These Loanwords in Japanese Didn’t Come From English

Loan words in Japanese, or gairaigo (外来語), are words borrowed from foreign countries other than China — but not all of them come from English.

Ever wondered why “bread” is パン (pan) but not “bureddo” and “part-time jobs” are called アルバイト (arubaito) and not “paatotaimujobu”? That’s because these words actually originate from other European languages. In fact, Portuguese was the first European language introduced to the Japanese, as they were the first Europeans who traded with Japan way back in the 16th century. While the Meiji Restoration and worldwide popularity of English have made it a large source of Japanese loanwords, many common loanwords from non-English Speaking countries are still being used today.

Here is a list of some of the more frequently used Japanese loanwords from German, Portuguese, French, Dutch, and Russian. Next time, you’ll sound like a linguistic expert when your friends ask you to teach them some useful 外来語.

Of course, we’re not diving you head first into the multifaceted world of loanwords. We’ll give you a brief rundown of gairaigo and its significance in Japanese culture.

History of Loanwords in The Japanese Language

We all like to think that gairaigo(外来語) in the Japanese language mostly comes from English, but that’s not true. In fact, in the past, more loan words in Japanese came from other languages besides English — and English wasn’t the first language that Japan borrowed its words from.

Japan first started borrowing words from other languages in the fourth century when they began adopting Chinese characters. This period is important because it marked the new Japanese writing style of kanji. So many Chinese words were mixed into Japanese that they weren’t even considered “loan words” anymore. Now, most Chinese loan words are written in kanji and use the Chinese reading called onyoumi.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, Japan began adopting more loanwords from non-English countries. The Japanese interacted with Portugal and Netherlands, resulting in several loanwords from Portuguese and Dutch. For example, the word rasha is an old loanword that comes from Portuguese, meaning a thick wool cloth.

The Japanese language continued to borrow from many languages. During the Meiji Period, Japan learned a lot of vocabulary words from the Germans: arubaito (アルバイト) came from the word arbeit (“work”) and enerugii (エネルギー, energy) from German energie.

It wasn’t until the 19th century that English became the number one source for loanwords. Today, most (but not all) garaigo we know off are stemmed from the English.

Besides that, Japan also borrows words from modern Chinese and Korean languages, especially for newer foods. Examples of them are “kimuchi” (キムチ), a fermented vegetable from Korea, and “bibinba” (ビビンバ), taken from Korea’s rice dish “bibimbap“

Types of Japanese Loanwords

Now, instead of grouping the Japanese language based on its writing system (hiragana, katakana and kanji), we can categorize them based on their origin: wago (和語), kango (漢語), and gairaigo (外来語).

Wago is a native Japanese word, while kango are traditional Chinese loanword and garaigo are loanwords taken from other countries other than China.

Kango dominates the Japanese language, taking up 60% of the vocabulary. Keep in mind that modern and traditional Chinese are different. Kango tends to sound more academic. On the other hand, more newly adopted Chinese words can still be written in katakana, like “uuron” (ウーロン), or oolong tea, which is sourced from 烏龍.

However, for loanwords that come from other languages, you can easily identify them if it’s written in katakana. Unlike hiragana, which is used for Japanese words that aren’t covered by kanji and Japanese particles, the katakana syllabary serves multiple purposes. They are used for emphasis, onomatopoeia and, most widely, loan words — which we all know alternatively as gairaigo.

So how do you transform a foreign language into a gairaigo in Japanese?

How a word appears as katakana depends on how the word is heard by native speakers. Japanese has fewer different sounds than English, and it does not have many ending consonants. Words tend to gain extra vowels — or reduced to the closest sound the language has.

So how do you transform a foreign language into a gairaigo in Japanese? The English language has 20 distinct vowel phonemes, making it one of the most complex vowel systems of any language in the world. In comparison, the Japanese language has only 5 vowels: a, i, u, e, o. They are terse vowels, pronounced clearly and sharply.

As such, vowels and consonants from foreign words are usually changed into the nearest equivalent Japanese alphabet. For example, the word “hug” has the vowel that’s closest to “a”, so Japanese people will say it as “ハッグ”.

We’ve provided a full guide on conversing a foreign word with a Japanese word here.

Using Gairaigo Instead of Wago

With Japan now becoming more and more of a petri dish for multiple cultures, it’s constantly growing more loanwords — particularly those from English. In fact, this viral parody gives you a good idea of just how many loanwords Japan has soaked.

Funnily enough, a lot of gairaigo has its Japanese equivalent or synonyms in Japanese. For example, the word ミルク, which is milk, is a loanword taken from English, but there’s already a Japanese word for it: 牛乳 (gyuunyuu).

For English speakers, this might be a walk in the park — one less vocabulary to remember, right? But what’s the Japanese language’s infatuation with absorbing English loanwords to the point a sentence can just be a jumble of katakana?

マイベストフレンド、ジョッギングしましょうか？
Mai besuto furendo, joggingu shimashouka?
My best friend, should we go jogging?

There are a few reasons attributed to this: Japan needs to compensate for its lack of vocabulary in certain fields, and modernization opens up more and more new discoveries that the Japanese language didn’t even know existed before. For example, many natively German loanwords are used in the field of medicine. Foreign cuisine needs to be adopted directly from the original country’s language.

However, the biggest influence today is mainstream media. Today, the English language is considered trendy and prestigious. There’s a social benefit to using English loanwords, no matter the actual effect saying it might be. Cultural and social trends particularly influence younger people to use “English” to look more modern and up to date.

Gairaigo words aren’t just used individually. You’ll find a lot of loanwords attached to a Japanese word. The longer you live in Japan, the more you’ll pick up a general preference. For example, instead of saying 入居者募集 (nyuukyosha boshuu), which means “looking for a tenant”, you’ll see テナント募集 (tenanto boshuu).

You’ll find other combinations of Japanese words and loan words.

Japanese	Romaji	Meaning
食パン	Shokupan	Bread
省エネ	Shouene	Energy saving
レジ袋	Rejibukuro	Plastic shopping bag
塩パン	Shiopan	Salt bread
海老フライ	Ebifurai	Fried shrimp

Jump To:

• ドイツ語 German
• ポルトガル語 Portuguese
• フランス語 French
• オランダ語 Dutch
• ロシア語 Russian

Loanwords in Japanese from German (ドイツ語)

Japanese	Romaji	Origin	Meaning
アルバイト	Arubaito	Arbeit	Part-time job
エネルギー	Enerugī	Energie	Energy
エネルギッシュ	Enerugisshu	Energisch	Energetic
フリーター	Furītā	Free Arbeiter	Freeter (Unemployed Young Adults)
ガーゼ	Gāze	Gaze	Gauze
ギプス	Gipusu	Gips	Cast
ヒステリー	Hisuterī	Hysterie	Loss Of Control
カルテ	Karute	Karte	Medical Record
コラーゲン	Korāgen	Kollagen	Collagen
クランケ	Kuranke	Kranker	Patient
メルヘン	Meruhen	Märchen	Fairy Tale
メッセ	Messe	Messe	Trade Fair
ノイローゼ	Noirōze	Neurose	Neurosis
レントゲン	Rentogen	Röntgen	X-Ray
リュックサック	Ryukkusakku	Rucksack	Backpack
ザイル	Zairu	Seil	Rope
ゼミナール	Zemināru	Seminar	Seminar
テーマ	Tēma	Thema	Theme

Loanwords in Japanese from Portugese (ポルトガル語)

Japanese	Romaji	Origin	Meaning
ボタン	Botan	Botão	Button
カッパ	Kappa	Capa	Raincoat
カルタ	Karuta	Carta	Karuta
カステラ	Kasutera	Castela	Castella
コップ	Koppu	Copo	Glass
オランダ	Oranda	Hollanda	The Netherlands
イギリス	Igirisu	Inglês	English
パン	Pan	Pão	Bread
サボテン	Saboten	Sabão	Cactus
サラダ	Sarada	Salada	Salad
タバコ	Tabako	Tabaco	Tobacco
天ぷら	Tenpura	Tempero	Tempura
ビー玉	Bīdama	Vidro + 玉 (Dama)	Marbles

Loanwords in Japanese from French (フランス語)

Japanese	Romaji	Origin	Meaning
アベック	Abekku	Avec	Romantic Couple
バリカン	Barikan	Bariquand Et Marre	Hair Trimmer
カフェオレ	Kafeore	Cafe au lait	Latte
シュークリーム	Shūkurīmu	Chou Crème	Cream Puff
コンクール	Konkūru	Concours	Competition
デッサン	Dessan	Dessin	Sketch
アンニュイ	Annyui	Ennui	Boredom
アンケート	Ankēto	Enquête	Questionnaire
エステ	Esute	Esthé(Tique)	Beauty Salon
フロマージュ	Furomaaju	Fromage	Cheese
オードブル	Ōdoburu	Hors-D’œuvre	Hors-D’œuvre
ズボン	Zubon	Jupon	Trousers
マロン	Maron	Marron	Chestnut
マロン	Maron	Marron	Chestnut
ピエロ	Piero	Pierrot	Clown
ポシェット	Poshetto	Pochette	Small Bag
プロフィール	Purofīru	Profil	Profile
レストラン	Resutoran	Restaurant	Restaurant
レジュメ	Rejume	Résumé	Resume
ロマン	Roman	Roman	Romance Novel
ルー	Rū	Roux	Roux
サボる	Saboru	Sabotage + Ru	To Slack Off

Loanwords in Japanese from Dutch (オランダ語)

Japanese	Romaji	Origin	Meaning
アロエ	Aroe	Aloë	Aloe
ビール	Bīru	Bier	Beer
ドイツ	Doitsu	Duitsland	Germany
エキス	Ekisu	Extract	Extract
硝子	Garasu	Glas	Glass
ゴム	Gomu	Gom	Rubber
ホース	Hōsu	Hoos	Hose
缶	Kan	Kan	Can
珈琲	Kōhī	Koffie	Coffee
コック	Kokku	Kok	Cook
ピンセット	Pinsetto	Pincet	Tweezers
ポンプ	Ponpu	Pomp	Pump
ランドセル	Randoseru	Ransel	Schoolbag
スコップ	Sukoppu	Schop	Shovel
スポイト	Supoito	Spuit	Syringe

Loanwords in Japanese from Russian (ロシア語)

Japanese	Romaji	Origin	Meaning
イクラ	Ikura	Икра (Ikra)	Salmon Roe
カチューシャ	Kachūsha	Katyusha	Alice Band
コンビナート	Konbināto	Комбинат (Kombinat)	Combine
ノルマ	Noruma	Норма (Norma)	Quota

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