Japanese Retail & E-Commerce Translation

About the Japanese Language

Japanese (日本語) "Nihon-go" in Japanese) is the language spoken in Japan, in East Asia. Japanese uses three separate writing systems: hiragana, katakana, and kanji. The first two are phonetic systems (writing that shows the pronunciation of Japanese words), and kanji is the Japanese variation of Chinese characters (which show the meaning of Japanese words). The three systems are used interchangeably, and all three systems can often be found in the same sentence. The three systems are each reserved for different purposes.

Little is known of the language's prehistory, or when it first appeared in Japan. Chinese documents from the 3rd century recorded a few Japanese words, but substantial texts did not appear until the 8th century. During the Heian period (794–1185), Chinese had considerable influence on the vocabulary and phonology of Old Japanese. Late Middle Japanese (1185–1600) included changes in features that brought it closer to the modern language, and the first appearance of European loanwords. The standard dialect moved from the Kansai region to the Edo (modern Tokyo) region in the Early Modern Japanese period (early 17th century–mid-19th century). Following the end in 1853 of Japan's self-imposed isolation, the flow of loanwords from European languages increased significantly. English loanwords, in particular, have become frequent, and Japanese words from English roots have proliferated.

Japanese is an agglutinative, mora-timed language with simple phonotactics, a pure vowel system, phonemic vowel and consonant length, and a lexically significant pitch-accent. Word order is normally subject–object–verb with particles marking the grammatical function of words, and sentence structure is topic–comment. Sentence-final particles are used to add emotional or emphatic impact, or make questions. Nouns have no grammatical number or gender, and there are no articles. Verbs are conjugated, primarily for tense and voice, but not person. Japanese equivalents of adjectives are also conjugated. Japanese has a complex system of honorifics with verb forms and vocabulary to indicate the relative status of the speaker, the listener, and persons mentioned.

Japanese has no genetic relationship with Chinese, but it makes extensive use of Chinese characters, or kanji (漢字), in its writing system, and a large portion of its vocabulary is borrowed from Chinese. Along with kanji, the Japanese writing system primarily uses two syllabic (or moraic) scripts, hiragana (ひらがな or 平仮名) and katakana (カタカナ or 片仮名). Latin script is used in a limited fashion, such as for imported acronyms, and the numeral system uses mostly Arabic numerals alongside traditional Chinese numerals.

Japanese Translation Expertise

Japanese uses three writing systems simultaneously — hiragana, katakana, and kanji — and a single document may contain all three plus Arabic numerals and Latin characters. The language has elaborate honorific systems (keigo) with distinct polite, humble, and respectful forms that affect verb conjugation and vocabulary choice in official documents. Sentence structure is subject-object-verb, articles do not exist, and context frequently determines meaning that would be explicit in English.

Japanese writing combines kanji (Chinese-derived logographic characters, with over 2,000 in common use), hiragana (46 syllabic characters for native words and grammar), and katakana (46 syllabic characters for foreign loanwords). Text can run vertically (top to bottom, right to left) or horizontally (left to right), and official documents may use either orientation.

Common Japanese Documents

Japanese documents frequently requiring translation include the koseki tohon (family register), juminhyo (residence certificate), sotsugyō shōmeisho (graduation certificate), and unten menkyo shō (driver's licence).

NAATI offers certification for Japanese, and there is a solid pool of NAATI-certified Japanese translators in Australia, particularly in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Japanese translation for immigration purposes requires NAATI certification, and the complexity of the koseki system means translators need specific familiarity with this document type.

About the Japanese Language

Japanese has no grammatical plural — the word for "cat" and "cats" is the same (neko), and context determines quantity. The language has three completely separate writing systems used simultaneously in a single sentence: kanji (Chinese characters) for content words, hiragana for grammar, and katakana for foreign loanwords. Japanese is considered one of the most difficult languages for English speakers to learn, with the US Foreign Service Institute estimating 2,200 class hours to reach proficiency — roughly four times longer than Spanish or French.