Some older Japanese people would prefer broadcasters did not use "loanwords" |
A disgruntled viewer is suing Japan's national broadcaster for mental distress caused by an excessive use of words borrowed from English. Hoji Takahashi, 71, is seeking 1.4 million yen ($14,300; £9,300) in damages from NHK. "The basis of his concern is that Japan is being too Americanised," his lawyer Mutsuo Miyata told the news agency AFP. English became more prevalent in Japan after World War II during the US-led occupation. This was followed by a growing interest in American pop culture. The country's modern vocabulary is littered with borrowed words, many of which are changed to fit the Japanese phonic structure. Complaint Mr Takahashi, who is a member of a campaign group supporting the Japanese language, highlighted words such as "toraburu" (trouble), "risuku" (risk) and "shisutemu" (system) in NHK's news and entertainment programmes. He accused NHK of irresponsibility by refusing to use native Japanese equivalents. "With Japanese society increasingly Americanised, Takahashi believes that NHK, as Japan's national broadcaster, shouldn't go with the trend, but remain determined to prioritise the use of Japanese, which he thinks would go a long way toward protecting Japanese culture," Mr Miyata told The Japan Times on Wednesday. Mr Takahashi filed his complaint on Tuesday with the Nagoya District Court in the central Chubu region of Japan, the newspaper said. NHK said it would not comment until it had studied the legal documents. Other examples of English words often used in Japanese include: telebi (TV) lajio (radio) kompulaianse (compliance) kolaborasion (collaboration) dejitaru (digital) taoru (towel) Vocabulary is also borrowed from other foreign languages. The German "arbeit" becomes "arubaitois" to mean work, and the Spanish "pan" is understood as bread. Traditionalists in France and French-speaking Canada also worry about the influx of English words into their native tongue. France's 1994 Toubon Law makes French compulsory in government publications, most workplaces, advertisements, parts of the media and state-funded schools. However, the French parliament is debating relaxing these rules so that university courses can be taught in English. "Loanwords" commonly used in the English language include the German "kindergarten", "zeitgeist" and "blitz" as well as French terms such as "faux-pas", "decor" and "cafe". |
據(jù)英國廣播公司6月27日?qǐng)?bào)道,一位日本觀眾指控日本的全國性電視臺(tái)過度使用英語外來詞,造成精神上的痛苦。 現(xiàn)年71歲高橋鵬二(Hoji Takahashi)要求日本NHK電視臺(tái)賠償其140萬日元精神損失費(fèi)。 老人的代理律師宮田康弘(Mutsuo Miyata )對(duì)法新社說:“他的憂慮來源于日本過度美國化?!?/p> 二戰(zhàn)后,美國占領(lǐng)日本期間,英語越來越多地滲透入日本社會(huì)之中。 隨之而來的是日本民眾對(duì)美國流行文化日益高漲的興趣。 日本的現(xiàn)代詞匯中充斥著外來詞,其中大部分外語詞經(jīng)過修改,以適應(yīng)日語的語音結(jié)構(gòu)。 控訴 高橋鵬二是支持日語活動(dòng)團(tuán)體的成員,特別指出NHK電視臺(tái)的新聞節(jié)目和娛樂節(jié)目大量使用toraburu" (trouble), "risuku" (risk)和"shisutemu" (system)等外語單詞。 他指責(zé)NHK電臺(tái)拒絕使用相應(yīng)的本土詞匯,很不負(fù)現(xiàn)任。 宮田康弘在26日周三對(duì)《日本時(shí)報(bào)》說:“由于日本社會(huì)越來越美國化,但高橋鵬二先生覺得NHK作為全國性電視臺(tái)不應(yīng)跟風(fēng),而應(yīng)努力維護(hù)日語的優(yōu)先使用權(quán)。對(duì)此,他認(rèn)為保護(hù)日本文化任重道遠(yuǎn)?!?/p> 據(jù)《日本時(shí)報(bào)》報(bào)道,高橋鵬二已于本周二(25日)向日本中部(Chubu)地區(qū)的名古屋地方法院(Nagoya District Court)提起申訴。 NHK電視臺(tái)則表示,在對(duì)相關(guān)法律文件作出研討前不會(huì)發(fā)表任何意見。 以下是其他一些經(jīng)常在日語中出現(xiàn)的外語單詞:telebi (TV), lajio (radio),kompulaianse (compliance),kolaborasion (collaboration),dejitaru (digital),taoru (towel)。 詞匯也借鑒了其它的外語。德語單詞"arubaitois"是從"arbeit"轉(zhuǎn)化來的,意思是工作。西班牙語”pan”則可以理解成”bread”。 法國的傳統(tǒng)主義者和一些講法語的加拿大人也擔(dān)心英語單詞大量流入他們的母語,會(huì)對(duì)其造成沖擊。 法國1994年頒布的《都蓬法律》(Toubon Law)規(guī)定:政府出版物、大多數(shù)工作場所、廣告、部分媒體和公立學(xué)校必須強(qiáng)制使用法語。 但是,如今法國議會(huì)正在討論放寬這些規(guī)定,以便實(shí)現(xiàn)用英語教授大學(xué)課程。 外來詞在英語單詞中很常見。如"kindergarten", "zeitgeist"和"blitz"等詞就源自德語單詞,而"faux-pas", "decor"和"cafe"則來自法語。 相關(guān)閱讀 美國“機(jī)遇”號(hào)發(fā)現(xiàn)火星上存在生命起源之水 (翻譯:陳海芬 編輯:Julie) |