Hello everyone. As a native Chinese speaker, I wish to delve into a topic that has long intrigued and somewhat perplexed me. It concerns the usage of Katakana in modern Japanese, particularly for foreign loanwords, a trend I find rather puzzling.
During the Meiji era, Japanese translators created numerous Kanji terms to translate English technical terms. This effort played a significant role in facilitating China’s absorption of Western culture. In contrast, China often opted for phonetic translations, as seen in the difference between ‘電話’ and ‘德律風’ (de lu feng). Terms like Democracy (民主), Science (科學), Renaissance (文藝復興), Congress (議會), Physics (物理), 珈琲 (coffee), 社会 (society), 経理 (accounting), 恋愛 (romance), 革命 (revolution), 社会主義 (socialism), 共産主義 (communism), and Philosophy (哲學) are all exemplary translations, and I greatly admire the Japanese translators for their adept handling of these foreign concepts. However, modern Japan seems to have shifted away from this approach, favouring direct phonetic transcription in Katakana. While this may be justifiable due to the increasing influx of foreign words, and potentially more efficient, it has made understanding Japanese increasingly challenging for me, as the prevalence of Katakana correlates with a decreased use of Kanji.
What adds to my confusion is the observation that many native Japanese terms are also being transcribed in Katakana. This is not limited to sectors like finance, which inherently use many technical terms. For instance, in finance:
* Account: 口座 (Kanji), アカウント (Katakana)
* Refund: 返金 (Kanji), リファンド (Katakana)
* Index: 指数 (Kanji), インデックス (Katakana)
* Capital Gain: 資産益 (Kanji), キャピタルゲイン (Katakana)
* Overproduction: 生産過剰 (Kanji), オーバープロダクション (Katakana)
* Cash Dispenser: 現金自動支払機 (Kanji), キャッシュディスペンサー (Katakana)
This trend extends beyond technical jargon. For example, ‘記者’ (reporter) is now more commonly written as ‘ジャーナリスト’ (journalist), and ‘羊肉’ (sheep meat) has been replaced by ‘ラム’ (lamb). Similarly, ‘社交’ (socializing) and ‘紳士服’ (men’s clothing) are now often referred to as ‘ソーシャル’ and ‘メンズ’, respectively. These terms are still widely used in Chinese-speaking countries.
Even place names are not immune to this trend. For example, the subway station “Tennozu Isle” (天王洲アイル) in Japan uses “アイル” instead of the Kanji “島” (isle).
I experienced a similar culture shock when I changed my iPhone’s language setting to Japanese and found “dark mode” translated as “ダークモード.” Had this been phonetically translated into Chinese as “達克墨德” (da ke mo de), I believe it would have been unintelligible to most.
This phenomenon is evident in the cultural entertainment industry as well. For instance, the Japanese title for the game “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” is “ゼルダの伝説 ティアーズ オブ ザ キングダム,” almost entirely in Katakana, whereas the Chinese title is “王國之淚,” which is clear and understandable. Similarly, the movie “No Time to Die” is translated in Japanese as “ノー・タイム・トゥ・ダイ” and in Chinese as “無暇赴死.” Even the movie “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is rendered in Japanese as “エブリシング・エブリウェア・オール・アット・ワンス” and in Chinese as “瞬息全宇宙.”
Perhaps some might think this is because they are Western movies or the stories are set in the West. To counter this point, let me use Chinese movies as an example.
Interestingly, Japanese translations of Chinese movies often come from their English titles. For example, “赤壁” (Chìbì) becomes “レッドクリフ” (Red Cliff), “無間道” (Wújiàn Dào) is “インファナル・アフェア” (Infernal Affairs), and “投名狀” (Tóumíngzhuàng) is “ウォーロード” (The Warlords).
I wonder, does the use of Katakana transcriptions of English titles make them more accessible to the general public in Japan, or is it seen as more trendy than using Kanji?
I’m eager to hear from native Japanese speakers or those learning Japanese: if you were unfamiliar with these terms, would their meanings be clear to you? What are your thoughts on this prevalent use of Katakana transcription?”
by Aloschetz