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Japanese Language/Questions

SubjectDate AskedExpert
Romantic context11/21/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Hey I was wondering about this phrase" ...
  A: Yes, my apologies. I was focusing on the literal aspect of going back and forth when reading ...
Romantic context11/20/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Hey I was wondering about this phrase" ...
  A: I'm not sure of the context, but the line appears to be saying: "In the final stages of the story ...
characters10/6/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I have what I think is a Japanese woodblock print. I have included a photo of the characters on the ...
  A: Unfortunately, I have no idea as the handwriting is highly stylized. I've asked around to some other ...
Common Japanese Greetings9/28/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I would like to know, do any of the common greetings in Japanese have meanings that are distinctly ...
  A: If by "meanings that are distinctly of the traditional world view of Japan/China" you mean "not ...
Oriental Language9/9/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Can you the interpret the markings on the box and bottle of the after shave product know as "Jade ...
  A: Both Japanese and Chinese have these characters, of course, since Japanese writing was imported from ...
Another questions8/29/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Another questions: How do we say the following sentences in Japanese? 1.I can ...
  A: 1. ...
Phrase translation in kanji8/11/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I'm looking for some translations in kanji. I have taken Japanese classes for the last two years, ...
  A: Unfortunately, the question doesn't much relate to kanji selection as much as it does to proper word ...
Old Japanese Letter7/30/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I have attached a scan of the front cover of an old Japanese letter that I recently acquired. This ...
  A: Unfortunately, I cannot read much of this at all as it is quite old and quite handwritten! I looked ...
correct phonetic pronunciation of phrases7/22/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I have a short script, translated from English by an expert. However, I do not know how to correctly ...
  A: Rule 1: Vowel sounds always sound the same. A - Like 'a' in 'father'. I - Like 'ee' in 'eeny'. U - ...
Japanese tang translation7/13/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: i bought a sword a few years back and i'm just not getting round to looking into it i have been told ...
  A: It appears to be 関住藤原魚眞作. I'm not sure what the ...
Symbol for inner strength7/11/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I was wondering if you could tell me the symbol for strength. Not strength as in power, but more ...
  A: 精神力 "seishin-ryoku" (spiritual/psychological/inner strength) ...
Source to obtain reading primers7/10/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I would like to purchase official Japanese Reading primers for grades 1-6. I have tried Google, Bing ...
  A: MEXT (The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) provide a list of approved ...
translation of a quote from an anime called Lucky Star7/9/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: how do you say/pronounce "Heaven has abandoned us!" in Japanese? thanks for the help :)
  A: Typically, this proper "Heaven" is a reference to God, in which case you would use 神 (kami = ...
Kanji Symbol7/8/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Can you please give me the Kanji symbol for the word "Go" as in 'to go somewhere', or 'to leave to ...
  A: To "go" is 行く (i + ku = iku) which is comprised of the root (written in kanji, the "i" ...
translation6/21/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: How would you say "You make me feel alive" in Japanese? Thank you very much in advance.
  A: That expression is not something given among the Japanese, but I suppose if it was, it would be ...
Can you please tell me what it says6/13/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I would appreciate your help
  A: ボクのケイタイデンワのヒ ...
Japanese Language6/12/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I've been trying to learn Japanese for the past few months and I've got the Hiragana and Katakana ...
  A: You'll use it everyday. They are two of three "alphabets" used to write Japanese with in any ...
Japanese grammar help5/29/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I need help with this short presentation for japanese, I think the grammer is ok but any help would ...
  A: Some corrections: What shall we see? "Nani wo mi mashouka" Note: I use "wo" since that's the ...
Japanese to English translation5/15/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Can you tell me what the characters in this image mean? The top of the scroll is on the left in ...
  A: 精気神 seiki-gami "God of Energy" (not a formal god in Japan, but one of the ...
Japanese5/2/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I am an artist and linguist who loves the Japanese culture. I want to learn Japanese very much. I do ...
  A: こんにちは。私はアンジェ ...
Singular or Plural for an object5/2/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I am trying to translate a Japanese statement: ...
  A: Just for clarification, the sentence should read ...
Japannese ? if so translate please4/27/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: The attached characters appear on tne bottom of a vase we own. Are they Japanese? I may have taken ...
  A: The picture is oriented correctly, however the word or name is not Japanese. The characters are ...
translation into kanji4/14/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I would highly appreciate if you can translate this saying " key to immortality is living a life ...
  A: I can't seem to find anything specifically that ties a quality life with the concept of immortality, ...
translation into kanji4/12/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I would highly appreciate if you can translate this saying " key to immortality is living a life ...
  A: Kanji are characters used to write the roots of verbs, certain nouns, and a set of old idioms. A ...
About zenzen heki,heiki4/11/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Which is the real romanji for the meaning of I am ok. Heki or heiki? Or both are acceptable? I saw ...
  A: The correct romaji would be "heiki" as, in Japanese, there is an "i" sound and character present. ...
Japanese into English translation4/10/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Please could you translate this message into English for me? The message is: ...
  A: Apologies for the delay. You can use this: ...
Japanese into English translation4/9/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Please could you translate this message into English for me? The message is: ...
  A: It says: Hello and thank you for the mail. I uploaded the video to the address above (the ...
theres several4/8/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: During certain situations in my life, I would like to say something in Japanese but could never ...
  A: Sorry, it was an accident. ...
Kanji on Katana Tang4/7/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I inherited a very old katana from my father in law and would like to know what the kanji on the ...
  A: The engraving appears to be: 文治五年八月(日?) - The last ...
Name for a character...3/23/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I'm plan on playing a character in a game that I want to call either "The Silver Serpent" or "The ...
  A: Well, it depends on if you want the silver to represent the external color or the entire makeup of ...
Instription on3/17/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Inscription on knife Mr. DePaula, Could you translate the inscription on this World War 2 era ...
  A: Looking at the "Scouts of China" (as they are called) web page (http://scouting.edu.tw), it says ...
Instription on3/16/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Inscription on knife Mr. DePaula, Could you translate the inscription on this World War 2 era ...
  A: The inscription appears to be 中国童子軍 which means "The Chinese Boy ...
verify translation3/16/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I recently heard on the radio that a Japanese phrase, which was pronounced, "hara hachi bu," means ...
  A: The phrase, in its entirety, is: 腹八分目にする (hara ...
Japanese book3/16/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I have a Japanese book, which is somewhat similar to the schoolbooks you answered a question about a ...
  A: From the top (reading right to left, as they used to), we have: ...
Japanese book3/15/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I have a Japanese book, which is somewhat similar to the schoolbooks you answered a question about a ...
  A: The title is 日本地理初歩 (nihon chiri shoho), which translated ...
Japanese names for my goldfish3/12/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: I would like my pond goldfish to have Japanese names. One is named Maruten which I believe means ...
  A: Steven, "Maruten", to my knowledge, means a "dome" or "vault". Crown would be "冠" (kanmuri). ...
I don't get it3/10/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: My friend texted me this, "Chodo onaji koto kangaeteta." I would like an explanation to why its ...
  A: 丁度同じ事考えてた。 ...
Not sure3/2/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: onna mitai desu yo Could have the translation for this? I was told that it said looks like a girl, ...
  A: This sentence means that the subject is in some way like a girl. What that characteristic is comes ...
Double checking a translation2/22/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Heya, I did a translation here and I was wondering if you look at something really quick: ...
  A: I guess I'm not up on the context with this particular story to know if it's discussing a feeling ...
Double checking a translation2/22/2011Michael DePaula
  Q: Heya, I did a translation here and I was wondering if you look at something really quick: ...
  A: It reads (to me) just as it would in English, namely, that she didn't realize he had had feelings ...

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Japanese Language

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Michael DePaula

Top Expert on this page

Expertise

Anything pertaining to daily conversation, music, historical/modern forms of Japanese-character writing, computer/IT-related vocabulary, and aquatic sciences.

Experience

10 years of Japanese study with about 7 of those years in Japan.

Organizations
Global Underwater Explorers, Okinawa Underwater Explorers, Okinawa Freethought Society

Education/Credentials
Degree in Music Performance, University of Southern California. 8 years working the IT/computer programming world. 8 years of amateur translation assistance. 4 years in marine conservation/technical dive exploration in Japan.

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