Unlike the Russian language, Japanese has many forms of personal pronouns “I”, “you” and the like, differing not only in pronunciation and spelling, but also in semantic load. Such diversity arose from the traditional system of politeness that underlies Japanese language. And, accordingly, the main difference between the various forms of pronouns lies in the shade of politeness.
Here I tried to give all those pronouns that can be heard in anime and, in general, all those that I myself have heard about, and give their expanded meanings, based on my modest knowledge.
Watashi - general form with neutral shade politeness.
Watakushi is a higher form of "watashi". Used mainly by women, namely priests, aristocrats and princesses ^_^
Ore is a form of “I” that emphasizes the masculinity of the speaker, and is quite impolite. It is used, as you might guess, mainly by men.
Boku is a polite and respectful form, usually used by boys.
Atashi is the feminine form of "watashi", characteristic of female speech.
Uchi - translated as "my house", a polite form used by women. At least I have never seen men use it.
Washi is a form that expresses some superiority of the speaker over the interlocutor. Used mainly by older people.
Onore - used as return form“himself”, “your own”, etc. Jibun - also used only as reflexive pronouns “my”, “my”, etc.
Sessha is a very polite archaic form that belittles the speaker, meaning something like "this unworthy one."
Ware is a somewhat archaic form. As far as I know, it expresses the superiority of the speaker. In nim you can hear how sorcerers use it in spells.
Waga - “my”, “our”, “own”.
Arakajime - "I", "myself".
Wagami - "myself". In addition, in Japanese speech one can often find talking about oneself in the third person, which is especially typical for children's speech.
In general, the Japanese try to avoid using second-person pronouns and prefer to replace them with their name or various polite titles. In addition, the sentence structure in Japanese makes it easy to avoid addressing the interlocutor directly. But nevertheless, among the second person pronouns there is no less diversity than among the first ^_^
Anata is the most common option, not the most polite, but not rude either.
Anta is the feminine version of "anata".
Omae is a more polite option, but more familiar.
Kimi - a polite address to inferiors.
Otaku is a very polite form, but practically not used.
Onore is a very rude and impolite version of "you".
Kisama - treatment is not only rude, but also offensive, equating to a swear word. For this they can give you a punch in the teeth ^_^
Temae is also an offensive Murge variant with an expression of contempt. Typically used when addressing an enemy.
Wagakimi - "my lord".
Maro - "you" is apparently an archaic form, because V modern language I've never heard this word.
Nare is an archaic form.
“He”, “She” - third person.
Kare - "he".
Kanojo - "she".
Ano hito - "that person", a neutral polite expression for a third person. (Options - kono hito, sono hito)
Yatsu is a rather rude and impolite reference to someone.
Aitsu is more polite than the previous one, but also too familiar.
"We", "You", "They" and in general plural.
IN general case The plural is formed by adding special suffixes to pronouns, for example, the suffix "-tachi", which denotes the addition of others to the speaker, for example:
Watashi-tachi - "I and others", i.e. "We".
Anata-tachi - "you and the rest", i.e. "you", etc. The more polite suffix "-kata" (can also be read as "-gata") is also used, literally meaning "your side". But in addition, there are a number of pronouns specifically for the plural.
Wareware - "we" military uniform, can also be used as the royal "we".
Warera - “we”, “our”.
Oira is a polite form used by monks.
Orera - "we", masculine form.
Warehito - "me and the rest."
Wagahou - “we”, “from our side”.
Wagatou - "our group".
Wagahai - "me and my team."
Gojin - “we”, “our people”.
Bokura - "we", a masculine not very polite form.
Karera - “they”, usually about men.
One of the writers once called Japanese pronoun“floating”. And such a statement is not without logical basis.
It was decided to create a list of Japanese personal pronouns. And all the pronouns from this list were divided (classified) according to different groups. It is our great hope that readers will find this classification useful.
Pronouns that we go through in courses when we are just starting to learn a language:
私（わたし） － I, a general pronoun without relative gender, which is used in neutral speech
私（わたくし） － a more modest and more formal “I”, which is often used in clear speech and when using keigo.
私たち（わたしたち） – we, a general pronoun without reference to the gender of the participants, which is used in a neutral, and often colloquial style (however, the colloquial style will be discussed below).
私たち（わたくしたち） – a slightly, in the author’s opinion, not very common “we”, because it can indeed be used when communicating in keigo and in office language, but more often, in the same office environment, “about us” is used 弊社（へいしゃ） – verbatim. our malicious-bad-harmful company (official translation “our company / our company”). However, within the walls of an office environment it was rarely necessary to use something like わたくしたち, so you can immediately “jump” to other pronouns.
彼女（かのじょ） － she, about the 3rd female person, however in colloquial speech this pronoun can mean girl-friend, so it's better to be careful
彼（かれ） －he, 3rd person male
Some textbooks may mention 彼女たち （かのじょたち – they), or 彼ら （かれら） . The first pronoun for “they”, when all the persons in question are girls, and 彼ら – they, for males, but is used not only according to the classical explanation: in relation to mixed and even women's companies can also be heard.
あなた – you, a pronoun that refers to the second person. However, this pronoun can have the meaning “dear” or even “darling” honey, so many students try to move away from this pronoun, expanding their horizons. Accordingly, あなたたち translated as “you” in a relationship where the address is addressed to more than one person.
君（きみ） – you, formal colloquial “you”.
Pronouns taught in intermediate or advanced courses:
僕（ぼく） – I, in textbooks they write that it is a man’s “I”, although many women now also prefer to use this pronoun. Remember, at least, Miki Nakashima’s song 僕が死のうと思ったのは （however, even if you are not in the Land of the Beginning of the Sun, it is still enough to watch 2-3 anime or Japanese dramas to understand: reality is at odds with textbooks, and the pronoun can also occur in women)
あたし – I, the feminine I, which is often found in feminine language. Okama (transgender people) can also use this pronoun.
あたしたち – we, usually pronounced by a woman, but not all included in this “we” are necessarily female
うち - used as I or we in Kansai (believed to be in Kansai, a fairly common opinion, but can be seen in other regions). うちら – more often “we” among young people. As possessive pronouns can be heard very, very often in standard Japanese, e.g. .
僕ら（ぼくら） - we, usually pronounced by a man (but not necessarily), just as it is not necessary that everyone in 僕らー is a man.
俺（おれ） - a purely male “I”, however, fighting women for the sake of brutality (or, say, when you watch a film about how a woman pretended to be a man) can use this pronoun. There is also an unusual expression おれさま (俺様）), where a man speaks about himself, elevating himself above others. You are unlikely to find such a pronoun on Wikipedia.
Also, in some intermediate-level textbooks there may be pronouns “created” on the basis of demonstratives あれら、それら - They.
われ, わが – a rather formal “I”, which can be heard more in polite formal speech. In the plural the pronoun becomes われわれ and われら
Pronouns that abound in simple speech, and which can also be heard quite often in anime/dramas:
貴様（きさま） – a very rude, colloquial “you”, which is often translated as, I beg your pardon, “ Son of a bitch” or “bastard,” although there are situations in the same films when it would be more appropriate to translate it as “oh, you, infection,” “oh, you, dog,” and in slightly more rude words. Accordingly, きさまら refers to “you”, to the plural, to each of which the “author of words” can address the rude you (きさま）
Another rather rude “you” - てめえ , comes from 手▽前 ( てまえ、other side), but is used as a rather rude expression. Plural - てめえら
おのれ － the dictionary gives the translation of this word as the rough “you”, the plural is given as おのれら
お前 （おまえ） － rough “you”, similar to きさま、, respectively, plural お前ら has the same meaning as きさまら – a very rough “you” in relation to the plural
あいつ – the most commonly used “he” or “she”, and is also a rather rude word in relation to the 3rd person. The term was originally translated in textbooks as “this type.” There are other variations of use こいつ、そいつ – the difference is the same as with （あれ、それ、これ), i.e. depending on the distance of the object from the speaker. Also, from these “pronouns” you can make the colloquial “they”: あいつら、こいつら、そいつら
Another pronoun similar to あいつ sounds like やつ . Variations are pronounced accordingly こやつ,そやつ,あやつ
Hint from the community: 貴公 (きこう) - characteristic of male dialect, when the address “you” to another male person of the same circle, or even lower in social status.
Another, not as common as the above-mentioned pronoun “you” is うぬ (汝／▽己 the word is quite rude, otherwise it would not fall into this category. Accordingly うめら – rude “you”
おぬし － you, softer than all the above pronouns, when addressing one person whom a person considers equal to himself in status, or lower than himself. In discussion threads on the yahoo.co.jp forums you can often find おぬしら in informal communication - such an informal “you” when referring to the plural.
Above it was called “you” あなた 、 and there is one more expression - そなた (which, depending on the situation, can be replaced by そっち、そなた、そち、そちら ) - and is quite close to “you”/”you” (i.e. to a person who is not far in formality of communication from the one pronouncing the word そなた)
Another conversational あなた = あんた
A rather formal and polite “you” おたく (お宅, 御宅) – used to address one person
きか (貴下) – informal and familiar “you”
Another informal “I”, which is close to the expression 俺（おれ）－ おいら、おら
あたい － mostly girly self. In the 俗語-dictionary you can find a mention that the spread of the use of this pronoun dates back to the Meiji era. However, the source also mentions that this pronoun was widely used among courtesans. By the way, this fact is reflected in the anime 銀魂, just so you can watch the arc with women from 吉原 (よしわら、Yoshiwara). It is also interesting to mention that during the era, when street gangs with hairstyles a la Elvis of the 50s *)) were in fashion, it was used by wealthy girls from the street punks.
じぶん (自分) - mostly a male “I”, but don’t forget, the slogan of emancipated girls from Japan is ：ビバ・自分！（long live I)
わい － I, another pronoun, data on the era of use is not clear, therefore it is placed in the manga-anime-serial part of the publication
Other archaic pronoun forms that are remembered through books, dramas and even anime:
あっし – colloquial I, which was used colloquially during the Edo period
せっしゃ – samurai-brutal “I” (male, of course)
わがはい - another brutal male “I” used in the speech of the military class... However, now you can find it in manga or anime, for example “ゼロから始める魔法の書 Zero kara Hajimeru Mahō no Sho”, and this pronoun was used by a girl (and a small addition - information from regular readers of the community: in the creation “K Project”, the girl Neko also uses this type of “I”)
わらわ – female “I”, used among Japanese aristocrats, wives of samurai (written using kanji 妾)
わちき,あちき , わっち - the female “I”, which was more often used by geishas during the Edo period (the latter, by the way, can be heard often in the anime 銀魂)
よ (余, 予) – outdated masculine self
ちん(朕) – male self, which was used exclusively by the emperor until World War II
まろ(麻呂, 麿) - the male “I”, which was used in a fairly broad sense. But in literature you can find this pronoun in the remarks of the imperial court nobility (men)
なむち ,なんち, なんぢ – an obsolete form of the informal “you”
御身 （おんみ） － very polite you/you, which shows the aristocracy of speech.
吾輩 (わがはい） － also archaic “we”, which, however, can be heard in dramas and anime
儂 （わし） – “I” is archaic, which could still be read as かれ、, however, it was heard more than once and noticed with this particular kanji. In one of the matomenaver articles, where the information for this publication was taken from, they jokingly said that this pronoun can now be heard in the speeches of old men. In principle, according to dramas, this is how it is.
某 （それがし） ー I, obsolete, masculine, samurai
** Addition that was not available the first year after publication. Many fans of anime-manga dramas may be familiar with the following expressions:
こっちのセリフだ – it is ME who needs to talk about this, not you (it is I who should tell you about this, not you).
こっちも聞きたい – and I would like to find out (ask) about it myself.
感謝をするのはこっちのほうだよ －it is I who am grateful to you (it is I who should thank, and not vice versa).
Those. in entertainment literature, こっち acts as a personal pronoun. I definitely wanted to remember this moment.
The list turned out to be quite impressive. If there are any additions, write in the VK public page. Also, if the publication was useful, please share it on social networks
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Konnichiwa, dear friends.
Are you starting to learn Japanese on your own? I propose today to talk about Japanese pronouns.
Let's start with the pronoun "I", which in Japanese sounds like watashi.
You can write it with the character 私 or hiragana if you don't already know the characters. This pronoun is written like this: わたし.
Watashi is the universal “I”. It can be used by both men and women. If you are in some kind of formal setting, you can use the word watakushi. This is the same as watashi, but will sound more polite. This word is written in Hiragana as follows: わたくし. The hieroglyph will be the same.
If you are a man, you can use a pronoun like boku, which also means “I”, but is purely masculine. This word is written in Hiragana ぼく, its hieroglyph is: 僕.
The next pronoun is “OH”, which sounds like kare in Japanese. Its character is 彼, and it is written in hiragana as かれ.
But there is also a synonym for this pronoun, and it sounds like ano hito, which literally means “THAT PERSON”, and we often translate it as “HE”. Accordingly, it is written in hieroglyphs as あの人, in hiragana - あのひと.
The pronoun "SHE" in Japanese is kanojo. The hieroglyph is 彼女, the hiragana is かのじょ.
“THEY” in Japanese sounds like karera, this Japanese pronoun is written in hiragana as follows: かれら. The hieroglyph is 彼ら.
One can use a synonym for this pronoun anohitotachi, where tachi is a plural suffix and is sometimes added to some words to indicate plurality. With the hieroglyph this word is written あの人たち, in hiragana - あのひとたち.
A pronoun like “YOU” will sound like kimi in Japanese, written in hiragana like this: きみ, the character is 君.
“YOU” in Japanese is anata, the hieroglyph is 貴方, and the hiragana is あなた.
But in fact, the pronouns “you and you” are not used that often in life. Basically, in Japan, when addressing each other, they use their first or last name + the nominative suffix san (~さん). Using a surname shows that you are in a formal relationship with the person you are addressing. And this treatment is more common in Japan. For example: Tanaka san (たなかさん) or Nakamura san (なかむらさん). The address name + san is also used. If you address a person by name + さん, then this will mean that you are on friendly terms with this person.
Well, friends, today we went over the basic pronouns of the Japanese language. If these were new words for you, be sure to write them down in your notebook or dictionary. And if you are already familiar with basic grammar, then try to make sentences in Japanese with these pronouns. If grammar is still unfamiliar to you, then simply repeat these words to remember them. Another important part of Japanese grammar is cases. You will learn everything about Japanese cases by going through.
I hope our article will help you take your first steps in learning Japanese. Write your suggestions in the comments. I will be glad to see you in my lessons. See you again!
The affectionate and gentle “you” is usually used when addressing beloved girls or very young girls. Men do not use language towards each other, although a boss or teacher can afford such treatment to those of junior rank and age. In addition, “Kimi” is sometimes used by security guards and police with teenagers.
お前 － おまえ － Ohmae － Omae
Rough and masculine “you”. Used by men in informal groups. If your interlocutor is shy and polite, he may be embarrassed by such treatment even if you are friends. Calling "omae" to to a stranger may end in a quarrel. It is not used for women, although it very much depends on the woman’s behavior.
おぬし － Onusi
The old samurai form of "you", an unkind address. It was often used to refer to rivals or simply suspicious individuals. Now you can find them in films, anime and manga about samurai.
てめ － Teme － Topic
A very aggressively offensive form of “you”. It’s even better to translate this as “Hey, you!”, “Oh, you!”, this is how they address offenders or violators, often translated as a curse: “Oh, you! Bastard!" although this is not true.
