Nihongo Pera Pera. Susan Millington
• Kyū sha kara hin hin to uma no nakigoe ga shimasu.
The neighing of horses is coming from the stable.
bū bū pig's grunt or snort; human griping about something; toot, blow a horn*
• Onaka o sukashita buta-tachi ga yakamashiku bū bū hana o narashite imashita.
The hungry pigs were snorting noisily.
mē mē goat's or sheep's bleat
You may be surprised to find that the Japanese have a word for a goat's bleat when the animals themselves are so rarely seen in Japan, but friends tell me that before the economic miracle began, many Japanese households kept goats for their milk.
• Nihon de wa yagi wa hijō ni sukunai node, mē mē to iu nakigoe wa metta ni kikarenai.
Goats are extremely rare in Japan, so you don't often hear their bleating.
mō mō moo
• Bokujō de kusa o tabete ita ushi wa yū gata ni naru to, mō mō nakinagara koya e kaerimashita.
The cows, who had been eating grass in the pasture, returned to their shed when evening fell.
gā gā duck's quack, goose's honk
• Ahiru ga gā gā nakinagara, ike o dete, pan o motte ita kodomo ni chikazukimashita.
The quacking ducks came out of the pond and headed for the children holding bread.
kokekokk ō cock-a-doodle-doo
• Ondori ga kokekokk ō to naita no o kiite, okiru jikan ni natta to wakatta.
When I heard the rooster crow, I knew it was time to get up.
piyo piyo cheep cheep
• Hiyoko ga piyo piyo to nakinagara, oyadori no ato o tsuite kita.
The cheeping chicks followed their mother.
In the Countryside
From long ago, wild animals in the thick forests and remote mountains of Japan provided a ready source of material for the fertile imaginations of the local people. They told tales of bewitching foxes, of deceiving badgers and snakes, and of giant baboons lurking deep in the forests. While the woods were magical for the storytellers, they also provided inspiration for the poets, who delighted in the beautiful song of a nightingale or felt sadness upon hearing the lonely hooting of an owl.
The hiker in Japan today will probably have to look hard to discover anything moving on land other than fellow hikers, but he may be lucky and come across a troupe of those favorite scamps of folk tales, the monkeys. Don't be surprised if the locals aren't as pleased by this as you are. Monkeys raid the orchards, steal crops from the fields, and even sometimes pull tiles off the roofs of the houses.
kon kon fox's yelp; snow falling for a long time; light knocking or coughing
• Yama de kitsune ga kon kon nakimashita.
The fox cried out in the mountains.
kyakkya monkey's shriek
• Michiko wa kyakkya to naku saru-tachi no koe o futatabi kiita toki, isoide mado o shimemashita.
Michiko shut the windows quickly when she heard the shrieking of the monkeys again.
kakk ō cuckoo's song
• Kakkō kakkō to naite ita kakkō ga, totsuzen shizuka ni narimashita.
The calling cuckoo suddenly became quiet.
hō hokekyo nightingale's song
• Uguisu no hō hokekyo hō hokekyo to iu kirei na nakigoe ga nankai mo hibikimashita.
The nightingale's beautiful call sounded repeatedly.
hō, hō hō owl's hooting
• Hō hō to iu fukurō no nakigoe ga kurayami ni hibikimashita.
The owl hooted in the darkness.
pii hyororo hawk's cry; sound of a flute
• Tonbi ga pii hyororo to nakinagara kawa no ue ni tonde kimashita.
The hawk let out a cry as it came flying over the river.
koro koro cricket's chirp; ring of a bell; giggling; rolling; plump*
• Kō rogi ga shi-gokai koro koro to nakimashita.
A cricket chirped four or five times in succession.
chinchirorin cricket's chirp
• Aki ni natte, furusato ni kaette matsumushi no chinchirorin to iu oto o kiku no o tanoshimi ni shite imasu.
I look forward to returning to my home in the country and hearing the chirp of the crickets when autumn comes.
kero kero frog's croaking
• Tanbo de kero kero naite iru kaeru no koe o kiku to, yahari furusato wa ii tokoro da to omoimasu.
When I hear the frogs croaking in the paddy fields, I think about what a nice place my hometown is after all.
chū chū mouse's squeak
• Nezumi ga naya de hitobanjū chū chū naite iru koe ga kikoemashita.
We could hear mice squeaking in the barn all night long.
būn, bun bun buzz of a bee or horsefly
• Hachi no mure ga su kara bun bun tobitatta.
A buzzing swarm of bees flew out of the beehive.
Summer, fall, winter, spring—every year the four seasons follow one another right on schedule, almost to the day, in Japan. Granted, there are long, rainy intervals in between, when nature has to change the scenery for the next act in her drama. In spite of the predictability, or even perhaps because of it, when people meet they usually greet each other with a reference to the weather. Since it is very unlikely that disagreement will arise over whether it's fine or rainy, hot or cold, the speakers can safely establish a harmonious rapport before moving on to any thorny issues they want to discuss.
Weather assaults our senses and can deeply affect our feelings. It comes as no surprise then that there are many onomatopoeic phrases to describe how we perceive it. When someone mentions the weather, I always try to respond with a slightly unusual comment to delight and, well, impress them. Try to tuck a few of them in your memory to pull out when the chance arises. By the way, I couldn't resist including many phrases having to do with dampness. If you've lived in Japan for a while, you'll know why.
Rain and Dampness
When we lived in a Japanese-style house with no central heating or air conditioning, it could become so damp after a rainy stretch that we used to worry about finding mushrooms growing in our shoes. We still worry, even in our Western-style apartment, but it doesn't happen much anymore.
gusho gusho soaking wet, sopping wet
• Niwaka ame ni atte, kasa ga nakatta node, kaisha ni gusho gusho ni nurete tsukimashita.
Because I was caught in a sudden rainfall without an umbrella, I arrived at the office sopping wet.
gusshori drenched
• Totsuzen noō ame ni atte, karada zentai ga gusshori nurete shimaimashita.
I got soaked to the skin in the sudden downpour.
zā zā sound of a downpour, sound of a lot