Greetings are usually the first thing a student learns when studying a foreign language. I am sure you probably already know several greetings in Japanese. In this lesson we will look at the standard “Good morning, good afternoon and good night” Japanese greetings, as well as a few greetings Japanese native speakers often use. As greetings are usually the first thing you say when meeting people it is important to pronounce them correctly. You may know that “Konnichwa” is “Hello” (good afternoon), but you are probably not pronouncing the word correctly.
Japanese soon compliment Japanese speaking foreigners on their…”speaking ability” in social situations. They will most likely compliment your ability after you have exchanged greetings. This happened to me the first time I came to Japan and started working in a restaurant. A customer complimented on my Japanese. I didn’t understand what she was saying. Once I found out what she was saying I felt like a fool and pretty embarrassed. Keep this in mind when you meet Japanese.
Common Japanese Greetings
Push the play button below and repeat the greetings after Kaoru Sensei. Try to get your pronunciation to sound like Kaoru’s.
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| Konnichiwa. | Good afternoon |
| Konbanwa | Good evening. |
| Ohayoogozaimasu. | Good morning * |
| Ohayoo. | Good morning. |
| Oyasuminasai. | Good night. |
| Oyasumi | Good night. |
| Jyaa ne | Bye |
| Mata ashita | See you tomorrow |
| Mata ne | See ya later |
Bowing: Instead of shaking hands , the Japanese bow. They also express gratitude, apologies, and requests by bowing. There are different ways of bowing depending on the situation, shown by how deeply you bend forward.
Gifts: It is customary to bring a gift, such as a box of sweets with you, when you visit your acquaintances or those to whom you feel some obligation. When offering a gift, Japanese will usually say something along the lines of “this is just a little something” which expresses a self-effacing attitude.
Meishi: In business, people exchange name-cards when they are introduced. This card is printed with name of the person, the company and his or her title on it. Japanese love to give their business card. I seem to accumulate hundreds every year.
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ok i’ve gotten this. arigatou!
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