How to Say Japan in Japanese

Know that Japanese uses two "alphabets." Hiragana is used for native words when there is not a relevant kanji and katakana is used to write adapted foreign words. Both systems use characters to represent syllables.Kanji, which originated in China and still bears many similarities to Chinese writing is used in place of hiragana to specify the meaning of a written words as many words share pronunciations, e.g god and paper. Thus, you may often see the word "Japan" written as 日本 (kanji) or にほん (hiragana).^[1]

• In kanji, 日, or "ni," is the character for "sun." 本, or "hon," is the character for "origin." Thus, "Japan" literally means "sun-origin," or "The Land of the Rising Sun."

Pronounce either にほん or 日本 as "Nihon." The syllables sound like "knee" and "hon". Say "hon" as in "home"^[2]

• "Nihon" may also sound like "Nippon." Pronounce it "Knee-pon" – "pon" as in "poll", and with a small pause between the syllables. Either pronunciation is accepted in Japan.

Say "Japanese." To say "Japanese" in Japanese, add the syllable "go" (same as English "go") to the end of "Nihon." Pronounce it "Nihongo" or "Nee-hon-go."^[3]

Understand that the pronunciation is a matter of debate. In past centuries, the Japanese language has been subject to the influence of Chinese monks, European explorers, and various foreign merchants. There is still no full consensus about whether the name is pronounced "Nihon" or "Nippon." "Nippon" is the older pronunciation – but a recent survey showed that 61 percent of native speakers read the word as "Nihon," while only 37 percent read it as "Nippon." When in doubt, take your cues from the people around you.^[4]

• Some claim that traditionally, Japanese used "Nihon" to refer to their nation when communicating between themselves, and "Nippon" when speaking to outsiders. This has not been officially verified, and there is no formally "correct" pronunciation.