はじめましてFirst Encounters
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Greet someone and take leave using common polite Japanese expressions.
- Ask and answer the question "What is your name?" using お名前は何ですか。
- Introduce yourself using 〜です with your name.
- Use 〜さん appropriately when referring to someone else by name.
- Form and answer simple yes/no questions using the sentence-final particle か.
- Use basic courtesy expressions, including please, thank you, and excuse me.
- Recognize and write the first group of hiragana, from あ through と.
- Maintain accurate mora timing when pronouncing short Japanese words and phrases.
Communication Scenario
You have just arrived for the first day of an intensive Japanese program at a language school in Osaka. Students from many countries are gathering in the school lobby before the first class begins. Your instructor has asked everyone to greet and introduce themselves to at least three new people — in Japanese — before the session starts.
- Think about the last time you introduced yourself to a stranger. Was the greeting formal or casual? What did you say first?
- You may already recognize the word はじめまして, a fixed greeting used the very first time you meet someone. By the end of this chapter, you will know several ways to greet someone in Japanese, and you will know how to write the first letters of your own hiragana vocabulary.
Core Vocabulary
あいさつ — Greetings and farewells
| Japanese | Reading | English meaning | When to use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| はじめまして | hajimemashite | How do you do (first meeting only) | Said only the very first time you meet someone, before exchanging names |
| どうぞよろしく おねがいします | dōzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu | Pleased to meet you / I look forward to working with you | Said right after introducing yourself; a fixed, very common formula |
| おはようございます | ohayō gozaimasu | Good morning | Used in the morning, including in classrooms and workplaces |
| こんにちは | konnichiwa | Hello / Good afternoon | Used from late morning through afternoon |
| こんばんは | konbanwa | Good evening | Used in the evening |
| さようなら | sayōnara | Goodbye | A formal farewell; often signals a longer or more definite parting |
| またあした | mata ashita | See you tomorrow | Common, friendly farewell among classmates or colleagues |
| しつれいします | shitsurei shimasu | Excuse me (lit. "I will be rude") | Said when entering a room, leaving early, or interrupting politely |
Notice that こんにちは and こんばんは are written with the hiragana は, even though it is pronounced "wa" here. This is one of a small set of particle spellings you will learn to recognize. さようなら is more formal than またあした; choice depends on the relationship and on whether you expect to see the person again soon.
じこしょうかい — Introductions
| Japanese | Reading | English meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| わたしは〜です。 | watashi wa ~ desu. | I am ~. / My name is ~. | The standard self-introduction pattern |
| お名前は何ですか。 | o-namae wa nan desu ka. | What is your name? | A polite, neutral way to ask anyone's name |
| 〜さん | ~san | Mr. / Ms. / a respectful title | Attached after a name when referring to or addressing someone else; never attached to your own name |
れいぎただしい言い方 — Courtesy expressions
| Japanese | Reading | English meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ありがとうございます | arigatō gozaimasu | Thank you |
| どういたしまして | dō itashimashite | You're welcome |
| すみません | sumimasen | Excuse me / I'm sorry (general purpose) |
| はい | hai | Yes |
| いいえ | iie | No |
Treat these courtesy expressions as ready-to-use formulas for now. すみません is unusually flexible in Japanese: it can apologize, get someone's attention, or thank someone for going out of their way. You will see all three uses in later chapters.
かず ０〜５ — Numbers 0–5
These numbers are introduced here as recognizable spoken and written forms only. The number 4 has two common readings, よん and し; you will learn which reading is preferred in which context in a later chapter. Numbers expand to 10 in Chapter 2 and to 20 in Chapter 3.
きょうしつのことば — Classroom survival expressions
| Japanese | Reading | English meaning |
|---|---|---|
| はい | hai | Yes |
| いいえ | iie | No |
| わかりました | wakarimashita | I understand / Understood |
| もういちど おねがいします | mō ichido onegaishimasu | Once more, please (repeat) |
Hiragana
Japanese is normally written using a mix of hiragana, katakana, and kanji. Hiragana is a phonetic script: each symbol represents one mora, a short, evenly timed beat of sound — not a letter the way the Roman alphabet works. This chapter introduces your first ten hiragana symbols, covering the あ row through the た row.
Hiragana is sometimes loosely called "the Japanese alphabet," but this is not accurate. Each hiragana symbol stands for a whole mora — typically a consonant-plus-vowel combination, or a vowel alone — rather than a single consonant or vowel sound the way English letters do. There is no separate symbol for the consonant "k" alone; instead, か already means "ka" as a complete unit.
だいいちグループ — First letter group
These ten hiragana form your first reading and writing set: the five vowels, followed by the か row and the た row.
Two additional hiragana from the た row appear in this chapter's vocabulary for recognition and copying practice:
Each hiragana symbol has a conventional stroke order and direction. Following the correct stroke order helps your handwriting look natural and makes the symbols easier to remember and to read when handwritten quickly. As a general habit, strokes typically move from top to bottom and from left to right; curved strokes are written in a single smooth motion rather than built up from short straight lines.
れんしゅう — Practice: Copy each of the ten hiragana introduced in this chapter three times, paying attention to stroke direction and to the proportions of each symbol. Then try writing あ, か, and た from memory without looking at the model.
Pronunciation
Mora timing
Japanese is a mora-timed language: each hiragana symbol (with a few exceptions you will learn later) represents one mora, and each mora normally takes roughly the same amount of time to say. This is different from English, where syllables can stretch or compress depending on stress. Compare the timing of こんにちは — five even beats, ko-n-ni-chi-wa — rather than three stressed English-style syllables.
- あ — one mora, one even beata short, clipped "ah"
- ありがとう — five moras, five even beatsa-ri-ga-to-u, not "ah-ri-GA-toh"
Try tapping your finger once for each mora as you say a word slowly. This habit will help you internalize Japanese rhythm from the very beginning.
The five vowels
Japanese has five vowels, and each one keeps a stable, pure quality no matter where it appears in a word:
- あ /a/ — similar to the "a" in English "father," but shorter
- い /i/ — similar to the "ee" in English "see," but shorter
- う /u/ — a vowel with less lip-rounding than English "oo"; the lips stay relatively relaxed
- え /e/ — similar to the "e" in English "bed"
- お /o/ — similar to the "o" in English "more," but shorter and without the glide
English vowels often glide or change quality, especially at the end of a word. Japanese vowels do not glide; keep the sound the same from beginning to end of the mora.
In Japanese, the difference between a short vowel and a long vowel is not a matter of style — it can change a word's meaning entirely. A long vowel is written and counted as two morae, not one. You will study this contrast formally beginning in Chapter 2, but it is worth listening for it from the start: ここ (here) and こうこう (high school) are built from related but different mora counts.
The か row and た row consonants
The consonants in this chapter's hiragana set are close to their English counterparts:
- か・き・く・け・こ — pronounced with a "k" similar to English, though slightly less puffed with breath than English "k" at the start of a word
- た・と — pronounced with a "t" similar to English "t," with the tongue touching just behind the upper front teeth
Questions formed with the sentence-final particle か are typically said with a gentle rise in pitch on the final syllable, similar to how English questions often rise at the end. Unlike English, Japanese does not usually need to invert word order to ask a question — the particle か does that work on its own, as you will see in the grammar section below.
れんしゅう — Practice: With a partner, or using a recording, practice tapping out the mora count of はじめまして (6 morae), ありがとうございます (10 morae), and your own name in katakana approximation, paying attention to keeping each beat even.
Grammar Instruction
1.1 わたしは〜です — Identifying yourself
Purpose: state your name (or identity) using a complete, basic sentence pattern.
The pattern わたしは〜です literally places three pieces in order: the topic わたし ("I"), the topic particle は, and the predicate です attached after whatever you are identifying yourself as.
- わたしはサラです。Watashi wa Sara desu. — I am Sara.[topic] わたし + は + [predicate] サラ + です
- わたしはユウスフです。Watashi wa Yūsufu desu. — I am Yusuf.
The hiragana は is normally pronounced "ha," but when it functions as the topic particle, it is pronounced "wa." This is one of a small, fixed set of particle spellings in Japanese, not an exception you need to memorize word by word — it applies every time は is used as the topic particle.
です is a polite predicate ending used with nouns and certain other word types. It does not behave exactly like the English verb "to be" — for example, it does not change form according to who is speaking, the way English "am / is / are" does. For now, treat です as the polite way to complete a basic identifying sentence; its fuller grammar will be studied across this and later chapters.
1.2 〜さん — Referring politely to someone else
Purpose: refer to or address another person respectfully by name.
〜さん attaches directly after a person's name, family name, or given name, and works for people of any gender:
- サラさんSara-san — Sara (respectful)
- スミスさんSumisu-san — Mr./Ms. Smith
A common error among beginners is attaching さん to one's own name, modeled on English titles like "Mr. Smith" used in self-introduction. In Japanese, さん is used only when referring to or addressing someone else, never to oneself. Say わたしはサラです。, not a form that includes さん attached to "Sara."
1.3 〜は何ですか — Asking with か
Purpose: form a basic yes/no or information question by adding the sentence-final particle か.
Japanese questions are typically formed by adding the particle か to the end of a statement — without changing word order, and without an extra question word like English "do" or "is":
- お名前は何ですか。O-namae wa nan desu ka. — What is your name?[topic] お名前 + は + [predicate] 何 + です + か
The word 何 ("what") appears here in kanji with hiragana support; it will be formally added to your active kanji set in a later chapter. The honorific prefix お on お名前 is a fixed, polite way of referring to someone else's name; treat お名前 as a set phrase for now.
One particle, no inversion. English turns a statement into a question partly by changing word order ("You are Sara." becomes "Are you Sara?"). Japanese keeps the word order exactly the same and simply adds か at the very end. This single habit — statement, then か — will let you ask an enormous range of basic questions throughout this course, long before you learn more complex question structures.
Practice — さん or no さん?
Decide whether さん should be added in each blank, or left out, and explain why.
- わたしは ケン ＿＿ です。 (introducing yourself as Ken)
- ＿＿ ＿＿ は学生ですか。 (asking about your classmate, Nour)
- わたしは タナカ ＿＿ です。 (introducing yourself, family name Tanaka)
Practice — Completing introductions
Fill in the blank with the correct word or particle: は／です／か／さん.
- はじめまして。わたし＿＿ ダビド＿＿。
- お名前＿＿何です＿＿。
- スミス＿＿は先生です。
Model Dialogue
Setting: Lobby of a language school, Osaka. First morning. Layla, an Egyptian student, meets Tom, an American student. Then their instructor, Yamada-sensei, welcomes them.
(山田先生が来ます。— Yamada-sensei arrives.)
ないようりかい — Comprehension questions:
- エジプトの学生はだれですか。 (Who is the student from Egypt?)
- トムさんはアメリカ人ですか。 (Is Tom American?)
- What title does Layla and Tom use for their instructor, and what does it tell you about the register of their interaction?
- Why does Yamada-sensei say レイラさん but Layla never refers to herself with さん?
- What does Yamada-sensei say to indicate the conversation is ending?
Yamada-sensei says どうぞよろしく instead of the full どうぞよろしくおねがいします. Dropping おねがいします is a common, natural shortening among people who already share a polite relationship, such as a teacher speaking to new students. Both the full and shortened forms are appropriate; you may continue using the full form, which is never wrong.
Listening
Ask your instructor, a partner, or a text-to-speech tool to read the following four short introductions aloud at a moderate pace. Listen twice without reading along. Then answer the questions below.
１．ヌール：「はじめまして。わたしはヌールです。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。」
２．ダウード：「はじめまして。わたしはダウードです。よろしくおねがいします。」
３．マヤ：「こんばんは。わたしはマヤです。どうぞよろしく。」
４．アリ：「おはようございます、先生。わたしはアリです。」
聞くタスク — Listening task:
Listen and complete the table.
| Speaker | Name | Greeting used | Closing expression used |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 2 | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 3 | ______ | ______ | ______ |
| 4 | ______ | ______ | ______ |
Bonus question: Which speaker uses a notably more formal register, addressing their instructor directly? What word signals this?
Reading
Read the following three name badges from the school's registration desk. Then answer the questions below.
Badge 1 — Student
名前：サラ・アハマド
学生
Badge 2 — Student
名前：ベンジャミン・スミス
学生
Badge 3 — Instructor
名前：山田先生
日本語の先生
ないようりかい — Comprehension questions:
- 先生のお名前は何ですか。 (What is the instructor's name?)
- Is Benjamin Smith a student or an instructor? How can you tell from the badge?
- What two pieces of information appear on each badge?
- If you wanted to refer politely to Yamada-sensei in conversation, would you say 山田さん or 山田先生? Why might one be more natural in a classroom setting?
The word 先生 ("sensei") means "teacher" or "instructor" and is commonly used as a respectful title after a name, similar in function to さん but specifically signaling a teaching, medical, or other recognized professional role. Like さん, 先生 is never attached to your own name — a teacher introducing themselves would say わたしは山田です。, not a form including 先生 attached to their own name.
Writing Workshop
In this chapter you will write two short texts: a personal name card and a short self-introduction, using only the hiragana and vocabulary introduced so far.
- Study the model. Look at Badge 1 above. Identify the field for the name (名前) and the field showing the person's role.
- Create your own name card. Write your name using katakana approximation if you have learned katakana, or write it in romanization for now, since katakana for foreign names will be formally introduced beginning in Chapter 4.
- Write your self-introduction. Using Layla's lines in the model dialogue as a guide, write three short sentences introducing yourself. Include: a greeting, your name using わたしは〜です, and a polite closing such as どうぞよろしくおねがいします.
- Revise. Check your draft against the editing checklist below, paying special attention to hiragana shapes and the topic particle.
- Introduce another person. Using the badge information for Benjamin Smith (Badge 2), write one sentence introducing him. Begin with: スミスさんは学生です。 (Mr. Smith is a student.)
チェックリスト — Editing checklist:
- I wrote my hiragana with correct, consistent shapes.
- I used the topic particle は correctly and remembered it is pronounced "wa."
- I included all necessary diacritic marks where vocabulary required them.
- I used a complete greeting at the start.
- I used わたしは〜です correctly to give my name.
- I did not attach さん to my own name.
- I ended any question with か and a Japanese full stop 。 as appropriate.
Speaking Practice
コントロールされた練習 — Controlled practice
With a partner, take turns asking and answering these questions. Use your real information or invent a role. Switch after each round.
- はじめまして。お名前は何ですか。
- わたしは〜です。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。
- こちらこそ、どうぞよろしくおねがいします。
コミュニケーションタスク — Communicative task: First meetings
Move around the room and introduce yourself to four different people, as if you had just arrived at the language school. For each person:
- Greet them appropriately.
- Give your name and ask theirs.
- Respond with どうぞよろしくおねがいします or こちらこそ.
- Say goodbye using one of the farewell expressions from the vocabulary section.
Keep a mental note: did you remember not to attach さん to your own name each time?
ひとりでもできる練習 — Solo alternative
Create two imagined Japanese-speaking people — give each a full name and a role (student, instructor). Record yourself playing both sides of a first meeting. Include: a greeting, a name exchange, and a farewell. Listen back and identify one thing to improve.
Culture and Communication
はじめまして is used exactly once with any given person — the very first time you meet them. Using it again with someone you already know would sound odd, much as repeatedly saying "nice to meet you" to a longtime acquaintance would sound strange in English. After the first meeting, greetings such as おはようございます or こんにちは take over for everyday encounters.
The accompanying formula どうぞよろしくおねがいします has no single neat English equivalent. It expresses a general request for good treatment or good working relations going forward, and it is said routinely after introductions in both casual and professional Japanese settings.
Japanese is studied and spoken by people of many nationalities, religious backgrounds, and language histories, both within Japan and around the world. The four speakers in today's listening section — from varied backgrounds — reflect the genuine diversity of people who learn, speak, and study Japanese. Learning Japanese is not learning about only one city, one industry, or one set of customs; it is gaining access to a wide and varied linguistic world, including diverse communities across Japan itself.
This course teaches contemporary standard Japanese, the shared variety used in education, national media, and ordinary cross-regional communication throughout Japan. In everyday spoken interaction, however, regional varieties exist with their own greeting expressions, intonation patterns, and vocabulary — for example, greetings in the Kansai region (where Osaka is located) may sound noticeably different from those in Tokyo. こんにちは and おはようございます are both widely understood and used across regional varieties as well as in the standard language, which is part of why they make an excellent starting point. As the course progresses, regional forms will be introduced and clearly labeled for recognition; the productive standard taught throughout remains contemporary standard Japanese.
Common Mistakes
Error: Saying a form like "わたしはレイラさんです" when introducing oneself, modeled on English titles used in self-introduction.
Correction: さん is used only for other people, never for yourself. Say simply わたしはレイラです。
Error: Pronouncing the topic particle は as "ha," matching its pronunciation as an ordinary hiragana syllable elsewhere.
Correction: When は functions as the topic particle, it is always pronounced "wa." This rule applies consistently and is not an exception limited to certain words.
Error: Pronouncing Japanese words with English-style stress, lengthening one syllable and rushing the others — for example, saying ありがとう as "a-ri-GAH-toh" with uneven timing.
Correction: Japanese morae are normally close to equal in length. Practice tapping out each mora evenly, especially in longer words and set phrases, rather than applying English stress patterns.
Error: Greeting a classmate you already met yesterday with はじめまして.
Correction: はじめまして is reserved strictly for the first time you ever meet someone. For everyone you already know, use おはようございます, こんにちは, or こんばんは depending on the time of day.
Error: Trying to add a separate word alongside です, modeled on the idea that English "is" needs reinforcing.
Correction: です already completes the sentence on its own. わたしはレイラです。 is already a complete, correct sentence meaning "I am Layla."
Chapter Review
Section A — ごい (Vocabulary)
1. Write the Japanese word or phrase for each: how do you do (first meeting) · goodbye · thank you · you're welcome · excuse me/sorry · pleased to meet you.
2. Write the numbers in hiragana: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
3. What is the difference in meaning and use between おはようございます and こんにちは?
4. What does どうぞよろしくおねがいします roughly express? When is it used? (A one-sentence English explanation is fine.)
5. Is はじめまして appropriate to say to someone you already met yesterday? Explain in one or two sentences.
Section B — ひらがなとぶんぽう (Script and Grammar)
1. Which ten hiragana are introduced in this chapter's first letter group?
2. Write the hiragana for a, ka, ta, ko, to.
3. Add さん or leave it out for each: (a) introducing yourself, (b) referring to your classmate Nour, (c) referring to your teacher by family name, (d) asking your own name on a form.
4. Correct the error in each:
— *わたしはトムさんです。
— *お名前は何です。 (missing a question marker)
5. Explain in English: why is the particle は pronounced "wa" in わたしは〜です?
Section C — どっかいりかい (Reading comprehension)
1. Look at Badge 3 again. What is Yamada-sensei's role, and how do you know from the title used?
2. In the model dialogue, why does Yamada-sensei use the shortened どうぞよろしく rather than the full form? Is either choice incorrect?
3. Which greeting in the dialogue would be inappropriate to use in the evening? What should replace it?
Section D — かくこと (Writing)
1. Write a three-sentence self-introduction in Japanese. Include: an appropriate greeting, your name using わたしは〜です, and a polite closing expression. Check your draft against the editing checklist in the Writing Workshop.
Section E — はなすこと (Speaking)
1. Without looking at the book, greet a partner, introduce yourself, ask their name, respond politely, then say goodbye.
るいせきふくしゅう — Cumulative review
Complete Speaker B's lines to make a natural exchange at a formal morning meeting. Speaker A's lines are already written.
Ａ：おはようございます。わたしはおおもりです。＿＿は？
Ｂ：______________________________________
Ａ：どうぞよろしくおねがいします。
Ｂ：______________________________________
Ａ：じゃあ、また教室で。
Ｂ：______________________________________
Chapter Performance Task
パフォーマンスタスク
名前カード — Language identity card
You have been asked to create a short presentation of yourself for the school's welcome board. Complete the following tasks:
- Written: Design a name badge for yourself (real or imagined), including your name and your role (student), written using hiragana you have learned and romanization where needed for sounds not yet covered.
- Written: Write a three-sentence self-introduction to accompany the badge. Use はじめまして, わたしは〜です, and one courtesy expression.
- Spoken: Read your introduction aloud to a partner or record it. Your partner asks you a follow-up question using the vocabulary from this chapter. You respond.
- Reflection: Write one sentence in English identifying one thing you found easy and one thing you want to improve.
Assessment focus: appropriate greeting and closing, correct use of わたしは〜です, correct use or avoidance of さん, accurate hiragana shapes, even mora timing in spoken delivery.
Answer Key
Practice — さん or no さん?
1. No さん — introducing yourself. 2. ヌールさん — asking about a classmate. 3. No さん — introducing yourself, even with a family name.
Practice — Completing introductions
1. はじめまして。わたしはダビドです。 2. お名前は何ですか。 3. スミスさんは先生です。
Dialogue — Comprehension
- The student from Egypt is Layla (レイラ).
- Yes, Tom is American, based on the scenario context (the dialogue itself does not state his nationality directly, but his name and the context identify him as the American student introduced in the chapter scenario).
- They use 先生 (sensei), a respectful title for a teacher, signaling a more formal register than the earlier exchange between the two students.
- さん is used only for other people, never for oneself; Yamada-sensei refers to Layla respectfully with さん, while Layla refers to herself with no title at all.
- Yamada-sensei says じゃあ、また教室で。 ("Well then, see you in the classroom") to close the conversation.
Listening
- 1 — Nūru — はじめまして — どうぞよろしくおねがいします
- 2 — Dāūdo — はじめまして — よろしくおねがいします
- 3 — Maya — こんばんは — どうぞよろしく
- 4 — Ari — おはようございます — (no closing formula given; addresses the listener with the title 先生)
Bonus: Ari (No. 4) uses the most formal register, signaled by addressing the listener as 先生.
Reading — Comprehension
- The instructor's name is Yamada (山田).
- Benjamin Smith is a student; his badge is labeled "Student" rather than showing a teaching role.
- Each badge shows the person's name and their role (student or instructor).
- You would say 山田先生 in a classroom setting — using the professional title 先生 is more natural and respectful than the general title さん when addressing a teacher in an educational context.
Chapter Review — Section A
- はじめまして・さようなら・ありがとうございます・どういたしまして・すみません・どうぞよろしくおねがいします
- ゼロ（れい）、いち、に、さん、よん（し）、ご
- おはようございます means "good morning" and is used in the morning; こんにちは means "hello/good afternoon" and is used from late morning through the afternoon.
- どうぞよろしくおねがいします roughly expresses a request for good treatment or good relations going forward. It is said routinely right after introductions.
- No. はじめまして is used only the very first time you meet someone; for someone you already met yesterday, an ordinary time-of-day greeting is appropriate instead.
Chapter Review — Section B
- あ、い、う、え、お、か、き、く、け、こ
- あ、か、た、こ、と
- (a) No さん (b) さん (c) さん (or 先生, if a teacher) (d) No さん
- *わたしはトムさんです。 → わたしはトムです。 *お名前は何です。 → お名前は何ですか。
- The hiragana は is pronounced "wa" specifically when it functions as the topic particle, marking わたし as the topic of the sentence; this is a fixed pronunciation rule for the particle use of は.
Chapter Review — Section C
- Yamada-sensei is a teacher of Japanese, indicated by the title 先生 and the role description on the badge.
- The shortened form is a natural, common simplification used among people who already share a polite relationship; both the full and shortened forms are correct.
- おはようございます ("good morning") would be inappropriate in the evening; こんばんは should replace it.
Chapter Review — Section D, model answer
はじめまして。わたしは［your name］です。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。 Other well-formed, accurate answers are equally acceptable. Check against the editing checklist in the Writing Workshop.
Cumulative Review — Model responses for Speaker B
Ｂ：おはようございます。わたしは［name］です。
Ｂ：どうぞよろしくおねがいします。
Ｂ：はい、また教室で。
Exact wording will vary. Check that the response maintains consistent register and uses the particle は, です, and any name accurately.
Looking Ahead
いまできること — What you can do now
You can greet someone appropriately, introduce yourself by name, ask and answer a basic name question, use さん correctly when referring to others, use basic courtesy expressions, say goodbye, and count from 0 to 5. You have also written your first ten hiragana, and you understand how the topic particle は and the sentence-final particle か work in simple sentences.