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The History of Words Borrowed from Japanese

Think of a language as a living thing. Like most things living, languages are always growing and changing. And today, in our highly connected world, these changes happen more and more quickly.

Every year, for example, the Merriam Webster English Dictionary adds many new words – or new meanings for common words -- to the English language.

English has always been made of up of words from many languages. Most English words come from Latin, Germanic languages and French.

But, in the last several hundred years, English has borrowed words and terms from other languages. These so-called “borrowed” words are not returned, of course. Rather, they remain part of a language for a very long time.

You can learn a lot about history and culture by looking at what led to the borrowing of certain words. Today, we will tell you the story of words that English has borrowed from Japanese.

It may surprise you that English has taken more than a dozen words from Japanese. They include skosh, honcho, tycoon1, hunky-dory and, most recently, emoji.

Emoji

Let’s start with emoji. About 10 years ago, English speakers used the word emoticons for computer keyboard symbols that express emotion in electronic messages and on the Internet. That was before the invention of smiley face icons3.

Then, in the late 1990s, a Japanese computer programmer named Shigetaku Kurita changed everything when he invented emoji -- images, icons and symbols that express meaning without words.

In Japanese, the word emoji means “pictograph” and comes from the word e meaning “picture” and moji, meaning “letter” or “character.” The similarity to the English word “emotion” is only by chance.

Skosh

Another word English borrowed from Japanese is skosh.

The English meaning of skosh is “a small amount.” The word is used informally in English.

It comes from the Japanese word sukoshi, which means the same thing. In Japanese, sukoshi can also mean “a few” “a little" or "some." Notice the similarity between the English and Japanese pronunciations: skosh and sukoshi.

American soldiers picked up sukoshi while they were stationed in Japan after World War II. They brought it back with them to the United States in the 1950s.

While the English word is a noun, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary notes that, sometimes we also use the word as an adverb, such as in the example “I’m a skosh hungry” In other words: "I'm a little bit hungry."

Honcho

Honcho, another word borrowed from Japanese, also came into use around World War II.

In English, honcho means "person in charge.” In Japanese, the word is hancho. It means "squad4 leader" and comes from two words: han meaning “squad" and cho meaning "head" or "chief."

Imprisoned5 American servicemen in Japan learned about the word. Later, they brought it back with them to the United States.

When native English speakers use the word honcho, they often say "head honcho." It has the same meaning as honcho. However, it is a native English speaker mistake, since "head honcho" is redundant6.

Tycoon

Another borrowed Japanese word that describes someone who holds a lot of power is tycoon. In English, the word refers to a very wealthy and powerful businessperson.

Tycoon comes from the Japanese taikun meaning “great lord or prince.” The word comes from the Middle Chinese word tai kiun.

In the mid-1800s, the United States was ready to use military power to force Japan to re-open trade relations with the West. Navy officer Commodore Matthew Perry led the negotiations7. When he arrived in Japan, he refused to meet with anyone other than the highest official in the empire.

The Japanese presented Perry with their shogun, or general of the Japanese army. But they were concerned that the English translation of his title would not seem powerful enough to Perry. So, they introduced their shogun using the title taikun.

What Perry – or the West – did not realize was that shoguns had more power than emperors in Japan at the time.

Perry’s negotiations with Japan were successful. And the word tycoon soon became popular in America. It came to mean “top leader.” Tycoon first appeared in print in the U.S. in 1857. Even Abraham Lincoln began to like the word. When he was president, members of his cabinet called him tycoon as a nickname8.

Hunky-dory

Our final example today is hunky-dory. Today, this adjective means “fine” or “free of trouble or problems.”

The word hunky-dory is actually a combination of words from two languages. The first part of the word – hunky – means “in a safe position.” Word experts say it is from the Dutch word honk9, which means "post” or “station.”

In the mid-1800s, “hunk” was a slang10 term that children in New York City used in street games, such as tag. In this game, one or more players chase after other players in an attempt to touch them with their hands. If the players reach the secure location before being tagged, they are considered “safe.”

The story of the second part of the word – dory – is less clear. One theory from 1876 links the word hunky-dory to the Japanese word honcho-dori. This was believed to be a street in Japan where American sailors went to have fun while they were stationed there.

However, clear evidence does not exist to prove this is true. What is clear, though, is that the pronunciation of the word for “street” in Japanese sounds a lot like “dory.” It’s pronounced tori.

Join us again soon to learn the history of English words borrowed from other languages.

I'm Jill Robbins. I’m Alice Bryant.

Words in This Story

dozen - n. a group of twelve things or people

keyboard - n. the set of keys that are used for a computer or typewriter

icon2 – n. a small picture on a computer screen that represents a program or function

pictograph – n. a pictorial11 symbol for a word or phrase

pronunciation – n. the way in which a word is said

squad – n. a group of people who are involved in a particular activity

empire – n. a group of countries or regions that are controlled by one ruler or one government

redundant – adj. a group of countries or regions that are controlled by one ruler or one government

nickname – n. a name that is different from your real name but that family, friends or others call you

slang – adj. words that are not part of standard language but are used informally


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 tycoon EKkze     
n.有钱有势的企业家,大亨
参考例句:
  • The tycoon is on the verge of bankruptcy.那名大亨濒临破产的边缘。
  • The tycoon has many servants to minister to his needs.那位大亨有很多人服侍他。
2 icon JbxxB     
n.偶像,崇拜的对象,画像
参考例句:
  • They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
  • Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。
3 icons bd21190449b7e88db48fa0f580a8f666     
n.偶像( icon的名词复数 );(计算机屏幕上表示命令、程序的)符号,图像
参考例句:
  • Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons. 用图标来区分重要的文本项。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
  • Daemonic icons should only be employed persistently if they provide continuous, useful status information. 只有会连续地提供有用状态信息的情况下,后台应用程序才应该一直使用图标。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
4 squad 4G1zq     
n.班,小队,小团体;vt.把…编成班或小组
参考例句:
  • The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
  • A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。
5 imprisoned bc7d0bcdd0951055b819cfd008ef0d8d     
下狱,监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁,合并执行。
  • They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。
6 redundant Tt2yO     
adj.多余的,过剩的;(食物)丰富的;被解雇的
参考例句:
  • There are too many redundant words in this book.这本书里多余的词太多。
  • Nearly all the redundant worker have been absorbed into other departments.几乎所有冗员,都已调往其他部门任职。
7 negotiations af4b5f3e98e178dd3c4bac64b625ecd0     
协商( negotiation的名词复数 ); 谈判; 完成(难事); 通过
参考例句:
  • negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
  • Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。
8 nickname aGuxJ     
n.绰号,昵称;v.给...取绰号,叫错名字
参考例句:
  • She called me by my nickname.她叫我的外号。
  • Why do you fasten such a nickname on her?你为什么给她取这样一个绰号?
9 honk TdizI     
n.雁叫声,汽车喇叭声
参考例句:
  • Don't honk the horn indiscriminately.不要乱鸣喇叭!
  • While passing another vehicle,you must honk your horn.通过另一部车时必须鸣按喇叭。
10 slang 2Thz2     
n.俚语,行话;vt.使用俚语,辱骂;vi.辱骂
参考例句:
  • The phrase is labelled as slang in the dictionary.这个短语在这本字典里被注为俚语。
  • Slang often goes in and out of fashion quickly.俚语往往很快风行起来又很快不再风行了。
11 pictorial PuWy6     
adj.绘画的;图片的;n.画报
参考例句:
  • The had insisted on a full pictorial coverage of the event.他们坚持要对那一事件做详尽的图片报道。
  • China Pictorial usually sells out soon after it hits the stands.《人民画报》往往一到报摊就销售一空。

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