Hello, I wrote a song for my wife, who happens to be Japanese. I’d like to start the song by counting in “1 2 3 4” in Japanese. Ichi, Ni, San… but For #4, do I say “Shi” or “Yon”? Thanks!
I’ve been using this language a long time but damned if I know whether it’s shi or yon. I’ve seen both used and i don’t know what made the deciding factor between using shi or yon.
If I had to take a guess I’d say shi but at this point asking your wife just that bit might be a good idea.
I’d probably also say shi….
Neither is incorrect but in a *one two three four* scenario that one just kind of “feels” a bit more natural…?
I’ve actually counted off in Japanese before. I used shi.
し
One thing about し “shi”, according to my Japanese teacher, is that it has some connotation of “death” due to similar prononciation. Which is why some people avoid using it.
Edit: After this post had been down voted, it made me doubt my answer. So I made a small search. Some hotels and hospitals don’t even use the number 4 because of these connotations.
TBH doesnt really matter. Go for the one that has the rhyme to your word
when i count i usually say shi. i have also heard a song that starts by counting to four and it says shi. i personally think that shi flows better, but its up to you!
I don’t think this is a hard and fast rule, but probably just something that natives do out of habit because it sounds more correct to them. Most times I listen for it, it tends to hold up, so as a hobbyist this is my rule of thumb.
17 comments
I’ve been using this language a long time but damned if I know whether it’s shi or yon. I’ve seen both used and i don’t know what made the deciding factor between using shi or yon.
If I had to take a guess I’d say shi but at this point asking your wife just that bit might be a good idea.
I’d probably also say shi….
Neither is incorrect but in a *one two three four* scenario that one just kind of “feels” a bit more natural…?
Tho even [this stackexchange discussion](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/328/how-to-choose-between-%E3%82%88%E3%82%93-yon-vs-%E3%81%97-shi-for-%E5%9B%9B-4-and-%E3%81%97%E3%81%A1-shichi-vs) can’t seem to agree which is more “common” .. haha.
Thank you. I’ll probably just go with shi. I agree it “feels” right.
when counting, usually use ‘shi’
i.e. https://youtu.be/HEdm-hcOwIY
I’ve actually counted off in Japanese before. I used shi.
し
One thing about し “shi”, according to my Japanese teacher, is that it has some connotation of “death” due to similar prononciation. Which is why some people avoid using it.
Edit: After this post had been down voted, it made me doubt my answer. So I made a small search. Some hotels and hospitals don’t even use the number 4 because of these connotations.
[Example](https://guidable.co/culture/major-unlucky-numbers-you-must-know-in-japan/)
TBH doesnt really matter. Go for the one that has the rhyme to your word
when i count i usually say shi. i have also heard a song that starts by counting to four and it says shi. i personally think that shi flows better, but its up to you!
Maybe just write a waltz….
Only heard ‘shi’ used in music so far. For example at the beginning of this song: https://youtu.be/WJW7kS9AAI4
Just for the sake of completeness, English counts are not that rare in Japanese songs.
Shi sounds more natural in this case
I actually heard a song with counting in it and they used shi.
I’d follow the example of Radio Taiso: ichi-ni-san-shi-go-roku-shichi-hachi
Hi! I’m Japanese.
“Shi” or “Yon”, either is fine.
There are two ways to read 1 to 10.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 = Ichi Ni San Shi Go Roku Shichi Hachi Ku Ju
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 = Hi Hu Mi Yo Itu Mu Na Ya Ko To
But some Japanese say
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 = Ichi Ni San Yon Go Roku Nana Hachi Ku Ju
to avoid “**Shi**” and “**Shi**chi” mistakes.
I doubt you’ll be misunderstood no matter which you use, but in the past I read in comments such as [this one](https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnJapanese/comments/ihxbim/when_counting_to_4_should_you_say_shi_or_yon/g339x1i/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) from a few years ago that shi is typically used when counting up and yon when counting down.
I don’t think this is a hard and fast rule, but probably just something that natives do out of habit because it sounds more correct to them. Most times I listen for it, it tends to hold up, so as a hobbyist this is my rule of thumb.