AW: that japanese site ...

[Rene Schmitz]

At 10:34 19.02.99 -0000, you wrote:

>> Hmm the text looks strange!!!
>> Regarding to a japanese person who once told mee that writing
>> japanese is something totally different from speaking japanese!
>>
>> They seems to follow competely different language systems and roules?
>>
>> Anny japanese to confirm this on synth diy!!!
>
>I was reading it over last night, and it is the strangest thing.
>I can understand most of what it says, but it's very difficult to translate
>into sensible English.
>Some of the untranslated words seem to be English words spelt as if spoken
>in a Japanese accent eg. emittaforoa = emmiter follower, riniariti =
>linearity ?


Its not *spoken* but merely *written* by the set of sylables (sp?) the
japanese have in their language. They usually write foreign words in 
katakana (jap. alphabet) rather than in romanji (our alphabet). So they
usually speak it with an "accent" since they write it that way. 
There are many same sounding words which have several meanings and
therefore different "kanji" (these complicated signs). So even when you
hear the word you can't figure out the meaning sometimes unless you see  it
written. (I've been told that people in japan "write" these on their hands
with the finger to make clear what sign they mean.)
Unfortunately I can't write nor read japanese but I can speak it a little.
(Order food, buy stamps, count to ten, the tourists essentials.)
The grammar is strange to us, but once you get a feel for it, it is quite
regular. You have to forget all you know about other languages though.

>There are some excellent phrases in there - my favourite being 'moderate
>wavy warp' in reference to the Korg 700 filter.
>I hereby claim that as the title to a forthcoming track ;-)

Damn! :-)

Excuse me for being off topic. But there seems to be some interest.

Bye

Rene


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