![]() ![]() Some words shift so drastically that a breakdown of communication can occur. The degree to which a word’s meaning can shift when it enters another language varies. the journey from becoming a known word to a loanword can be long, interrupted, canceled or even lost (in its original language).” Semantic shift In a 2008 paper titled “ Made in Japan or Not? An Examination of Vocabulary Items Sometimes Classified as Japanese Innovations,” Nicholas Warren, an instructor at Fukuoka Women’s Junior College, provides evidence of English speaker usage of the supposed Japanese term as early as 1631, opining: “Could it, then, be an obsolete word which is nevertheless enjoying an extended lease on life in Japan?” Interestingly, the compound キャッチボール ( kyacchibooru, or “catch ball”) is commonly thought of as originating in Japan since “play catch” is the proper term in English, but in fact - it may not be. Some of the meanings of these novel creations can be easily guessed by English speakers even without contextual clues, such as how テレビゲーム ( terebigeemu, or “TV game”) is the Japanese word that represents “video game.” Compounds can also be opaque in their meaning, such as how パイプカット ( paipukatto, or “pipe cut”) represents the word “vasectomy.” In the 1997 book “ The Life of Language,” Laura Miller uses the term 和製英語 ( waseieigo, or “English made in Japan”) to describe the phenomenon of compounding. So, not only could the word become incomprehensible to an English speaker because of rephonalization, it could also be confused with the words "axle" or “axel.” Compounding For example, “accelerator” is shortened to アクセル ( akuseru) in Japanese. Words can also be shortened to varying degrees, with differing effects on comprehensibility. RephonalizationĪll languages have phonological differences and thus, when a foreign word enters a language it will undergo phonological changes due to the differences in the languages’ sound systems or “rephonalization.” The minimal pair “r” and “l” is an example of unavoidable rephonalization required when an English word with either of these sounds enters the Japanese language since its sound system does not distinguish between the two, such as with “rock” and “lock.” Truncation The following are some of the technical terms that linguists use to describe such changes. ![]() ![]() A word’s transformation into another languageįoreign words undergo transformation in various ways when they enter another language. Why the ambiguity, though? The reason is that the journey from becoming a known word to a loanword can be long, interrupted, canceled or even lost (in its original language). Some English loanword dictionaries for the Japanese language have tens of thousands of entries - but only around 1,000 to 3,000 are used daily. It comes from the Japanese 暈けている ( boketeiru), which means “blurry.” English words in Japanese It describes the blurry background in pictures taken with a lens capable of deep depth of field. Many English speakers may not be aware of the Japanese origin for the word “rickshaw.” It comes from the Japanese 自力者 ( jirikisha), with the kanji for “ji” meaning “self,” “ riki” meaning “power” and “ sha,” meaning “vehicle.” The photography term “bokeh” is yet another example. It comes from 大君 ( taikun), a word that was originally used in Japanese to describe a leader who does not have imperial lineage. For example, the “honcho” in “head honcho” is from 班長 (hancho), which means “group leader” in Japanese. However, some Japanese words used in English have assimilated so much that English speakers aren’t even aware that the words come from Japanese. The relationship between English and Japanese is mostly one-way. To elucidate on the changes that occur during a word’s transformation into a loanword, let’s look at some words shared between English and Japanese. Some words just shallowly enter into another language, while the roads other words go down can be long and winding. Like people, some stay but never assimilate, while others do entirely. When a word enters another language, it’s similar to taking a journey. ![]()
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