Abbreviated and contracted words are a common feature in the Japanese language. Long words are often contracted into shorter forms, which then become the predominant forms. For example, the University of Tokyo, in Japanese becomes , and "remote control", , becomes . Names are also contracted in this way. For example, Takuya Kimura, in Japanese Kimura Takuya, an entertainer, is referred to as Kimutaku.
The names of some very familiar companies are also contractions. For example, Toshiba (東芝), is a contraction or portmanteau of , and Nissan (日産), is a contraction of .
The contractions may be commonly used, or they may be specific to a particular group of people. For example, the is known as by its employees, but this terminology is not familiar to most Japanese.
Patterns of contraction Japanese words are spelled using characters that represent syllables (morae), rather than individual phonetic units (phonemes) as in the English alphabet. These characters are compiled into two syllabaries: hiragana and katakana. Japanese also makes extensive use of adopted Chinese characters, or kanji, which may be pronounced with one or more syllables. Therefore, when a word or phrase is abbreviated, it does not take the form of initials, but the key characters of the original phrase, such that a new word is made, often recognizably derived from the original. In contracted kanji words, the most common pattern of contraction is to take the first kanji of each word in a phrase and put them together as a portmanteau. In the example from the lead, using , the Tō- of Tōkyō and the Dai- of Daigaku becomes , the common abbreviation for the University of Tokyo.
There are also instances in which alternative readings of a particular kanji are used in the contraction. For example, Nagoya's main train station, Nagoya Station, is referred to by locals as , a contraction of , in which the alternative reading of Na- (名), the first character in "Nagoya", is used.
In loanwords and names, the most common pattern is to take the first two morae (or kana) of each of the two words, and combine them forming a new, single word. For example, "family restaurant" or famirī resutoran (ファミリーレストラン) becomes famiresu (ファミレス).
Yōon sounds, those sounds represented using a kana ending in i and a small ya, yu or yo kana, such as kyo count as one mora. Japanese long vowels count as two morae, and may disappear (the same can be said for the sokuon, or small tsu っ); Harry Potter, originally Harī Pottā (ハリーポッター), is contracted to Haripota (ハリポタ), or otherwise be altered; actress Kyoko Fukada, Fukada Kyōko (深田恭子), becomes Fukakyon (ふかきょん).
These abbreviated names are so common in Japan that many companies initiate abbreviations of the names of their own products. For example, the animated series Pretty Cure (プリティキュア) marketed itself under the five-character abbreviated name purikyua (プリキュア).
Long kanji names ContractionKanjiOriginal wordFull kanjiMeaningNikkeiNihon Keizai ShinbunJapan Economic TimesNōdaiTōkyō Nōgyō DaigakuAgricultural University of TokyoNyūkanNyūkoku KanrikyokuImmigration Officekōkōkōtōgakkōhigh schoolOdakyūOdawara Kyūkō Dentetsulit. Odawara Express Electric Railway (Odakyū Electric Railway)Tochō Tōkyō-to Chōsha Tokyo Metropolitan Government BuildingTōdai Tōkyō Daigaku University of Tokyo Kokuren Kokusai Rengō The United Nations Kansai Gaikokugo Daigaku Kansai International Language University
Loanwords
Three and four character loanwords
ContractionKatakanaOriginal wordKatakanaMeaningamefutoamerikan futtobōruAmerican footballanimeanimēshonanimation dejikame dejitaru kamera digital cameradepātodepātomento sutoadepartment storeeakonea kondishonāair conditionerfamikonfamirī konpyūtāfamily computer (Nintendo)famiresufamirī resutoranfamily restaurantkonbinikonbiniensu sutoaconvenience storepasokonpāsonaru konpyūtāpersonal computer, PCpuroresupurofesshonaru resuringuprofessional wrestlingrabuhorabu hoterulove hotelrimokonrimōto kontorōrāremote controlsandosandouichisandwichsumahosumāto fonsmart phoneterebiterebijonTV (television)toiretoirettotoiletwāpurowādo purosessāword processor
Abbreviations AbbreviationJapaneseOriginal wordJapaneseMeaningbukatsubukatsudōafter-school club (extracurricular) activityshāshinshāpupen no shin(in colloquial language) lead of a mechanical pencilkeitaikeitaidenwaMobile phone
Created words Many abbreviations, especially four-character words, have been created for particular products or TV shows.
Contraction Japanese Origin NotesPokémonpoketto monsutā (Pocket Monster[s])The well-known video game and animation franchise.purikurapurinto kurabu (Print club)An automated photograph machinemukku ( + )magazine + bookA mook, a cross between a magazine and a booksedoguro ( + )Cedric & GloriaNissan Cedric and Nissan Gloria luxury sedanspurosaku ( + )Probox & SucceedToyota Probox and Toyota Succeed family of vans
Contractions of names ContractionJapaneseNameJapaneseNotesBurapiBuraddo Pitto (Brad Pitt)Hollywood actor.DikapuriReonarudo Dikapurio (Leonardo DiCaprio)Hollywood actor. Fukakyon Kyōko FukadaJapanese idol and actress. Hanakana Kana Hanazawa actress, singer, and voice actress. Hashiryū Ryūtarō Hashimoto politician.KimutakuTakuya KimuraSMAP star Matsujun Jun Matsumoto Japanese idol, member of boy-band Arashi. Matsuken Ken Matsudaira Jidaigeki actor, famous for Matsuken samba. Shimuken Ken Shimura television performer and actor.Shuwa-chanĀnorudo Shuwarutseneggā (Arnold Schwarzenegger)Hollywood actor and politician. Yamataku Taku Yamasaki politician. Tattsun Tatsuhisa Suzuki main vocalist of OLDCODEX and voice actor.
Highways and railway lines Many highways and railway lines have names that are contractions of the names of their endpoints. For example, (Tomei Expressway) takes one kanji (tō) from (Tokyo) and the other (mei) from (Nagoya; its pronunciation changes from the kun'yomi na to the on'yomi mei). (Tokyu Toyoko Line) links Tokyo and Yokohama, taking part of its name from each city.
Other examples include: ContractionJapaneseOriginJapaneseKeiyō LineTokyo + ChibaSaikyō LineSaitama + TokyoSenzan LineSendai + YamagataHanshin Main LineOsaka + KobeSeikan TunnelAomori + Hakodate
Sometimes names of this type preserve older place names. For instance, the character is taken from the word (Musashi), which was once the name of the Japanese province in which the city of Tokyo was located, can still be seen in the company names (Tobu or "East Musashi"), (Seibu or "West Musashi"), and in the (Nanbu Line or "South Musashi Line").
Some other examples:
ContractionJapaneseOriginJapaneseSōbu LineKazusa/Shimōsa + MusashiUchibō LineInner + Bōsō Peninsula (= Awa + Kazusa)Sotobō LineOuter + Bōsō Peninsula (= Awa + Kazusa)Jōban LineHitachi + IwakiNippō Main LineHyūga + Buzen/BungoHōhi Main LineBungo + Higo
Single letters as abbreviations Many single letters of the Latin alphabet have names that resemble the pronunciations of Japanese words or characters. Japanese people use them in contexts such as advertising to catch the reader's attention. Other uses of letters include abbreviations of spellings of words. Here are some examples:
E: /いい (ii; the word for "good" in Japanese). The letter appears in the name of the company e-homes. J: The first letter of "Japan" (日本) as in J1 League, J-Phone. Q: The kanji きゅう ("nine") has the reading kyū. Japanese "Dial Q2" premium-rate telephone numbers start with 0990. S, M: used for sadism and masochism respectively, often referring to mild personality traits rather than sexual fetishes. "SM" is also used for sadomasochism, instead of "S&M" used in English, in a more sexual context. W: The English word "double." Japanese people sometimes pronounce the letter "double." ダブル For example, ”Wデート” (W deeto) means "double date(s)"; "WW Burger" from Freshness Burger has double beef and double cheese.
Longer Romaji abbreviations
ContractionJapanese spoken formOriginNotesCM (shī-emu)commercial messagea single commercial or a commercial breakGP (jī-pī)grand prixa motor race or other sporting eventGW() (jī-daburu(yū))Golden Week ()Golden Week is a series of four unrelated holidays within one week at the beginning of MayNEET (nīto)no education, employment, or trainingA NEET is someone who is unable or unwilling to work, and typically lives at home supported by their parents.NG (enu-jī)no good ()Often used as the opposite of "OK"; a mistake while filming a scene for film or TVOL (ōeru)office lady ()OLs are low-level female corporate employeesPVピーブイ (pībui)promotional videothe term is generally used to describe music videos and trailersSPエスピー (esupī)special (スペシャル)a TV special, a special episode of a particular TV seriesVTR (buitīāru)video tape recordinga video clip shown during a TV program for members of a panel to comment onW (wārudokappu)World CupUsed to refer to the FIFA World Cup for soccer
References