私たちは、人々が好きな有名人について読んで、それについて気分を良くすることができるスペースを作りたかったのです.私たちは、人々が有名人についてポジティブな方法でゴシップできる場所を作りたかった.
私たちは、何年もの間、日本のエンターテインメント ニュースを生き、呼吸してきた情熱的なエンターテインメント ニュース ジャンキーの小さなチームです。
私たちは、有名人の最新のゴシップを分析し、日本のポップ カルチャーの最新トレンドを分析することを何よりも愛しています。私たちはエンターテインメントのすべてに夢中になっており、私たちの情熱を世界と共有したいと考えています。当サイトへようこそ！
date in japanese, /date-in-japanese,
Video: 6 Steps HOW to DATE a Japanese GIRL: Watch BEFORE you try!!!
私たちは、人々が好きな有名人について読んで、それについて気分を良くすることができるスペースを作りたかったのです.私たちは、人々が有名人についてポジティブな方法でゴシップできる場所を作りたかった.
私たちは、何年もの間、日本のエンターテインメント ニュースを生き、呼吸してきた情熱的なエンターテインメント ニュース ジャンキーの小さなチームです。
date in japanese, 2021-05-31, 6 Steps HOW to DATE a Japanese GIRL: Watch BEFORE you try!!!, If you really want to get a Japanese girlfriend you NEED to know these 6 points or you will ruin all your chances of ever getting with a Japanese girl!
(^ω^)Click to Subscribe!
http://www.youtube.com/c/AskJapanese?sub_confirmation=1
(ΦωΦ)
CathyCat’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/canudoitcosplaygirl
CathyCat’s Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/cathycat_tv
CathyCat’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cathycat_tv
(●ↀωↀ●)✧
Ask Japanese is interviewing Japanese and foreigners in Japan about life in Japan, dating Japanese, travel tips, tasty foods, anime, manga and more. Through our interviews, we try to bring Japanese culture to the world! (=✧ω✧=)
If you plan to travel or live in Japan, we feature many topics about life in Japan and where to travel to. We ask Japanese girls, boys and elders to give you a glimpse at what Japan is really like. Our reporter and YouTuber Cathy Cat interviews people in Japanese, English and sometimes German!
Thank you for watching and please leave your comments on this video!
(=*ω*=)
For business or collaboration inquiries, contact us!
We are looking forward to working with you!
https://wao.ne.jp/forms/agency-contact/form.php
SUBTITLES are available!!
Please click the settings and activate your subtitles!!
#japanesegirlfriend #datingjapanese #japanesegirls, Ask Japanese
,
Dates
Dates are similar to using counters, one each for year, month, and day.
- ～年 【～ねん】 – year counter
- ～月 【～がつ】 – month counter
- ～日 【～にち】 – day counter
The year counter is pretty straight-forward, as there are no reading variations. However, there are variations for months and a whole bunch of exceptions for days of the month. The two lists below show all the months in a year and the days of the month. Special readings or variations are appropriately marked.
| Month | Kanji | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| What month | 何月 | なん・がつ |
| January | 一月 | いち・がつ |
| February | 二月 | に・がつ |
| March | 三月 | さん・がつ |
| April | 四月 | し・がつ |
| May | 五月 | ご・がつ |
| June | 六月 | ろく・がつ |
| July | 七月 | しち・がつ |
| August | 八月 | はち・がつ |
| September | 九月 | く・がつ |
| October | 十月 | じゅう・がつ |
| November | 十一月 | じゅう・いち・がつ |
| December | 十二月 | じゅう・に・がつ |
| Day | Kanji | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| What day | 何日 | なん・にち |
| 1st | 一日 | ついたち |
| 2nd | 二日 | ふつ・か |
| 3rd | 三日 | みっ・か |
| 4th | 四日 | よっ・か |
| 5th | 五日 | いつ・か |
| 6th | 六日 | むい・か |
| 7th | 七日 | なの・か |
| 8th | 八日 | よう・か |
| 9th | 九日 | ここの・か |
| 10th | 十日 | とお・か |
| 11th | 十一日 | じゅう・いち・にち |
| 12th | 十二日 | じゅう・に・にち |
| 13th | 十三日 | じゅう・さん・にち |
| 14th | 十四日 | じゅう・よっ・か |
| 15th | 十五日 | じゅう・ご・にち |
| 16th | 十六日 | じゅう・ろく・にち |
| 17th | 十七日 | じゅう・しち・にち |
| 18th | 十八日 | じゅう・はち・にち |
| 19th | 十九日 | じゅう・く・にち |
| 20th | 二十日 | はつ・か |
| 21st | 二十一日 | に・じゅう・いち・にち |
| 22nd | 二十二日 | に・じゅう・に・にち |
| 23rd | 二十三日 | に・じゅう・さん・にち |
| 24th | 二十四日 | に・じゅう・よっ・か |
| 25th | 二十五日 | に・じゅう・ご・にち |
| 26th | 二十六日 | に・じゅう・ろく・にち |
| 27th | 二十七日 | に・じゅう・しち・にち |
| 28th | 二十八日 | に・じゅう・はち・にち |
| 29th | 二十九日 | に・じゅう・く・にち |
| 30th | 三十日 | さん・じゅう・にち |
| 31st | 三十一日 | さん・じゅう・いち・にち |
For completeness, here are all the days in the week.
- 何曜日 【なん・よう・び】 – What day of week
- 月曜日 【げつ・よう・び】 – Monday
- 火曜日 【か・よう・び】 – Tuesday
- 水曜日 【すい・よう・び】 – Wednesday
- 木曜日 【もく・よう・び】 – Thursday
- 金曜日 【きん・よう・び】 – Friday
- 土曜日 【ど・よう・び】 – Saturday
- 日曜日 【にち・よう・び】 – Sunday
1. How are Dates Usually Expressed in Japanese?
How to say dates in Japanese is very simple. Dates in Japanese writing start with the year, then the month, and finally the day. The only exception is when there’s a particular instruction to write it a different way, such as on an entry form.
1- How to Write Dates in Japanese
1. April 30, 2019 is written as follows:
2019年4月30日 or 2019/04/30
- 年 (nen) : year
- 月 (gatsu) : month
- 日(nichi) : day
2. With the days of the week, Tuesday, April 30th, 2019 is written as follows:
2019年4月30日 (火曜) or 2019年4月30日 (火)
- The days of the week are usually indicated in a round bracket ( ) and placed after the day.
- The name of the day is expressed in a short form.
Tuesday is 火曜日（ka-yōbi), but when it’s expressed in a written form, it usually becomes 火曜 (ka-yō) or just 火 (ka).
2- How to Read Dates in Japanese
2019年4月30日 (火曜) is read as follows:
Ni-sen jū-kyū / nen / shi / gatsu / san-jū / nichi / ka-yō
Literally translated as:
Two-thousand ten nine / year / four / month / three ten / day / Tuesday
To listen to the pronunciation of basic Japanese numbers, please visit Numbers on our website.
3- Examples
- 今日は2019年1月13日です。
Kyō wa ni-sen jū kyū-nen ichi-gatsu jū-san-nichi desu.
Today is January 13th, 2019. - 私は1990年5月1日生まれです。
Watashi wa sen kyū-hyaku kyū-jū-nen go-gatsu tsuitachi umare desu.
I was born on May 1st, 1990. - 試験は2019年8月30日です。
Shiken wa ni-sen jū kyū-nen hachi-gatsu san-jū-nichi desu.
The examination is on August 30th, 2019.
In Japan, keeping the date and time for appointments is very important. Please don’t mix up months and dates!
2. How to Say the Years in Japanese
1- Gregorian Calendar
The Gregorian calendar is very common in Japan to express the years.
Just say the year and then add “nen (年)” which is a year counter meaning ‘year’.
- 1575年 : sen go-hyaku nana-jū go-nen
- 1998年：sen kyū-hyaku kyū-jū hachi-nen
- 2003年：ni-sen san-nen
In some cases, numbers can be expressed with the last two digits as a short version.
For example, 1998 is 98年 (kyū-jū hachi-nen).
2- Japanese Era Calendar
Did you know that there’s also a Japanese calendar?
The Japanese people use 和暦 (Wareki), or the Japanese era calendar, which is based on the reigns of Japanese emperors. The previous era was called 平成 (Heisei), which started on January 8, 1989, when the previous Emperor, Akihito, acceded to the throne following the death of his father. The current era is called 令和 (Reiwa), which started on May 1, 2019, when the current Emperor, Naruhito, acceded to the throne following the abdication of his father.
2019 is the first year of the Reiwa era. It’s written as 令和1年 and read as Reiwa ichi-nen.
This traditional Japanese era calendar is often used for official occasions and in written form, such as in official documents used for public services at a city hall.
3- Vocabulary for Describing Relative Years
- 今年 ことし (Kotoshi) : This year
- 去年 きょねん (Kyonen) : Last year
- 一昨年 おととし (Ototoshi) : The year before last year
- 来年 らいねん (Rainen) : Next year
- 再来年 さらいねん (Sarainen) : The year after next year
- 閏年 うるうどし (Urūdoshi) : Leap year
- 毎年 まいとし (Maitoshi) : Every year
4- Examples
- 今年は2019年です。
Kotoshi wa ni-sen jū kyū-nen desu.
This year is 2019. - 来年の2020年はうるう年です。
Rainen no ni-sen ni-jū-nen wa urūdoshi desu.
The next year of 2020 is a leap year. - 2005年は平成17年です。
Ni-sen go-nen wa Heisei jū nana-nen desu.
2005 was year seventeen of the Heisei era. - 私は2012年に結婚しました。
Watashi wa ni-sen jū ni-nen ni kekkon shimashita.
I got married in 2012.
The years in Japanese
Just mention the year concerned and then add the kanji 年 nen for year.
The Japanese will typically use the Gregorian calendar although they will also often use the Japanese one based on the reigns of Japanese emperors. Since May 2019, Japan has entered the 令和 reiwa imperial era. You will see this printed on tickets for example when you travel to Japan.
Here are the correspondences of the years:
| Japanese | Meaning | Gregorian calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 平成２９年 | year 29 of the Heisei era | 2017 |
| 平成３０年 | year 30 of the Heisei era | 2018 |
| 平成３１年 | year 31 of the Heisei era | 2019 (From January to April) |
| 令和１年 | year 1 of the Reiwa era | 2019 (From May to December) |
| 令和２年 | year 2 of the Reiwa era | 2020 |
| 令和３年 | year 3 of the Reiwa era | 2021 |
| 令和４年 | year 4 of the Reiwa era | 2022 |
There is actually an application called Gengou Free to easily convert any year of the Gregorian calendar into its traditional Japanese counterpart.
The months in Japanese
It works in the same way for Japanese months: First write the number corresponding to the month concerned, then the kanji 月 gatsu. Thus:
- １月 ichi-gatsu: January
- ２月 ni-gatsu: February
- ３月 san-gatsu: March
- ４月 shi-gatsu: April
- ５月 go-gatsu: May
- ６月 roku-gatsu: June
- ７月 shichi-gatsu: July
- ８月 hachi-gatsu: August
- ９月 ku-gatsu: September
- １０月 jû-gatsu: October
- １１月 jûichi-gatsu: November
- １２月 jûni-gatsu: December
The days of the week and of the month in Japanese
The days of the week
It should be mentioned that the week officially begins on Sunday rather than Monday.
- 日曜日 nichi-yôbi: Sunday (“Day of the Sun”)
- 月曜日 getsu-yôbi: Monday (“Day of the Moon”)
- 火曜日 ka-yôbi: Tuesday (“Day of Fire”)
- 水曜日 sui-yôbi: Wednesday (“Day of Water”)
- 木曜日 moku-yôbi: Thursday (“Day of Wood”)
- 金曜日 kin-yôbi: Friday (“Day of Gold”)
- 土曜日 do-yôbi: Saturday (“Day of the Earth”)
The days of the month
They follow a simple rule (number + 日 nichi) but almost half of them are irregular! See the complete list below, with an asterisk after each irregular word:
- １日 tsuitachi*
- ２日 futsuka*
- ３日 mikka*
- ４日 yokka*
- ５日 itsuka*
- ６日 muika*
- ７日 nanoka*
- ８日 yôka*
- ９日 kokonoka*
- １０日 tôka*
- １１日 jûichi-nichi
- １２日 jûni-nichi
- １３日 jûsan-nichi
- １４日 jûyokka*
- １５日 jûgo-nichi
- １６日 jûroku-nichi
- １７日 jûshichi-nichi
- １８日 jûhachi-nichi
- １９日 jûku-nichi
- ２０日 hatsuka*
- ２１日 nijûichi-nichi
- ２２日 nijûni-nichi
- ２３日 nijûsan’-nichi
- ２４日 nijûyokka*
- ２５日 nijûgo-nichi
- ２６日 nijûroku-nichi
- ２７日 nijûshichi-nichi
- ２８日 nijûhichi-nichi
- ２９日 nijûku-nichi
- ３０日 sanjû-nichi
- ３１日 sanjûichi-nichi
—
Don’t forget to look at the calendar of events in Japan.
Day of the Week 曜日 [yōbi]
| 日本語[Japanese] | 読み[Reading] | 英語[English] |
|---|---|---|
| 月曜日 | getsuyōbi | Monday |
| 火曜日 | kayōbi | Tuesday |
| 水曜日 | suiyōbi | Wednesday |
| 木曜日 | mokuyōbi | Thursday |
| 金曜日 | kinyōbi | Friday |
| 土曜日 | doyōbi | Saturday |
| 日曜日 | nichiyōbi | Sunday |
| 何曜日 | nanyōbi | Which day of the week? |
The last syllable [bi] is sometimes omitted in daily conversation. For example, 月曜 [getsuyō], 火曜 [kayō], 水曜 [suiyō]…
Day of the Month 日 [hi]
| 日本語 [nihongo] | 読み [yomi] | 英語 [eigo] |
|---|---|---|
| １日 （一日） | tsuitachi | 1st |
| ２日 （二日） | futsuka | 2nd |
| ３日 （三日） | mikka | 3rd |
| ４日 （四日） | yokka | 4th |
| ５日 （五日） | itsuka | 5th |
| ６日 （六日） | muika | 6th |
| ７日 （七日） | nanoka | 7th |
| ８日 （八日） | yōka | 8th |
| ９日 （九日） | kokonoka | 9th |
| １０日 （十日） | tōka | 10th |
| １１日 （十一日） | jūichi-nichi | 11th |
| １２日 （十二日） | jūni-nichi | 12th |
| １３日 （十三日） | jūsan-nichi | 13th |
| １４日 （十四日） | jūyokka | 1４th |
| １５日 （十五日） | jūgo-nichi | 1５th |
| １６日 （十六日） | jūroku-nichi | 1６th |
| １７日 （十七日） | jūshichi-nichi | 1７th |
| １８日 （十八日） | jūhachi-nichi | 1８th |
| １９日 （十九日） | jūku-nichi | 1９th |
| ２０日 （二十日） | hatsuka | ２０th |
| ２１日 （二十一日） | ni-jūichi-nichi | ２１th |
| ３０日 （三十日） | san-jū-nichi | ３０th |
| 何日 | nan-nichi | Which day? |
See Numbers page to learn how to read numbers.
Add 日 [nichi] after numbers. Irregular readings are colored in red.
In general, Arabic number is used more often than the kanji numbers.
Usage
Dates in Japanese are written and spoken using numbers (ichi, ni, san 一二三) and the counters for “year,” “month,” and “day,” in this order, which respectively would be ~nen ～年, ~gatsu ～月, and ~nichi ～日 (or ~ka 日). For example:
- ni-sen-nen juu-ni-gatsu san-juu-ichi-nichi
２０００年１２月３１日
Year 2000, month 12, day 31.
Separators
Typically, slashes are used to separate the year, month, and day in Japanese dates. Besides slashes, dots and hyphens may be used as well.
| Separator | Slashes | Dots | Hyphens |
|---|---|---|---|
| With four-digit year | 2000/12/31 2022/02/22 2022/2/22 |
2000.12.31 2022.02.22 2222.2.22 |
2000-12-31 2022-02-22 2022-2-22 |
| With two-digit year | 00/12/31 22/02/22 22/2/22 |
00.12.31 22.02.22 22.2.22 |
00-12-31 22-02-22 22-2-22 |
Kanji Numbers
It’s possible for the number of the year, month, and day of a date to be written as the Japanese word for the number, using kanji, for example, rather than using the number’s representation in Arabic numerals.
- ni-sen-nen, juu-ni-gatsu, san-juu-ichi-nichi
二千年十二月三十一日
Year two-thousand, month ten-two, day three-ten-one.
Year 2000, month 12, day 31.
Kanji Digits
It’s possible for the number of the year, month, and day of a date to be written using kanji by replacing the digits of the number that would be written using Arabic numerals by the equivalent kanji. There are kanji for the numbers 1 to 9 (一二三四五六七八九), but not for 0, so a circle (small ○ or large ◯) is used for 0 instead, which may be read out loud as maru 丸, “circle.”
- ni-maru-maru-maru-nen ichi-ni-gatsu san-ichi-nichi
二◯◯◯年一二月三一日
Year two-zero-zero-zero, month one-two, day three-one.
Year 2000, month 12, day 31.
Partial Dates
Dates don’t necessarily need to include year, month, and day. Some dates are only year and month, some are only month and day. For example:
Japanese Eras Instead of Gregorian Year
Sometimes the year of a Japanese era is used instead of a year according to the Gregorian calendar. For example, the Heisei 平成 era began in 1989 and lasted until 2019, therefore:
- heisei juu-ni-nen
平成１２年
Twelfth year of the Heisei era.
Year 2000. 2000 A.D. 2000 C.E.
This means 平成１２年１２月３１日 and ２０００年１２月３１日 refer to the same date.
The Gregorian year is based on the year of Jesus Christ’s birth, A.D. meaning “anno domini” (in the year of our loud), and B.C. for negative year numbers meaning “before Christ.” Japanese years are somewhat based on imperial eras, with some of them end with the death of an emperor. Nowadays, the Gregorian calendar is used globally, including by countries that don’t consider Christ their lord, so the acronyms C.E. and B.C.E. are sometimes used instead for “common era” and “before common era.”
The terms wareki 和暦 and seireki 西暦 refer to Japanese and Western calendars, respectively.
The word gan’nen 元年, literally “origin year,” refers to the first year (１年) of an era and may be used as part of a date.
- 平成元年１２月３１日 and １９８９年１２月３１日 refer to the same date.
Eras may begin and end in the middle of years. The last year of Heisei is the 31st, and then Reiwa 令和 begins, but the Reiwa era only begins in 1st of May of 2019. From January to April of 2019, it’s not Reiwa yet.(mynavi-agent.jp:履歴書の年号の書き方やルール)
- heisei san-juu-ichi-nen shi-gatsu san-juu-nichi
平成３１年４月３０日
31st year of the Heisei era, month 4, day 30.
30 of April, 2019. - Reiwa gan’nen go-gatsu tsuitachi
令和元年５月１日
Origin year of the Reiwa era, month 5, day 1.
1 of May, 2019.
The Japanese years were more common in the past before the globalization of Japan. They’re still used, e.g. ceremonially and in documents, but nowadays Gregorian years are more common.
Naturally there was a generation of people who were born using Japanese years and had trouble adapting to such changes, doing stuff like:
- Saying dates, like their birth year, in Japanese years.
- Writing Japanese years when people expected Gregorian ones.
- Having trouble figuring out what year a Gregorian year is supposed to be.
- Having trouble converting one year to the other.
And so on. Could be some plot point in some manga or anime out there, like you have a character that looks young but is actually old as hinted, among other things, by their use of old-fashioned Japanese years or trouble reading Gregorian ones.
Anime: KADO: The Right Answer, Seikai suru Kado 正解するカド (Episode 1)
- Context: someone types a date.
- Heisei ni…
平成２
Heisei era, year 2… - *backspace*
- ni-sen-juu-nana-nen shichi-gatsu ni-juu-go-nichi
２０１７年７月２５日
25 of July of 2017. (also known as Heisei year 29).
Parentheses After Date
A kanji enclosed by parentheses after a date typically refers to the weekday that date falls in, e.g.:
- ２０００年０１月０１日（土）
Year 2000, month 1, day 1, which is a doyoubi 土曜日, “Saturday.” - ２０００年０１月０２日（日）
Year 2000, month 1, day 2, which is a nichiyoubi 日曜日, “Sunday.”
So it’s like writing (sat) for Saturday or (sun) for Sunday. It’s an abbreviated way of writing the weekday.
| nichi-youbi （日）曜日 |
Sunday. |
|---|---|
| getsu-youbi （月）曜日 |
Monday. |
| ka-youbi （火）曜日 |
Tuesday. |
| sui-youbi （水）曜日 |
Wednesday. |
| moku-youbi （木）曜日 |
Thursday. |
| kin-youbi （金）曜日 |
Friday. |
| do-youbi （土）曜日 |
Saturday. |
For reference, an example:
Anime: Pop Team Epic, Poputepipikku ポプテピピック (Episode 4, Collage)
X’s, Circles, and Triangles in Dates
Sometimes you may see X marks, circle marks, and triangle marks in a date in Japanese, specially in manga and anime. These marks are placeholders used when a specific number isn’t important or, in examples, where there are no specific numbers to begin with.
Manga: Uzaki-chan wa Asobitai! 宇崎ちゃんは遊びたい！ (Chapter 2, 後輩と映画館)
- Context: Uzaki-chan explains that sometimes someone wants to do something in a certain date (literally month “circle” day “X”), and that’s not a date she’s okay with, so she refuses (here shown crossing her arms in an X, a gesture of rejection).
- ○月×日, i.e. month circle day X, could be any date. It’s just there to say the other character said SOME date without specifying a specific date.
Anime: Inuyashiki いぬやしき (Episode 6)
- Context: a well-known murderer tells an anonymous bulletin board that he’s gonna kill everyone in that thread.
- hon’nin desu ka? kao! up!!
本人ですか？顔！うｐ！！
Are [you] [the murderer himself]? [Your] face! Upload it!- hon’nin – the person themselves, as opposed to someone speaking in their behalf.
- nanashi-san atto oopun
名無しさん＠おーぷん
Anon @ open.- Open probably refers to open 2 channel, おーぷん2ちゃんねる, a bulletin board based on 2ch (2channel).
- The incrementing numbers 193, 194, 195, 197, 197, and so on at the left side of each response is the identifier used to cite what a previous user posted.
- The 2017/11/×× is the date. Note that the day is unspecified, with with two x’s written instead.
- koroshite-miru baaaaaaaaaakka
殺してみるバァーーーーーーーーッカ
Try killing [me], stuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuupid. - wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
ｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗ
*laughs anonymously.* - keisatsu koko miteruu?
警察ここ見てるー？
Police, are [you] seeing [this]?- koko ここ, “here,” as in “this thread.”
- miteru – contraction of mite-iru 見ている.
- oi kora, satsujinki, hayo jishu shiro
おいコラ 殺人鬼 はよ自首しろ
Hey, murderer, go surrender yourself already.- hayo – synonymous with hayaku 早く, “quickly.”
- kuso-gaki ga
クソガキが
[You brat]. - nichan’neru shuuryouuu wwwwwwwwwww
にちゃんねる 終了ーーｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗ
2channel is finisheeed, lolololololololololol.
Vocabulary
For reference, some relevant words:
- hidsuke
日付
The date on the calendar. - nengappi
年月日
A date.
Year, month, day.- seinengappi
生年月日
Birth date.
- seinengappi
- nengatsu
年月
Years and months. (as in the passing of time.)
Year and month. (as in a partial date without specific day)- toshi-tsuki
年月
Years and months. (passing of time only.)
- toshi-tsuki
- gappi
月日
Month and day. (date only.)- tsuki-hi
月日
Months and days. (passing of time only.)
The Moon and the Sun.
- tsuki-hi
- tsuki
月
The Moon.- See also: moon phases.
- hi
日
The Sun.
A day.- haha no hi
母の日
Mother’s day.
- haha no hi
- kinenbi
記念日
Commemorative day. A day in which you celebrate something, e.g. an anniversary of something.- kinen-shashin
記念写真
Commemorative photo. A photo taken to record some occassion.- See also: peace sign.
- kinen-shashin
How to Say the Words for Years, Months, and Days
It’s possible to use the counters for years, months, and days to refer to just the year, month, or day alone, without any other part of the date.
- ni-sen-nen
２０００年
The year two thousand. - juu-ni-gatsu
１２月
Month 12.
December. - san-juu-ichi-nichi
３１日
Day 31 of some month.
The words for months in Japanese are all pretty straightforward: just a number (specifically the on’yomi 音読み reading of the kanji, e.g. ichi, ni, san…) plus the ~gatsu morpheme. Beware the 9th month is read ku-gatsu, not kyuu-gatsu.(coelang.tufs.ac.jp)
| Month Name | In Japanese | romaji |
|---|---|---|
| January | 一月 or １月 | ichigatsu |
| February | 二月 or ２月 | nigatsu |
| March | 三月 or ３月 | sangatsu |
| April | 四月 or ４月 | shigatsu |
| May | 五月 or ５月 | gogatsu |
| June | 六月 or ６月 | rokugatsu |
| July | 七月 or ７月 | shichigatsu |
| August | 八月 or ８月 | hachigatu |
| September | 九月 or ９月 | kugatsu |
| October | 十月 or １０月 | juugatsu |
| November | 十一月 or １１月 | juuichigatsu |
| December | 十二月 or １２月 | juunigatsu |
For years, too, pretty straightforward, just beware that “year one thousand” is sen-nen 千年, not issen-nen 一千年, this includes when talking about 1999, 1998, etc. Similarly, “year one hundred” is hyaku-nen 百年, not ippyaku-nen 一百年.
The words for days are complicated. The first day of the month has its own word: tsuitachi 朔日 (normally spelled １日). Days 2 to 10 are said using the kun’yomi 訓読み reading (hito~, fu~, mi~) together with a ~ka ～日 suffix. Days 11 and up use MOSTLY the on’yomi with ~nichi ～日. Days 14 and 24 use a mix of on-kun ending in the kun reading ~yokka ～４日, probably because if it was the on reading shi-nichi ４日 it would sound too similar to shichi-nichi ７日. Day 20 has its own reading: hatsuka. Incidentally, 10, 20, and 30 are supposed to be tooka, hatsuka, and misoka, respectively, but for some reason people don’t use misoka. Finally, days 19 and 29 are read ending in ~ku-nichi ～９日, not ~kyuu-nichi. For reference, a table:(coelang.tufs.ac.jp)
| tsuitachi １日 |
juu-ichi-nichi １１日 |
ni-juu-ichi-nichi ２１日 |
| futsuka ２日 |
juu-ni-nichi １２日 |
ni-juu-ni-nichi ２２日 |
| mikka ３日 |
juu-san-nichi １３日 |
ni-juu-san-nichi ２３日 |
| yokka ４日 |
juu-yokka １４日 |
ni-juu-yokka ２４日 |
| itsuka ５日 |
juu-go-nichi １５日 |
ni-juu-go-nichi ２５日 |
| muika ６日 |
juu-roku-nichi １６日 |
ni-juu-roku-nichi ２６日 |
| nanoka ７日 |
juu-shichi-nichi １７日 |
ni-juu-shichi-nichi ２７日 |
| youka ８日 |
juu-hachi-nichi １８日 |
ni-juu-hachi-nichi ２８日 |
| kokonoka ９日 |
juu-ku-nichi １９日 |
ni-juu-ku-nichi ２９日 |
| tooka １０日 |
hatsuka ２０日 |
san-juu-nichi ３０日 |
| san-juu-ichi-nichi ３１日 |
||
Beware of some words related to dates that aren’t about the date on the calendar, e.g.:
- shonichi
初日
First day.- Not the first day of the month, the first day of something.
- gakkou shonichi
学校初日
The first day of school.
- saishuubi
最終日
Last day.
Also:
- shougatsu
正月
New year.- Although this ends in ~gatsu, it typically refers to the first three days of a new year.
Interrogatives
It’s possible to ask a question about a date by combining the counters for date parts with nani 何, just as you could with any other counter.
- kyou wa nan-gatsu nan-nichi?
今日は何月何日？
Today is what-month, what-day?
What’s today’s date?- A normal way to ask the day.
- sore wa nan-nen, nan-gatsu, nan-nichi?
それは何年、何月、何日？
That’s what-year, what-month, what-day?
What year, month, and day [did that happen]?- A phrase generally used in comedic effect to ask about an event in ridiculous detail.
Alternatively:
- sore wa itsu?
それはいつ？
When is that?
These interrogatives can combine with the ka か particle and the mo も particle:
- nan-nen ka wasureta
何年か忘れた
[I] forgot what year [it was]. - nan-nen mo mae
何年も前
An amount (no idea exactly, but lots) of years ago.
Many years ago.
Date Ranges
It’s possible to refer to a date range using the particles “from,” kara から, and “until,” made まで.
- ni-gatsu kara roku-gatsu made
２月から６月まで
From month two until month six.
From February to June.
Note that to express lengths of time, it varies:
- mikka-kan
３日間
A span of time of three days. - yokkagetsu
４ヶ月 (or ４箇月)
Four months.- ~getsu, not ~gatsu.
- ni-nen-kan
２年間
A span of time of a two years. - isshou
一生
One’s entire life. (has nothing to do with dates.) - eien ni
永遠に
Eternally. (also has nothing to do with dates.)
Cyclic Dates
To say “every” year, month, or day, the prefix mai~ 毎～ is used, forming the following words:
- mai-nichi
毎日
Every day.- mai-asa
毎朝
Every morning. - mai-ban
毎晩
Every night.
- mai-asa
- mai-shuu
毎週
Every week.- mai-shuumatsu
毎週末
Every weekend.
- mai-shuumatsu
- mai-tsuki
毎月
Every month.- mai-tsuki dai-ni doyoubi
毎月第２土曜日
Every month, the second Saturday.
The second Saturday of every month.
- mai-tsuki dai-ni doyoubi
- mai-toshi
毎年
Every year.
To say “every N” days, months, or years, the suffix ~goto ～毎 is used. The phrase ~oki ni ～おきに has a similar meaning, too.
- futsuka-goto
２日毎
Every two days. - mikka-oki ni
３日おきに
Putting three days between.
Every four days.
For “every N days X things,” the ni に particle is used with a length of time, essentially forming a temporal adverb. The rest of the sentence can be pretty much anything.
- ichi-nichi ni ikkai
一日に一回
One time every one day.
Once per day.- ikkai
一回
Once.
- ikkai
- nikagetsu ni hon wo san-satsu yomu
二ヶ月に本を３冊読む
To read three books every two months.- hon wo san-satsu yomu
本を３冊読む
To read three books.
- hon wo san-satsu yomu
～号
Magazines published weekly or monthly may be referred by their issue “number,” ~gou ～号, right after the year, which looks like a date, but isn’t really.
- Shuukan Shounen Janpu
sen-kyuu-hyaku-kyuu-juu-kyuu-nen
yon-juu-san-gou
週刊少年ジャンプ１９９９年４３号
Weekly Shounen Jump, year 1999, issue 43.- Since this is a weekly magazine, there are up as many issues in a year as there would be weeks in a year (52 weeks, 52 issues).
- Incidentally, this is the issue in which Naruto ナルト was first serialized.
Commemorative Dates Based on Wordplay
There is a form of wordplay involving dates in Japanese in which a month and day is said to commemorate something if the numbers spell a word (also known as goroawase 語呂合わせ).
For reference, some examples:(mostly from ffortune.net:語呂合わせの日)
| Date | Commemoration | Translation Note |
|---|---|---|
| 毎月１２日 12th of every month |
toufu no hi 豆腐の日 Tofu’s day. |
too １０, futatsu ２つ. |
| 毎月１５日 15th of every month |
ichigo no hi 苺の日 Strawberry’s day. |
ichi １, go ５. |
| 毎月２２日 22nd of every month |
fuufu no hi 夫婦の日 Husband & Wife’s Day |
futatsu ２つ, twice. |
| 毎月２６日 26th of every month |
furo no hi 風呂の日 Bath’s day. |
futatsu ２つ, roku ６. |
| 毎月２８日 28th of every month |
niwatori no hi 鶏の日 Chicken’s Day. |
ni ２, hachi ８. Historically, ha は and wa わ have similar pronunciations. |
| 毎月２９日 29th of every month |
niku no hi 肉の日 Meat’s Day. |
ni ２, ku ９. |
| １月５日 1st of January |
igo no hi 囲碁の日 Go’s Day. |
ichi １, go ５. As in the board game Go. |
| ichigo no hi 苺の日 Strawberry’s Day. |
ichi １, go ５. | |
| ２月９日 9th of February |
fugu no hi 河豚の日 Puffer Fish’s Day. |
futatsu ２つ, ku ９. ku く with diacritic becomes gu ぐ. |
| niku no hi 肉の日 Meat’s Day. |
ni ２, ku ９. | |
| ２月１０日 10th of February |
niito no hi ニートの日 NEET‘s Day. |
ni ２, too １０. |
| futon no hi 布団の日 Blanket’s Day. |
futatsu ２つ, too １０. | |
| ２月２２日 22nd of February |
neko no hi 猫の日 Cat’s Day. |
ni, ni, ni ２２２, because nya, nya, nya ニャニャニャ, “meow, meow, meow.” |
| ３月５日 5th of March |
sango no hi 珊瑚の日 Coral’s Day. |
san ３, go ５. |
| ３月８日 8th of March |
mitsubachi no hi 蜜蜂の日 Honeybee’s Day. |
mittsu ３つ, hachi ８. |
| ３月９日 9th of March |
arigatou no hi ありがとうの日 Thank You’s Day. Gratitude Day. |
san ３, kyuu ９. sankyuu サンキュー katakanization of “thank you.” |
| ３月１３日 13th of March |
sandoicchi no hi サンドイッチの日 Sandwich’s Day. sandoicchi dee サンドイッチデー (same meaning.) |
san, ichi, san ３１３, so ichi wo san de sando １を３でサンド(nansuka.jp) To sandwich 1 with 3’s. |
| ３月２７日 27th of March |
sakura no hi 桜の日 Sakura‘s Day. |
3 times 9 is 27. san ３, ku ９. sakura is a flower tree, the “cherry blossom,” which blooms around this date, at the end of March.(i879.com) |
| ４月６日 6th of April |
shiro no hi 城の日 Castle’s Day. |
shi ４, roku ６. |
| ５月１０日 5th of May |
meido no hi メイドの日 Maid’s Day |
mei メイ, “May,” plus do ど form too とお, “10.” Maid in the sense of moe anime.(dic.nicovideo.jp) |
| ５月２９日 29th of May |
kon’nyaku no hi こんにゃくの日 Konjac’s Day. |
kokonotsu ９つ, ni ２, ku ９. Konjac is a food, a plant like potato. |
| ６月４日 4th of June |
mushi no hi 虫の日 Bug’s Day. Insect’s Day. |
muttsu ６つ, shi ４. |
| mushiba yobou dee 虫歯予防デー Dental Caries Prevention Day. |
||
| ６月１６日 16th of June |
mujuuryoku no hi 無重力の日 Zero-Gravity Day. |
muttsu ６つ, juuroku １６. |
| ６月２６日 26th of June |
rotenburo no hi 露天風呂の日 Open-Air Bath Day. |
6.26: roku, ten, futatsu, roku ten 点 being “dot.” |
| ７月３日 3rd of July |
nami no hi 波の日 Wave’s Day. saafaa dee サーファーデー Surfer’s Day. |
nana ７, mittsu３つ. |
| ７月２５日 25th of July |
kakigoori no hi かき氷の日 Shave Ice’s Day. |
nana ７, tsuu ２, go ５ natsu-goori 夏氷, “Summer Ice,” another name for kakigoori, a sort of ice dessert. |
| ７月２７日 27th of July |
suika no hi スイカの日 Watermelon Day. |
tsuu ２, nana ７. tsuna-moyou 綱模様, “rope pattern,” which is found in watermelons, which are eaten in Summer, which is around this date. |
| ８月１日 1st of August |
maajan no hi 麻雀の日 Mahjong’s Day. |
hachi ８, ichi １ hai はい becomes pai ぱい pai 牌, “tile,” with mahjong being a game played using tiles. |
| ８月２日 2nd of August |
pantsu no hi パンツの日 Pants’ Day. |
hachi ８, tsuu ２. ha は becomes pa ぱ. |
| ８月３日 3rd of August |
hachimitsu no hi 蜂蜜の日 Honey’s Day. |
hachi ８, mittsu ３つ |
| hasami no hi ハサミの日 Scissor’s Day |
||
| ８月７日 7th of August |
hana no hi 花の日 Flower’s Day. |
hachi ８, nana ７. |
| hana no hi 鼻の日 Nose’s Day. |
||
| banana no hi バナナの日 Banana’s Day. |
Same as above, ha は becomes ba ば. |
|
| ８月８日 8th of August |
warai no hi 笑いの日 Laugh’s Day. |
hachi ８, hachi ８ ha’ha’ ハッハッ, a laugh. |
| ８月２９日 29th of August |
yakiniku no hi 焼き肉の日 Fried Chicken Day. Fried “Meat” Day. |
yattsu ８つ, ni ２, ku ９. |
| ９月３日 3rd of September |
kusa-yakyuu no hi 草野球の日 Grass Baseball Day. |
ku ９, san３. Grass here refers to a grass lot where amateur baseball players go play. |
| １０月２日 2nd of October |
toufu no hi 豆腐の日 Tofu’s Day |
too １０, futatsu ２つ. |
| １０月３日 3rd of October |
tozan no hi 登山の日 Mountain-Climbing Day. |
too １０, san ３. sa さ becomes za ざ. |
| １０月４日 4th of October |
iwashi no hi いわしの日 Pilchard’s Day. Sardine’s Day. |
ichi １, wa ０, shi ４. wa 輪, “ring,” 0’s shape. |
| １０月第１土 First Saturday of October |
tsuchi no hi 土の日 Soil’s Day. |
juu 十, ichi 一 together form tsuchi 土. |
| １０月８日 8th of October |
ki no hi 木の日 Tree’s Day. |
juu 十, hachi 八 together form 木. |
| １０月２０日 20th of October |
risaikuru no hi リサイクルの日 Recycle’s Day. Recycling Day. |
From zero’s shape: hitomawari-futamawari ひと回りふた回り 1 lap, 2 laps, likely in the sense of going around once, twice, over and over again. |
| １１月１日 1st of November |
inu no hi 犬の日 Dog’s Day. |
wan, wan, wan １１１ “woof, woof, woof.” |
| １１月１１日 11th of November. |
sakkaa no hi サーカーの日 Soccer’s Day. |
11 vs. 11, because each team has 11 players in soccer. |
| １２月３日 3rd of December. |
tejina no hi 手品の日 Magic Trick’s Day. |
One, two, three! |
Days of the week
The Japanese names for the days of the week all end with yōbi.
| Japanese | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| getsuyôbi | geh-tsoo-yooo-bee | Monday |
| kayôbi | kah-yooo-bee | Tuesday |
| suiyôbi | soo-ee-yooo-bee | Wednesday |
| mokuyôbi | moh-coo-yooo-bee | Thursday |
| kinyôbi | keen-yooo-bee | Friday |
| doyôbi | doh-yooo-bee | Saturday |
| nichiyôbi | nee-chee-yooo-bee | Sunday |
Other phrases used to indicate the days of the week include:
kyō (kyohh) (today)
kinō (kee-nohh) (yesterday)
ashita (ah-shee-tah) (tomorrow)
In Japanese, the words for the months of the year are based on the numbers 1–12 and end in the Japanese word for month: gatsu.
ichi-gatsu (ee-chee-gah-tsoo) (January)
ni-gatsu (nee-gah-tsoo) (February)
san-gatsu (sahn-gah-tsoo) (March)
shi-gatsu (shee-gah-tsoo) (April)
go-gatsu (goh-gah-tsoo) (May)
roku-gatsu (roh-coo-gah-tsoo) (June)
shichi-gatsu (shee-chee-gah-tsoo) (July)
hachi-gatsu (hah-chee-gah-tsoo) (August)
ku-gatsu (coo-gah-tsoo) (September)
jū-gatsu (juuu-gah-tsoo) (October)
jūichi-gatsu (juuu-ee-chee-gah-tsoo) (November)
jūni-gatsu (juuu-ni-gah-tsoo) (December)
Days of the month
When referring to the days of the month in Japanese, you’ll see that they are full of irregularities:
| tsuitachi | the first |
| futsuka | the second |
| mikka | the third |
| yokka | the fourth |
| itsuka | the fifth |
| muika | the sixth |
| nanoka | the seventh |
| yôka | the eighth |
| Kokonoka | the ninth |
| tôka | the tenth |
| jûichi-nichi | the 11th |
| jûni-nichi | the 12th |
| jûsan-nichi | the 13th |
| jûyokka | the 14th |
| jûgo-nichi | the 15th |
| jûroku-nichi | the 16th |
| jûshichi-nichi | the 17th |
| jûhachi-nichi | the 18th |
| jûku-nichi | the 19th |
| hatsuka | the 20th |
| nijûichi-nichi | the 21st |
| nijûni-nichi | the 22nd |
| nijûsan-nichi | the 23rd |
| nijûyokka | the 24th |
| nijûgo-nichi | the 25th |
| nijûroku-nichi | the 26th |
| nijûshichi-nichi | the 27th |
| nijûhachi-nichi | the 28th |
| nijûku-nichi | the 29th |
| sanjû-nichi | the 30th |
| sanjûichi-nichi | the 31st |
You can use the following phrases as a guide when talking about dates in Japanese:
-
Kyō wa nan-nichi desu ka? (What is today’s date?)
-
Kyō wa jūroku-nichi desu. (Today is the 16th.)
-
Kyō wa nanyōbi desu ka? (What day is it today?)
-
Getsuyōbi desu. (It’s Monday.)
Date in Japanese : Units for Days, Weeks, Months, and Years
日 (Nichi)
Let’s begin by talking about days. The kanji for “day” is 日, which is pronounced “nichi.” However, when nichi is part of a word—as opposed to when it’s all by itself—the pronunciation changes. Nichi is used when talking about days such as today, tomorrow, and yesterday.
今日 (Kyō, Today)
“Today” in Japanese is pronounced “kyō.” This word is comprised of two kanji: 今 (kon), which means “now,” and 日.
今日はいい天気ですね！
Kyō wa ī tenki desu ne!
It’s nice weather today!
今日は何をしますか？
Kyō wa nani wo shimasu ka?
What are you going to do today?
昨日 (Kinō, Yesterday)
“Yesterday” is pronounced “kinō.” The two kanji that comprise this word are 昨 (saku), which means “previous,” and 日.
昨日私は寿司を食べました。
Kinō watashi wa sushi wo tabemashita.
I ate sushi yesterday.
昨日はどこに行きましたか？
Kinō wa doko ni ikimashita ka?
Where did you go yesterday?
明日 (Ashita, Tomorrow)
“Tomorrow” is pronounced “ashita.” The first kanji is 明 “mei” and means “bright; light.”
明日彼女はサーフィンをします。
Ashita kanojo wa sāfin wo shimasu.
She will go surfing tomorrow.
明日あなたは空港に行きますか？
Ashita anata wa kūkō ni ikimasu ka?
Will you go to the airport tomorrow?
一昨日 (Ototoi, The Day before Yesterday)
“The day before yesterday” is pronounced “ototoi.” This word has three kanji: 一 (ichi), which means “one,” followed by the two kanji that mean “yesterday.” The three together convey “one day before yesterday.”
明後日 (Asatte, The Day after Tomorrow)
“The day after tomorrow” is pronounced “asatte.” It basically takes the two kanji for “tomorrow” and sticks the kani 後 (go) in the center, which means “after.” If you want to say “the day after the day after tomorrow,” you add an extra 明 to the beginning, making it look like this: 明明後日 (shiasatte).
ユーザーがトピックに関連して検索するキーワード date in japanese date in japanese
ask japanese, AskJapanese, japanese, cathycat, cathy cat, japan, interview, japanese culture, 海外の反応, 外国人, 海外
.
