Saying who you mean in Japanese: wa and san

Level A1

Saying who you mean in Japanese: wa and san

In a group, it isn't always clear who you're talking about. Japanese usually leaves the person out, but when you need to name someone, you say who it is, add は (wa), then say the rest. By the end of this lesson you can talk about yourself and about other people, with さん (san) on their names.

A quick warm-up: your name and です

Here's what you'll reuse, even if it's your first time seeing it. アナです (Ana desu) means "I'm Ana", and お名前は？ (onamae wa?) asks "What's your name?" Nobody said "I" or "you": the situation makes it clear who is meant. です (desu) links a person to what they are, and it doesn't change for "I", "you" or "she".

The words for this conversation

私 (watashi) is "I". は is the topic marker: as a particle it's read wa, not ha. さん (san) goes after another person's name. 学生 (gakusei) is a student, 先生 (sensei) a teacher, 友達 (tomodachi) a friend and エンジニア (enjinia) an engineer. Japanese has no word for "a", and these four words stay the same for a man or a woman.

Who's who at a party

Ana (A) meets Tanaka (B) at a party, with her friend Maria beside her. Tanaka has already heard Maria's name. Listen once without reading. Ana answers without saying "I", because the question was for her. Tanaka says 私は (watashi wa) when he moves on to himself, and マリアさんは (Maria-san wa) when he asks Ana about Maria. In Ana's last sentence, 先生です (sensei desu) names nobody: it's still about Maria.

Saying who: 〜は〜です

は marks the topic, the person or thing you're about to say something about: think "as for me…", "as for Ana…". It doesn't mean "is"; that job belongs to です. It isn't only for people either: in お名前は？ the topic is your name. Change the person and the rest stays the same: 私は学生です, アナさんは学生です.

私／アナさんは学生／エンジニアです

When to name the person

Name the person when it isn't clear yet who you mean, or when the conversation moves to someone else. English needs "I" or "she" in almost every sentence; Japanese doesn't, and 私は on every line sounds heavy. In 私は学生です。マリアさんは先生です。 the topic changes, so both people are named. Once a topic is set, the next sentence can carry on with it: in マリアさんは友達です。先生です。 the second sentence is still about Maria.

さん on other people's names, not yours

さん comes straight after someone else's name, for a man or a woman, with a first name or a family name: アナさん (Ana-san), 田中さん (Tanaka-san). That's why Tanaka introduces himself with 田中です, while others call him 田中さん. Your own name never takes it: say 私はアナです, not 私はアナさんです. In this lesson, add さん whenever you say another person's name; close friends and children get other forms you'll meet later. A name with さん can also stand in for "you": エンジニアです。アナさんは？ means "I'm an engineer. And you?", said to Ana.

Just to recognize: 僕 and あなた

私 (watashi) works for anyone, and it's the one you use in this lesson. You'll meet 僕 and あなた in clear situations, and there's no list to memorize. 僕 (boku) is an "I" that boys and men often use, especially with people they know: 僕は学生です. あなた (anata) means "you", as in あなたは？, but when people know your name they usually say it with さん instead.

Your turn, and the summary

Stay at the party. Cover the lines below, say you're an engineer, say that Ana is a friend, then ask "What about Tanaka?" Check only after that, then try again with your own name in place of エンジニア. In short: は shows who you mean, and you say it only when it's needed; です stays the same for everyone; さん goes on other people's names, never on your own.

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