Appendix:Japanese Swadesh list

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This is a Swadesh list of words in Japanese, compared with definitions in English.

Presentation edit

For further information, including the full final version of the list, read the Wikipedia article: Swadesh list.

American linguist Morris Swadesh believed that languages changed at measurable rates and that these could be determined even for languages without written precursors. Using vocabulary lists, he sought to understand not only change over time but also the relationships of extant languages. To be able to compare languages from different cultures, he based his lists on meanings he presumed would be available in as many cultures as possible. He then used the fraction of agreeing cognates between any two related languages to compute their divergence time by some (still debated) algorithms. Starting in 1950 with 165 meanings, his list grew to 215 in 1952, which was so expansive that many languages lacked native vocabulary for some terms. Subsequently, it was reduced to 207, and reduced much further to 100 meanings in 1955. A reformulated list was published posthumously in 1971.

List edit

No. English 日本語
Kanji characters
にほんご
Hiragana syllabary
Nihongo
Hepburn romanization
1 I wa
2 you (singular) 貴方 あなた anata
3 he かれ kare
4 we 私達 わたしたち watashitachi
5 you (plural) 貴方達 あなたたち anatatachi
6 they 彼等, 彼ら かれら karera
7 this 此れ これ kore
8 that 其れ それ sore
9 here 此処 ここ koko
10 there 其処 そこ soko
11 who だれ dare
12 what なに nani
13 where 何処 どこ doko
14 when 何時 いつ itsu
15 how 如何 いか, いかが ika, ikaga
16 not 無い ない -nai
17 all , みな, もろ mina, moro
18 many 多い おおい ooi
19 some 少し すこし sukoshi
20 few 少ない すくない sukunai
21 other ほか hoka
22 one ひと hito
23 two ふた futa
24 three mi
25 four yo
26 five いつ itsu
27 big おお- ō-
28 long 長い ながい nagai
29 wide 広い ひろい hiroi
30 thick 厚い あつい atsui
31 heavy 重い おもい omoi
32 small 細い 細かい ちいさい chīsai
33 short 短い みじかい mijikai
34 narrow 狭い せまい semai
35 thin 細い ほそい hosoi
36 woman おんな, onna, me
37 man (male) おとこ, otoko, o
38 man (human) ひと hito
39 child ko
40 wife つま tsuma
41 husband おっと otto
42 mother はは haha
43 father ちち chichi
44 animal しし shishi
45 fish うお uo
46 bird とり tori
47 dog いぬ inu
48 louse しらみ shirami
49 snake へび hebi
50 worm 蚯蚓 みみず mimizu
51 tree ki
52 forest もり mori
53 stick つえ tsue
54 fruit mi
55 seed たね tane
56 leaf ha
57 root ne
58 bark (of a tree) 木肌 かわ kawa
59 flower はな hana
60 grass くさ kusa
61 rope なわ nawa
62 skin かわ kawa
63 meat しし shishi
64 blood chi
65 bone ほね hone
66 fat (noun) あぶら abura
67 egg たまご
68 horn つの tsuno
69 tail o
70 feather はね hane
71 hair かみ kami
72 head あたま, かしら atama, kashira
73 ear みみ mimi
74 eye me
75 nose はな hana
76 mouth くち kuchi
77 tooth ha
78 tongue した shita
79 fingernail つめ tsume
80 foot あし ashi
81 leg あし ashi
82 knee ひざ hiza
83 hand te
84 wing はね hane
85 belly はら hara
86 guts , わた wata
87 neck くび kubi
88 back se
89 breast (chest)
(female organ)
むね (chest)
ちち (female organ)
mune (chest)
chichi (female organ)
90 heart こころ kokoro
91 liver きも kimo
92 to drink 飲む のむ nomu
93 to eat 食う, 食べる かむ kuu, taberu
94 to bite 噛む かむ kamu
95 to suck 吸う すう suu
96 to spit 吐く はく haku
97 to vomit 吐く はく haku
98 to blow 吹く ふく fuku
99 to breathe する
100 to laugh 笑む, 笑う わらう warau
101 to see 見る みる miru
102 to hear 聞く きく kiku
103 to know 知る しる shiru
104 to think 思う おもう omou
105 to smell 嗅ぐ かぐ kagu
106 to fear 恐れる おそれる osoreru
107 to sleep 眠る,寝る ねむる,ねる neru
108 to live 生きる いきる ikiru
109 to die 死ぬ しぬ shinu
110 to kill 殺す ころす korosu
111 to fight 闘う たたかう tatakau
112 to hunt 狩る かる karu
113 to hit 叩く たたく tataku
114 to cut 切る きる kiru
115 to split 割る わる waru
116 to stab 刺す さす sasu
117 to scratch 掻く かく kaku
118 to dig 掘る ほる horu
119 to swim 泳ぐ およぐ oyogu
120 to fly 飛ぶ とぶ tobu
121 to walk 歩く あるく aruku
122 to come 来る くる kuru
123 to lie (as in a bed) 寝る ねる neru
124 to sit 座る すわる suwaru
125 to stand 起きる おきる okiru
126 to turn (intransitive) 回る まわる mawaru
127 to fall 落ちる おちる ochiru
128 to give 与える くれる ataeru
129 to hold 持つ もつ motsu
130 to squeeze 絞る しぼる shiboru
131 to rub 擦る する suru
132 to wash 洗う あらう arau
133 to wipe 拭く ふく fuku
134 to pull 引く ひく hiku
135 to push 押す おす osu
136 to throw 投げる なげる nageru
137 to tie 結ぶ むすぶ musubu
138 to sew 縫う ぬう nuu
139 to count 数える かぞえる kazoeru
140 to say 言う いう iu
141 to sing 歌う うたう utau
142 to play 遊ぶ あそぶ asobu
143 to float 浮く うく uku
144 to flow 流れる ながれる nagareru
145 to freeze 凍る こおる kōru
146 to swell 膨らむ ふくれる fukureru
147 sun hi
148 moon つき tsuki
149 star ほし hoshi
150 water みず mizu
151 rain あめ ame
152 river かわ kawa
153 lake みずうみ mizuumi
154 sea うみ umi
155 salt しお shio
156 stone いし ishi
157 sand すな suna
158 dust ちり chiri
159 earth つち tsuchi
160 cloud くも kumo
161 fog きり kiri
162 sky そら sora
163 wind かぜ kaze
164 snow ゆき yuki
165 ice こおり kōri
166 smoke けむり kemuri
167 fire hi
168 ash はい hai
169 to burn 燃える もえる moeru
170 road みち michi
171 mountain やま yama
172 red あか aka
173 green みどり midori
174 yellow ki
175 white しろ shiro
176 black くろ kuro
177 night よる yoru
178 day hi
179 year とし toshi
180 warm 暖かい あたたかい atatakai
181 cold 寒い さむい samui
182 full 満ちた みちた michita
183 new 新しい あたらしい atarashii
184 old 古い ふるい furui
185 good 良い いい ii
186 bad 悪い わるい warui
187 rotten 腐った くさった kusatta
188 dirty 汚い きたない kitanai
189 straight 真っ直ぐ まっすぐ massugu
190 round 丸い まるい marui
191 sharp (as a knife) 鋭い するどい surudoi
192 dull (as a knife) 鈍い にぶい nibui
193 smooth 滑らか なめらか nameraka
194 wet 濡れた ぬれた nureta
195 dry 乾いた かわいた kawaita
196 correct 正しい ただしい tadashii
197 near 近い ちかい chikai
198 far 遠い とおい tōi
199 right みぎ migi
200 left ひだり hidari
201 at de
202 in de
203 with to
204 and to
205 if 若し もし, なら, - moshi, nara, ba
206 because から kara
207 name na

See also edit

Bibliography edit

  • Banzaï - méthode de japonais (Nathalie Rouillé, Isabelle Raimbault), Ellipses, Paris 2003 - →ISBN
  • Les mots du japonais (Florence Bernaudeau, Fabrice Escot), Ellipses, Paris 1996 - →ISBN
  • Les langages de l'humanité (Michel Malherbe), Robert Laffont, Paris 1995 - →ISBN

See also edit

Further reading edit

Swadesh lists
Individual languages
Language families, family branches, and geographic groupings
Constructed languages
Reconstructed proto-languages
(edit this template)