Please translate this for me

[musicisgood]

Can you tell me where "Public Assistance Dept. is"?

 

[Toritoribe]

The translation of Public Assistance is 生活保護 seikatsu hogo, but the name of the department or section in charge of it defers depending on the local government (e.g. 生活援護室, 生活福祉部保護課, 福祉課援護係, 福祉介護課援護係, 福祉課福祉政策室, etc., etc.).
I would say;
生活保護を担当している部署はどこか教えていただけませんか。
Seikatsu hogo wo tantō shiteiru busho wa doko ka oshiete itadake masen ka?
Can you tell me where the department/section in charge of Public Assistance is?

 

[musicisgood]

The translation of Public Assistance is 生活保護 seikatsu hogo, but the name of the department or section in charge of it defers depending on the local government (e.g. 生活援護室, 生活福祉部保護課, 福祉課援護係, 福祉介護課援護係, 福祉課福祉政策室, etc., etc.).
I would say;
生活保護を担当している部署はどこか教えていただけませんか。
Seikatsu hogo wo tantō shiteiru busho wa doko ka oshiete itadake masen ka?
Can you tell me where the department/section in charge of Public Assistance is?

Thank you so much.

 

[Lawrence1]

Can't you just say:
生活保護はどこですか？
seikatsu wa doko desuka?
"where is Public Assistance?"
Maybe I am wrong but this is the first thing that comes to mind.

 

[musicisgood]

Can't you just say:
生活保護はどこですか？
seikatsu wa doko desuka?
"where is Public Assistance?"
Maybe I am wrong but this is the first thing that comes to mind.

Thanks. The above translation does give me more words to learn, but yours is short. I'll learn both of them.

Again, thanks.

 

[indojindesu]

Can't you just say:
生活保護はどこですか？
seikatsu wa doko desuka?
"where is Public Assistance?"
Maybe I am wrong but this is the first thing that comes to mind.

Probably nitpicking, but it should be seikatsu hogo and not seikatsu.
"seikatsu wa doko desu ka " means "where is life"
You can ask "Seikatsu hogo wa doko desu ka"

 

[Lawrence1]

Probably nitpicking, but it should be seikatsu hogo and not seikatsu.
"seikatsu wa doko desu ka " means "where is life"
You can ask "Seikatsu hogo wa doko desu ka"

Sorry. You are right. I wrote the kanji correctly but forgot to translate hogo to romaji.

 

[musicisgood]

Sorry. You are right. I wrote the kanji correctly but forgot to translate hogo to romaji.

Hey thanks again.

 

[indojindesu]

Thanks. The above translation does give me more words to learn, but yours is short. I'll learn both of them.

Again, thanks.

I think toritoribe-san was just translating the sentence you wrote

Both might work, the second sentence is just a very simple version of what toritoribe-san wrote

 

[musicisgood]

Probably nitpicking, but it should be seikatsu hogo and not seikatsu.
"seikatsu wa doko desu ka " means "where is life"
You can ask "Seikatsu hogo wa doko desu ka"

thanks indo

 

[Toritoribe]

Can't you just say:
生活保護はどこですか？
seikatsu wa doko desuka?
"where is Public Assistance?"
Maybe I am wrong but this is the first thing that comes to mind.

It doesn't work, I'm afraid. Just 生活保護 can't refer to the department/section. It might be recipients of it, or could be the payment. The one who is asked this question might be able to guess what it's supposed to mean especially if the questioner is a foreigner, but I might interpret it "Where can I withdraw my payment?" or "Where can I meet with recipients of public assistance?", for instance.

 

[Lawrence1]

It doesn't work, I'm afraid. Just 生活保護 can't refer to the department/section. It might be recipients of it, or could be the payment. The one who is asked this question might be able to guess what it's supposed to mean especially if the questioner is a foreigner, but I might interpret it "Where can I withdraw my payment?" or "Where can I meet with recipients of public assistance?", for instance.

Oh. I see. Thank you. So it won't work because of the ambiguity of the 生活保護.

 

[Toritoribe]

Yes, that's right. 生活保護課 "Seikatsuhogo ka" would work fine. Even if the local government doesn't have such department/section, it clearly shows that the questioner is asking about the location of the department.

 

[Mike Cash]

Absolutely indispensable vocabulary for going to City Hall: 窓口 (madoguchi).

 

[musicisgood]

Absolutely indispensable vocabulary for going to City Hall: 窓口 (madoguchi).

Thanks Mike

So is madoguchi mean "City Hall" office?

 

[Mike Cash]

Thanks Mike

So is madoguchi mean "City Hall" office?

No, it refers to a "window", in the sense of the place where the bureaucrats interact with the peasantry at the counter. You've seen them at government buildings, large hospitals, etc.

 

[musicisgood]

No, it refers to a "window", in the sense of the place where the bureaucrats interact with the peasantry at the counter. You've seen them at government buildings, large hospitals, etc.

OK
How do you say City Hall. You know where you have to go to let people know where you live and so on.

 

[Mike Cash]

OK
How do you say City Hall. You know where you have to go to let people know where you live and so on.

Depends what kind of municipality one is in. If it is a city, "shiyakusho"

Do you have a J-E/E-J dictionary?

 

[musicisgood]

Depends what kind of municipality one is in. If it is a city, "shiyakusho"

Do you have a J-E/E-J dictionary?

Mike, I don't have anything at the moment. Just this computer.

 

[WonkoTheSane]

Thanks Mike

So is madoguchi mean "City Hall" office?

Contextually, it should be pretty apparent what the term means when you see it in place. I think, for example, it's posted above the counter where one obtains information about JR tickets at my local station (my surety is somewhat impacted by my sobriety currently, though my interest in wandering down to my station to check is also, less positively, impacted by my sobriety... Or lack thereof in both cases).

Simply, you'll know what it's for when you see it.

 

[Mike Cash]

Mike, I don't have anything at the moment. Just this computer.

If you have the internet, you have a dictionary.

Definitions for City hall at Nihongodict: Free Online English ⇆ Japanese Dictionary

On a side note, have you learned hiragana and/or katakana?

 

[musicisgood]

If you have the internet, you have a dictionary.

Definitions for City hall at Nihongodict: Free Online English ⇆ Japanese Dictionary

On a side note, have you learned hiragana and/or katakana?

Thanks Mike

I've learned hiragana about 90 or so percent and katakana is fairly weak at the moment. Hitting the book that someone recommended the other day now. Got them all too.

Never heard of the above, will check it out now.

Just checked it out now. I'll be using it, many thanks.