Japonés

One hundred Japanese syllables were presented to ten Spanish-speaking listeners. They were instructed to listen to and to transcribe the sounds using their own Spanish alphabetic symbols. All five vowels were identified with high accuracy, whether presented alone (96%), with another vowel (97. 5%), or paired with consonants (94%).

When I heard Japanese for the first time, I noticed that the pronunciation seemed to be pretty similar to Spanish. This is nothing new, I've heard the same observation from other people. Both languages pronounce vowels the same way and words are generally spoken as written. I usually switch into my Spanish when reading/speaking Japanese, but I don't want to speak with an accent. This is where those language lab pronunciation drills should come in handy. (Say "rara...", "rarara...", "rararara..." ) The similarities are pretty helpful as mnemonic devices and a basic reminder to pronounce words a certain way. Sometimes, I even find myself thinking in English and Spanish to remember new Japanese vocabulary.

I grew up speaking English and Spanish, but I never really chose to learn a language. It would be exciting to realize that I am thinking in a new language, but we'll see where the future takes my Japanese language education. Here is a sample of words that sound alike, with the dual meaning the word has for me:

　　　　　　Spanish Spelling　　　　Spanish Definition

• パン　　　　　pan 　　　　　　　　　 bread *Same thing すごい!
  

• かさ　　　　　casa　　　　　　　　　 house

• から　　　　　cara 　　　　　　　　 face

• で　　　　　　　 de 　　　　　　of, from, about

• に　　　　　　　 ni　　　　　　　　　　　 nor

• なか　　　　　 naca 　　　　　　 foolish (Mexican slang word)