crucially, the Sokuon counts as a full independent mora (one beat). Example: きって (kitte) is 3 morae [ki - t - te].
   • Yōon (拗音): Formed by appending miniature ゃ, ゅ, ょ to an I-column Hiragana character. It contracts the consonant with a glide vowel ($kya, sho, chu$). Crucially, a Yōon combination counts as only ONE mora (one beat). Example: きゃ (kya) is 1 mora; きょう (kyō) is 2 morae [kyo - o].

3. Q: Detail the rules for extending long vowels (Chōon) in Hiragana orthography.
   A: In Hiragana:

   • For A-column sounds, add あ (e.g., おかあさん okāsan).
   • For I-column sounds, add い (e.g., おにいさん onīsan).
   • For U-column sounds, add う (e.g., くうき kūki).
   • For E-column sounds, add い in standard Sino-Japanese words (e.g., せんせい sensei $\to$ pronounced sensē) and え in native Japanese words (e.g., おねえさん onēsan).
   • For O-column sounds, add う in most words (e.g., おとうさん otōsan, こうこう kōkō) and お in a small group of native Japanese roots (e.g., おおきい ōkii, とおい tōi, こおり kōri).

4. Q: Why are the numbers 4, 7, and 9 avoided or read differently in certain contexts in Japanese culture?
   A:

   • Number 4 (四): Has two readings: shi (Sino-Japanese) and yon (native). The reading shi is a direct homophone for death (死 shi). Therefore, yon is preferred, and Japanese hospitals and hotels frequently omit room 4 or 4th floors (tetraphobia).
   • Number 7 (七): Can be read shichi or nana. Nana is preferred in counting and telephone numbers to prevent phonetic confusion with 1 (ichi) and 8 (hachi), as well as avoiding the morbid shi syllable.
   • Number 9 (九): Can be read kyū or ku. The reading ku is a homophone for suffering/agony (苦 ku). Thus, kyū is used in general counting, while ku is reserved for specific time readings (e.g., くじ ku-ji = 9 o'clock).

5. Q: Explain the cultural concept and etiquette associated with the phrases "Itadakimasu" and "Gochisōsama deshita".
   A:

   • いただきます (Itadakimasu): The humble polite form of the verb いただく (itadaku - to receive / eat / drink). Spoken before meals with hands clasped together, it is a profound expression of mindfulness, thanking nature and living things for sacrificing their lives to provide sustenance, as well as acknowledging the labor of farmers, distributors, and cooks.
   • ごちそうさまでした (Gochisōsama deshita): Derived from 馳走 (chisō - running around or expending great physical effort to procure ingredients). Spoken after meals, it conveys deep appreciation to the host or chef for their tireless efforts in preparing the nourishment.