Official "what Nihongo" thread.

FrustratedDave said:

Ok , we all have things that we can't understand why something is stated in a particular way in Japanese. So I thought it would be fun to make a thread of all those little quirky things that we have noticed in Japanese. (sorry if there already is a thread like this, I could not find one)

I will start,
お湯を沸かす(oyu wo wakasu)= Boil some water.
But, the literal translation is boil some "hot" water. So I ask why does one need to boil some already hot water?

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Putrefaction said:

I'd like to know why double negatives.

Literally translated into English (and placed in somewhat normal structures) it means that it is.

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Elizabeth said:

Easy one. I just want to know where the あずみ in 安曇野 comes from.

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undrentide said:

Do you mean why 安曇 is pronounced あずみ?
It is one of 熟字訓, many examples are found in place names.
Japanese wiki gives a good explanation.

https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%86%...9C.B0.E5.90.8D

I do not know the etymology of あずみ, quick search by Google shows the possibility that it was derived from わだつみ（海神綿津見）＝海の神 but I'm not sure if it is correct and has a solid background or not...

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ASHIKAGA said:

What double negatives? I'm sorry but I'm lost.

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Putrefaction said:

I'd like to know why double negatives.

Literally translated into English (and placed in somewhat normal structures) it means that it is.

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