AboutDreams Expertise I have been teaching myself the language for the past seven years, having consistent practice with Japanese materials. I can help translate things from English to Japanese or vice versa. I can also help you get started if you're planning on taking up the language. =) I'm most familiar with things like anime, manga, J-pop, games and so on.
Experience I began learning the language in 1999. I frequently talk with penpals and natives in Japan, as well as continually keep up practicing with authentic Japanese materials.
Question Hi there, I bought a Japanese katana a year or so back. Its not in the best of condition, its been modified with the ww2 fittings, but the blade seems older, and thers no sign that the tang has been shortened. However, rust has built up over the years and the characters have become somewhat hard to read, as half have rusted away. Can you please help me? http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc85/Tsukikage777/1.1.jpg
Answer Hello,
I'm sorry, but I couldn't read it very well. I'm quite sure it's the name of the person who fashioned the sword, but after much research I couldn't match up two of the kanji symbols successfully.
I'm sure the first one is (shou) and the third one is l (kou). But I just cannot find a close enough match for the other two. More than likely, the first two symbols are the person's surname, and the last two are their given name.
I'm sorry I can't be of more help. :( There's a good forum you might want to try asking at that's frequented by Japanese natives: http://www.japanese-online.com/forum/index.htm Unfortunetly, because you do not need to sign up to post a message, it's been a bit overrun by spam lately, but people are still asking/answering questions about Japan, so it's worth a try.
