Uwabaki

I had never heard the word "uwabaki" until only a year or so ago. Also, I used to think "uwagutsu" (上靴, lit. "indoor/upper shoes") was "wa-gutsu" (和靴, "Japanese shoes"). An honest mistake.

The Japanese people have a bad habit of not correcting the broken Japanese of foreigners which really isn't very helpful in the long run.

Case in point, I met a German woman some years ago who I noticed was writing her name in katakana (カタカナ) in correctly. She was shocked to find out because I was the first person to point it out despite her mis-writing her name for almost a decade. She was mortified to learn this, but less so than if she had been making the mistake for 20 years rather than 10.

I guess the lesson here is, when in doubt look things up for yourself. The Internet is there for a reason.

Chinsuko

One of the most popular souvenirs from Okinawa is a simple cookie called “chinsukō”. You have probably been given a box of them or even bought some for friends and co-workers yourself.

There are two theories about the origin of the funny sounding name. One is that “chin” (珍) means “rare” and “sukō” means “confectionery” (お菓子), so that name chinsukō refers to “a very rare and precious confectionery”. Another theory suggest that “chin” actually means “gold” (金), such that chinsukō indicates a very expensive confectionery. Either way, it seems to mean that the cookies were out of reach for ordinary people in Okinawa. Indeed, chinsukō was a confectionery originally served at court and only the royalty and nobility of the Ryūkyū Dynasty were able to enjoy it.

Until Shōtai (尚泰), the last king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, envoys were sent from China for nearly 500 years, without ceasing even when the Chinese dynasty changed from Ming to Qing. It is said that they came in groups of about 400 people and stayed in Ryūkyū for 4 to 6 months. The envoys were accompanied by various specialists, including confectioners, and it is believed that the method of making Chinese confectionery was introduced to Ryūkyū at the time.

The Snack with 100 Names

The Mainichi Elementary School Student Newspaper asks “What is this snack called?”

To me, it looks like Hōraku Manjū, a cloyingly sweet glob of sweet bean jam covered by pancake batter. One bite is usually enough to make me not want to eat, or smell, it for a year or more. My sons, however, can’t get enough of these sugar bombs.

Similar confections can be found all over Japan, but what are they called? Imagawa-yaki? Ōgata-yaki? Kaiten-yaki? According to a specialist of Japanese confectionary, there are 100 different names for the snack.

In most of Kyūshū, the are known as kaiten-yaki. In Kagoshima and Ōita, they are known by the same name I know them: Hōraku Manjū. In the Kantō area, they are called Imagawa-yaki. In Kansai, people refer to them as gozasōrō or kaiten-yaki.

Minsa Ori

On one of our visits to Okinawa, my wife bought a couple of mats with this traditional design. I didn’t really give it much thought until much later when I started to see the pattern used elsewhere—in wallets, obi, and other items from Okinawa. At first, I assumed it was similar to Hakata Ori and Kurume Kasuri, which also have a geometric design woven into them, but with some investigating, I discovered the design has a deeper meaning.

Originating from Taketomi Island in the Yaeyama archipelago, minsa is characterized by a kasuri pattern consisting of five and four squares woven onto an indigo background. Mainly used as an obi, the word minsa means “a narrow obi” (sā) “woven from cotton' (min)”.

Although the exact origin of minsa is not known, it is believe to have started around 400 years ago, when cotton cultivation began in Yaeyama. In ancient times, it was a custom in the Yaeyama region that a woman would weave a narrow fabric and give it to the man as a response to a his marriage proposal. This led to the name “watasa” (lit. “cotton + narrow”). Over time, watasa became minsa.

According to one theory, the narrow textiles made from animal hair and dyed with rock materials that were woven in central and southern Asian countries—Afghanistan to Nepal and India—were introduced to Yaeyama and Okinawa along with Buddhism. These imported textiles were then made with local cotton, becoming the minsā-ori that can be seen today.

It is said that the sanada cords (真田紐, sanada himo), used for weapons, armor, paulownia boxes, and luggage strings, may also have its roots in minsā-ori.

Incidentally, another theory is that sanada is a corruption of “sanar”, which means “woven string” in languages ​​around Tibet. Narrow textiles (sanar), made by Tibetan mountain tribes by dyeing the hair of their livestock and using waist looms, entered Japan by sea along with the introduction of Nanyana Buddhism. Whether sanada has its roots in the Tibetan sanar or indirectly via Okinawan minsā is a question I’ll leave to the experts.

Traditionally, minsā was given by women to men to express their feelings in the past when the custom of married couples living apart was more common.

The chief characteristic of minsā is the repetition of five and four squares, with five meaning “when” (五つの) and four, “world” (世), which put together mean “forever”, such that minsā carry the message of “Itsunoyo mademo suenagai shiawase” (いつの世までも末永い幸せ: May you be happy forever.)

The so-called yashirami (ムカデの足跡, centipede's foot pattern) along the horizontal stripe of a minsā obi implies the word ashigeku (足繁く, lit. to visit a place frequently) and relays the message “Please visit me often, forever.”

For much more on minsā, go here.

Taicho ga Warui

How do you say you aren’t feeling well?

Hashimaki

What do you call o-konomi-yaki on a stick?

51.5% of respondents (mustard color) say they have never seen such a thing. Sad.

33.7% (brown) call it “hashimaki”.

10% (red) call it “dondon-yaki”.

3.9% (green) call it by another name.

1.4% (navy) call it “kurukuru o-konomi-yaki”, which is a mouthful.

Yoso vs Tsugu

What do you call the action of serving warm rice or ladling something into a bowl?

I'm not surprised to learn that there are various expressions: "Yosou" (装う) is most common, followed by "tsugu" (つぐ), "yosoru", "moru" (盛る), etc. In Fukuoka, I find people say tsugu/tsukeru.

よそう 【装う】

1 【食器に盛る】

▸ スープを(お玉で)皿によそう

• ladle soup into a plate.

▸ ご飯をよそうのを手伝ってくれませんか

• Could you help me (to) serve [dish up] rice?
  

For more on this, go here.

Uchinaguchi nu Arinkurin

ウチナーグチぬアリンクリン

こんにちは (Hello)

はいさい (男性） Haisai (for men)

はいたい(女性） Haitai (for women)

はじめまして (Nice to meet you.)

はじみてぃやーさい (Hajimiti yaasai)

いらっしゃいま (Welcome.)

せめんそーれ (Mensoore)

元気 (Good, Well, Energetic)

がんじゅー (Ganjuu)

ありがとう (Thank you.)

にふぇーでーびる (Nifeedeebiru)

いただきます (May I start eating?)

くゎっちーさびら (Kwacchii sabira)

ごちそうさま (That food was wonderful.)

くゎっちーさびたん (Kwacchii sabitan)

お願いします (Please.)

うにげえさびら (Unigee sabira)

なんですか？ (What?)

ぬーやいびーが？ (Nuu yaibiiga?)

わかりました (I understand. I got it.)

わかやびたん (Waka yabitan)

おつかれさま (Thank you for your trouble.)

たいみそーちー (Taimisoochii)

ごめんください (I’m sorry.)

ちゃーびらさい (Chaabirasai)

さようなら (Good bye.)

ぐぶりーさびら (Guburii sabira)

男 (Man)

いきが (Ikiga)

女 (Woman)

いなぐ (Inagu)

妻 (Wife)

とぅじ (Tuji)

夫 (Husband)

うーとぅ (Uutu)

息子 (Son)

いきがんぐゎ (Ikigangwa)

娘 (Daughter)

いなぐんぐゎ (Inagungwa)

私 (I)

わん (Wan)

友達 (Friend)

どぅし (Dushi)

仲間 (Partner; Company; Companion)

しんか (Shinka)

家族 (Family)

やーにんじゅ (Yaaninnju)

兄弟 (Sibling)

ちょーでー (Choodee)

子供 (Child)

わらばー (Warabaa)

おいしい (Good; Delicious)

まーさいびーん (Maasaibiin)

塩 (Salt)

まーす (Maas)

砂糖 (Sugar)

さーたー (Saataa)

さとうきび (Sugar Cane)

うーじ (Uuji)

いくらですか (How much is it?)

ちゃっさやいびーが (Chassayaibiiga?)

どこですか？ (Where?)

まーやいびーが？ (Maayaibiiga?)

頭 (Head)

ちぶる (Chizuru)

美人 (Beautiful Person/Woman)

ちゅらかーぎー (Churakaagii)

恋人 (Lover)

うむやー (Umuyaa)

おしゃべり (Talkative)

ゆんたく (Yuntaku)

やさしい (Kind, Gentle)

ちむじゅらさん (Chimujurasan)

愛しい (Beloved, Dear)

かなさん (Kanasan)

頭がいい (Bright, Intelligent)

でぃきやー (Dikiyaa)

強い人 (Strong, Powerful Person)

ちゅーばー (Chuubaa)

Kampai Shanshan

嬉しい時には集まって

At happy times, we gather

みんなで泡盛飲みましょう

And let’s drink awamori together

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー

Yuga yuga fūfū yuga yuga fū
Note: ゆがふ（世果報）とは、沖縄の方言で豊年満作「世の中が豊かで平和でみんなが幸せでありますように」という意味. Yugafu is Okinawan for hōnenmansaku (豊年万作) which literally means an abundant year, bumper crop, but in a general sense means that times are peaceful, everyone has enough and is happy.

あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

Note: 八重山地方では、美しいとか綺麗の事を「あっぱりしゃん！」といいます。他は、可愛い、美しい、素晴らしいという意味。 沖縄本島地方では「美らさん」といいますね. In the Yaeyama archipelago, something or someone that is beautiful is apparishan. Similarly on the Okinawan mainland, they say churasan. So, they are singing “How wonderful! Cheers!”

ボトルを開けたらうさげましょう
まずは先祖にありがとう

After opening the bottle, let’s drink. (I need to check this. I think usagemashō is omeshiagarimashō, but I need to double check this .)

But first we give thanks to our ancestors.

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

銘柄たくさん迷っちゃうだけど
やっぱり地元の酒がいい

There are so many brands, you can’t decide,

Still, the best alcohol is local

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

とぅじにワジられ家を出て
したたか飲んでまたワジられた

Note: とぅじは奥さん、妻という意味。日本の古語で言う「刀自」（とじ）がなまったもの。沖縄の言葉には古墳期から江戸時代までの古い日本語がベースになっているものが非常に多い。意外に格調高い言葉である。Tuji means one’s wife. Many Okinawan words have their roots in the ancient Japanese of the Kofun Period (3rd to 7th century).

ワジられた means to make someone angry. おばーに怒られた時に、「おばーにワジられたさー」という使いかたもできます。When your grandmother is angry with you, you can say “Obā-ni wajirareta sā.”

My wife got angry with me, so I left the house,

Drank hard and she got angry again.

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

おじーがちぶるー擦りむいた
クースー(古酒)かけたら毛が生えた

Note: ちぶるー means 頭 or head and can be used for both people and animals. チブルワッサン　means 頭がわるい; someone is stupid. Kūsū (クースー) written 古酒 is awamori that has been aged for more than three years.

Grandpa scraped his head,

When he put kūsū on it, his hair began to grow.

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

世界の国からめんそーれ
飲んで歌って踊りましょう

Note: めんそーれ (mensōre) is one of the most commonly known regionalism. When you arrive at Naha Airport, there is a sign that welcomes you with a big Mensōre!. Okinawans tell me, though, that they don’t really say it. In standard Japanese, it means irasshaimase (いらっしゃいませ). You can also say, んじめんそーれ which means いってらっしゃい or まったん　めんそーれ (Please come again.) んじちゃーびら means 行ってきます or さようなら.

Welcome people from all over the world,

Let’s drink and dance together.

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

朝から一日お疲れさん
家族が待つ家帰りましょう

It's been a long tiring day, thanks

Let’s go home where our family is waiting.

ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん
ゆがゆがふーふー　ゆがゆがふー
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

でーじ泡盛ちゃーだ泡盛
なーてぃちたーちみーち乾杯しゃんしゃん

Note: でーじ means 大変 which can mean a lot of things from really, extremely, awful, serious, tough to a lot, a great deal. ちゃーだ, I believe, means どうだ which also has a lot of different meanings such as How about . . ? or What’s with . . . ? How was . . . ? and so on. なーてぃちたーちみーち in the second line, is one, two, three . . . So, . . .

A lot of awamori, how ‘bout some awamori?

One, two, three, cheers!

でーじ泡盛ちゃーだ泡盛
なーてぃちたーちみーち乾杯しゃんしゃん
でーじ泡盛ちゃーだ泡盛
なーてぃちたーちみーち乾杯しゃんしゃん
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん
あっぱりしゃんしゃん　乾杯しゃんしゃん

Famure Uta

子守唄

ファムレウタ
ふぁむれ'うた
famuré 'uta

Written by Ara Yukito (新良幸人)

Composed by Uechi Masa’aki (上地正昭)

”Famure Uta” is Komori Uta (子守唄, lit. “child protection song” or lullaby) in standard Japanese. Again we see the “o” → “u” and “i” → “e”shifts where mori becomes muré. Fa means child in the Yaeyama dialect. In standard Uchināguchi (Okinawan), child is warabā (ワラバー); children, warabincha (ワラビンチャー). In the area around Shuri, komori (子守) is kuwamui (っくわむい) and ko is kuwa (っくゎ).

1

前ぬ浜下りてぃ遊ぶ童達が笑い声ぬちゅらさ 他にまさてぃ

まいぬはま'うりてぃ'あしぶわらんちゃーが わらいぐいぬちゅらさ ゆすにまさてぃ
mai nu hama 'uriti 'ashibu waraNchaa ga warai gui nu churasa yusu ni masati

訳：前の浜に下りて遊ぶ子どもたちの笑い声が美しいことよ！何にもまして
Meaning: The laughter of children playing below on the beach before me is beautiful. Nothing is better.

語句・まいぬはま 前の浜。沖縄語では「めーぬはま」と読む。地名の後に「前ぬ浜」とつけて「（地名）の前の浜」などと使う。（例、「谷茶前の浜」）。・わらんちゃー こどもたち。沖縄語では「わらびんちゃー」。・わらい 笑い。沖縄語では「われー」、八重山方言では、「ばれー」。つまり、ここでは沖縄語の表現。・ぐい声。沖縄語では「くぃ」（kwi）と一音節だが、八重山方言では「くい」（kui）と二音節。ここでは八重山方言の表現。沖縄語と八重山方言が混在している。

Explanation: mai nu hama is mae no hama (前の浜, the beach before [me]) in Okinawan it also pronounced mē nu. Beaches are often named X mē nu hama, such as Chattan Mē nu Hama (谷茶前の浜, the beach at/before Chattan). Warancha, as we have already seen, is children. On Okinawa it is pronounced warabinchā. Warai, laughter, is pronounced warē on Okinawa, barē in the Yaeyama dialect. Gui means koé (声, voice, cry). On Okinawa it is kwi (one syllable), in Yaeyama, ku-i (two syllables). In this one line of the song, both standard Okinawan dialect and Yaeyama dialects are being used.

2

干瀬打ちゅる波音や我ん産ちぇる親ぬ子守唄ぬぐとぅに 唄ぬぐとぅに

ふぃし'うちゅるなみ'うとぅや わんなちぇる'うやぬふぁむれ'うたぬぐとぅに 'うたぬぐとぅに
fwishi 'uchuru nami'utu ya waN nacheru 'uya nu fwamure 'uta nu gutu ni 'uta nu gutu ni

訳：干瀬を打つ波の音は私を生んだ親の子守唄のように 唄のように

Meaning: The sound of the waves hitting the rocks and sandbars at low tide are like a lullaby, a song, for the parents who gave birth to me. (I need to double check the last part of this.)

語句・ふぃし 「満潮の時は隠れ、干潮になるとあらわれる岩や洲。」（沖縄語辞典 国立国語研究所編）・なちぇる 産んだ。＜なしゅん。産む。沖縄語。
Explanation: Fuishi means the rocks and sandbars that are hidden at high tide, visible when the tide goes out. Nacheru is the past tense form of nashun “to give birth to”.

シュラヨイ シュラヨ 願たこと シュラヨイ シュラヨ かなしょうり

しゅらよい しゅらよ にがたくとぅ しゅらよい しゅらよ かなしょーり

shurayoi shurayo nigota kutu shurayoi shurayo kanashōri

訳：（囃し言葉）願ったことが（囃し言葉）叶いますように

Meaning: May our hopes and wishes come true.

語句・しゅら 愛しい。かわいい。＜しゅらしゃん。囃子言葉にもよく使われる。・にごた 願った。＜にごーた。沖縄語では にがゆん。

Explanation: shurayoi, shurayo is commonly used hayashi kotoba (囃子言葉) or accompaniment in Okinawan songs. Hayashi can be found in all kinds of Japanese arts—acting, dance, songs and chants—to evoke a mood often with the flute, percussion instruments, or voice. Shura means “beloved, pretty”. Nigota is negatta (願った, wished). On Okinawa it is pronounced nigayun.

3

紺地染みらわん 浅地染みらわん 人ぬままどぅやゆる 海や白地

くんじすみらわん 'あさじすみらわん ふぃとぅぬままどぅやゆる 'うみやしるじ

kuNji sumirawaN 'asaji sumirawaN fwitu nu mama du yayuru 'umi ya shiruji

訳：紺地に染めようが 浅地にそめようが 人のままであるのだ 海は白地（だから）

Meaning: Even if you try to dye [something] navy or light blue, a person is still the same; [because] the sea is a white cloth.
語句・わん …であっても。・やゆる であるのだ。・うみ

Explanation: wan here means de-attemo; yayuru means dearuno da.

The dark navy is called 紺地 (konji), the lighter parts, 浅地 (asaji).

4

生まり島かなさ 島ぬ志情きん肝に思染みてぃ忘てぃなゆみ 思染みり 思染みり

うまりずぃまかなさ すぃまぬしなさきん きむにうみすみてぃ わしてぃなゆみ うみすみり うみすみり

'Umarizïma kanasa shïma nu shinasakiN kimu ni 'umisumiti washiti nayumi 'umisumiri 'umisumiri
訳: 生まれた故郷の愛しさよ！故郷の人々の志情けも心に染めて忘れてなるまい 思いを染めなさい 思いを染めなさい

Meaning: The dear island where I was born

語句・うまり 沖縄語では「んまり」（'Nmari）。・すぃま 故郷。八重山方言で発音する。中舌母音。「すぃ」は、「す」と発音する時のように口を丸めないで「し」の発音のように唇を横に伸ばしたまま、舌をすこし奥にして「す」と発音するつもりで発声する。「すぃま」、又は沖縄語の「しま」は「村」「故郷」「島」などの意味がある。ここでは「故郷」の意味。・きむ 心。沖縄語では「ちむ」。時代とともに、kimo →kimu →chimuと変化したと言われているが、その中間的な形。・うみすみり 思いを心に染めなさい。＜うみ ここでは 思い。＋すみり＜すみゆん 染める。命令形。
Explanation: “Nmari” is how “umari” (birth/born) is pronounced in the Yaeyama archipelago. “Suima” is “shima” (島) and has many meanings in Okinawa from island, to village, to one’s hometown. Kororo (心) or heart in standard Japanese is chimu/kimu (肝, lit. “liver”) in Okinawa. The pronunciation of 肝 has changed over the years: kimo →kimu →chimu. Umisumire means “Omoi-wo kokoro-ni somenasai” (Color/Dye your heart with the thought/feelings)

Shui Gusuku

By familiarizing yourself with a few rules of thumb, it will be easier for you to get over the first hurdle when learning Uchināguchi or the Okinawan dialect.

For starters, drop え and お. E (え) is pronounced like i (い); o (お) like u (う). By following this rule then, komé (米、こめ, rice) then is pronounced kumi (くみ). Similarly, yomé (嫁, よめ) becomes yumi (ゆみ). The Okinawan festival of Shīmī (しーみー) that occurs in April or May follows this same rule. In standard Japanese it is pronounced Seimei (清明) and in Chinese Qīngmíng and refers to gift solar term of the traditional East Asian lunisolar calendar the day when the sun reaches the celestial longitude of 15° and ends when it reaches 30°. This year it falls on April 4th.

In the song Futami Jōwa (二見情話、ふたみじょうわ; to be translated later), there is the following line:

二見村嫁や ないぶしゃやあしが辺野古崎坂の上い下い

Read as: ふたみむらゆみや ないぶしゃや 'あしが ふぃぬくざち ふぃらぬ ぬぶいくだいよ

Romaji: Futami mura yumi ya naibusha ya ‘ashi-ga fwinukuzachi fwira nu nubui kudai yo

Here you can see not only the vowel shift, but also the change in the pronunciation of some consonants, such as zaki (崎) which is zachi here. But, more importantly, look the 上い下い at the end of the line:

上い下いよ（ぬぶいくだいよ）

Nubui kudai yo

Change the ｕ back to ｏ and you get noboi kudai yo

Some say that in ancient Okinawan, there are still some vestiges of words and pronunciations of the Japanese spoken during the classical period Heian Jidai (794~1185), such that “i” in modern Japanese corresponded with “ri” in standard Japanese today. I have found this to also be somewhat true in Kagoshima where これ (koré, this) and それ (soré, that) etc. are sometimes pronounced こい (koi) そい (soi). You can also see this in Korea where the common family names Lee (季) and Lim (林) are actually pronounced I and Im, even though they spell it with an L. Let’s call it the “silent L”.

By dropping the “r”, Okinawa’s famous gusuku or castle is pronounced as Shui or Sui rather than Shuri (首里). (Incidentally, in the vicinity of the castle, Seimei, which I mentioned above is called ushīmī (御清明, o-seimei in standard Japanese). Again, o is pronounced u, even with an honorific like o (御).

Going back to ぬぶいくだいよ (nubui kudaiyo) it then follows that in standard Japanese it can be read のぼりくだりよ (nobori kudari yo).

It is said that if you can grasp those three things, namely:

E (え) → I (い)

O (お) → U (う)

Ri (り) → I (い)

. . . then you can understand some 80% of Okinawan. That’s probably an exaggeration. Other rules of thump include:

Ki (き) → chi (ち)

Te/Ti (て・ティ) → chi (ち)

Wa (わ) → a (あ)

This is, as I have mentioned before, where Uchinaa (Okinawa) comes from.

Post Corona Shuri. Look Ma, no people!

Itokuri Bushi

The song “Itokuri Bushi” is believed to first have been sung by spinners in Naze, Amami Ōshima during the Edo Period when the Amami archipelago was under the governance of the Satsuma (Kagoshima) Domain. Today it is one of the more famous songs among the shima uta genre. It should be noted that strictly speaking shima uta (島唄) refers to the music of the Amami archipelago and not that of Okinawa. The hit song Shima Uta by the Japanese rock band THE BOOM has caused most mainland Japanese to be confused about this. The music of Okinawa is referred to as Okinawa Minyō (沖縄民謡).

In the Amami dialect shima (島) has a narrower meaning than “island” and refers to one’s hometown or kyōri (郷里).

The above version of Itokuri Bushi is performed by Nakamura Mizuki (中村瑞希) and Yoshihara Marika (吉原まりか). The two have put out a number of CDs which you can purchase here on on iTunes. I once had the chance to hear Nakamura perform live and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. The same thing happened when I first encountered shima uta performed by Tsuboyama Yutaka about 25 years ago.†

1

心配(しわ)じゃ心配(しわ)じゃ 糸(いとぅ)繰(く)りゃ心配(しわ)じゃ

（囃子）スラーヨーイヨーイ

糸(いとぅ)ぬ切(き)りりば スラヤーヌヤー 結(むす)びなゆむぃ

トコヤヌ スラヤーヌ バイドゥガ ジュイジュイ

Shiwa ja shiwaja itukurya shiwaja

Surāyōiyōi

Itunukiririba, surayānuyā musubinayumui

Tokoyanu surayānu baiduga juijui

大意：糸繰りは糸が切れないか、とても気を使いながらやります。でも、糸が切れたら結び直すことはできます。
General meaning: I take great care not to break the thread that I spin. But even if the thread breaks, I can tie it back together.

2

糸(いとぅ)や切(き)りりば 結(むす)びむなゆり

（囃子）スラーヨーイヨーイ

縁(えん)ぬ切(き)りりば スラヤーヌヤー 結(むす)ばれぃゆむぃ

トコヤヌ スラヤーヌ バイドゥガ ジュイジュイ

Itaya kiririba,musubimunayuri

Surāyōiyōi

Ennukiririba, surayānuyā musubareiyumui

Tokoyanu surayānu baiduga juijui

大意：糸は切れたら結びなおすことができますが、人の縁が切れたら 結びなおすことはできません。
General meaning: If the thread breaks, it can be tied back together, but if the bond between people is broken, it cannot be mended.

3

糸繰(いとぅく)り 一番(いちばん)な実定(さねぃさだ)やくむぃ

（囃子）スラーヨーイヨーイ

二番(にばん)なりゅん人(ちゅ)や スラヤーヌヤー

千代(ちよ)あせぐゎ

トコヤヌ スラヤーヌ バイドゥガ ジュイジュイ

Itaya kiriri ichiban-na saneisada yakumui

Surāyōiyōi

Niban na ryunchu-ya surayānuyā

Chiyo asegwa

Tokoyanu surayānu baiduga juijui

大意：糸繰の一番上手な人は、｢実定」兄さんです。 2番目に上手な人は、「千代」姉さんですね。
General meaning: The best at spinning is Saneisada. The second best is Chiyo.

4

糸(いとぅ)や繰(く)らさば 上糸(じょういと)繰(く)らせ

（囃子）スラーヨーイヨーイ

そげんなぶっかまんぬ スラヤーヌヤー

繰(く)りなーゆむぃ

トコヤヌ スラヤーヌ バイドゥガ ジュイジュイ

Itaya kurasaba jõitokkurase

Surāyōiyōi

Sogen-na bukkaman nu surayānuyā

Tokoyanu surayānu baiduga juijui

大意：糸繰をするならば、いい糸を紡いでください。そのような質の悪い繭からは、いい糸は紡げませんよ。
General meaning: If you are going to spin thread, spin with good thread. With that kind of poor quality silk, you can’t make good thread.

This is another version performed by Hirata Marina:

† One of the more well known regionalisms of Kagoshima is "daiyamé", a contraction of dareyame which is loosely translated into banshaku (晩酌, having a drink with dinner). Daiyame means 晩酌して疲れを癒す or to recover from one's fatigue by drinking. In the link to Tsuboyama Yutaka above, the Amami Ōshima musician sings the shima uta だれあむぃぐぁ (Daré Amuigwa), which is how they say "daiyamé" in some parts of Amami.

Ezui

All throughout the Kawabata Shōtengai shopping arcade in Hakata are these Hakata-ben Banzuke banners featuring a common regionalism. The one pictured above says ezui (えずい). I had never heard the word used in daily conversations myself, so I asked my wife if she knew what it meant. A transplant to Fukuoka, she didn’t. From the illustration, I suspected that it meant “frightening or scary” and consulted the Hakata no Miryoku website, which confirmed my hunch.

Hakata no Miryoku introduced a number of common words and phrases from the local dialect which I have translated below:

1．「いぼる」は「はまる、埋まる」こと

Iboru means stuck or buried.

ぬかるみに足を取られた時などに使います。

You can use the verb when your foot is stuck in mud or slush.

2．「えずい」は「こわい、ひびる」こと

Ezui means scary.

怖がりの人のことをえずがりと呼びます。

Ezugari refers to a chicken or scaredy-cat.

3．「さっち」は「必ず」のこと

Sacchi means certainly, without fail, surely.

さっちがこの店に行くね。

Sacchi-ga kono mise ni iku ne.

By all means go to this shop.

4．「そうつく」は「歩き回る」こと

Sōtsuku means to walk around/about.

何処ば、そうついて来たとね。

Doko-ba sōtsuite kita-to ne?

Where have you been walking about?

5．「どげん」は「どんなに、どんな風に」のこと

Dogen means donna-ni, donna-fū-ni, that is how or in what way.

どげんしたと。

Dogen shita-to?

How have you been?

Also:

どげんしょったや、生きとったとや

Dogen shotta-ya, ikitotta-ya?

6．「なおす」は「片付ける、収納する」のこと

Naosu, which means to repair in standard Japanese, means to put away or put back in Hakata-ben. For the longest time, I believed that naosu was standards Japanese. That’s how commonly used the word is here.

これなおしとって。

Kore naoshite.

Put this away/back.

7．「ねまる」は「腐る」こと

Nemaru means to rot, go bad, or spoil.

これ、ねまっとう～よ。

Kore, nemattō-yo

This is rotten. This has gone bad.

8．「はらかく」は「怒る」こと

Harakaku means to become angry.

はらかいとっと。はらかいとくさ。

Harakaitotto. Or, Harakaitoku-sa.

I’m angry. I’m pissed off.

9．「ふうたんぬるい」は「のろま、遅い、ゆっくりしている」こと

Fūtan nurui means “Noruma, osoi, yukkuri shiteiru.”

あいつに任せとったら日の暮れるばい。ふうたんぬるかろうが。

Aitsu-ni makasetottara, hi no kurerubai. Fūtan nurukarōga.

If you leave it to him to do, it’ll grow dark [before he finishes]. He’s a dawdler. He a lollygagger.

10．「ほがす」は「穴をあける」こと

Hogasu means to make a hole in something.
その板に棒ば通すけん、ほがしとって。

Sono ita ni bō-ba tōsu-ken, hogashitotte.

A pole will pass through that board, so make a hole in it.

Tottōto

There are a number of dialects found throughout Japan, the most famous of which is the Kansai dialect, known as Kansai-ben. It is spoken by the people of Ôsaka and surrounding areas, and commonly used by comedians, many of whom hail from the region. 

Hakata-ben, the dialect spoken in and around Fukuoka City, is another well-known patois. In addition to many other idiosyncrasies, it uses the suffix "-to" to mark the past tense as well as questions.

For example, "What are you doing?" in Standard Japanese is "Nani o shite iru no?" In Hakata, however, people often use either of these two phrases: "Nanba shiyotto?" or "Nan shitôtô?"

The most widely known Hakata-ben phrase has to be Tottôto (とっとーと). This means to take something for oneself or reserve something, as seen in the following examples:

A. この席、とっとーと？ 

Kono seki tottōto?

Is this seat taken?

B. とっとーと。

Tottōto.

Yes, it’s taken.

E. あんた、お菓子たべんと？

Anta okashi tabento?

Aren’t you going to eat the sweets? 

F. あとで、食べるけん、とっとーと。

Atode taberuken, totōto.

I’m going to eat them later, so I’ve “got dibs” on them.

Several years ago, a new souvenir went on sale in Fukuoka. Called Tottôto, it is a pie made with sweet bean filling. The amusing commercial for this confectionary features Hakata-ben. Have a look:

とっとーと？

とっとーと。

Gotta Do It

In 2010, the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks chose as its motto a phrase that incorporated the local Hakata dialect: 

今年はやらんといかんばい！

Kotoshi-wa yaranto ikanbai!

This year we've got to do it!

 Seems like there's something to kotodama, after all. Having won their first Pacific League title in some seven years, the Hawks are currently vying with the Lotte Marines for a berth in the Nippon Series. The phrase is a play on the motto Miyazaki Prefecture's governor and former TV personality Higashikokubaru used to rally citizens in action to pull the prefecture out of its financial doldrums.

標準語/Standard

やらないといけないよ！ 

Yaranai-to ikenai-yo!

博多弁/Hakata

やらんといかんばい！

Yaran-to ikan-bai!

宮崎弁/Miyazaki

どげんかせんといかん！

Dogen kasen-to ikan!

鹿児島弁/Kagoshima

My survey has come up a number of different versions:

いけんかせんといかん！

Ikenka sen-to ikan!

せんといかん

Sen-to ikan!

せんといかんがね

Sen-to ikangane!

This last one is what women in Kagoshima might say.

長崎/Nagasaki

やらんばいかんよ！

  Yaran-ba ikanyo!

又は、せんばいかんよ！

Or: senba ikanyo! 

北九州市/Kitakyushu

やらんといかんちゃ！

  Yaran-to ikancha!

大分/Oita

せんといかんたい！

Sen-to ikantai!

大阪/Osaka

やらんとあかんよ！

Yaran-to akande!

又は、せんなあかんで！

Or, senna akande!

京都/Kyoto

せんなあきまへんね！

Senna akimahen-ne!

神戸/Kobe

やらんといかんよ！

Yaran-to ikanyo!

By the way, the Hawks lost the Pacific League pennant, but returned to the playoffs again in 2011 and won the Nippon Series. They have since won 6 more championships over a 7-year period from 2014-2020.

Nanbo?

Wish this were bigger and clearer, but, oh well.

So, how do you say the following in Japanese?

How much?

cook (rice)

the day after tomorrow

salty

The answer depends on where you live. In Fukuoka, we say:

いくら, but some people say なんぼ

ご飯を炊く

In most parts of the country (+), Japanese say "niru" (煮る) or "niso" when they are refering to boiling or simmering vegetables and potatoes and so on. In the Kansai area, much of Shikoku, and parts of Kyûshû (▲), however, the word "taku" and "takyun" are used. "Taku" (炊く) is more commonly used when cooking rice as in the phrase gohan o taku (ご飯を炊く). "Wakasun" and "pakasun" can be found in Okinawa (●).

しあさって

しょっぱい and 辛い, but some people say しょっぱかー！ and 辛かー！ for emphasis.

T'anks!

Visiting Kyōto last month, it didn’t take long before I heard one of the more commonly known regionalisms: okini. The singsong way the people of Kyōto say, "Thank you", made me wonder if there were other ways in Japan of expressing one’s gratitude. I was surprised by what I discovered. I have put together a list of some of these local sayings.

Incidentally, the original meaning of arigatō (有り難う) conveyed the sense that the thing you were thanking a person for something that had been difficult for them to do (有るものが難しい) and you felt bad for having them do it. Dōmo (どうも) comes from dōshite-mo (どうしても), and emphasizes the feeling of gratitude or regret.

 This is still a work in project and I will try to clean this up in the coming days.

Hokkaidō

1. Hokkaidō

Hokkaidō-ben

  どうも!

    Dōmo!

(Common among friends.)

  どうもね!

    Dōmo-ne!

(Same as saying dōmo.)

有り難う

  Arigatō!

(Standard Japanese.)

なんも、なんも

  Nanmo, nanmo!

(Includes the feeling of sorry, don’t worry about it.)

Tōhoku 

2. Aomori

Tsugaru-ben

  ありがどごしてす

    Arigado goshidesu!

(This is the polite form.)

  めやぐだの～

    Meyagudanoh!

(Similar to saying meiwaku-o kakemashite sumimasen, sorry for causing you trouble.)

  どうも

    Dōmo!

(Same as Aomori.)

3. Iwate

4. Miyage

5. Akita

ぶじょほーだんし

  Bujohohdanshi!

(Originates from the word buchōhō, meaning carelessness or blunder, sorry about that.)

どんも、おぎぃなぁ

  Donmo, ogi-nā!

おぎぃ

  Ogi!

(Southern Akita prefecture, i is shortened with falling accent.)

6. Yamagata

Yonezawa-ben

  おしょうしな

    Oshōshina!

(Not commonly used among youths.)

Shōnai-ben (northwestern Yamagata)

  もっけだ

    Mokkeda!

(Can be used to mean arigatō, gomen, dōmo, and so on.)

7. Fukushima

Kantō

8. Ibaraki

Ibaragi-ben

  どーもね

    Dōmo-ne!

9. Tochigi

 すいません

  Suimasen!

(Used when receiving something.)

10. Gunma

11. Saitama

Chichibu Region

  わりぃねぇー

    Warine~!

(Saying warui-ne but including the feeling of gratitude.)

12. Chiba

13. Tōkyō

Arigatō!

14. Kanagawa

Chūbu

15. Niigata

いかったいね

  Ikattaine!

あんがとの

  Angatono!

(Means arigatō-ne.)

おーぎにはや

  Ōginihaya!

(North-central Niigata prefecture. Nearly extinct saying.)

いやいやいやいや、ど～もっス

  Iya iya iya iya, dōmossu!

    (May be a personal tick.)

16. Toyama

 あんがとう

  Angatō!

  (Seems to be falling into disuse.)

Toyama-ben

  気の毒な

    Kinodoku-na!

(Expresses regret at having troubled someone by doing something for you.)

  だいてやっちゃ

    Daiteyaccha!

(Used when someone treats you to dinner or drinks.)

17. Ishikawa

Kanazawa-ben

  あんやとごぜえみす

    Anyato gozēmisu!

  あんやと

    Anyato!

18. Fukui

19. Yamanashi

20. Nagano

Shinshū-ben

  あいとうですぁ

    Aitō desu-a!

(Intonation similar to Kansai dialect. Desu-a is a contraction of Desu-wa.)

Īda-ben

かんな

    Kanna!

(Kaniya is also said.)

  おかたしけ

    Okatashike!

(May be a corruption of katajikenai, which means to be grateful.)

  おしょーしー

    Oshōshī!

(Second and third syllables are extended. Includes the feeling of obligation and gratefulness.)

  うれしいに

    Ureshi-ni!

(Means one is happy/delighted, but conveys the same meaning as arigatô.)

  ありがとや

    Arigatoya!

(Arigato-na! is also possible.)

21. Gifu

22. Shizuoka

Enshū-ben

  ありがとね

    Arigato-ne.

23. Aichi

Nagoya-ben

  ありがと

    Arigáto!

(Accent on the ga, shortened to.)

  ありがとさん

    Arigato-san!

(A casual way to say thanks.)

Kansai

Ōkini!

Maido ōkini!

24. Mie

 おおきにいー

  Ōkinī!

   (Accent on the final syllable.)

25. Shiga

26. Kyōto

  おおきに

   Ōkini!

(More common among the elderly. Intonation is important.)

27. Ōsaka

 おおきに

   Ōkini!

 ありがとー

  Arigatoh!

(Intonation is key, rising on last syllable.)

 ありがとさん

   Arigato-san!

まいどおおきに

  Maido Ōkini!

(Used when, for example, thanking someone for their continued patronage.)

28. Hyōgo

 Yura-ben (Awaji-shima)

   おおきによ

    Ōkiniyo!

29. Nara

30. Wakayama

Chūgoku

31. Tottori

 Yonago-ben

  だんだん

    Dandan!

(Not common with younger residents of Yonago City.)

 ようこそ

  Yōkoso!

(In standard Japanese this phrase is said when expressing the gratitude felt when someone visits you.)

32. Shimane

33. Okayama

 ごめんよぉ

  Gomenyō!

   (Used by women. Accent on go.)

 わりいなぁ

  Wariinā!

すまんなぁ

  Sumannā!

(These two are used by men.)

34. Hiroshima

 ありがとね

   Arigato-ne!

(Accent placed on the ga and ne.)

 すまんのう

  Sumannō!

(Similar to sumimasen in meaning. More common among the elderly.)

35. Yamaguchi

  ありがとうあります

   Arigatō arimasu!

すまんのう

  Sumannō!

    (Meaning is closer to arigatō (thanks) than sumimasen (sorry).)

Iwaguni

  すまだったねー

   Sumadatta-nē!

    (Strong accent on the final nê.)

Shikoku

36. Tokushima

Awa-ben (Northern central Tokushima prefecture.)

  あんとー

    Antō!

(May be nothing more than baby talk.)

  おおけに

    Ōkeni!

  ありがとぐわした

    Arigato guwashita!

37. Kagawa

ど～～も

  Do~hmo.

(Be sure to let the word fall languidly from your lips.)

38. Ehime

39. Kōchi

Kyūshū

40. Fukuoka

 ありがとー

  Arigatō!

(Intonation and accent, like many of these is key. Spoken in a quick staccato, with an accent on the end.)

 だんだん

  Dandan!

    (Apparently, this saying is fairly common among elderly women, but in all my years living in Fukuoka, I’ve never heard it. Means thanks so much.)

41. Saga

すんまっせん

  Sunmassen

あんがとー

  Angatō!

あんがちょー

  Angachō!

おおきに

  Ōkini!

(Same as Kyōto. Another person from Saga told me that no one says this.)

42. Nagasaki

 Iki-ben (Islands in Nagasaki prefecture, west of Fukuoka prefecture.)

  おおきん

    Ōkin!

(Similar to ōkini.)

43. Kumamoto

 すんまっせん

  Sunmassen

    (Also means excuse me, as in sumimasen.)

しょうじょう

  Shōjō!

   (An elegant way of saying thanks.)

44. Ōita

45. Miyazaki

 あいがと

  Arigato!

   (Said with rising inflection.)

46. Kagoshima

  あいがとごわした

   Aigato gowashita!

おおきに

  Ōkini

  (Common among those born before 1955.)

あいがとさげもした

  Aigato sagemoshita!

   (Original Satsuma-ben. A polite expression)

あいがともしゃげもした

  Aigato moshagemoshita!

    (Polite form.)

Amami Ōshima (a collection of islands halfway between Kyūshū and Okinawa)

  ありがっさまありょうた

    Arigassama aryōta!

Okinawa

47. Okinawa

 にへーでーびる

   Nihēdēbiru!

Miyako-jima-ben

  タンディガータンディ

    Tandigātandi!

Sātā Guruma

Okinawa 🌺

クレー　サーター車 ヤイビーン。ンカシェー　クリサーニ　ウージヌ汁　シブティ　ウリ　二　チミティ　クルジャーター　チクヤビタン。

(Kurē sātā guruma yaibīn. Nkashē kurisāni ūjinu shiru shibuti uri ni chimiste kuru jātā chkuyabitan.)

Standard Japanese 🇯🇵

これは砂糖車でございます。昔はこれで砂糖きびの汁を絞って、それを煮詰めて黒砂糖を製造いたしました。

English

This is a “sugar press”. In the past, they were used to squeeze the juice from sugarcane, which was then boiled down to produce unrefined sugar (kurozatō, lit. “black sugar”).

Key

クレー , クリ = これ

サーニ = で

クリサーニ = これで

ンカシ = 昔

ンカシェー = 昔は

ウージヌ汁 = サトウキビ　の汁

シブティ = 絞って

クルジャーター = 黒砂糖

ウリ 二 = それを

☆ Please note that the dialects differ greatly from island to island.

Kyubon

Ask any of your Japanese friends what they think the most important holidays in their country are, and they will most likely reply with o-Shōgatsu (お正月, New Year’s) and o-Bon (お盆, the Buddhist festival of the dead). Both are fairly big events for the family, and often the only time of the year that workers are able to take long holidays and return to their hometowns. Unlike Shōgatsu, however, the Bon is not a public holiday. So why is that? 

The reason lies in Japan’s adoption of the Gregorian, or western, calendar in the 19th Century.

In the fifth year of Meiji (1872), the twelfth month of the year was shortened to a mere two days in order for the first day of the first month of the next year (Meiji 6) to align with January 1st, 1873 anno Domini nostri Jesu Christi. As a result, the traditional New Year, known today as Kyū Shōgatsu (旧正月 or the Chinese New Year) now falls as early as January 21st and as late as February 19th. 

It for this reason, too, that the traditional names of months, which can still be found on some calendars today, are sometimes off by as many as six weeks. Case in point: an ancient name for the fifth month of the Japanese year is Samidaré (五月雨, also read Satsuki amé), which means “fifth month rain.” The modern month of May, however, tends to be one of the sunnier times of the year. Similarly, the old name for sixth month, Minazuki (水無月, lit. “the month of no water”), only makes sense when you understand that it used to correspond to the drier months of late July and August rather than the June of today which is the start of the rainy season.[1]

But I digress. Before the adoption of the Gregorian calendar, the Bon was held in the seventh month of the year, with the fifteenth always falling on the full moon. Today, there are still areas, such Kanazawa, Hakodate, and Tama, which observe what is now called Shichigatsu Bon (七月盆) or Shinbon (新盆), and one reason why so many “summer festivals” are held in July is because of this connection with the “new Bon”. With the change in calendars, the timing of the traditional Bon corresponded more closely to the new month of August and celebrating Bon then—also known as Hachigatsu Bon(八月盆), Tsuki-okuré Bon (月遅れ盆)—became common throughout Japan.[2]

Meanwhile, some areas of Japan, such as Okinawa and Amami Ōshima, celebrate what could be considered a more orthodox Bon that is based on the old lunisolar calendar. Like the Chinese New Year, the timing of Kyūbon can vary significantly from year to year. In 2019, Kyūbon and o-Bon happened to fall on the same day. This year, however, Kyūbonstarts on August 31st and finishes on September 2nd.

In Okinawa, the three days of o-Bon are called Unkē (うんけー), Nakabi (中日) or Naka nu hi (中ぬ日) and Ūkui (うーくい).

うんけー

On Unkē (うんけー, お迎え or 精霊迎え), the first day of Kyūbon, the spirits of the uyafāfuji (ウヤファーフジ, ancestors) come back to their home where family members have gathered in front of the altar or tōtōmē (トートーメー). They make an offering of fruits and sweets, and pray. [3]

中ぬ日

On the second day of Kyūbon, or Naka nu hi (中ぬ日), family members make the rounds to greet their relatives.

うーくい

Ūkui (うーくい), or the third day of Kyūbon, is the most important. Ūkui means “seeing off the spirit of the dead” (精霊送り). On this day, the whole family gets together to see the spirits of their ancestors off. One of the more interesting customs of this day is this burning of uchikabi (うちかび), which represents money that the ancestors take with them to gusõ (グソー, あの世), or the next world, so that they will not have to suffer financial hardship there. It is said that 500 yen in this world is equivalent to 200 million yen there.

 I may add more to this post in the coming weeks as I have found quite a bit of information on it. So, stay tuned!

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[1] Some may note that in the無 in 水無月 should not be read for meaning (i.e. “without”), but for sound (な or の), and actually means “month of water”, a reference to the high demand of water for rice paddies. I have since read in a Japanese book about the month that 水無月 is a reference to riverbeds running dry due to the heat. Another ancient name for June is 水月, which can be read Minazuki or Suigetsu and is connected to the rice paddies being full of water at this time of year. The following states that there are two conflicting theories behind the name:

水無月は「みなづき」と読みます。ほかの和風月名同様、その意味・由来・語源は諸説あるのですが、まったく逆の解釈が混在しているのは面白いところで

ひとつは、水無月の「無（な）」が「の」にあたる連体助詞だという説。水が「無い」わけではなく「水の月」であることを意味する、という説です。梅雨明けにあたる陰暦6月が、田に水を引く時期であったことから「水無月（みなづき）」と呼ばれた、という解釈です。

これに対して、水が無いから「水無月」だとする説もあります。田に水を引くため、それ以外の水が無いという説や、暑さで水が干上がってしまうから水が無い「水無月」だという説などです。

So, I guess it can be interpreted both ways.

[2] Hachigatsu Bon (八月盆) is sometimes also called Kyūbon (旧盆), but for the most part, I believe that most people just call it o-Bon.

[3] I suspect that the “uya” inウヤファーフジ (uyafāfaji, ancestors) is “oya” (親) in standard Japanese. As I have written elsewhere, uya in Okinawan refers not only to one’s parents, but to all one’s ancestors. ファーフジ (祖父母) means “one’s grandparents”. Note that most Okinawans today do not use this term and many may not have even heard of it. An equally rare word is uyakkwa (ウヤックヮ) which means oyako (親子, parents and children). Note the “uya” in uyakkwa. Hereックヮ means “child” or ko (子). Similarly, ikiga (いきが, 男, man) + ん (の) + kkwa (クヮ, 子, child) makes ikigankwa, meaning otokonoko (男の子, “boy”) or musuko (息子, “son”).

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For more discussion on these customs, go here and here.