Japanese counter word

In Japanese, counter words or counters (josūshi 助数詞) are used along with numbers to count things, actions, and events. In Japanese, as in Chinese and Korean, numerals cannot quantify nouns by themselves (except, in certain cases, for the numbers from one to ten; see below). For example, to express the idea "two dogs" in Japanese one must say inu nihiki (犬二匹, literally "dog two-small-animal"). Here inu 犬 means "dog", ni 二 is the number 2, and hiki 匹 is the counter for small animals. The counters are not independent words and always appear with a number before them. Counter words are similar in function to the word "sheet" in "two sheets of paper" or "cup" in "two cups of coffee", but in Japanese, (almost) all nouns require a counter. In this sense, all Japanese nouns are mass nouns. This grammatical feature can result in situations where one is unable to express the number of a particular object in a grammatically correct way because one does not know, or cannot remember, the appropriate counting word. The problem is partially solved for the numbers from one to ten by using the traditional numbers (see below) which can be used to quantify some nouns by themselves. For example, "four apples" is ringo yonko (リンゴ四個) where ko (個) is the counter), but can also be expressed using the traditional numeral four as ringo yottsu (リンゴ四つ). These traditional numerals cannot be used to count all nouns however; some, including people and animals, require the proper counter. Counters can also be intentionally misused for humorous, sarcastic, or insulting effects. For example, one might say 男一匹なのに (Otoko ippiki nano ni; "I am only one man..."). Using the counter hiki (匹), the counter for small animals, humorously suggests that the person is overpowered by massive obstacles. Some of the more common counters may be used instead of less common ones. For example, 匹 hiki (see below) is often used for all animals, regardless of size. However, many speakers will correct themselves and use the traditionally "correct" counter, 頭 tō, when speaking of, for example, horses. Just as in English, different counters for the same thing can be used to convey different meanings. In English, one can say one loaf of bread or one slice of bread, and the referent is different. In Japanese, the same effect is made by saying パン一斤 pan ikkin, literally "bread one-loaf" versus パン一枚 pan ichimai, literally "bread one-flat piece".

Table of the traditional numerals

List of counters

This list also includes some counters and usages that are rarely used or not widely known.

Exceptions

* Japanese Buddhist monks weren't allowed to eat any meat other than birds', but liked rabbit meat so much they came up with contrived evidence that rabbits are actually birds, their ears unusable wings. Nowadays hiki is the usual counter. The traditional numbers are used by and for young children to give their ages, instead of using the age counter sai. Some counters, notably nichi 日 and nin 人, use the traditional numerals for some low numbers, usually one through three; exceptional cases for these counters are given in the table below. Others include 月, 言, 品 and 度 and are usually restricted to certain phrases. Futatabi (two times, another time), although normally written 再び instead of 二度, is very common though. Counters beginning with h~ (including fu~) undergo (almost) regular changes in sound, when preceded by the numerals 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10. The table below illustrates the process for hon 本 but the same changes apply to fun 分, hai 杯, hiki 匹 etc.

* But when counting number of days rather than days of the month, ichinichi is used. Ippi is also heard. ** Jū is replaced by either ju- or ji- (じゅっ/じっ) followed by a doubled consonant before the voiceless consonants (i.e., /t k s/); furthermore, p is used instead of h, as noted above. Ji- is the older form, but it has been replaced by ju- in the speech of recent generations. *** In remote rural areas (ie. Northern Honshu and Eastern Hokkaido) older speakers might use yottari.^[1] Note that 三階 ("third floor") can be read either sankai or sangai, while 三回 ("three times") can only be read sankai.

Ordinal numbers

In general, the counter words mentioned above are cardinal numbers, in that they indicate quantity. To transform a counter word into an ordinal number that denotes position in a sequence, me (目) is added to the end of the counter. Thus "one time" would be translated as ikkai (一回), where as "the first time" would be translated as ikkaime (一回目). This rule is inconsistent, however, as counters without the me suffix are often used interchangeably with cardinal and ordinal meanings. For example, sankai (三階) can mean both "three floors" and "third floor."

Periods of time

To express a period of time one may add kan 間 to the following words: byō 秒, fun 分, ji 時, nichi 日(and its irregular readings aside from tsuitachi), shū 週, kagetsu 箇月 and nen 年. Usage varies depending on the word, though. For example, omitting kan in the case of jikan 時間 would be a grave mistake, whereas shūkan and shū are both in frequent use. What's more, kagetsukan is rarely heard due to essentially being superfluous, the ka already functioning to express the length.

See also

• Japanese units
• Measure words
• Chinese measure word

References