In the
Japanese language
is spoken natively by about 128 million people, primarily by Japanese people and primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language. Japanese belongs to the Japonic or Japanese- Ryukyuan language family. There have been ...
, aizuchi ( ja,
相槌
In the Japanese language, aizuchi ( ja, 相槌, links=no or , ) are interjections during a conversation that indicate the listener is paying attention or understands the speaker. In linguistic terms, these are a form of phatic expression. Aizuch ...
, links=no or , ) are
interjection
An interjection is a word or expression that occurs as an utterance on its own and expresses a spontaneous feeling or reaction. It is a diverse category, encompassing many different parts of speech, such as exclamations ''(ouch!'', ''wow!''), curse ...
s during a conversation that indicate the listener is paying attention or understands the speaker. In linguistic terms, these are a form of
phatic expression
In linguistics, a phatic expression (, ) is a communication which primarily serves to establish or maintain social relationships. In other words, phatic expressions have mostly socio-pragmatic rather than denotational functions. They can be obse ...
. Aizuchi are considered reassuring to the speaker, indicating that the listener is active and involved in the discussion.
Examples
Common ''aizuchi'' include:
* , , or
*
*
* , , , or (in
Kansai)
*
*
nodding
A nod of the head is a gesture in which the head is tilted in alternating up and down arcs along the sagittal plane. In many cultures, it is most commonly, but not universally, used to indicate agreement, acceptance, or acknowledgement.
To ...
These have a similar function to English "yeah", "yup", "OK", "really?", "uh-huh", "oh", and so on.
Aizuchi are frequently misinterpreted by non-native speakers as the listener showing agreement and approval. Business relations in particular can be hampered by non-native speakers assuming that their Japanese counterparts have been agreeing to their suggestions all along, especially with , when the native Japanese speaker meant only that they follow or understand the suggestions – "got it", not "agreed".
Aizuchi can also take the form of so-called echo questions, which consist of a noun plus . After Speaker A asks a question, Speaker B may repeat a key noun followed by ''desu ka'' to confirm what Speaker A was talking about or simply to keep communication open while Speaker B thinks of an answer. A rough English analog would be "A ..., you say?", as in: "So I bought this new car"; reply: "A car, you say?".
See also
*
Backchannel (linguistics)
In linguistics, a backchanneling during a conversation occurs when one participant is speaking and another participant interjects responses to the speaker. A backchannel response can be verbal, non-verbal, or both. Backchannel responses are often ...
References
{{Reflist
Further reading
*
Boye De Mente Boye may refer to:
* Boye (surname)
*Boye County, in Hebei, China
* Boye (band), the Serbian and former Yugoslav alternative rock band
* Boye (dog), the poodle dog belonging to Prince Rupert of the Rhine
* Boye Brogeland (born 1973), Norwegian inte ...
(2011). ''Japan's Cultural Code Words: 233 Key Terms That Explain the Attitudes and Behavior of the Japanese''. Rutland, Vermont: Tuttle Publishing.
External links
The Japanese art of aizuchiJapanese Conversational Interjections - What is Aizuchi?
Japanese honorifics
Pragmatics