Japanese personal pronouns are noun-like in that they can be modified by demonstrative pronouns (for an example, see 5.1.2.1).
Japanese personal pronouns do not usually distinguish number (singular/
plural) in the first and second person, although the suffixes -gata (formal) and -domo, -ra and -tachi can optionally be used for plural (see 5.4, also 5.5). Table 5.3 gives the more common personal pronouns and suffixes.
As is evident from Table 5.3, there are some differences in use depending on the sex of the speaker, and more pronounced differences according to the formality of the relationship with the addressee (and to some degree the speech situation). Women generally use more formal forms than men.
Japanese pronouns are intimately tied up with hierarchy and levels of respect. For this reason, the use of personal pronouns is generally avoided in formal relationships and situations; instead name (family name + suffix of personal address) is preferred.
5.3.1 Personal pronouns 5.3.1.1 First-person pronouns
5.3.1.1.1 wata(ku)shi, boku, ore
The kanji
私
is usually used for both watakushi and the less formal watashi, so in writing it is often difficult to decide which reading is intended. Apart from the level of formality, both can be said to be neutral, i.e. they can•
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138 5 Demonstrative/
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be used with strangers and acquaintances alike. However, when contrasted with male-only pronouns such as boku, which is used towards males or females and sounds more intimate than watashi, the implication is usually that the user of watashi is female (example b).
ore is the most informal first-person pronoun, used by males only.
a 夫の留守を喜ぶ妻は私だけじゃないらしい。
Otto no rusu o yorokobu tsuma wa watashi dake ja nai rashii.
It appears that I’m not the only wife to take delight in her husband’s absence.
b 私作る人、僕食べる人、という時代はもう終わった。
Watashi tsukuru hito, boku taberu hito, to iu jidai wa mn owatta.
The age where people could say, ‘I [female] do the cooking, I [male]
do the eating’ is already over.
c おれにも撮らせろよ。
Ore ni mo torasero yo.
[PM to cameraman:] Let me take one [= a picture] too.
5.3.1.1.2 jibun as personal pronoun
The reflexive pronoun jibun ‘self’ can also be used like a personal pronoun, in the sense of ‘I’ or, with -tachi, as ‘we’ (see 5.5).
a 自分が同性愛者とわかっても構わない。
Jibun ga dnseiai-sha to wakatte mo kamawanai.
I don’t mind if people realize that I’m gay.
b 日本初の契約制スチュワーデス。「自分たちはパイオニア。」 Nihon-hatsu no keiyaku-sei suchuwkdesu. ‘Jibun-tachi wa
paionia.’
Japan’s first stewardesses on contract. ‘We are pioneers’ [they say].
5.3.1.2 Second-person pronouns
5.3.1.2.1 kimi, omae, kisama
kimi is an intimate-sounding form of address for males or females, used by older men, or by boyfriends towards girlfriends. omae is quite informal, used between men who grew up or went to school together. It is also used
Table 5.3 Personal pronouns and suffixes speakerreferentformal←→intimate First person ‘I’ (personal pron.) male私（わた〱し）こちら私（わたし）僕俺わし watakushikochirawatashibokuorewashi female私（わた〱し）こちら私（わたし）あたしうち watakushikochirawatashiatashiuchi Second person ‘you’ (personal pron.) male（あなた）（そちら）君（きみ）おまえあんたきさま (anata)sochirakimiomaeantakisama femaleあなた（そちら） anatasochira Second person ‘you’ (name + personal-address-suf.) male/female-様（さま）-さん-君（〱ん）-ちゃん -sama-san-kun-chan Third person ‘he/she’ (demonstrative pron.+ N/personal pron.) male/femaleこ/そ/あの方こ/そ/あの人彼/彼女こ/そ/あいつ kono/sono/ano katakono/sono/ano hitokare/kanojokoitsu/soitsu/aitsu Third person ‘he/she’ (name + personal-address-suf.) male/female-様（さま）-さん-君（〱ん）-ちゃん -sama-san-kun-chan Third person ‘they’ (demonstrative pron.+ N/personal pron.) male/femaleこ/そ/あの方-々こ/そ/あの人-たち彼/彼女-等 こ/そ/あいつ-等 kono/sono/ano kata-gatakono/sono/ano hito-tachikare-ra/kanojo-ra, koitsu/soitsu/aitsu-ra Third person ‘they’ (name + personal-address-suf.) male/female-様（さま）-さん-君（〱ん）-ちゃん -sama-san-kun-chan
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by parents to their sons. kisama, also common in comics, is used in such male bastions as the army, sports teams etc., to subordinates or equals; in ordinary life, if you address someone with kisama, it signals that you’re trying to pick a fight!
a ところが面接官は「君、処女なの？」。
Tokoro ga mensetsu-kan wa ‘Kimi, shojo na no?’
However, the interviewer [asked] ‘Are you a virgin?’.
b おまえに託したい。
Omae ni takushitai.
I want to entrust [the running of the company] to you [= my son].
c 「ほら、お前ももっと足を高〱あげろよ」「オレは腹が出てる
から、お前みたいなわけにはいかないよ」。
‘Hora, omae mo motto ashi o takaku agero yo’ ‘Ore wa hara ga deteru kara, omae mitai na wake ni wa ikanai yo’.
‘Hey, raise your leg a bit higher!’ ‘I’ve got a big belly, so you can’t expect me to do things in the same way as you!’ [baseball training]
d 貴様ァ、こりゃ、何だ! 戦場に野球をやりに行〱つもりかァ。
Kisamk, korya, nan da! Senjn ni yakyo o yari ni iku tsumori kk. Hey you, what is this [= practising baseball]! You going to war to play
baseball?
e 俺、貴様の昔に返ってゆっ〱り話し合いたい。
Ore, kisama no mukashi ni kaette yukkuri hanashiai-tai.
I’d like a leisurely chat [among us men], back on the old terms of ore and kisama.
5.3.1.2.2 anata
This is taught to foreigners as equivalent to ‘you’, simply because it is the most neutral of the lot. However, Westerners are renowned in Japan for overusing anata, which still has strong connotations, namely:
(i) Impersonal use: anata is used when the speaker/writer does not know what the social level of the person/s addressed is; this is especially common in adverts (appealing to people of all levels).
a もう黙っちゃいられない！あなたのダイエット方法は大丈夫？
Mn damatcha irarenai! Anata no daietto hnhn wa daijnbu?
I can’t keep silent any longer! Is your [= the reader’s] method of losing weight safe?
141 Personal pronouns and suffixes b 「あなたのお子さんなの」と突然、聞かれた。
‘Anata no o-ko-san na no’ to totsuzen, kikareta.
She was suddenly asked [by a stranger], ‘Is that your child?’
c 日本ではあなたの絵が好きな人が多い。なぜだと思いますか。
Nihon de wa anata no e ga suki na hito ga ni. Naze da to omoimasu ka.
[Interview with painter:] In Japan, there are many who like your paintings. Why is that, do you think?
(ii) Woman to husband: anata is also typically used by a woman to her husband or lover (although less so by the younger generation).
a あなた、ドレス買ってもいい？
Anata, doresu katte mo ii?
Darling, is it OK if I buy a dress?
b かたや、「あなた、ご飯よ」のように、「妻が夫を指す代表的 な代名詞」でもある。
Kataya, ‘Anata, gohan yo’ no yn ni, ‘tsuma ga otto o sasu daihynteki na daimeishi’ de mo aru.
On the other hand, it [= anata] is also a typical pronoun by which the wife calls the husband, as in ‘Darling, dinner’s ready!’
(iii) Overuse by foreigners: anata is also a word used by foreigners in situations where Japanese would normally avoid the use of a personal pronoun. This misuse was pointed out in grammars of Japanese by people like Aston and Chamberlain over a hundred years ago.
5.3.1.3 Third-person pronouns
5.3.1.3.1 kare(-ra/-tachi) and kanojo(-ra/-tachi)
These are originally translation terms for rendering ‘he’ and ‘she’ into Japanese from works of Western fiction. They are very common now, and are less unwieldy than sono/ano hito, etc. However, there are some restrictions on their use: they are more commonly used by men and younger Japanese, and are considered rude if used of social superiors. They are also commonly used to refer to boyfriends (kare or kareshi) and girlfriends (kanojo).
a 彼女に振られたので、女の子の友達がいません。
Kanojo ni furareta no de, onna no ko no tomodachi ga imasen.
I got dumped by my girlfriend, so I haven’t got any female friends.
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5.3.1.3.2 koitsu, etc.
koitsu/soitsu/aitsu are used pejoratively or to refer informally to close friends, colleagues etc., or when no politeness is required, as when one talks about the content of one’s thoughts, as in example a.
The difference between ko-/so-/a- follows the usual pattern (see Table 5.1, 5.1).
a こいつには話せる、そんな雰囲気を持っている人間だったらいいな。
Koitsu ni wa hanaseru, sonna fun’iki o motte iru ningen dattara ii na.
I’d like the kind of person who feels like someone I can talk to.
b 「あいつもいいばあさんだ」と写真を見せて〱れた。
‘Aitsu mo ii bksan da’ to shashin o misete kureta.
‘She’s quite a granny’, he said and showed me a photo.
5.3.1.4 Plural forms
Some plural forms are given in Table 5.3 for third persons, but first- and second-person pronouns can also be made plural by attaching plural suf- fixes (see 5.4).
A special case is wareware (
我々
), which is normally used to define a group and often prefixes a noun (regardless of any comma in writing, it is pro- nounced as one unit in speech).a 我々、監査役はあなたがた取締役を訴える権限があるのですよ。
Wareware, kansa-yaku wa anata-gata torishimari-yaku o uttaeru kengen ga aru no desu yo.
We auditors have the power to take you [company] chairmen to court!
5.4 Suffixes attached to personal pronouns
Note that these suffixes can also follow nouns, for which see 1.3.
5.4.1 -domo
Attached to nouns that refer to persons, -domo indicates plural (see 1.3).
When attached to first-person pronouns (usually watakushi), -domo has a humble ring.
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143 Suffixes attached to personal pronouns Note – where the same plural is used twice in a sentence, the second
one is sometimes formed by different means, for stylistic reasons (see 5.4.3).
5.4.1.1 First person (watakushi)-domo
watakushi-domo means ‘we’ and is used in formal situations, often by persons representing an organization (company, political party, hospital, etc.).
a 私どもは野に下りました。
Watakushi-domo wa ya ni kudarimashita.
We have become the opposition.
b 私どもでやりましょう。
Watakushi-domo de yarimashn. We (= our company) will take it on.
c 私どもの店には膨大な数の、お客様が来店する。
Watakushi-domo no mise ni wa bndai na kazu no, o-kyaku-sama ga raiten suru.
An enormous number of customers visits our shop.
5.4.2 -gata
To express an honorific plural, -gata (rather than -tachi) is usually attached to the title of persons of higher social status (sensei ‘teacher’, ‘professor’,
‘member of parliament’, ‘politician’, etc.) and forms of address ending in -sama (honorific equivalent of -san). However, -tachi can also be used (see 5.4.4, 1.4).
a お開きのとき、高齢者たちは「あなたがたを愛している」と言い ましたが、少年たちは無視しました。
Ohiraki no toki, knreisha-tachi wa ‘Anata-gata o aishite iru’ to iimashita ga, shnnen-tachi wa mushi shimashita.
At the end [of the gathering], the old people said ‘We love you’, but the youths ignored it.
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5.4.3 -ra
Attached to personal pronouns, -ra indicates plural.
a 彼ら、彼女たちの声を拾った。
Kare-ra, kanojo-tachi no koe o hirotta.
We’ve gathered their [= male and female] opinions (lit. “voices”).
b 学生時代にリュック一つ担いで旅行したフィリピンやメキシコで 出会ったのは、貧し〱とも家族みんなで助け合って生きる人々 の底抜けに明るい笑顔。•••彼らの生活には、日本人が失った 何かがある。
Gakusei jidai ni ryukku hitotsu katsuide ryokn shita Firipin ya Mekishiko de deatta no wa, mazushiku tomo kazoku minna de tasukeatte ikiru hitobito no sokonuke ni akarui egao. . . . kare-ra no seikatsu ni wa Nihonjin ga ushinatta nani ka ga aru.
What I saw in the Philippines and in Mexico, where I travelled in my student days with just a rucksack on my back, were the radiantly smiling faces of the people, who were poor but lived in families where everybody helped each other. . . . their lives have something that the Japanese have lost.
5.4.4 -tachi
Attached to pronouns, -tachi indicates plural, mainly for humans.
5.4.4.1 With personal and reflexive pronouns
With nouns, -tachi to indicate plural is optional (see 1.3), but with personal and reflexive pronouns, it is mandatory. In other words, if -tachi is detached in the examples below, the meaning changes from plural to singular.
a 僕たちは四年生です。
Boku-tachi wa yonensei desu.
We are fourth-year pupils.
b 私たち大人は考え直したい。
Watashi-tachi otona wa kangae-naoshi-tai.
We adults wish to reconsider.
145 Reflexive pronouns c •••心のどこかでいつも思っていた。“私はあなたたちとは違う。
いつか女優になるんだ”って。
. . . kokoro no doko ka de itsu mo omotte ita.
‘Watashi wa anata-tachi to wa chigau. Itsu ka joyo ni naru n da’ tte.
. . . always felt somewhere in my heart: ‘I’m different from you people [= teachers and fellow pupils]. One day I’ll be an actress’.
d 人々は自分たちの生活を見つめ始めた。
Hitobito wa jibun-tachi no seikatsu o mitsume-hajimeta.
People have begun to reconsider their lives.