Page 25 - Basic Japanese

sashimi sliced raw fish

sukiyaki sukiyaki (beef stew)
udon udon noodles

unagi eel

anime anime, animation

manga comic books
dorama TV drama series

otaku otaku (people with obsessive interest in their hobby)

jei poppu Japanese pop (music), J-pop

FAMILY

otōsan father

okāsan mother
onīsan older brother

onēsan older sister

CULTURE NOTE Manga

In Japan, people of all ages read manga, or comic books.
At restaurants in the business district, it’s common to

see office workers in suits reading manga during their
lunch breaks. Most cyber cafés in Japan offer their

clients shelves of manga. There are popular long-
running manga magazines like Shonen Jump, and some
super-popular manga—for example, Nana by Ai Yazawa

—have been turned into anime and/or movies. Manga’s
history can be traced back to the twelfth century, but

the modern style of manga has flourished since World
War II, with themes varying from action-adventure to