However, there are particular aspects of the other two more “regular” systems of romanizations that could be helpful in your journey on learning the Japanese language. Some foreigners prefer Hepburn style as this is basically considered to be the best way to render Japanese pronunciation written in Roman alphabet. To choose which system is best would mean choosing the one that you most prefer or is relevant at a particular point in your Japanese language studies. Conclusion: What Romaji System Should You Use?Įach system of transliteration has its own intended purpose. This transliteration is being taught to public schools and commonly used for romanizing Japanese names.
#ROMANIZED JAPANESE TO ENGLISH DICTIONARY ISO#
Kunrei-shiki is standardized by the Japanese government and the International Organization for Standardisation as ISO 3602. Similarly for the pair “じ” and “ぢ”, they are both zi in Kunrei-shiki, but are zi and di respectively in Nihon-shiki. Nihon-shiki on the other hand will romanize “づ” as du and “ず” as zu. Kunrei-shiki ignores the difference in kana and represents the sound similarly as zu. These characters are pronounced identically in modern Japanese. Let’s take characters “づ” and “ず” as an example. The only difference between the two is found in its kana syllabary and modern pronunciation. Kunrei-shiki is the system of romanization that is most widely used within Japan today, and it is considered to be a modified version of the Nihon-shiki style. The kana “た, ち, つ, て, と” become ta, ti, tu, te, and to respectively. This kana is romanized as si so that the members of the sagyō or “s” kana “さしすせそ”, are romanized as sa, si, su, se, so. Additionally, it has unique forms for all of the kana homophones. In its own form, Nihon-shiki maintains a strict one kana, two-letter form. Intended for the use of Japanese people, Aikitsu developed a more regular form of romanization that makes it easier to pronounce for an English speaker. He thought that this new romanization format could make it easier for Japan to compete with the Western world. The intention behind this was to replace the Hepburn system of romanization, as well as to replace the traditional kanji and kana system. Nihon-shiki – Romanization for Japanese People by Japanese PeopleĪt the time when the Hepburn system was already developed in Japan, the physicist Aikitsu Tanakadate also invented another romanization style. Although this system is popular among foreigners learning Japanese, this is considered to be the less regular type of romanization system compared to the other two as seen in the examples above. To indicate long vowels, the Hepburn system uses a bar over the letters called macron. In the same way, “つ” is romanized as tsu. This kana is romanized as shi so that the members of the sagyō or “s” kana “さしすせそ” are romanized as sa, shi, su, se, and so. This system of romanization is also used by Japanese for transliterating Japanese names, locations, and important information such as train tables, road signs, or for official foreign communications. Because this style generally follows the English phonology with Romance vowels, it is considered to be the best way to render Japanese pronunciation for Westerners.
The Hepburn style is the most common romanization system used by most foreigners (from English-speaking nations) who are learning to spell Japanese in the Roman alphabet format. This system was named after the American missionary, James Curtis Hepburn, who used this style of transliteration for his Japanese to English dictionary’s third edition which was widely disseminated during that time. In 1885, the Hepburn System (Hebon-Shiki) was invented to form a unified system of romanization in Japan. The Hepburn System – Japanese for Foreigners To further guide you, this article will discuss the three Japanese systems of romanization in detail. The three main systems are Hepburn, Kunrei-shiki, and Nihon-shiki. There are different romanization systems of the Japanese language.
#ROMANIZED JAPANESE TO ENGLISH DICTIONARY HOW TO#
This is commonly used in Japan for street directions, passports, dictionaries, or textbooks on how to learn the Japanese language.Īdditionally, it also used to input Japanese terms into word processors and computers and devices that do not support the display of Japanese characters.īasically, romaji is the transliteration of Japanese terms to the Roman text or other languages that use the Roman alphabet. Since the Japanese way of writing is a combination of kanji and kana scripts, romaji is used for the purpose that Japanese text may be understood by non-Japanese speakers who cannot read kanji or kana scripts. Romaji is the method of writing Japanese words using the Roman alphabet. Conclusion: What Romaji System Should You Use?.Nihon-shiki – Romanization for Japanese People by Japanese People.The Hepburn System – Japanese for Foreigners.
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