issue 13

iJapanese Newsletter
17th March 2014

Information for
Term 2
Term 2

7th April - 21st June
( 11 weeks )Public Holiday
Replacement
We all love our holidays but welove our Japanese classes more.
Please see below for replacement
dates.
Monday class:21st Apr
9th Jun

31st Mar
23rd Jun

Friday class:18th Apr
25th Apr

4th Apr27th Jun

Saturday class:19th Apr

5th AprTerm 2 Event
Language Exchange Meeting& Dinner

29th March Saturday
Language Exchange Meeting
Time : 3:30pm — 6:00pm
Place : iJapanese
Cost : $5

Ojigi (Bowing) - What does it mean in Japan?
You may have seen people in Japan are always bowing in many situations. They do notnormally shake hands when greeting each other, let alone a hug!
Japanese of all ages will bow when greeting each other. It is ingrained in to our culture andsociety. But what does it mean?
In Western culture, they shake hands whichis said to originated from an ancient gesture
showing that the hand holds no weapons.
Whereas in East Asian culture, they bow. It
is originally meant to express no hostility
against the opponent while holding out theirneck.
In Japanese society today, bowing
expresses not only greeting but also
appreciation, respect, as well as words ofapology.
Basically bowing shows respect for theperson and they can be formallycategorised 3 types depending on thedeepness of the waist bend.
In all bows, while women fold their hands
slightly in front of their body when bowing,
men's hands rest on their flanks.
Eshaku (casual greeting): 15 degrees bow
The casual bow is the "eshaku" bow. In thisbow, the waist is generally bent at about a
15 degree angle. It is common to lightly dip
the head and give an "eshaku" bow when
exchanging a casual greeting or passing bysomeone. It may be used when you enter orleave the room, or when you bow inresponse to shop staff.

Keirei (common greeting): 30 degrees bow
In this bow, the torso is lowered to about
30 degrees. A deep bow is made when
you exchange business cards, or when you
meet someone of a higher social status,
such as your boss, guests or customers.
Saikeirei (formal bowing): 45 degrees bow
The most polite bow, consists of loweringthe torso about 45 degrees. The very deep
bow is made when you meet yourexecutives. Also when you attend awedding or funeral, or when you express
gratitude. This is also used with an apology
and indicates true remorse.
Bowing is deeply rooted in Japan and you
will see lots of bowing situations, such as arespect bow between opponents before
and after a sports match, or between
teacher and students in the classroom. They
often bow on the telephone, too!

Dinner Party
When you are bowed from Japanesepeople, you can reply with a small nod ofthe head.

Let’s enjoy a fun evening oflanguage exchange anddelicious Japanese cuisine!

By NorikoiJapanese Newsletter issue 13

Page 2 of 4Student from iJapanese
Adam Sloane sanAdam san has just returned from a trip to Japan. Let’s share his fantastic
experience !
I recently had the chance to visit Japan with my brother, this was
my second trip and his first. Given my previous trip I have someidea of what to expect, for him it was quite an experience, thelook on his face when he saw the sheer number of people
moving about made me smile.
While we spent most of our time in Tokyo, we did visit Kyoto,
Matsumoto and Nikko as well.

And in Kyoto wewalked along thePhilosopher's Pathand visited someof the temples
along the path.

Imperial Palace in Tokyo

Kisai-sensei was kind enough to give me some challenges tocomplete while I was in Japan, the big one was to buy a nengajo
Matsumoto is where one of four castles that are considered
national treasures are located and we were lucky enough to get (New year’s greeting card) and post it. This gave me an excellent
opportunity to use my Japanese. Buying the card and the stamp
a guided tour from a volunteer tour guide that just happened towent well, although I ran in to a couple of issues when the person
be there for a meeting.
at the post office tried to explain that I couldn’t send it before theNikko is a remarkably beautiful place with some stunning scenery 18th Dec - but I got there eventually.
and beautiful temples. There is a sight called Yomeimon Gate or We visited many places in Tokyo and saw many things, and even
Higurashino-mon the One day gate, because you can spend all got to meet some great people. I loved my time in Japan and am
looking to go back again when I’m able.
day looking at it and not see everything.

Meishin Quiz - Superstitions“Never open an umbrella in the house” This is one of many superstitions known to Australians. In Japan, we also have manysuperstitions which are still strongly believed since ancient times. Here, I will introduce you to some Japanese superstitions and then
you will need to guess the correct answer.
1. You will die young if you sleep with your head pointing toward the _______.
A. North B. South C. East D. West
2. If a baby's lower tooth falls out , or if a baby's higher tooth falls out _______.
A. throw it under the floor B. throw as far as possible C. throw it up onto the roof
D. leave it under the pillow
3. If you make a paper doll called “teruteru bozu” and hang it outside the window, it will _______.
A. rain B. be clear weather C. be hot D. be cold
4. If you sneeze once, it means someone is talking about you _______.
If you sneeze twice, it means someone is talking about you _______.
If you sneeze three times, someone is in love with you.
If you sneeze four times, you have a cold.
A. in a good way B. in a funny way C. in a serious way D. in a bad way

by Kisaiwww.iJapanese.com.au

Page 3 of 4

Ambiguous culture
As an Australian I sometimes find it difficult to understandJapanese people. It seems not to be a lack of understanding,but a differences in culture, so I would like to share with you afew of those notable culture differences I have encountered in
my years of dealing with Japanese people.
The first one is TIME, perhaps the most obvious and notablecharacteristic of all Japanese people however unless you areliving or working with a Japanese person you may not evennotice it until you have meet the JR (Japan Railway) system.
There you will see the efficacy of the Japanese nation.
Japanese people are extremely punctual in there dealings withother people. For example when meeting a Japanese friend heor she will always arrive on time and for those of you who areliving with a Japanese person planning to go out you must leaveat the pre arranged time, if not, if even a minute late, you findan unhappy and frustrated person standing next to you. As an
Australian I am not as punctual as my fellow Japanese staff
members or friends, creating tension and frustration, yet notalways apparent which brings me to my next culture difference,
INDIRECTNESS.
Japanese have a tendency to be indirect. Close friends orcolleagues will naturally mention an issue that may not be soapparent to the discussion at hand. The ability to read between
the lines is a must when talking with Japanese people, a talentthat all Japanese people possess but unfortunately mostwesterners are yet to develop. This creates significant
differences when communicating and understanding. Let’s takea simple email between a westerner and Japanese client orcolleague. A westerner would tend to be short and straight tothe point but on the other hand, when reading a Japaneseemail you would need to first scroll down to the next paragraphbefore you even found out if they were asking you a question or
relaying information.
The fact is a Japanese person would never say “no” directly.
Alternatively they’ll respond with an “ummm maybe” which
often translates into a “No” anyway. You just need to developthat inner ‘read between the lines’ ability. As a westerner wewould find this difficult to except and frustrating that you can not
get a direct answer from a Japanese person even if it is assimple as asking them would you like the air-conditioning on.
The response would be “Oh, if you like” despite the fact they
are sweating like crazy and the temperature is above 40degrees.
The hard truth is that Japanese do not like to be direct. To be
direct can be interpreted as being harsh, mean or even rude attimes. They do not like conflict, nor to feel embarrassed. Theresult of this is for them tobe ambiguous with all theiranswers, that way they
seamlessly avoid all
negative situations.

Oh! It’s already 2 o’clock.

By Phillip

Noriko’s Thought
Looking back on the first page, nodding is an important sign forremember when dealing with Japanese clients in a businessJapanese people to indicate ‘I am listening to you’. They aremeeting.

frequently nodding while talking with others. So it is difficult forIn addition please remember, in Phil’s article,

Japanese people to know whether western people are listening

if the Japanese person said ‘umm,to them, because they do not nod.

muzukashii desune...’ (well, it sounds

When talking to a Japanese person, remember to nod yourdifficult… ) in a business meeting,head from time to time to show you are listening to them!

this means ‘No’!

Umm, Muzukashii
desune..

On the other hand from a western point of view when we aretalking with a Japanese person who is nodding, this doesn't
necessarily guarantee you that he/she agrees with you. Thispurely means ‘they are listening to you’ - an Important fact toNo way!

www.iJapanese.com.au

Page 4 of 4

Fortune-telling by blood type !
Do you know your blood type?
Just as fortune-telling such as horoscope or palmistry (parmreading), ‘fortune-telling by blood type’ has also become
popular in Japan. I can say 99.9% of Japanese people know
their blood type and interestingly they relate their blood types
with their personality types. They believe people can bedivided into 4 types of personalities depending on their bloodtype. Among young people, it sometimes relates to theirrelationships. For example if your blood type is B and yourboyfriend/girlfriend is blood type O, they can get along wellwith each other. If your blood type is A, then blood type AB
people will be trustworthy for you and you will get good advice
or cooperation from them.
Personally, I don’t agree with the idea, but people might tend tojudge others by their blood type. At the same time, when I think
about my family or my friends’ characteristics, the blood typedescription suits them very well.
In this article, I would like to introduce ‘general personality’
based on blood types which is well known in Japan.

[Type B] They don’t like being bound by discipline
and rules. They are freewheeling and very positive.
It’s said that many artists are blood type B. It’s hardto think what they’re thinking and sometimes havechangeable personalities. I am blood type B and I
think it matches my character…!

[Type A] They consider discipline, public rules andhuman relationship very important. Always be
prudent and well organised. This blood type is thelargest number in Japan and it’s reflected inJapanese society. When you think of a Japaneseperson, you can be convinced of it, can’t you?

Do these match your character? There is no scientific evidence
to prove or disapprove blood types and the association withpeople characters. Have a think about yourself, and your family
or friends. Maybe you can categorise them into the 4 types ofpersonalities.
Japanese people may ask for your blood type when firstmeeting you, for them this is an ice-breaker, a way to findcommon ground with you!

[Type AB] They are calm all the time and they canthink about things objectively. In addition, they’realso said to have blood type A and blood type B
characteristics (double personalities). Some of myfriends are this blood type and they always giveme good advice.
[Type O] They are realistic and romantic. They
don’t care about small things and are good at
becoming natural leaders as they take care ofpeople below them. My thinking about blood typeO is they are very calm and cheerful. It’s also said
that they can get along well with anybody.

By Ayano

Answers from Kisai
1. = AThe north-east is considered unlucky. It's also thought to be
unlucky to sleep with the head towards the north "kita makura",
since this is how dead bodies are laid to rest.
2. Lower tooth = C / Higher tooth = A
This is a good luck charm rather than a superstition, but it means
they wish that new teeth will grow strongly.

3. = B
Hanging the doll means a sacrifice to the Gods.
4. Sneeze once = A / Sneeze twice = D
Ancestors believed sneezing is caused by a curse or someone's
spirit nearby.

We sometime can't explain original meanings. However a lot of Japanese people are still superstitious. To learn superstitions, it will
give you a better understanding about Japanese culture. What superstitions do you have in your country?

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