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| Kansai Japanese | |
|---|---|
| 関西弁 | |
| Native to | Japan |
| Region | Kansai |
Japonic
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | kink1238 |
.png) Kansai-dialect area | |
| This article containsIPA phonetic symbols. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead ofUnicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. | |
TheKansai dialect (関西弁,Kansai-ben, also known asKansai-hōgen (関西方言)) is a group ofJapanese dialects in theKansai region (Kinki region) of Japan. In Japanese,Kansai-ben is the common name and it is calledKinki dialect (近畿方言,Kinki-hōgen) in technical terms. The dialects ofKyoto andOsaka are known asKamigata dialect (上方言葉,Kamigata kotoba, orKamigata-go (上方語)), and were particularly referred to as such in theEdo period. The Kansai dialect is typified by the speech of Osaka, the major city of Kansai, which is referred to specifically asOsaka-ben. It is characterized as being both more melodic and harsher by speakers of the standard language.[1]
Since Osaka is the largest city in the region and its speakers received the most media exposure over the last century, non-Kansai-dialect speakers tend to associate the dialect of Osaka with the entire Kansai region. However, technically, Kansai dialect is not a single dialect but a group of related dialects in the region. Each major city and prefecture has a particular dialect, and residents take some pride in their particular dialectal variations.
The common Kansai dialect is spoken inKeihanshin (the metropolitan areas of the cities of Kyoto, Osaka andKobe) and its surroundings, a radius of about 50 km (31 mi) around the Osaka-Kyoto area (seeregional differences).[2] This article mainly discusses variations in Keihanshin during the 20th and 21st centuries.
Even in the Kansai region, away from Keihanshin and its surrounding areas, there are dialects that differ from the characteristics generally considered to be Kansai dialect-like.Tajima andTango (exceptMaizuru) dialects in northwest Kansai are too different to be regarded as Kansai dialects and are thus usually included in theChūgoku dialect. Dialects spoken in SoutheasternKii Peninsula includingTotsukawa andOwase are also far different from other Kansai dialects, and considered alanguage island.
TheShikoku dialect and theHokuriku dialect share many similarities with the Kansai dialects, but are classified separately.
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 Taxi (YouTube)An example of a skit in Osaka dialect performed byNakagawake. |
The Kansai dialect has over a thousand years of history. WhenKinai cities such asHeijō-kyō (Nara) andHeian-kyō (Kyoto) were Imperial capitals, the Kinai dialect, the ancestor of the Kansai dialect, was thede facto standard Japanese. It had an influence on all of the nation including theEdo dialect, the predecessor of modernTokyo dialect. The literature style developed by the intelligentsia in Heian-kyō became the model ofClassical Japanese language.
When the political and military center of Japan was moved toEdo under theTokugawa Shogunate and theKantō region grew in prominence, the Edo dialect took the place of the Kansai dialect. With theMeiji Restoration and the transfer of the imperial capital from Kyoto to Tokyo, the Kansai dialect became fixed in position as a provincial dialect. See alsoEarly Modern Japanese.
As the Tokyo dialect was adopted with the advent of a national education/media standard in Japan, some features and intraregional differences of the Kansai dialect have diminished and changed. However, Kansai is the second most populated urban region in Japan after Kantō, with a population of about 20 million, so Kansai dialect is still the most widely spoken, known and influential non-standard Japanese dialect. The Kansai dialect's idioms are sometimes introduced into other dialects and even standard Japanese. Many Kansai people are attached to their own speech and have strong regional rivalry against Tokyo.[3]
Since theTaishō period, themanzai form of Japanese comedy has been developed in Osaka, and a large number of Osaka-based comedians have appeared in Japanese media with Osaka dialect, such asYoshimoto Kogyo. Because of such associations, Kansai speakers are often viewed as being more "funny" or "talkative" than typical speakers of other dialects. Tokyo people even occasionally imitate the Kansai dialect to provoke laughter or inject humor.[4]
In phonetic terms, Kansai dialect is characterized by strong vowels and contrasted with Tokyo dialect, characterized by its strong consonants, but the basis of the phonemes is similar. The specific phonetic differences between Kansai and Tokyo are as follows:[5]
Thepitch accent in Kansai dialect is very different from the standard Tokyo accent, so non-Kansai Japanese can recognize Kansai people easily from that alone. The Kansai pitch accent is called the Kyoto-Osaka type accent (京阪式アクセント,Keihan-shiki akusento) in technical terms. It is used in most of Kansai,Shikoku and parts of westernChūbu region. The Tokyo accent distinguishes words only bydownstep, but the Kansai accent distinguishes words also by initial tones, so Kansai dialect has more pitch patterns than standard Japanese. In the Tokyo accent, the pitch between first and secondmorae usually changes, but in the Kansai accent, it does not always.
Below is a list of simplified Kansai accent patterns. H represents a high pitch and L represents a low pitch.
| Kansai | Tokyo | English | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| hashi | 橋 | H-L | L-H(-L) | bridge |
| 箸 | L-H | H-L | chopsticks | |
| 端 | H-H | L-H(-H) | edge | |
| Nihon | 日本 | H-L-L | L-H-L | Japan |
| nihon | 二本 | L-L-H | H-L-L | 2-hon |
| konnichi wa | 今日は | L-H-L-L-H | L-H-H-H-H | good afternoon |
| arigatō | ありがとう | L-L-L-H-L | L-H-L-L-L | thanks |
Many words and grammar structures in Kansai dialect are contractions of theirclassical Japanese equivalents (it is unusual to contract words in such a way in standard Japanese). For example,chigau (to be different or wrong) becomeschau,yoku (well) becomesyō, andomoshiroi (interesting or funny) becomesomoroi. These contractions follow similar inflection rules as their standard forms, sochau said politely ischaimasu in the same way aschigau is inflected tochigaimasu.
Kansai dialect also hastwo types of regular verb, 五段godan verbs (-u verbs) and 一段ichidan verbs (-ru verbs), and two irregular verbs, 来る/kuru/ ("to come") and する/suru/ ("to do"), but some conjugations are different from standard Japanese.
The geminated consonants found in godan verbs of standard Japanese verbal inflections are usually replaced with long vowels (oftenshortened in 3 morae verbs) in Kansai dialect (See alsoOnbin,u-onbin). Thus, for the verb 言う/iu,juː/ ("to say"), the past tense in standard Japanese 言った/iQta/ ("said") becomes 言うた/juːta/ in Kansai dialect. This particular verb is emblematic of a native Kansai speaker, as most will unconsciously say 言うて/juːte/ instead of 言って/iQte/ or/juQte/ even if well-practiced at speaking in standard Japanese. Other examples of geminate replacement are 笑った/waraQta/ ("laughed") becoming 笑うた/waroːta/ or わろた/warota/ and 貰った/moraQta/ ("received") becoming 貰うた/moroːta/, もろた/morota/ or even もうた/moːta/.
Anauxiliary verb] -てしまう/-tesimau/ (to finish something or to do something in unintentional or unfortunate circumstances) is contracted to -ちまう/-timau/ or -ちゃう/-tjau/ in colloquial Tokyo speech but to -てまう/-temau/ in Kansai speech. Thus, しちまう/sitimau/, or しちゃう/sitjau/, becomes してまう/sitemau/. Furthermore, as the verb しまう/simau/ is affected by the same sound changes as in other 五段 godan verbs, the past tense of this form is rendered as -てもうた/-temoːta/ or -てもた/-temota/ rather than -ちまった/-timaQta/ or -ちゃった/-tjaQta/: 忘れちまった/wasuretimaQta/ or 忘れちゃった/wasuretjaQta/ ("I forgot [it]") in Tokyo is 忘れてもうた/wasuretemoːta/ or 忘れてもた/wasuretemota/ in Kansai.
The long vowel of the volitional form is often shortened; for example, 使おう/tukaoː/ (the volitional form oftsukau) becomes 使お/tukao/, 食べよう/tabejoː/ (the volitional form of 食べる/taberu/) becomes 食べよ/tabejo/. The irregular verb する/suru/ has special volitional form しょ（う）/sjo(ː)/ instead of しよう/sijoː/. The volitional form of another irregular verb 来る/kuru/ is 来よう/kojoː/ as well as the standard Japanese, but when 来る/kuru/ is used as an auxiliary verb -てくる/-tekuru/, -てこよう/-tekojoː/ is sometimes replaced with -てこ（う）/-teko(ː)/ in Kansai.
Thecausative verb ending/-aseru/ is usually replaced with/-asu/ in Kansai dialect; for example, させる/saseru/ (causative form of/suru/) changes さす/sasu/, 言わせる/iwaseru/ (causative form of 言う/juː/) changes 言わす/iwasu/. Its -te form/-asete/ and perfective form/-aseta/ change to/-asite/ and/-asita/; they also appear in transitive ichidan verbs such as 見せる/miseru/ ("to show"), e.g. 見して/misite/ for 見せて/misete/.
The potential verb endings/-eru/ for 五段 godan and -られる/-rareru/ for 一段 ichidan, recently often shortened -れる/-reru/ (ra-nuki kotoba), are common between the standard Japanese and Kansai dialect. For making their negative forms, it is only to replace -ない/-nai/ with -ん/-N/ or -へん/-heN/ (SeeNegative). However, mainly in Osaka, potential negative form of 五段 godan verbs/-enai/ is often replaced with/-areheN/ such as 行かれへん/ikareheN/ instead of 行けない/ikenai/ and 行けへん/ikeheN/ "can't go". This is because/-eheN/ overlaps with Osakan negative conjugation. In western Japanese including Kansai dialect, a combination of an adverb よう/joː/ and -ん/-N/ negative form is used as a negative form of the personal impossibility such as よう言わん/joːiwaN/ "I can't say anything (in disgust or diffidence)".
In Standard Japanese, the verbiru is used for reference to the existence of ananimate object, andiru is replaced withoru inhumble language and some written language. In western Japanese,oru is used not only in humble language but also in all other situations instead ofiru.
Kansai dialect belongs to western Japanese, but いる/iru/ and its variation, いてる/iteru/ (mainly Osaka), are used in Osaka, Kyoto, Shiga and so on. People in these areas, especially Kyoto women, tend to consider おる/oru/ an outspoken or contempt word. They usually use it for mates, inferiors and animals; avoid using for elders (exception: respectful expressionorareru and humble expressionorimasu). In other areas such as Hyogo and Mie, いる/iru/ is hardly used and おる/oru/ does not have the negative usage. In parts of Wakayama, いる/iru/ is replaced with ある/aru/, which is used for inanimate objects in most other dialects.
The verb おる/oru/ is also used as asuffix and usually pronounced/-joru/ in that case. In Osaka, Kyoto, Shiga, northern Nara and parts of Mie, mainly in masculine speech, -よる/-joru/ shows annoying or contempt feelings for a third party, usually milder than -やがる/-jaɡaru/. In Hyogo, southern Nara and parts of Wakayama, -よる/-joru/ is used for progressive aspect (SeeAspect).
In informal speech, the negative verb ending, which is -ない/-nai/ in standard Japanese, is expressed with -ん/-N/ or -へん/-heN/, as in 行かん/ikaN/ and 行かへん/ikaheN/ "not going", which is 行かない/ikanai/ in standard Japanese. -ん/-N/ is a transformation of the classical Japanese negative form -ぬ/-nu/ and is also used for some idioms in standard Japanese. -へん/-heN/ is the result of contraction and phonological change of はせん/-waseN/, the emphatic form of/-N/. -やへん/-jaheN/, a transitional form between はせん/-waseN/ and へん/-heN/, is sometimes still used for 一段 ichidan verbs. The godan verbs conjugation before-hen has two varieties: the more common conjugation is/-aheN/ like 行かへん/ikaheN/, but-ehen like 行けへん/ikeheN/ is also used in Osaka. When the vowel before -へん/-heN/ is/-i/, -へん/-heN/ often changes to -ひん/-hiN/, especially in Kyoto. The past negative form is -んかった/-NkaQta/ and/-heNkaQta/, a mixture of -ん/-N/ or -へん/-heN/ and the standard past negative form -なかった/-nakaQta/. In traditional Kansai dialect, -なんだ/-naNda/ and -へなんだ/-henaNda/ is used in the past negative form.
Generally speaking, -へん/-heN/ is used in almost negative sentences and -ん/-N/ is used in strong negative sentences and idiomatic expressions. For example, -んといて/-Ntoite/ or -んとって/-NtoQte/ instead of standard -ないで/-naide/ means "please do not to do"; -んでもええ/-Ndemoeː/ instead of standard -なくてもいい/-nakutemoiː/ means "need not do";-んと（あかん）/-Nto(akaN)/ instead of standard -なくちゃ（いけない）/-nakutja(ikenai)/ or -なければならない/-nakereba(naranai)/ means "must do". The last expression can be replaced by -な（あかん）/-na(akaN)/ or -んならん/-NnaraN/.
Kansai dialect has two imperative forms. One is the normal imperative form, inherited fromLate Middle Japanese. The -ろ/-ro/ form for ichidan verbs in standard Japanese is much rarer and replaced by/-i/ or/-e/ in Kansai. The normal imperative form is often followed by よ/jo/ or や/ja/. The other is a soft and somewhat feminine form which uses the adverbial (連用形,ren'yōkei) (ます/-masu/ stem), an abbreviation of adverbial (連用形,ren'yōkei) +/nasai/. The end of the soft imperative form is often elongated and is generally followed by や/ja/ or な/na/. In Kyoto, women often add よし/-josi/ to the soft imperative form.
In the negative imperative mood, Kansai dialect also has the somewhat soft form which uses theren'yōkei + な/na/, an abbreviation of theren'yōkei + なさるな/nasaruna/. な/na/ sometimes changes to なや/naja/ or ないな/naina/. This soft negative imperative form is the same as the soft imperative and な/na/, Kansai speakers can recognize the difference by accent, but Tokyo speakers are sometimes confused by a commandnot to do something, which they interpret as an order todo it. Accent on the soft imperative form is flat, and the accent on the soft negative imperative form has a downstep beforena.
Thestem of adjective forms in Kansai dialect is generally the same as in standard Japanese, except for regional vocabulary differences. The same process that reduced the Classical Japanese terminal and attributive endings (し/-si/ and き/-ki/, respectively) to/-i/ has reduced also the ren'yōkei ending く/-ku/ to/-u/, yielding such forms as 早う/hajoː/ (contraction of 早う/hajau/) for 早く/hajaku/ ("quickly"). Dropping the consonant from the final mora in all forms of adjective endings has been a frequent occurrence in Japanese over the centuries (and is the origin of such forms as ありがとう/ariɡatoː/ and おめでとう/omedetoː/), but the Kantō speech preserved く/-ku/ while reducing し/-si/ and き/-ki/ to/-i/, thus accounting for the discrepancy in the standard language (see alsoOnbin)
The/-i/ ending can be dropped and the last vowel of the adjective's stem can be stretched out for a secondmora, sometimes with a tonal change for emphasis. By this process,omoroi "interesting, funny" becomesomorō andatsui "hot" becomesatsū orattsū. This use of the adjective's stem, often as an exclamation, is seen in classical literature and many dialects of modern Japanese, but is more often used in modern Kansai dialect.
There is not a special conjugated form for presumptive of adjectives in Kansai dialect, it is just addition of やろ/jaro/ to the plain form. For example, 安かろう/jasukaroː/ (the presumptive form of 安い/jasui/ "cheap") is hardly used and is usually replaced with the plain form + やろ/jaro/ likes 安いやろ/jasuijaro/. Polite suffixes です/だす/どす/desu,dasu,dosu/ and ます/-masu/ are also added やろ/jaro/ for presumptive form instead of でしょう/desjoː/ in standard Japanese. For example, 今日は晴れでしょう/kjoːwaharedesjoː/ ("It may be fine weather today") is replaced with 今日は晴れですやろ/kjoːwaharedesujaro/.
The standard Japanesecopulada is replaced by the Kansai dialect copulaya. The inflected forms maintain this difference, resulting inyaro fordarō (presumptive),yatta fordatta (past);darō is often considered to be a masculine expression, butyaro is used by both men and women. The negative copulade wa nai orja nai is replaced byya nai orya arahen/arehen in Kansai dialect.Ya originated fromja (a variation ofdearu) in late Edo period and is still commonly used in other parts of western Japan likeHiroshima, and is also used stereotypically by old men in fiction.
Ya andja are used only informally, analogically to the standardda, while the standarddesu is by and large used for the polite (teineigo) copula. For polite speech, -masu,desu andgozaimasu are used in Kansai as well as in Tokyo, but traditional Kansai dialect has its own polite forms.Desu is replaced bydasu in Osaka anddosu in Kyoto. There is another unique polite formomasu and it is often replaced byosu in Kyoto. The usage ofomasu/osu is same asgozaimasu, the polite form of the verbaru and also be used for polite form of adjectives, but it is more informal thangozaimasu. In Osaka,dasu andomasu are sometimes shortened toda andoma.Omasu andosu have their negative formsomahen andohen.
| impolite | informal | polite1 | polite2 | polite formal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Osaka | ja | ya | dasu | de omasu | de gozaimasu |
| Kyoto | dosu | ||||
When some sentence-final particles and a presumptive inflectionyaro follow -su ending polite forms,su is often combined especially in Osaka. Today, this feature is usually considered to be dated or exaggerated Kansai dialect.
In common Kansai dialect, there are two forms for thecontinuous and progressive aspects -teru and -toru; the former is a shortened form of -te iru just as does standard Japanese, the latter is a shortened form of -te oru which is common to other western Japanese. The proper use between -teru and -toru is same asiru andoru.
In the expression to the condition of inanimate objects, -taru or -taaru form, a shortened form of -te aru. In standard Japanese, -te aru is only used withtransitive verbs, but Kansai -taru or -taaru is also used withintransitive verbs. One should note that -te yaru, "to do for someone," is also contracted to -taru (-charu in Senshu and Wakayama), so as not to confuse the two.
Other Western Japanese as Chūgoku and Shikoku dialects has the discrimination ofgrammatical aspect, -yoru inprogressive and -toru inperfect. In Kansai, some dialects of southern Hyogo and Kii Peninsula have these discrimination, too. In parts of Wakayama, -yoru and -toru are replaced with -yaru and -taaru/chaaru.
Historically, extensive use of keigo (honorific speech) was a feature of the Kansai dialect, especially in Kyōto, while the Kantō dialect, from which standard Japanese developed, formerly lacked it. Keigo in standard Japanese was originally borrowed from the medieval Kansai dialect. However, keigo is no longer considered a feature of the dialect since Standard Japanese now also has it. Even today, keigo is used more often in Kansai than in the other dialects except for the standard Japanese, to which people switch in formal situations.
In modern Kansai dialect, -haru (sometimes -yaharu exceptgodan verbs, mainly Kyōto) is used for showing reasonable respect without formality especially in Kyōto. The conjugation before -haru has two varieties between Kyōto and Ōsaka (see the table below). In Southern Hyōgo, including Kōbe,-te ya is used instead of -haru. In formal speech, -naharu and -haru connect with -masu and -te ya changes -te desu.
-Haru was originally a shortened form of -naharu, a transformation of -nasaru. -Naharu has been dying out due to the spread of -haru but its imperative form -nahare (mainly Ōsaka) or -nahai (mainly Kyōto, also -nai) and negative imperative form -nasan'na or -nahan'na has comparatively survived because -haru lacks an imperative form. In more honorific speech,o- yasu, a transformation ofo- asobasu, is used especially in Kyōto and its original form is same to its imperative form, showing polite invitation or order.Oide yasu andokoshi yasu (more respectful), meaning "welcome", are the common phrases of sightseeing areas in Kyōto. -Te okun nahare (also -tokun nahare, -toku nahare) and -te okure yasu (also -tokure yasu, -tokuryasu) are used instead of -te kudasai in standard Japanese.
| use | see | exist | eat | do | come | -te form | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| original | tsukau | miru | iru, oru | taberu | suru | kuru | -teru |
| o- yasu | otsukaiyasu | omiyasu | oiyasu | otabeyasu | oshiyasu | okoshiyasu, oideyasu | -toiyasu |
| -naharu | tsukainaharu | minaharu | inaharu | tabenaharu | shinaharu | kinaharu | -tenaharu |
| -haru in Kyōto | tsukawaharu | miharu | iharu iteharu (mainly Ōsaka) | tabeharu | shiharu | kiharu | -taharu |
| -haru in Ōsaka | tsukaiharu | -teharu | |||||
| -yaharu | miyaharu | iyaharu yaharu | tabeyaharu | shiyaharu shaharu | kiyaharu kyaharu | -teyaharu | |
| -te ya | tsukōte ya | mite ya | otte ya | tabete ya | shite ya | kite ya | -totte ya |
There is some difference in the particles between Kansai dialect and standard Japanese. In colloquial Kansai dialect, case markers (格助詞,kaku-joshi) are often left out especially theaccusative caseo and the quotation particlesto andte (equivalent totte in standard). The ellipsis ofto andte happens only before two verbs:yū (to say) andomou (to think). For example,Tanaka-san to yū hito ("a man called Mr. Tanaka") can change toTanaka-san yū hito. Andto yū is sometimes contracted tochū ortchū instead ofte,tsū orttsū in Tokyo. For example,nanto yū koto da! ornante kotta! ("My goodness!") becomesnanchū kotcha! in Kansai.
The interjectory particle (間投助詞,kantō-joshi)na ornaa is used very often in Kansai dialect instead ofne ornee in standard Japanese. In standard Japanese,naa is considered rough masculine style in some context, but in Kansai dialectnaa is used by both men and women in many familiar situations. It is not only used as an interjectory particle (as emphasis for the imperative form, expression and admiration, and address to listeners, for example), and the meaning varies depending on context and voice intonation, so much so thatnaa has been called the world's third most difficult word to translate.[8] Besidesnaa andnee,noo is also used in some areas, butnoo is usually considered too harsh a masculine particle in modern Keihanshin.
Kara andnode, the conjunctive particles (接続助詞,setsuzoku-joshi) meaning "because," are replaced bysakai oryotte;ni is sometimes added to the end of both, andsakai changes tosake in some areas.Sakai was so famous as the characteristic particle of Kansai dialect that a special saying was made out of it: "Sakai in Osaka andBerabō in Edo" (大阪さかいに江戸べらぼう,Ōsaka sakai ni Edo berabō)". However, in recent years, the standardkara andnode have become dominant.
Kate orkatte is also characteristic particle of Kansai dialect, transformation ofka tote.Kate has two usages. Whenkate is used with conjugative words, mainly in the past form and the negative form, it is the equivalent of the English "even if" or "even though", such asKaze hiita kate, watashi wa ryokō e iku ("Even if [I] catch a cold, I will go on the trip"). Whenkate is used with nouns, it means something like "even", "too," or "either", such asOre kate shiran ("I don't know, either"), and is similar to the particlemo anddatte.
Thesentence-final particles (終助詞,shū-joshi) used in Kansai differ widely from those used in Tokyo. The most prominent to Tokyo speakers is the heavy use ofwa by men. In standard Japanese, it is used exclusively by women and so is said to sound softer. In western Japanese including Kansai dialect, however, it is used equally by both men and women in many different levels of conversation. It is noted that the feminine usage ofwa in Tokyo is pronounced with a rising intonation and the Kansai usage ofwa is pronounced with a falling intonation.
Another difference in sentence final particles that strikes the ear of the Tokyo speaker is thenen particle such asnande ya nen!, "you gotta be kidding!" or "why/what the hell?!", a stereotypetsukkomi phrase in the manzai. It comes fromno ya (particleno + copulaya, alson ya) and much the same as the standard Japaneseno da (alson da).Nen has some variation, such asneya (intermediate form betweenno ya andnen),ne (shortened form), andnya (softer form ofneya). When a copula precedes these particles,da +no da changes tona no da (na n da) andya +no ya changes tona no ya (na n ya), butya +nen does not change tona nen.No da is never used with polite form, butno ya andnen can be used with formal form such asnande desu nen, a formal form ofnande ya nen. In past tense,nen changes to-ten; for example, "I love you" would besuki ya nen orsukkya nen, and "I loved you" would besuki yatten.
In the interrogative sentence, the use ofnen andno ya is restricted to emphatic questions and involvesinterrogative words. For simple questions,(no) ka is usually used andka is often omitted as well as standard Japanese, butno is often changedn ornon (somewhat feminine) in Kansai dialect. In standard Japanese,kai is generally used as a masculine variation ofka, but in Kansai dialect,kai is used as an emotional question and is mainly used for rhetorical question rather than simple question and is often used in the forms askaina (softer) andkaiya (harsher). Whenkai follows the negative verb ending -n, it means strong imperative sentence. In some areas such as Kawachi and Banshu,ke is used instead ofka, but it is considered a harsh masculine particle in common Kansai dialect.
The emphatic particleze, heard often from Tokyo men, is rarely heard in Kansai. Instead, the particlede is used, arising from the replacement ofz withd in words. However, despite the similarity withze, the Kansaide does not carry nearly as heavy or rude a connotation, as it is influenced by the lesser stress on formality and distance in Kansai. In Kyoto, especially feminine speech,de is sometimes replaced withe. The particlezo is also replaced todo by some Kansai speakers, butdo carries a rude masculine impression unlikede.
The emphasis ortag question particlejan ka in the casual speech of Kanto changes toyan ka in Kansai.Yan ka has some variations, such as a masculine variationyan ke (in some areas, butyan ke is also used by women) and a shortened variationyan, just likejan in Kanto.Jan ka andjan are used only in informal speech, butyan ka andyan can be used with formal forms likesugoi desu yan! ("It is great!"). Youngsters often useyan naa, the combination ofyan andnaa for tag question.
In some cases, Kansai dialect uses entirely different words. The verbhokasu corresponds to standard Japanesesuteru "to throw away", andmetcha corresponds to the standard Japanese slangchō "very".Chō, in Kansai dialect, means "a little" and is a contracted form ofchotto. Thus the phrasechō matte "wait a minute" by a Kansai person sounds strange to a Tokyo person.
Some Japanese words gain entirely different meanings or are used in different ways when used in Kansai dialect. One such usage is of the wordnaosu (usually used to mean "correct" or "repair" in the standard language) in the sense of "put away" or "put back." For example,kono jitensha naoshite means "please put back this bicycle" in Kansai, but many standard speakers are bewildered since in standard Japanese it would mean "please repair this bicycle".
Another widely recognized Kansai-specific usage is ofaho. Basically equivalent to the standardbaka "idiot, fool",aho is both a term of reproach and a term of endearment to the Kansai speaker, somewhat like Englishtwit orsilly.Baka, which is used as "idiot" in most regions, becomes "complete moron" and a stronger insult thanaho. Where a Tokyo citizen would almost certainly object to being calledbaka, being calledaho by a Kansai person is not necessarily much of an insult. Being calledbaka by a Kansai speaker is however a much more severe criticism than it would be by a Tokyo speaker. Most Kansai speakers cannot stand being calledbaka but don't mind being calledaho.
Here are some words and phrases famous as part of the Kansai dialect:
| Kansai dialect | accent | Standard Japanese | English | Note | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| akan orakahen | H-H-H, H-L-L-L | dame,ikemasen,shimatta | wrong, no good, must, oh no! | abbreviation of "rachi ga akanu";akimasen orakimahen (H-H-H-H-H) for polite speech;-ta(ra) akan means "must not ...";-na akan and-nto akan means "must ...". | Tabetara akan. = "You must not eat." :Tabena/Tabento akan = "You must eat." |
| aho,ahō | L-HL, L-H-L | baka | silly, idiot, fool | sometimes used friendly with a joke; this accompanies a stereotype thatbaka is considered a much more serious insult in Kansai;Ahondara (L-L-L-H-L) is strong abusive form;Ahokusai (L-L-H-L-L) andAhorashii(L-L-H-L-L) are adjective form; originallyahau and said to derive from a Chinese word阿呆;ā dāi inMuromachi period.[9] | Honma aho ya naa. = "You are really silly." |
| beppin | H-H-H | bijin | beautiful woman | Originally written 別品, meaning a product of exceptional quality; extrapolated to apply to women of exceptional beauty, rewritten as 別嬪. Often appended with-san. | Beppin-san ya na. = "You are a pretty woman." |
| charinko,chari | jitensha | bicycle | said to derive either fromonomatopoeia of the bell, or corrupted fromjajeongeo, aKorean word for "bicycle" used byOsaka-born Koreans. Has spread out to most of Japan in recent decades. | Eki made aruite ikun?Uun, chari de iku wa. ("Are you walking to the station?" "No, I'm going by bike.") | |
| chau | H-H | chigau,de wa nai,janai | that isn't it, that isn't good, nope, wrong | reduplicationchau chau is often used for informal negative phrase | Are, chauchau chau?Chau chau, chauchau chau n chau? = "It is aChow Chow, isn't it?" "No, it isn't a Chow Chow, is it?" (a famous pun with Kansai dialect) |
| dabo | L-HL | baka | silly, idiot, fool | used in Kobe and Banshu; harsher thanaho | |
| donai | H-H-H | donna,dō | how (demonstrative) | konai meanskonna (such, like this);sonai meanssonna (such, like it);anai meansanna (such, like that) | Donai yatta? = "How was it?" |
| do | excessively (prefix) | often used with bad meanings; also used in several dialects and recently standard Japanese | do-aho = "terribly fool"do-kechi = "terribly miser" | ||
| dotsuku | H-H-H | naguru | to clobber somebody | do +tsuku (突く; prick, push); alsodozuku | Anta, dotsuku de! = "Hey, I'll clobber you!" |
| donkusai | L-L-H-L-L | manuke,nibui | stupid, clumsy, inefficient, lazy | literally "slow-smelling" (鈍臭い) | |
| ee | L-H | yoi,ii | good, proper, all right | used only in Plain form; other conjugations are same asyoi (Perfective formyokatta generally does not changeekatta); also used in other western Japan and Tohoku | Kakko ee de. = "You look cool." |
| egetsunai | H-H-H-L-L | akudoi,iyarashii,rokotsu-na | indecent, vicious, obnoxious | Egetsunai yarikata = "Indecent way" | |
| erai | H-L-L | erai,taihen | great, high-status, terrible, terribly | the usage as meaning "terrible" and "terribly" is more often in Kansai than in Tokyo; also sometimes used as meaning "tired" asshindoi in Chubu and western Japan | Erai kotcha! (<erai koto ja) = "It is a terrible/difficult thing/matter!" |
| gotsui | H-L-L | ikatsui,sugoi | rough, huge | a variation of the adjective formgottsu is used as "very" or "terribly" likemetcha | Gottsu ee kanji = "feelin' real good" |
| gyōsan | H-L-L-L or L-L-H-L | takusan | a lot of, many | alsoyōsan, may be a mixture ofgyōsan andyōke; also used in other western Japan;仰山 in kanji | Gyōsan tabe ya. = "Eat heartily." |
| hannari | H-L-L-L or L-L-H-L | hanayaka,jōhin | elegant, splendid, graceful | mainly used in Kyoto | Hannari-shita kimono = "Elegant kimono" |
| hiku | H-H | shiku | to spread on a flat surface (e.g. bedding, butter) | A result of the palatalization of "s" occurring elsewhere in the dialect. | Futon hiitoite ya. = "Lay out the futons, will you?" |
| hokasu | H-H-H | suteru | to throw away, to dump | alsohoru (H-H). Note particularly that the phrase "gomi (o) hottoite" means "throw out the garbage" in Kansai dialect, but "let the garbage be" in standard Japanese. | Sore hokashitoite. = "Dump it." |
| honde | H-H-H | sorede | and so, so that (conjunction) | Honde na, kinō na, watashi na... = "And, in yesterday, I..." | |
| honnara,hona | H-H-L-L, H-L | (sore)dewa,(sore)ja,(sore)nara | then, in that case, if that's true (conjunction) | often used for informal good-by. | Hona mata. = "Well then." |
| honma | L-L-H, H-H-H | hontō | true, real | honma-mon, equivalent to Standardhonmono, means "genuine thing"; also used in other western Japan;本真 in kanji | Sore honma? = "Is that true?" |
| ikezu | L-H-L | ijiwaru | spiteful, ill-natured | Ikezu sentoitee na. = "Don't be spiteful to me." | |
| itemau,itekomasu | H-H-H-H, H-H-H-H-H | yattsukeru,yatchimau | to beat, to finish off | Itemau do, ware! = "I'll finish you off!" (typical fighting words) | |
| kamahen orkamehen | H-L-L-L | kamawanai | never mind; it doesn't matter | abbreviation of "kamawahen" | Kamahen, kamahen. = "It doesn't matter: it's OK." |
| kanawan | H-H-L-L | iya da,tamaranai | can't stand it; unpleasant; unwelcome | alsokanan (H-L-L) | Kō atsui to kanawan naa. = "I can't stand this hot weather." |
| kashiwa | L-H-L | toriniku | chicken (food) | compared the colour of plumage of chickens to the colour of leaves of thekashiwa; also used in other western Japan and Nagoya | Kashiwa hito-kire chōdai. = "Give me a cut of chicken." |
| kattaa shatsu,kattā | H-H-H L-L, H-L-L | wai shatsu ("Y-shirt") | dress shirt | wasei-eigo. originally a brand ofMizuno, a sportswear company in Osaka.kattaa is apun of "cutter" and "katta" (won, beat, overcame). | |
| kettai-na | H-L-L-L | kimyō-na,hen-na,okashi-na,fushigi-na | strange | Kettai-na fuku ya na. = "They are strange clothes." | |
| kettakuso warui | H-H-H-H H-L-L | imaimashii,haradatashii | damned, stupid, irritating | kettai +kuso "shit" +warui "bad" | |
| kii warui | H-H H-L-L | kanji ga warui,iyana kanji | be not in a good feeling | kii is a lengthened vowel form ofki (気). | |
| kosobai orkoshobai | H-H-L-L | kusuguttai | ticklish | shortened form ofkosobayui; also used in other western Japan | |
| maido | L-H-L | dōmo | commercial greeting | the original meaning is "Thank you always".毎度 in kanji. | Maido, irasshai! = "Hi, may I help you?" |
| makudo | L-H-L | makku | McDonald's | abbreviation ofmakudonarudo (Japanese pronunciation of "McDonald's") | Makudo iko. = "Let's go to McDonald's." |
| mebachiko | L-H-L-L | monomorai | stye | meibo (H-L-L) in Kyoto and Shiga. | |
| metcha ormessa ormutcha | L-H | totemo,chō | very | mostly used by younger people. alsobari (L-H) in southern Hyogo, adopted from Chugoku dialect. | Metcha omoroi mise shitteru de. = "I know a really interesting shop." |
| nanbo | L-L-H | ikura,ikutsu | how much, no matter how, how old, how many | transformation ofnanihodo (何程); also used in other western Japan, Tohoku and Hokkaido. | Sore nanbo de kōta n? = "How much did you pay for it?" |
| nukui | H-L-L | atatakai,attakai | warm | also used in other western Japan | |
| ochokuru | H-H-H-H | karakau,chakasu | to make fun of, to tease | Ore ochokuru no mo eekagen ni see! = "That's enough to tease me!" | |
| okan,oton | L-H-L, L-H-L | okaasan,otōsan | mother, father | very casual form | |
| ōkini | H-L-H-L or L-L-H-L | arigatō | thanks | abbreviation of "ōki ni arigatō" (thank you very much,ōki ni means "very much"); of course,arigatō is also used; sometimes, it is used ironically to mean "No thank you"; alsoōkeni | Maido ōkini! = "Thanks always!" |
| otchan | H-H-H | ojisan | uncle, older man | a familiar term of address for a middle-aged man; also used as a first personal pronoun; the antonym "aunt, older woman" isobachan (also used in standard Japanese); alsoossan andobahan, but ruder thanotchan andobachan | Otchan, takoyaki futatsu!Aiyo! = (conversation with a takoyaki stall man) "Two takoyaki please, mister!" "All right!" |
| shaanai | H-H-L-L | shōganai,shikata ga nai | it can't be helped | also used some other dialects | |
| shibaku | H-H-H | naguru,tataku | to beat somebody (with hands or rods) | sometimes used as a vulgar word meaning "to go" or "to eat" such asChaa shibakehen? "Why don't you go to cafe?" | Shibaitaro ka! ( <shibaite yarō ka) = "Do you want me to give you a beating?" |
| shindoi | L-L-H-L | tsukareru,tsurai,kurushii | tired, exhausted | change fromshinrō (辛労; hardship);shindoi has come to be used throughout Japan in recent years. | Aa shindo. = "Ah, I'm tired." |
| shōmonai | L-L-H-L-L | tsumaranai,omoshirokunai,kudaranai | dull, unimportant, uninteresting | change fromshiyō mo nai (仕様も無い, means "There isn't anything"); also used some other dialects | |
| sunmasen orsunmahen | L-L-L-L-H | sumimasen,gomen nasai | I'm sorry, excuse me, thanks | suman (H-L-L) in casual speech; alsokan'nin (堪忍, L-L-H-L) for informal apology instead of standardkanben (勘弁) | Erai sunmahen. = "I'm so sorry." |
| taku | H-H | niru | to boil, to simmer | in standard Japanese,taku is used only for cooking rice; also used in other western Japan | Daikon yō taketa. = "Thedaikon was boiled well." |
| waya | H-L | mucha-kucha,dainashi,dame | going for nothing, fruitless | also used in other western Japan, Nagoya and Hokkaido | Sappari waya ya wa. = "It's no good at all." |
| yaru | H-H | yaru,ageru | to give (informal) | used more widely than in standard Japanese towards equals as well as inferiors; when used as helper auxiliaries, -te yaru usually shortened -taru | |
| yome | H-H | tsuma,okusan,kamisan,kanai | wife | originally means "bride" and "daughter-in-law" in standard, but an additional meaning "wife" is spread from Kansai; often used asyome-san oryome-han | anta toko no yome-han = "your wife" |
| yōke | H-L-L | takusan | a lot of, many | change fromyokei (余計, means "extra, too many"); a synonymous withgyōsan |
Standard first-person pronouns such aswatashi,boku andore are also generally used in Kansai, but there are some local pronoun words.Watashi has many variations:watai,wate (both gender),ate (somewhat feminine), andwai (masculine, casual). These variations are now archaic, but are still widely used in fictitious creations to represent stereotypical Kansai speakers especiallywate andwai. Elderly Kansai men frequently usewashi as well as other western Japan.Uchi is famous for the typical feminine first-person pronoun of Kansai dialect and it is still popular among Kansai girls.
In Kansai,omae andanta are often used for the informal second-person pronoun.Anata is hardly used. Traditional local second-person pronouns includeomahan (omae +-han),anta-han andansan (both areanta +-san, butanta-han is more polite). An archaic first-person pronoun,ware, is used as a hostile and impolite second-person pronoun in Kansai.Jibun (自分) is a Japanese word meaning "oneself" and sometimes "I", but it has an additional usage in Kansai as a casual second-person pronoun.
In traditional Kansai dialect, the honorific suffix-san is sometimes pronounced -han when -san followsa,e ando; for example,okaasan ("mother") becomesokaahan, andSatō-san ("Mr. Satō") becomesSatō-han. It is also the characteristic of Kansai usage of honorific suffixes that they can be used for some familiar inanimate objects as well, especially in Kyoto. In standard Japanese, the usage is usually considered childish, but in Kansai,o-imo-san,o-mame-san andame-chan are often heard not only in children's speech but also in adults' speech. The suffix-san is also added to some familiar greeting phrases; for example,ohayō-san ("good morning") andomedetō-san ("congratulations").
Since Kansai dialect is actually a group of related dialects, not all share the same vocabulary, pronunciation, or grammatical features. Each dialect has its own specific features discussed individually here.
Osaka-ben (大阪弁) is often identified with Kansai dialect by most Japanese, but some of the terms considered to be characteristic of Kansai dialect are actually restricted to Osaka and its environs. Perhaps the most famous is the termmōkarimakka?, roughly translated as "how is business?", and derived from the verbmōkaru (儲かる), "to be profitable, to yield a profit". This is supposedly said as a greeting from one Osakan to another, and the appropriate answer is another Osaka phrase,maa, bochi bochi denna "well, so-so, y'know".
The idea behindmōkarimakka is that Osaka was historically the center of the merchant culture. The phrase developed among low-class shopkeepers and can be used today to greet a business proprietor in a friendly and familiar way but is not a universal greeting. The latter phrase is also specific to Osaka, in particular the termbochi bochi (L-L-H-L). This means essentially "so-so": getting better little by little or not getting any worse. Unlikemōkarimakka,bochi bochi is used in many situations to indicate gradual improvement or lack of negative change. Also,bochi bochi (H-L-L-L) can be used in place of the standard Japanesesoro soro, for instancebochi bochi iko ka "it is about time to be going".[10]
In the Edo period,Senba-kotoba (船場言葉), a social dialect of the wealthy merchants in thecentral business district of Osaka, was considered the standard Osaka-ben. It was characterized by the polite speech based on Kyoto-ben and the subtle differences depending on the business type, class, post etc. It was handed down inMeiji,Taishō andShōwa periods with some changes, but after thePacific War, Senba-kotoba became nearly an obsolete dialect due to the modernization of business practices. Senba-kotoba was famous for a polite copulagowasu orgoasu instead of common Osakan copulaomasu and characteristic forms for shopkeeper family mentioned below.
| An example of forms of address for shopkeeper family in Senba[11] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Southern branches of Osaka-ben, such asSenshū-ben (泉州弁) andKawachi-ben (河内弁), are famous for their harsh locution, characterized by trilled "r", the question particleke, and the second personware. The farther south in Osaka one goes, the cruder the language is considered to be, with the local Senshū-ben ofKishiwada said to represent the peak of harshness.[12]
Kyōto-ben (京都弁) orKyō-kotoba (京言葉) is characterized by development of politeness and indirectness expressions. Kyoto-ben is often regarded as elegant and feminine dialect because of its characters and the image ofGion'sgeisha (geiko-han andmaiko-han in Kyoto-ben), the most conspicuous speakers of traditional Kyoto-ben.[13] Kyoto-ben is divided into the court dialect calledGosho kotoba (御所言葉) and the citizens dialect calledMachikata kotoba (町方言葉). The former was spoken by court noble before moving the Emperor to Tokyo, and some phrases inherit at a fewmonzeki. The latter has subtle difference at each social class such as old merchant families atNakagyo, craftsmen atNishijin andgeiko atHanamachi (Gion,Miyagawa-chō etc.)
Kyoto-ben was thede facto standard Japanese from 794 until the 18th century and some Kyoto people are still proud of their accent; they get angry when Tokyo people treat Kyoto-ben as a provincial accent.[13] However, traditional Kyoto-ben is gradually declining except in the world ofgeisha, which prizes the inheritance of traditional Kyoto customs. For example, a famous Kyoto copuladosu, instead of standarddesu, is used by a few elders andgeisha now.[14]
The verb inflection-haru is an essential part of casual speech in modern Kyoto. In Osaka and its environs,-haru has a certain level of politeness above the base (informal) form of the verb, putting it somewhere between the informal and the more polite-masu conjugations. However, in Kyoto, its position is much closer to the informal than it is to the polite mood, owing to its widespread use. Kyoto people, especially elderly women, often use -haru for their family and even for animals and weather.[15]
Tango-ben (丹後弁) spoken in northernmost Kyoto Prefecture, is too different to be regarded as Kansai dialect and usually included in Chūgoku dialect. For example, the copulada, the Tokyo-type accent, the honorific verb ending -naru instead of -haru and the peculiarly diphthong[æː] such as[akæː] forakai "red".
Hyōgo Prefecture is the largest prefecture in Kansai, and there are some different dialects in the prefecture. As mentioned above,Tajima-ben (但馬弁) spoken in northern Hyōgo, formerTajima Province, is included in theChūgoku dialect group alongside Tango-ben of northern Kyōto. The ancient vowel sequence /au/ changed to[oː] in many Japanese dialects, but in the Tajima,Tottori andIzumo dialects, /au/ changed into[aː]. Accordingly, the Kansai wordahō "idiot" is pronouncedahaa in Tajima-ben.
The dialect spoken in southwestern Hyōgo, formerHarima Province alias Banshū, is calledBanshū-ben. As well as Chūgoku dialect, it has the discrimination of aspect,-yoru in progressive and-toru in perfect. Banshū-ben is notable for transformation of-yoru and-toru into-yō and-tō, sometimes-yon and-ton. Another feature is the honorific copula-te ya, common inTanba,Maizuru andSan'yō dialects. In addition, Banshū-ben is famous for an emphatic final particledoi ordoiya and a question particleke orko, but they often sound violent to other Kansai speakers, as well as Kawachi-ben.Kōbe-ben (神戸弁) spoken inKobe, the largest city of Hyogo, is the intermediate dialect between Banshū-ben and Osaka-ben and is well known for conjugating-yō and-tō as well as Banshū-ben.
Awaji-ben (淡路弁) spoken inAwaji Island, is different from Banshū/Kōbe-ben and mixed with dialects of Osaka, Wakayama andTokushima Prefectures due to the intersecting location of sea routes in theSeto Inland Sea and theTokushima Domain rule in Edo period.
The dialect inMie Prefecture, sometimes calledMie-ben (三重弁), is made up ofIse-ben (伊勢弁) spoken in mid-northern Mie,Shima-ben (志摩弁) spoken in southeastern Mie andIga-ben (伊賀弁) spoken in western Mie. Ise-ben is famous for a sentence final particleni as well asde. Shima-ben is close to Ise-ben, but its vocabulary includes many archaic words. Iga-ben has a unique request expression-te daako instead of standard-te kudasai.
They use the normal Kansai accent and basic grammar, but some of the vocabulary is common to theNagoya dialect. For example, instead of -te haru (respectful suffix), they have the Nagoya-style -te mieru. Conjunctive particlesde andmonde "because" is widely used instead ofsakai andyotte. The similarity to Nagoya-ben becomes more pronounced in the northernmost parts of the prefecture; the dialect ofNagashima andKisosaki, for instance, could be considered far closer to Nagoya-ben than to Ise-ben.
In and aroundIse city, some variations on typical Kansai vocabulary can be found, mostly used by older residents. For instance, the typical expressionōkini is sometimes pronouncedōkina in Ise. Near theIsuzu River andNaikū shrine, some old men use the first-person pronounotai.
Kishū-ben (紀州弁) orWakayama-ben (和歌山弁), the dialect in old provinceKii Province, present-dayWakayama Prefecture and southern parts of Mie Prefecture, is fairly different from common Kansai dialect and comprises many regional variants. It is famous for heavy confusion ofz andd, especially on the southern coast. The ichidan verb negative form-n often changes-ran in Wakayama such astaberan instead oftaben ("not eat");-hen also changes-yan in Wakayama, Mie and Nara such astabeyan instead oftabehen. Wakayama-ben has specific perticles.Yō is often used as sentence final particle.Ra follows the volitional conjugation of verbs asiko ra yō! ("Let's go!").Noshi is used as soft sentence final particle.Yashite is used as tag question. Local words areakana instead ofakan,omoshai instead ofomoroi,aga "oneself",teki "you",tsuremote "together" and so on. Wakayama people hardly ever use keigo, which is rather unusual for dialects in Kansai.
Shiga Prefecture is the eastern neighbor of Kyoto, so its dialect, sometimes calledShiga-ben (滋賀弁) orŌmi-ben (近江弁) orGōshū-ben (江州弁), is similar in many ways to Kyoto-ben. For example, Shiga people also frequently use-haru, though some people tend to pronounce-aru and-te yaaru instead of-haru and-te yaharu. Some elderly Shiga people also use-raru as a casual honorific form. The demonstrative pronounso- often changes toho-; for example,so ya becomesho ya andsore (that) becomeshore. InNagahama, people use the friendly-sounding auxiliary verb-ansu and-te yansu. Nagahama andHikone dialects has a unique final particlehon as well asde.
The dialect inNara Prefecture is divided into northern includingNara city and southern includingTotsukawa. The northern dialect, sometimes calledNara-ben (奈良弁) orYamato-ben (大和弁), has a few particularities such as an interjectory particlemii as well asnaa, but the similarity with Osaka-ben increases year by year because of the economic dependency to Osaka. On the other hand, southern Nara prefecture is alanguage island because of its geographic isolation with mountains.The southern dialect uses Tokyo type accent, has the discrimination of grammatical aspect, and does not show a tendency to lengthen vowels at the end of monomoraic nouns.
An example of Kyoto women's conversation recorded in 1964:
| Original Kyoto speech | Standard Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| Daiichi, anta kyoo nande? Monossugo nagai koto mattetan e. | Daiichi, anata kyoo nande? Monosugoku nagai koto matteita no yo. | In the first place, today you... what happened? I've been waiting for a very long time. |
| Doko de? | Doko de? | Where? |
| Miyako hoteru no ue de. Ano, robii de. | Miyako hoteru no ue de. Ano, robii de. | At the top of the Miyako hotel. Uh, in the lobby. |
| Iya ano, denwa shitan ya, honde uchi, goji kitchiri ni. | Iya ano, denwa shitan da, sorede watashi, goji kitchiri ni. | Well, I called, just at 5 o'clock. |
| Okashii. Okashii na. | Okashii. Okashii na. | That's strange. Isn't that strange? |
| Hona tsuujihinkattan ya. | Jaa tsuujinakattan da. | And I couldn't get through. |
| Monosugo konsen shiteta yaro. | Monosugoku konsen shiteita desho. | The lines must have gotten crossed. |
| Aa soo ya. | Aa soo da yo. | Yes. |
| Nande yaro, are? | Nande daroo, are? | I wonder why? |
| Shiran. Asoko denwadai harootaharahen no chaunka te yuutetan e. Ookii shi. | Shiranai. Asoko denwadai o haratteinain janainoka tte itteita no yo. Ookii shi. | I don't know. "Maybe they haven't paid for the phone," I said. Because it's a big facility. |
| Soo ya. Mattemo mattemo anta kiihin shi, moo wasureteru shi, moo yoppodo denwa shiyo kana omotan ya kedo, moo chotto mattemiyo omotara yobidasahattan. | Soo da yo. Mattemo mattemo anata konai shi, moo wasureteiru shi, moo yoppodo denwa shiyoo kana to omottan da kedo, moo chotto mattemiyoo to omottara yobidashita no. | Yes. Even after I waited for a long time, you didn't come, so I thought you'd forgotten, so I thought about calling you, but just when I'd decided to wait a little longer the staff called my name. |
| Aa soo ka. Atashi. Are nihenme? Anta no denwa kiitan. | Aa soo. Watashi. Are nidome? Anata ga denwa o kiita no. | Is that so. I... Was it the second time when you heard about the phone? |
| Honma... Atashi yobidasaren no daikirai ya. | Honto.... Watashi yobidasareru no daikirai da. | Really, I hate having my name called out. |
| Kan'nin e. | Gomen ne. | Sorry. |
| Kakkowarui yaro. | Kakkowarui desho. | It's awkward, right? |
For non-Japanese speakers, learning environment of Kansai dialect is richer than other dialects.
