Friday, 25 April 2014

Japan

What comes to mind when I say JAPAN?

I've asked some people from different age categories and occupations to tell me about their first thought when asked about Japan.

Rosario Resendiz 44 , sales manager of hotel. First words that come to mind are: Sushi, samurai, anime, robots, Tokyo, Japan airlines.
Japanese Sunset
Irma Sanchez 25, biology student. Her first thoughts were: tsunami, sushi, Fukuyama, cartoons and small people bowing.
Greeting the Japanese Emperor.
Indra Schepers 16 secondary student, mentioned: sushi, sun, sword, karate and kimono.

This is how sushi should be made!
Some Facts about Japan

Japan is made up of around 6800 islands, the biggest and most populous 4 are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. The capital is Tokyo, which is located on Honshu, with a population of 36 million.

The official name of Japan is Nippon. The official currency is the Yen, and the official language is Japanese.
The Yen

The literacy rate in Japan stands at 99%, as in the USA. In Mexico it is 93.4%, while in India the rate is 77.4 % . Among the lowest literacy rates we can find Afghanistan with 28%.


Sumo wrestlers in action.
Japan is the land of the Sumo wrestlers, big giants dressed in loincloths, trying to wrestle and push each other out of a round sandy arena, called dhoyo. Sumo wrestlers are highly respected in Japan, and they are also very well paid and trained martial artists.

The international homicide crime rate, measuring the amount of homicides per 100.000 inhabitants is 0.3 for Japan, 4.8 for the USA and 23.7 for Mexico.

Jiro Ono, aged 86, is considered to be the best sushi master in Japan and
86 year old Sushi Master Jiro
the entire world. His restaurant is called Sukiyabashi Jiro and it is a 3 star Michelin restaurant.

Raw horse meat is a popular food in Japan.
Sometimes the trains are so crowded railway staff are employed to cram passengers inside.




The English language in Japan.

The first serious contact was established in the early 1600, and the underlying reason was trade. England was opening up trade possibilities in the East and the then Japanese ruler was inclined to grant this favor, so a foreign language became necessary.Later developments and especially Japanese closure to and restrictions on all things foreign made is quite impossible to further "English" as a means of communication between the 2 nations.
First European traders around 1800's

Not until the late 1800, when Japan tried to modernize its society, did a new opportunity arise. Most efforts came from individuals, Americans and English and also Japanese translators, and they were partly influential as far as instructing high raking officials, but there was no use , as of yet, for instructing the general population.

In 1923, Harold E. Palmer, and Englishman; was invited by the Japanese minster of education to further the English language in the country, but pre- war and WWII conditions of anti- western sentiments, hindered the full development of such an enterprise.

Due to it isolated location and culture , Japan is one of the most independent nations in the worlds . It's incredible translation industry also greatly lowers the need for Japanese people to learn, study or even understand English.

Recently, due to the international an global changes occurring, there has been a significant increase in English language schools, as trade and international communication have taken a more significant role in Japanese society. We see the blossoming of private English language
Translation into English
schools called Eikaiwa gakkō, and many parents send there children here with the hope they will improve academically.  Furthermore, English language instruction has been made mandatory in 2011, starting at the 5th grade of elementary school, but the focus has been mainly on grammar aspects.

English was, and maybe still is, viewed as a means to improve once professional career, and not so much as a means of communication.

So still a lot needs to be done for English to become a useful tool of communication and understanding for the everyday Japanese citizen. See video below and you will understand.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English-language_education_in_Japan

American influences on Japan

As seen with the English language, the American influence was focused on opening up of the Japanese market to American goods or trade in 1853, by admiral Perry. In doing so the Japanese became aware of their
own weakness as opposed to the modern European countries , which were much more technologically advanced. Western and with it American style industries and overall modernizations were promoted according to Japanese needs. This continued up until the early 1920's when a more imperialistic, anti -western path was chosen, which in the end led to Japan's defeat in World War Two in 1945; due to the use of atomic bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

With the end of WWII in 1945 and the subsequent occupation of Japanese territory by American military forces under Douglas MacArthur, Japan was set on a path of integration into a more western style economy and the inclusion to the American sphere of influence in the pacific. The emperor was reduced to a symbolic role and a more American friendly government was installed.

This five year rule with many absolute powers by MacArthur, was a period were Japan could not decide about its own destiny, but stood helpless, unable to stop foreign, in this case American influence.

How do you like that baby?
The Americans brought chocolate and bubblegum, jazz music and western style democracy. This meant more rights for women, laborers and a reformation of the educational system. An introduction into a western style vision of human rights, but also a view of western style consumption.

American Military bases were the first points of contact between the 2 cultures, Japanese started singing Jazz and other American style songs there. The younger generation was introduced to and adopted the American way of life. The bases were bastions of Americana that showcased and promoted the American dream.

 In the video below we see Misae Enomoto, aroung 1947, singing a tango, observe the western style clothing and accordion which is definitely not Japanese. 

So many of these views were adopted and fitted into the Japanese lifestyle, at that point in time, and it was this that made Japan a democratic and capitalist country based on many western ideals, but with a very distinctive Japanese way to deal with them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan–United_States_relations


Japanese and English in the mix.

Learning the words.
Lets now look at how Japanese and the English language stand today, because the words sushi, tsunami and samurai are all universally understood words. Wikipedia provides a large list of the worst that made it into the English language dictionaries. Japanese Words. Since the opening up of the Japanese society to the West in the 1800's there has been an enrichment of the English and Japanese language with new words and concept.
The West learns of samurai, jujitsu, karate, people acquire bonsai and kimonos and learn to eat tofu and sushi. These words were added over a few hundred years of and concepts such as sushi were altered, not the word but the ingredients. (Americans did not like the concept of eating raw food so, we see the birth of the California vegetarian roll).

In Japan we see that new words, or loan words as they are called there, are integrated into the Japanese language. These new words may not have the same pronunciation or spelling as in the original English language, they are based on a more phonetic translation,( Japan does not use the alphabet system); but it is clear were they originated from. In Japan this is called “wasei-eigo,” or “Japanese-Made English. We have expressions such as "Potato fry - poteto furai" or " Game center - gemu senta", the first indicating French fries and the second video arcade. 

 Watch the video and hear the English girl explaining some interesting wasei eigo words.

The Japanese government has also included English into their traffic signs, to make it easier for tourists to find their way. Many places such as bus stations and train stations already have signs that offer Japanese and English, but as you can see in this picture, sometimes something can get lot in translation.


Influence through music

Another way for a language to be influential is through music which is internationally mainly English spoken and of course sung. This musical influence started in the late 1920 with the term Kayōkyoku, which is Western-style-inspired music of Japan. Later on, during the 40's and 50's we see a growing impulse of jazz and rock, finally resulting in an umbrella term for this western type of music which is called J- pop.

Not all performers used the English language to sing but rather their singing style and melody was and is considered to be western.
Most singers and bands mixed and mix English into their songs to give their songs a more " refined" sound, sometimes their pronunciation is not as is to be expected, but the imagery created by the foreign language ( knowledgeable, cultural, experienced ) works well for the Japanese audience, who love this type of music.

Examples of J-pop performers





Wester food in Japan

Like most countries influenced by America, Japan also has its share of fast food restaurants such as McDonald's and KFC's. There are also Burger Kings and for your mourning coffee you can certainly find a Starbucks, all of these establishments can mostly be found in the big cities such as Tokyo.
I'm loving it
Sometimes what people in Japan call a hamburger is uniquely adapted to their desires and needs and would not necessarily be called a hamburger by "western standards ", as the Japanese have hamburger candy or black buns with squid ink.
But McDonalds offers the known and loved hamburgers and some special ones to please the Japanese taste buds ( see image).



Pizza anyone?
Besides these fast food restaurants there is also another western culinary style of cooking called Yoshoku, where non traditional Japanese dishes can be savored. This style of cooking started around the mid 1800's with Japan's opening up to European influences into its society, which also included the culinary arts.

We see dishes influenced by the French and Italian cuisine and in these restaurants people have the option to choose between knifes and forks or chopsticks.

We have a place called Bahgandei (bargunday) a French inspired cuisine restaurant with wines and dishes from Bourgogne, in Tokyo. Or if your are in the mood for pizza you can find them at Torattoria&wainbar Tango a Italian, Spanish inspired restaurant.




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1 comment:

  1. Victor Montejo10 May 2014 at 14:37

    Great Job on you Blog, I really like it, I think it's very complete, comgratulations Johannes!!!

    Regards
    Victor M.

    ReplyDelete

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