Japanese Trivia of the day - ナンパ Part 1 of 2

Although we've mentioned it a few times on other posts, Japanese ナンパ has thus far only been loosely explained as "flirting". It turns out that - surprise, surprise - there is some history to the word. Today we're going to shed some light on the origins of Japanese flirting.

The first thing you ought to wonder about ナンパ is where the word comes from. After all, カタカナ is usually reserved for foreign words, so one's first impression might be that Japanese people didn't really have a solid concept of flirting until Westerners went and mucked the whole thing up (kind of like プライバシー. Hilarious!). The truth is way more complicated, but just as interesting.

The kanji for ナンパ is 軟派, which breaks down to "soft faction/school," which seems to make no sense at first glance. That is until you pair it up with its opposite, 硬派, or "こうは (kouha)", ie "hard faction/school." These words hail from the Showa Period (1926 - 89) and originally had meanings with scopes beyond flirtation.

First, a quick definition from a Japanese dictionary:
軟派:
1. 意見の柔軟な派。
2. 色情の世界を題材にした文芸。
3. 社会面・文芸面を担当する記者。
4. 異性を相手とする。

Followed by the translation:
Nanpa (flirting):
1. A school of thought that supports flexible opinions.
2. Literature concerning the world of sex/romance.
3. A reporter who works on a local news page or a news/magazine section dealing with definition two.
4. Buddying up with the opposite sex.

The key point to take away from these definitions is that they all carry/ied the connotation of weakness. Somebody who would constantly change their opinions would be considered weak-willed, works of art dealing with eroticism and romance are a frivolity, reporting on the happenings of your neighborhood is no reporting at all, and dudes hanging around with a bunch of chicks should get some tampons for their birthday. Oh what, you gonna cry again? Why don't you talk about your feelings more, wah wah wah, maybe that'll help.
So was nanpa a way of saying something was "sissy?" Looks that way. Which is why it should come as no surprise that 硬派 (kouha) encompassed all the opposite ends of the spectrum: your opinions are rigidly set, you concern yourself with economic, scientific, and political affairs, and love nothing more than to crack open a brew with the guys and watch a football game. Or sumo match.

The modern usage of the word can be described as one's method of getting the ladies. A "soft faction" practitioner, ie ナンパ, would woo his lady friend with words. "Oh, you like The Notebook, too?! Why don't we go up to my room and talk about it!" A "hard faction" (こうは) practitioner, on the other hand, had no need for fancy words, and would rather lure a girl with his manly trappings. Think Gaston from Beauty and the Beast.

So there you have it! The next part of this bit of trivia (likely slated for next week) will delve into a few 日本ナンパ仕方, and how they stack up against American equivalents. AWAY!

PS. To our female readers: Pardon the apparent sexism of this post. It's just that these two terms, like some others we've covered, are inherently... gender-divisive. I'd like to think that the Yoji alienates people equally, regardless of gender, race or creed!

亭主関白

ていしゅ　かんぱく
teishu kanpaku

Before I get started with this one, I'd like to say both thanks and sorry to the people who have still been checking on the website daily despite our truancy. As an admitted internet-abuser, I know what it's like to come time and time again to a site that advertises fresh-baked grammar every day and only produces moldy vocabulary croissants from last week. In our defense, Jeff is pretty much a vagabond right now and I've been trying to fend off a pair of squatters for the past month. Are these two things related? Undoubtedly so. But it's still little excuse for us to let the site go to waste, especially when the summer crawl meant zero classes for me. So again, sorry for the delay, and without further ado...

The way I stumbled upon this one was actually when discussing some regional 表現 with the aforementioned ne'er-do-wells and my girlfriend. The evening's topic : 九州男児 (きゅうしゅう　だんじ). Defining this phrase is a bit tricky, and my attempts to get a more exact definition via the internet have only made it more of a challenge. The very first time I was exposed to the term was when I first arrived in Tokyo and went to a bar with some of my future administration. One of them chose to order some shouchu, which is pretty much the strongest native Japanese drink. His colleagues were quick to jokingly call him a "Kyushu Danji", and seeing as that's where I was going to live, I tried to investigate the meaning a little. My Japanese two years ago, however, was a bit stumbly, and all I discerned from the conversation was that Kyushu Danjis love to drink. Given the reputation of many JETs, this seemed like a useful word to know.

But it turns out that being a heavy drinker isn't enough to qualify you for K. Danji-ship. To be honest, I can't entirely say where the next bit of my tutelage came from, but I remember soon learning that the stereotype associated with 九州男児 includes a variety of attributes common to the men of Kyushu. After the drinking, there is also what I can only describe as swarthiness. This is a natural side-effect of living in the most Southern island of Japan (ie. more sun year-round) and also living in what is largely regarded as a rural area (ie. more farms = more time in the sun). The next piece, and arguably the biggest, is the personality. And that's where today's yoji comes in.

Definition:
家庭の中で夫が妻に支配者のように威張っていること。
Translations:
1. A man who acts like the king of his house.
2. A chauvanistic and/or domineering husband.

This phrase is closely linked with the 九州男児 image, in which the husband lords over his wife. It's important to note that nowhere has the term "abusive" been mentioned, as it's actually quite difficult to become 亭主関白 without a partner who is subservient by nature (so I'm led to believe). Someone described with this yoji is likely to assume that all the cooking/cleaning is women's work, and they should not need to be reminded of that.

Jumping back to 九州男児, please keep in mind that a regional expression like this will get all kinds of different mileage in different areas and company. In searching for a definition, I found a gay Japanese blogger who defined the phrase simply as "very manly," and in an entirely positive light. I've even met girls here who say 九州男児's are more desirable, labeling their Tokyo counterparts as too effeminate in dress, appearance, and even speech. Whether or not being described this way is good or bad will depend entirely on the speaker.
例文：
僕は九州男児と言われるのための必要条件をほとんど満たせる。男らしい胸毛は？チェック！洗濯と料理が女性の義務の考えは？チェック！飲兵衛？ダブルチェック！一つ問題なところは日焼けが少し足りない。。。時々外に出たほうがいいかな。。。
I think I can nearly fulfill the requirements of being called a Kyushu Danji. Excessive chest hair? Check! The belief that laundry and cooking are women's work? Check! A veritable drunkard? DOUBLE check! The only problem is that my skin's not quite dark enough...maybe I should get out more often?

Note: I actually don't believe that business about a woman's place in the world - except in circumstances where it's comedic gold, or even comedic silver. I am even known to settle for comedic pewter.

Note the Second: Like Jeff said, I'm going to try to give a grammar post every Tuesday AND Thursday starting from this Tuesday. Also like I said before, any suggestions for the topics of said posts is hugely welcome. See you soon!

Note the THIRD: Jeff posted a comment saying how one of the keys of Kyushu Danji is that they do all of the above...without saying a word. They aren't mute, but if you have to vocalize your commands or desires, you are no Kyushu danji.