Is Japanese in Mukashi Banashi standard?

[Anatoli]

Hi,

I was wondering if people using Japanese fairy-tales to learn Japanese found that the language is far from standard? It's usually not too hard and could be understood but I always stumble across endings, particles and words I don't understand? Some words or forms sound rustic, so I was told. Is there an online resource to explain this? It's not many intermediate level books you can find with Furigana but this is one obstacle.

Sorry for not giving immediate examples but I'll show some next time if you wonder what these forms are.

 

[Haruspex]

For that very reason I ordered this.

Whether it will help or not, I don't know yet, but it seems like a solution.

 

[Anatoli]

Standard particles are fine, I've got this dictionary + a few other grammar books.

OK, here are some examples from 一寸法師:

「おとう、川はどこまでつづいとるんじゃあ。」

...

「なにがって、京の都じゃよ。都にはな、そりゃもう、たくさんの人があってなあ。
それに、大きな寺ややしきがあってのう。それはにぎやかなところじゃ。」
...

「な、なんじゃと？」

These are not the most difficult to understand but I wonder if this dialectal (they use "sugee" for "sugoi") or some kind of broken Japanese, which I don't know.

 

[epigene]

Standard particles are fine, I've got this dictionary + a few other grammar books.

OK, here are some examples from 一寸法師:

「おとう、川はどこまでつづいとるんじゃあ。」

...

「なにがって、京の都じゃよ。都にはな、そりゃもう、たくさんの人があってなあ。
それに、大きな寺ややしきがあってのう。それはにぎやかなところじゃ。」
...

「な、なんじゃと？」

These are not the most difficult to understand but I wonder if this dialectal (they use "sugee" for "sugoi") or some kind of broken Japanese, which I don't know.

Yes, the examples you picked were written deliberately to show how people "were supposed to speak in the countryside long, long ago," from the modern Japanese perspective. This style is heard quite often in folk tales. (The style reminds me of my mother's Hiroshima dialect... )

As for "sugee," it's not broken but a colloquial form of "sugoi" that is heard very often today, especially among men.

Although I haven't check this site thoroughly, the couple of stories that I checked have been written in modern standard Japanese as a general rule (with exceptions based on situation and social status/background of the speaker, etc.)
福娘童話集 -世界と日本の童話・昔話集-
This website's version of Issun-boshi is here:
一寸法師 ＜福娘童話集 きょうの日本昔話＞

 

[Anatoli]

Thanks for the good links and the explanation.