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/jp/ - Otaku Culture

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7142611 No.7142611 [Reply] [Original]

Why does English take more than one word to express these?

崩御: death of the Emperor
殉職: death in the line of duty
客死: death in a foreign land
殉死: death as a martyr
夭折: premature death
副葬: burial of accessories
凶弾: JFK's magic bullet

>> No.7142617

Because English is flexible and the greatest language in the world and not a bunch of cave scribbles.

>> No.7142619

Because we use a syllabic alphabet instead of ideograms.

Also, it's because you're a retard.

>> No.7142624

Because English doesn't have many hundreds of useless or uncommon characters to memorise.

>> No.7142631

>>7142619

>syllabic alphabet

Nope.

>> No.7142636

>death as a martyr
You mean martyrdom?

>> No.7142637 [DELETED] 

roll

>> No.7142640

>>7142631
I regret that that was not the term I was looking for. In my defense, I just woke up.

>> No.7142667

prepositions, they're good.

of in as to from: these make the english phrases you listed all more semantically specific than their sino-whatever counterparts

>> No.7142679

>>7142611
I could explain to you why languages evolve in different ways but I feel that such a lengthy explanation would be lost on an idiot such as yourself.

>> No.7142694

Japanese people have a morbid fixation over the particulars of death and a broad vocabulary to accommodate it. It's why their suicide rate is so high.

>> No.7142698

because english prefers not having a shitload of vocal ambiguity, because puns are silly.

>> No.7142707

I think it's quite telling about Japanese culture that they have a specific, commonly used (unlike OP's examples) word for "arriving on time for an appointment" (間に合う), and a noun for "the act of coming late for an appointment" (遅刻).

>> No.7142715

unlike what most people think kanji don't have only disadvantages, this is one of the advantages

>> No.7142719

>>7142619
>syllabic alphabet
Rethink it please.

>>7142611
Because English is "poor" language. Sure it's popular language in western culture, but native speakers were mainly people who didn't feel need for nice or complicated vocabulary.
>>>/lang/

>> No.7142731
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7142731

>>7142611
Technically, the examples you provide are 2 words length each.

IHBT

>> No.7142755

>>7142719
>>Because English is "poor" language. Sure it's popular language in western culture, but native speakers were mainly people who didn't feel need for nice or complicated vocabulary.

Says the man who is neither a native English speaker, nor speaks English fluently, yet somehow is an expert on the development of the English language.

>> No.7142760

ITT retarded people like this one >>7142617
. it's not like they those words were taken from the kanji themselves. words came first, then they were assigned to kanji

english just doesn't have words corresponding those terms so they have to be explained with long-winded sentences. i mean you could say "death in the line of duty" in japanese, but they just happen to have a specific word for it.

>> No.7142765

>>7142755
Kinda like those people who only know English and think they can comment on other languages while thinking English is the best, eh?

>> No.7142780

Not trying to be a weeaboo here, but Japanese is literally full of words like that (not specifically death related of course), and I find it awesome.

Does English have a word for this?

護摩の灰
(n) thief posing as fellow traveller (traveler)

>> No.7142783

>>7142765

Exactly. People who pontificate on foreign languages when they can't speak them fluently merely demonstrate their own ignorance. The claim above that English is somehow lacking in vocabulary is a good example.

>> No.7142794

>>7142780

Why does the fact that different cultures have unique terms for things surprise you? There are thousands upon thousands of examples out there. This doesn't mean that one language is better than another; it only means that languages, in their development, encompassed local interests/conditions.

>> No.7142795

I forgot the important one.

腹上死: not restricted to the missionary position death, as the kanji might lead you to belive.

>> No.7142803

>>7142795
How can that have occurred often enough to warrant its own compound?

>> No.7142805

>>7142783
Knowing history doesn't mean you have to know language.

>> No.7142808

>>7142794
>Why does the fact that different cultures have unique terms for things surprise you?
Because some people think it's a bad thing as can be seen from the replies in these kind of threads.

>> No.7142816

I like how you can add 姦 at the end of a word to make new kinds of sexual crimes. For example, 睡姦. Not in the dictionary, but most people who encounter it will understand that it means raping someone who is sleeping.

>> No.7142818

>>7142803
High blood pressure is common.

>> No.7142823

The way I see it, that's two words in each case for chinese. Each symbol represents one word.

>> No.7142827

>>7142816
By itself, it doesn't necessarily have the "crime" connotation. For example, 和姦 means "consensual sex."

>> No.7142829

>>7142816

Sleep rape. Not one word, two.

>> No.7142835

>>7142827
>For example, 和姦 means "consensual sex."
No, it clearly means "peaceful rape".

>> No.7142840

>>7142805
>>Knowing history doesn't mean you have to know language.

True. However, if you're talking about the history of a language, then you very much do need to know that language very well in order to competently comment on it. Otherwise, you'll be talking about something that you have no meaningful experience of, which does tend to make you a fool.

>> No.7142854
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7142854

ITT English Defence Force

>> No.7142865

>>7142854

Reading comprehension isn't your strong suit, is it? Better stick to reading your comic books and playing with your dollies.

>> No.7142870
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7142870

>>7142865
Case in point. What's the matter, hurt your feelings?

>> No.7142876

>death
>death
>death
>death
>death
>burial
>theory

>> No.7142883

>>7142870

Case in point? Of what? That your writing skills are even weaker than your reading skills?

>> No.7142892

>>7142865
>>7142883
who gives a shit newfags. stop bumping the thread

>> No.7142907

>>7142892
Stop trying to fit in.

>> No.7143043

>>7142865

Raping comprehension isn't your strong suit, is it? Better stick to reading your comic books and playing with your dollies.

>>
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