1.1.12 Meeting friends

​By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to：

• Introduce yourself to someone

• Ask someone's name

• Express where you are from

​おなまえはなんですか？
Onamae wa nan desu ka?

Context: 2 people in Japan are meeting for the first time

​おなまえはなんですか？
Onamae wa nan desu ka?
"What's your name?"

​Transcript

A: hajimemashite
B: hajimemashite! Onamae wa nan desu ka?
A: Shinamarouru desu. Onamae wa?
B: Hiroki desu. Doko kara kimashita ka?
A: Amerika kara kimashita.
B: Sou desu ka. Amerika-jin desu ne. Yoroshiku onegai-shimasu.
A: Yoroshiku-onegai-shimasu.

doko Where?
(O)namae Name
wa (particle) subject
kara from
kimashita came (past tense)
Amerika America
Nihon Japan
Country + jin ____an

​If we were in Japan, it would be natural to say we are from America. We are American.

Amerika kara kimashita
Nihon kara kimashita
Kanada kara kimashita


Do you think if we are in America we would say this?

This is often called the honorific "o," and it "beautifies," the langauge and also shows respect to the person you're speaking to. It also helps us know WHO we are referring to. I would not use o if I am the subject!!

Examples:
o-namae name. With "o," it's 100% "your name"
o-suki like something.
o-sushi Sushi. This simply makes it sound more "educated."

​A lot of words in Japanese have "o" in front of them

In the conversation, we see both "onamae wa nan desu ka," and just "onamae wa?" The second one has the feeling of "what about your name?"

​This particle marks a subject. Subject + wa = "Talking about subject," "in regards to subject,"