1

Vocabulary (Review)
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山 [やま] mountain6 Examples

忘れる [わすれる] to forget1 Example

追う [おう] to chase, to run after

夢 [ゆめ] dream1 Example

うさぎ [うさぎ] rabbit3 Examples

ふな [ふな] crucian carp1 Example

川 [かわ] river7 Examples

がたい [がたい] hard, difficult1 Example

 ふるさと [ふるさと] hometown1 Example

釣る [つる] to fish1 Example

めぐる [めぐる] to go around, to return

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson is the Japanese Children's Song, Furusato

This song was released in 1914 as a song for elementary school students in sixth
grade. This song is about people who move far away from their hometown to work or
study and feel nostalgic about the scenery of fields or mountains they were familiar with
when they were kids. This song has been very popular, especially among people who
live in countries far away from their hometowns, because they can share the nostalgia
they are feeling with others by singing this song. Kids used to sing this song at their
graduation ceremony, but they don't sing it much anymore.

Interpretation in Modern Japanese

ORIGINAL INTERPRETATION IN MODERN JAPANESE

うさぎ追いし かの山 うさぎを追いかけたな～、あの山で
Usagi oishi, kano yama Usagi o oikaketa na~ ano yama de

こぶな釣りし かの川 こぶなを釣ったな～、あの川で

Kobuna tsurishi, kano kawa Kobuna o tsutta na~ ano kawa de

夢はいまも めぐりて 今でも夢に出てきて、

Yuma wa ima mo megurite Ima demo yume ni dete kite,

忘れがたき ふるさと 忘れられない ふるさと

Wasure gataki furusato Wasurerarenai furusato

うさぎ追いし かの山

This literally means, usagi o otta ano yama (うさぎを追ったあの山), which is "that mountain
where I hunted rabbits" in English. Shi in oishi is an auxiliary verb that people used in
old Japanese to express recollection of one's own past. So, the breakdown of oishi is: a
verb, ou, meaning "to run after" + the auxiliary verb, shi. It means almost the same
as otta, which is the past form of ou. You cannot see this shi used in modern Japanese,
but you will see it in a set phrase such as wakakarishi toki (若かりし時), which means "the
times when I was young."

Examples:

1. こぶな釣りし かの川 ＝ こぶなを釣った かの川

Kobuna tsurishi kano kawa
"that stream where I fished for minnows"
2. 若かりし時 = 若かった時
Wakakarishi toki
"the times when I was young"
かの山 かの川

Kano (かの) in kano yama or kano kawa is the same as kano in kanojo (彼女), which means
"she." Kanojo comes from "that woman" and kano means "that." But writers used it in
old Japanese literature to mean "that." This word sounds like something is physically as
well as emotionally remote from you.

夢はいまも めぐりて

Yume (夢) is "dream", and ima mo (いまも) means "even now". Megurite (めぐりて) is the
same as megutte (めぐって) in modern Japanese, which is the te-form of the
verb meguru (めぐる), which means "to go around". So all together, it's saying that the
mountains and the river still show up in the person's dreams. In modern Japanese, this
line would be: Ima demo yume ni dete kite (今でも夢に出てきて).

忘れがたき ふるさと

The first word in this line is wasuregataki (忘れがたき). Wasure comes from the
verb wasureru, "to forget", and gataki is a suffix from classical Japanese grammar.
When attached to a verb, it means "difficult to do". So in this case, it means "difficult to
forget/can't forget", and it refers to the next word, furusato, which is one's hometown. So
all together, this line is wasurerarenai furusato, or "my hometown I can never forget".

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KANJI READING MEANING

忘れる わす・れる To forge

釣る つ・る To fish

追う お・う To chas

夢 ゆめ Dream

川 かわ River

Vocabulary (Review)
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ねんね [ねんね] bed-time1 Example

ぼうや [ぼうや] little boy1 Example

おもり [おもり] nanny, baby-sitter1 Example

越える [こえる] to cross, to go over1 Example

 里 [さと] one's hometown1 Example

土産 [みやげ] gift, souvenir1 Example

でんでん太鼓 [でんでんだいこ] rattle drum1 Example

笙の笛 [しょうのふえ] a reed pipe, bamboo flute1 Example

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson Is a Japanese Children's Song, Edo Komori Uta.

This song is a Japanese traditional lullaby that originated in the Edo period and spread
out to various places in Japan. People have said that many Japanese lullaby songs
came from this song. There are some variations on the song lyrics depending on the
region, but the most popular version is the one we introduce in this lesson.

The first part of the song is especially popular among Japanese people. Even if they
don't know the real song name, Edo komori uta, most people recognize the first
phrase, nennen korori okororiyo.
Interpretation in Modern Japanese

ORIGINAL INTERPRETATION IN MODERN JAPANE

ねんねん ころりよ おころりよ ころんと横になってねなさい。

Nennen korori yo Okororiyo. Koron to yoko ni natte nenasai.

ぼうやは 良い子だ ねんねしな ぼうやは、良い子だから、もうねなさい。

Bōya wa yoi ko da nenne shina. Bōya wa yoi ko da kara, mō nenasai.

ぼうやの おもりは どこへ行った ぼうやの 子守は どこへ行ったんだろうね。

Bōya o-mori wa doko e itta. Bōya no komori wa doko e itta n darō n

あの山 越えて 里へ行った あの山を 越えて 実家へ行ったんだよ。

Ano yama koete sato e itta. Ano yama o koete jikka e itta n da yo.

里の 土産に 何もろた 実家の 土産に 何をもらったの？

Sato no miyage ni nani morota. Jikka no miyage ni nani o moratta no?

でんでん太鼓に 笙の笛 でんでん太鼓と竹の笛をもらったね。

Denden daiko ni syō no fue. Denden daiko to take no fue o moratta

ねんねんころりよ おころりよ

Nennen (ねんねん) comes from nenne (ねんね), which is a phrase in baby talk meaning "to
sleep." Okorori (おころり) is related to an onomatopoeia, korori （ころり）, which indicates the
action of rolling around or lying down. For example, you can use korori as in neko ga
korori to yoko ni naru (猫がころりと横になる), which means "the cat lies down." In this
case, korori yo or o-korori yo should be korori to yoko ni natte nenasai, which means "lie
down and sleep," but we omit the latter part of the sentence.
For Example:

1. もう、ねんねの時間よ。(when talking to a baby)

Mō, nenne no jika yo.
"It's time to go to bed."
2. 子犬は、ころりと横になって、すぐに寝てしまった。
Koinu wa, korori to yoko ni natte, sugu ni nete shimatta.
"The puppy went to sleep as soon as it lay down."

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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

笙の笛 しょう・の・ふえ Reed pipe 笙・A reed instrument

でんでん太鼓 でんでん・だい・こ Rattle drum 太・Big round

土産 みやげ Souvenir 土・Ground

里 さと Hometown 里・Parent's home

越える こ・える To go over 越・Surpass

Vocabulary (Review)
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 四方 [しほう] every direction, all four directions1 Example

雲 [くも] cloud5 Examples

あたま [あたま] head1 Example

見おろす [みおろす] to overlook1 Example

かみなり [かみなり] thunder1 Example

青空 [あおぞら] blue/azure sky1 Example

そびえたつ [そびえたつ] to stand towering over one's surroundings1 Ex

かすみ [かすみ] mist, haze, dimness (of sight)1 Example

すそ [すそ] cuff, (skirt) hem1 Example

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson Is the Japanese Children's Song Fuji no yama.

This song was released in 1911 as a song for elementary school students in the third
grade. This song about Mt. Fuji is very popular among Japanese people. You can hear
the melody of this song playing from the traffic lights for pedestrians in the Shizuoka
prefecture where Mt. Fuji is located. There are some train stations located near Mt. Fuji
that use this song as the melody for when the train departs.

As you can see from the last line of the first and second verses, Fuji wa Nippon-ichi no
yama (meaning "Mt. Fuji is the best mountain in Japan"), this song expresses how
magnificent Mt. Fuji is.

あたまを雲の上に出し

Atama means "head," and in this case it means the "top of Mt. Fuji." Kumo no ue means
"above the clouds." The song does not mention the subject for this clause, but this line
is talking about "Mt. Fuji." This line means "The top of Mt. Fuji above the clouds" and
expresses how high Mt. Fuji is.

四方の山を見おろして

The hō (方) of shihō (四方) is the same hō we see in hōgaku (方角）, which means
"direction." So shihō (四方) literally means "four directions." Mioroshite is the te-form of
the verb miorosu (見下ろす). This is a compound verb that combines miru (見る), meaning "to
see," and orosu (下 ろす), meaning "to take down," and it means "to look down." The
subject is still Mt. Fuji in this line, so all together it means "(Mt. Fuji) is looking down on
all the mountains around it" and means that Mt. Fuji is so much higher than any other
mountain that it can look down at them.

かみなりさまを下にきく

Kaminari means "thunder." In Japanese folklore, there are gods of thunder. Japanese
people call "thunder" kaminari-sama using sama, which is the polite suffix, to express
their feelings of awe and friendship. Shita ni kiku means "to hear it down below." Again,
the subject of this line is "Mt. Fuji." So this phrase means "Mt. Fuji listens to the thunder
down below," which emphasizes the height of Mt. Fuji.

ふじは日本一の山

Nippon-ichi means "the best in Japan." So this sentence means "Mt. Fuji is the best
mountain in Japan." This is the main point that the song wants to make, so it appears at
not only the end of the first verse but second verse as well.

There are variations similar to Nippon-ichi, such as sekai-ichi meaning "the best in the
world" or Ajia-ichi meaning "the best in Asia." So, the phrase place + ichi means "the
best of (place)."

For Example:

1. エベレストは、世界一高い山だ。
Eberesuto wa, sekai-ichi takai yama da.
"Mt. Everest is the highest mountain in the world."
2. 彼は、アメリカ一の俳優だ。
Kare wa, Amerika-ichi no haiyū da.
"He is the best actor in America."
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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

雲 くも Cloud 雲・Cloud

四方 し・ほう Every direction 四・Four

見おろす み・おろす To overlook 見・Look

青ぞら あお・ぞら Blue sky 青・Blue

Vocabulary (Review)
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また [また] again1 Example

むすぶ [むすぶ] to tie, to bind; to link; to knot (a tie)1 Example

ひらく [ひらく] to open, to spread out1 Example

 うつ [うつ] to hit, to strike1 Example

て [て] hand1 Example

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson Is the Japanese Children's Song Musunde Hiraite.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a famous eighteenth-century philosopher, composed the

original melody of this song. Operas in France and England used this melody and
people also sang this song as a carol titled "Greenville" in the United States. In addition,
people knew this song as an American folk song titled "Go Tell Aunt Rhody."

In 1874, the carol "Greenville" was introduced to Japan and then given different lyrics as
a song for elementary school children. Those lyrics, however, were entirely different
from the current version of Musunde Hiraite. At the end of the nineteenth century, the
lyrics were changed to work as a military song and was often sung as one until the end
of World War II.

Then, in 1947, the song was introduced again as an elementary school children's song
with new lyrics. That is the current version, Musunde Hiraite. Now, it is very popular as a
song that kids sing with hand movements at nursery schools or in kindergarten. Most
Japanese people know how to move their hands along with this song.
む すんで ひらいて てをうって むすんで

Musunde is the te form of the verb musubu (むすぶ), which generally means "to
tie." Hiraite is the te form of the verb hiraku (ひらく), which means "to open." At this point
in the song, it's not mentioned what is being tied and opened. But you find out in the
next line, which says te o utte musunde. Te means "hand," utte means "to clap," and
then musunde comes again. So, all together, it means "close your hands, open your
hands, clap your hands, close your hands."

The te form of a verb can work as a request to tell someone to do something in an

informal manner.

For Example:

1. まって！
Matte!
"Wait!"
2. これ、たべて。
Kore, tabete.
"Eat this."

ま たひらいて てをうって

Mata means "again." The other words repeat from the previous lines, so it means
"Open your hands again, Clap your hands."

そ のてを うえに

After sono te o ue ni, we omit the verb agete (the te form of ageru meaning "to raise").
So sono te o ue ni should read sono te o ue ni agete and means "put your hands
up." Sono means "that" and sono te means "the hands," which refers to the hands that
you just clapped together.

Variations

Small children sing this song with the hand movements with their friends and teachers
at nursery schools or in kindergarten. They sometimes sing other variations of the last
line (sono te o ue ni) such as sono te o shita ni, meaning "put your hands down,"
or sono te o mae ni, meaning "put your hands forward."

Vocabulary (Review)
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見渡す [みわたす] to look out over, to survey (a scene)1 Example

匂い [におい] odour, scent, smell, aroma1 Example

さくら [さくら] cherry blossom1 Example

 やよい [やよい] March1 Example

かすみ [かすみ] mist, haze1 Example

いざ [いざ] now1 Example

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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson is the Japanese Children's Song Sakura

Sakura ("Cherry Blossoms").

Sakura ("cherry blossoms") is the flower most loved by the Japanese, and this song is
the most popular song about sakura. It's said that the Japanese used this song as a
practice song for children learning to play the koto (a thirteen-stringed Japanese
instrument) in the Edo Period. The lyrics of the song change slightly depending on the
time period, but in this lesson we will introduce the most common version. The lyrics of
this song contain a lot of archaic Japanese.

Sakura symbolizes spring in Japan, and it is also called the national flower. It's said that
the reason Japanese love sakura so much is because of the sorrow felt at the short life
they live: right after full bloom, the blossoms quickly fall to the ground. Another reason is
the way they seem to strongly come to life all at once when they bloom after a long
period of preparation during the winter months.

さくら さくら、

This song starts out by saying sakura, sakura.

や よいの空は 見わたす限り

Yayoi (やよい) is another name for March, and yayoi no sora means "the sky in
March." Miwatasu (見わたす) is a compound verb made up of miru (見る), meaning "to see,"
and watasu (渡す), meaning "to cross," and it means "to see all around." Kagiri (限り) is a
word that means "as long as one does something" or "as far as one does something"
when it is used with a verb, like shiru kagiri (知 る限り), which means "as far as I know." In
this case, miwatasu kagiri (見わたす限り) means "as far as one can see." So, this line literally
means "the sky in March, as far as you can see...," but it doesn't end here and instead
continues into the next line.

か すみか雲（くも）か 匂（にお）いぞ出（い）ずる

Kasumi (かすみ) means "haze" and kumo (くも) means "cloud." The particle ka in Kasumi
ka kumo ka means "or." So altogether, Kasumi ka kumo ka means "haze or
clouds." This line continues from the previous line, so it's talking about the sky in March
and it literally says that "the sky in March" is "haze or clouds." In this case, "the sky"
doesn't necessarily indicate the sky, but a view of the distance. It is saying that the view
seems to be veiled in a haze or covered with clouds when the cherry blossoms are fully
blooming.
The next phrase, nioi zo izuru, means "fragrance is coming out." Nioi (匂い) means
"fragrance" and izuru (いずる) is the archaic form of the verb deru, meaning "to come
out." Zo (ぞ) is also an old Japanese particle that emphasizes its preceding noun.

い ざやいざや 見（み）にゆかん

Izaya (いざや) is a compound phrase made up of iza (いざ) and ya (や). Iza （いざ） is a
phrase you would call out to encourage someone to do something together with you,
but it is an old expression. Ya is an archaic sentence-ending particle used to create
rhythm. You can hear iza used in old samurai movies, as in iza mairō (いざ参ろう) which
means "let's go," with mairō being the volitional form of the verb mairu (参る), which is a
humble verb meaning "to go."

Mini yukan (見にゆかん) is also archaic Japanese, and it means "let's go and see." Yukan (ゆ
かん) is the old style of Japanese, which is the volitional form of iku meaning "to go." We
occasionally pronounce iku (いく) as yuku (ゆく). Yukan (ゆかん) is a variation on the
word yukamu (ゆかむ), with mu (む) as an auxiliary verb that expresses the speaker's
intention to do something.

We can translate this line in modern Japanese as さぁ、見に行こう！

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KANJI READING MEANING

空 そら Sky
見わたす み・わたす To look out over

限り かぎ・り Limit

雲 くも Cloud

匂い にお・い Odor, smell

Vocabulary (Review)
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泳ぐ [およぐ] to swim1 Example

屋根 [やね] roof1 Example

子供達 [こどもたち] children1 Example

お父さん [おとうさん] father1 Example

 真鯉 [まごい] black carp1 Example

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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson Is the Japanese Children's Song Koi nobori.

The theme of this song is koinobori, which are carp streamers put out for decoration on
the fifth day of May (Children's Day) every year. These days, the fifth of May is known
as Children's Day, but originally it was a day where people celebrated the growth of
their sons and prayed for their success in life. These koinobori are long streamers in the
shape of a carp. In the Edo Period, people decorated their yards with these koinobori,
with the wish that their sons would advance in the world with the grace of a carp. In
China, there is a legend that says that although many kinds of fish tried to make their
way up a waterfall, only the carp managed to do it. According to the legend, these carp
turned into a dragon, which is why carp have come to symbolize success in life.

In the Edo Era, only koinobori of "black carp" known as magoi were flown, but starting
with the Meiji Era, "red carp" known as higoi were also put out for decoration. In the
Showa Era, blue and green koinobori have also started to be flown alongside the
others.
This song was chosen as one of the One Hundred Songs of Japan in 2007. The One
Hundred Songs of Japan is comprised of nursery songs and folk songs that were
chosen as songs that the Japanese want to pass on for many generations.

屋根より高い こいのぼり

The literal translation of this line is "the carp streamers that are higher than the
rooftops." Yane (屋根) means "roof." Yori is a particle we use to compare two different
objects. We usually use it in the sentence structure A wa B yori X, which means "A is X-
er than B." In this case, it's comparing the height of the yane ("roof") and
the koinobori ("carp streamers"), and we can rephrase it as koinobori wa yane yori
takai (こいのぼりは屋根より高い), which means "the carp streamers are higher than the rooftops."
But, in this case, the phrase yane yori takai is modifying koinobori and it means "the
carp streamers that are higher than the rooftops."

大 きいまごいは お父さん

This is the basic sentence structure A wa B desu. But, in this case, we omit desu. So
this line means "The big, black carp is the father." Magoi is "a black carp," and among
the carp streamers, the black one is the biggest and it flies above the others.

小 さいひごいは 子供たち

This is the same sentence structure as 大きいまごいはお父さん and it means "the small red
carps are his children." Higoi means "a red carp."

お もしろそうに 泳いでる
This literally means "they are swimming and look happy." Sō ni is an adverbial form
of sōda, which is an auxiliary adjective that expresses a guess that the speaker makes
about something. It is usually based on what the speaker sees, feels, or hears. So, in
this case, the songwriter saw the carp streamers flapping in the wind and felt that they
looked like they were swimming and having fun.

When sōda comes after an i adjective, we omit the final -i. So, omoshiroi drops the final
-i and then is followed by -sō. All together, you have omoshirosō da. Its adverbial form
would be omoshirosō ni.

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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

屋根 や・ね Roof 屋・Roof

高い たか・い High 高・Tall

大きい おお・きい Big 大・Big

お父さん お・とう・さん Father 父・Father

小さい ちい・さい Small 小・Small

子供たち こ・ども・たち Children 子・Child

泳ぐ およ・ぐ To swim 泳・Swim

7
Vocabulary (Review)
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風 [かぜ] wind4 Examples

消える [きえる] to vanish, to disappear, to go out;V21 Example

壊れる [こわれる] to be broken, to break1 Example

シャボン玉 [シャボンだま] soap bubble1 Example

屋根 [やね] roof1 Example

うまれる [うまれる] to be born1 Example

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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson is the Japanese Children's Song Shabon-dama.

Ujou Noguchi (lyrics) and Shimpei Nakayama (melody) produced this song, and it was
released in 1922.

The lyrics are about a child playing with soap bubbles. However, it is said that the
songwriter, Ujou Noguchi, was mourning the death of his daughter when he wrote this
song, thinking of the soap bubbles as his daughter. Knowing this, it's easy to
understand the reason this song sounds melancholy even though it's a children's song.

シャボン玉 とんだ 屋 根まで とんだ

The literal translation of these lines is "The soap bubble flew. It flew up to the
roof." Shabon-dama (シャボン玉) means "soap bubble" and tonda (とんだ) is the past tense
of tobu (とぶ), which is a verb meaning "to fly." Yane (屋根) means "roof." If we combine
these lines and write them as one, it would become Shabon-dama ga yane made
tonda (シャボン玉が屋根までとんだ). However, it is common for there to be rhymes in song lyrics,
and here tonda (とんだ) is repeated. Another characteristic of lyrics is that particles are
often taken away. In this case, we deleted the particle ga (が) is deleted.

屋根まで とんで こわれて 消えた

The subject of these lines is still shabon-dama (シャボン玉). The literal translation of these
lines is "it (the soap bubble) flew up to the roof and popped and disappeared." Tonde (と
んで) is the te form of tobu (とぶ), meaning "to fly," and kowarete (こわれて) is the te form
of kowareru (こわれる) meaning "to break." Kieta (消えた) is the past tense of kieru (消える)
meaning "to break."

The te form usually means "and," and we use it to indicate that more than two things
occur in sequence. So tonde kowarete kieta (とんで こわれて 消えた) literally means "flew up
and popped and disappeared."

シャボン玉 消えた 飛ばずに 消えた

The literal translation of these lines is "The soap bubble is gone. It is gone before it
flew." Tobazu ni (飛ばずに) contains the grammar structure -zu ni. Zuni is a compound
word containing the negative auxiliary zu and the particle ni. It is attached to the
negative form of a verb without nai, and all together, it means "without doing
something."

Verb (negative stem) + ずに

Dictionary Form of a Verb Negative Form Stem of a Negative Form (without

Nai) + ずに

taberu tabe nai たべ ずに

(たべる) (たべ ない)
"to eat"

yomu yoma nai よま ずに

(よむ) (よま ない)
"to read"

nomu noma nai のま ずに

(のむ) (のま ない)
"to drink"

うまれてすぐに こわれて消えた

The subject of these lines is soap bubbles. The literal translation of these lines is "it (the
soap bubble) was born and soon it popped and disappeared." Umarete (うまれて) is
the te form of umareru (うまれる) meaning to "be born." Sugu ni (すぐに) means "soon."
When すぐに comes directly after the te form of a verb, it indicates that something
happened right after that action - in this case, the bubble popped right after it was
"born."

風 風 吹くな

The literal translation of these lines is "Wind, wind. Don't blow." Kaze (風) means "wind,"
and the first part, kaze, kaze (風、風), sounds like one is addressing the wind. 吹くな is the
negative imperative of fuku (吹く), meaning "to blow." The negative imperative is an
extremely strong command.

Formation of the negative imperative of a verb is dictionary form of a verb + na.

DICTIONARY FORM DICTIONARY FORM + NA

Class I iku 行く な
(行く)
"to go"

Class II miru 見る な
(見る)
"to see"
Class III suru する な
(する)
"to do"

シャボン玉とばそ

This is another line said to the wind. Tobaso (とばそ) is the shortened form of tobasō (とばそ
う), which is the volitional form of tobasu (とばす), which means "to make something fly
away." This volitional form works to make a proposal or to invite someone to do
something. In this case, the songwriter is asking the wind to make the soap bubbles fly.

So, in conjunction with the previous line, the writer is asking the wind to stop blowing
and to let the soap bubbles fly away.

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

シャボン玉 しゃぼん・だま Soap bubble 玉・Ball

屋根 や・ね Roof 屋・Roof

消える き・える To vanish 消・Extinguish

風 かぜ Wind 風・Wind

吹く ふ・く To blow 吹・Blow

Vocabulary (Review)
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秋 [あき] autumn, fall1 Example

松虫 [まつむし] pine cricket1 Example

鈴虫 [すずむし] bell cricket1 Example

夜長 [よなが] long night1 Example

こおろぎ [コオロギ] cricket1 Example

 くつわ虫 [くつわむし] a noisy cricket1 Example

鳴く [なく] to sing (bird), to make a sound (animal)1 Example

鳴き出す [なきだす] to start singing (bird) or making a sound (animal

鳴き通す [なきとおす] to continue singing (bird) or making a sound (a

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson is the Japanese Children's Song 「虫の声」 (Mushi no koe).

This song was released in 1922 as a song for elementary school kids to learn. It's said
that Japanese people find the sound of insects comfortable and beautiful. Hearing the
small sounds of insects in the nights at the end of summer is a sign that autumn has
come.
The most symbolic parts of this song are the lines Chinchiro-chinchiro-
chinchirorin and Rinrinrinrin riinrin, which mimic the sounds of insects. The repetition in
these parts is said to be appealing to little kids. In the second part of the lyrics, you can
hear the sounds of three more insects and enjoy their unique sounds.

あれ松虫が 鳴いている

We can translate this line as "Can you hear? The crickets are singing." The first
part, are (あれ), is an interjection that we can translate as "Oh?" or "Huh?" which people
say when they are surprised. In this case, we translate the writer's surprise as "Can you
hear?"

Matsumushi (松虫) means "the crickets."

Naite iru (鳴いている) is the present progressive of naku (鳴く), meaning "to sing," so it
means "is singing."

ちんちろ ちんちろ ちんちろりん

This is the onomatopoeia of the sound that crickets make.

あれ鈴虫も 鳴き出した

This is the similar sentence structure to the first line, あれ松虫が鳴いている.

Naki dashita (鳴き出した) is a compound verb made up of naku (鳴く), meaning "to sing,"
and dasu (出す), meaning "to take out." When the verb dasu (出す) is attached to another
verb as an auxiliary verb, it indicates that something suddenly starts doing something.
Therefore, nakidashita (鳴き出した) means "started singing."
When we use dasu (出す) as an auxiliary verb, it attaches to the –masu stem of another
verb.

Formation

Masu stem of a verb (negative stem) + dasu (出す)

For Example:

Dictionary Form of a Verb Masu Stem Masu Stem + 出す

hashiru hashiri 走り 出す
(走る) (masu)
"to run" (走り (ます))

taberu tabe (masu) 食べ 出す

(食べる) (食べ (ます))
"to eat"

benkyō suru benkyō shi 勉強し 出す

(勉強する) (masu)
"to study" (勉強し (ます))

りんりんりんりん りいんりん

This is the onomatopoeia of the sound that a bell cricket makes.

秋の夜長を 鳴き通す
Aki no yonaga (秋の夜長) means "long autumn night." Nakitōsu (鳴き通す) is a compound verb
of naku (鳴く), meaning "to sing," and tōsu (通す), meaning "to keep doing something all
the way." The particle を in 秋の夜長を indicates the duration of time for someone's action.
So, this line literally means "the insects keep singing throughout the long autumn night
(until daybreak)."

This usage of を indicates the duration of time for a certain action, as in ichinen o buji ni
ikiru (1 年を無事に生きる), which means "to live safe and sound for a year."

ああおもしろい虫のこえ

ああ is an interjection that people use when they are impressed, excited, or surprised. In
this case, we use it to express the excitement or emotion of hearing the various unique
sounds of the insects.

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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

松虫 まつ・むし Pine cricket 松・Pine

鈴虫 すず・むし Bell cricket 鈴・Bell

夜長 よ・なが Long night 夜・Night

秋 あき Autumn 秋・Autumn

鳴き通す な・き・とお・す Keep chirping 鳴・Chirp

9

Vocabulary (Review)
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茶つぼ [ちゃつぼ] tea jar1 Example

抜ける [ぬける] to go through, to pass1 Example

俵 [たわら] straw bag, bale1 Example

井戸 [いど] well1 Example

お茶わん [おちゃわん] rice bowl1 Example

欠く [かく] to chip, to break (a plate)1 Example

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson is the Japanese Children's Song ずいずいずっころばし (Zuizui
zukkorobashi)

This song is famous for one that children can sing while doing hand movements. The
game is played like this: a group of children form a circle and each child forms a hole
with their hands. One child is chosen to stand in the middle, and that child goes around
and puts their finger into the holes following the rhythm of the music. When the music
stops, whoever the child in the middle has stopped at (in other words, the person who
has their fist around the finger of the person in the middle) loses.

The lyrics of this song are difficult, and children sing this song without really
understanding the meaning. This song is related to the historical event of the Edo
period, where thousands of people carried a pot of very famous tea called "uji-cha"
(produced in Uji area) from Kyoto to the Shogun in Edo (Tokyo). When they passed
through, people had to stay in their houses and keep quiet. If someone got in the way of
the parade, they could have been killed. So, it is said that this song was a warning to
kids to stay quiet in the house while the tea parade was passing through.

ずいずいずっころばしゴマみそずい

ゴマみそ means "miso with ground sesame seeds", but in this case, it is used to mean
"apple polishing" (flattery) as well. It implies that the act of carrying tea to the Shogun is
something like apple polishing. The ずいずいずっころばし part doesn't have much meaning, but
it adds some enjoyable rhythm to this song and makes it fun.

茶つぼに追われてトッピンシャン

茶つぼ (cha-tsubo) means "a tea pot", which indicates the parade of the tea pot. 追われて
(owarete) means "to be chased". ドッピンシャン (doppinshan) is onomatopoeia of the sound
made when people shut their doors after rushing into their house because the parade
was passing through. This line means that the parade carrying tea leaves for the
Shogun are going to pass through, so let's shut all the doors and windows and hide in
the house.

抜けたらドンドコショ

抜けたら (nuketara) is the conditional of the verb 抜ける (nukeru) which means "to go
through", and it means "if the parade goes through and goes away." ドンドコショ
(dondokosho) is onomatopoeia that expresses people becoming more active. It comes
from the onomatopoeia どんどん, which is used to describe an action that proceeds
vigorously. So, this line means "when the parade goes away, we can make noise, but
until then we should keep quiet."

俵のネズミが米食ってチュ。チュウチュウチュウ。

チュウチュウチュウ is the onomatopoeia of a mouse's squeak. ねずみ (nezumi) and 米 (kome)

mean "a mouse" and "rice", respectively. 俵 means "straw bag." Rice used to be stored
in straw bags in the past. 食って (kutte) is a rough way of saying 食べて (tabete), which
means "to eat". In this line, we can picture a scene where it is so quiet inside the house
that they can hear a mouse gnawing a hole in a straw bag of rice and eating rice.

おっとさんが呼んでもおっかさんが呼んでも
おっとさん and おっかさん means "father" and "mother." People used these words to refer to
their parents many ages ago, such as in the Edo period. 呼んでも is the formation of 呼ぶ
(yobu) meaning "to call". 呼んでも (yondemo) is made up of the te-form of 呼ぶ and the
particle も which structure means "even if." So, this line means "even if your father or
mother call you".

行きっこなあーしーよ

行きっこなし (ikikkonashi) means "don't go." The phrase 「っこなし」, when it is attached to a
verb, means "don't do something." This line and the preceding line together mean "even
if your father or mother call you, don't leave the house."

井戸のまわりでお茶わん欠いたのだあれ

だあれ is the word だれ, which means "who", with the middle vowel elongated. お茶わん欠いた(o-
chawan kaita) can be rephrased as お茶わんを割った (o-chawan o watta), which means "broke
a bowl". 井戸のまわり (ido no mawari) means "around the water well." So, this line literally
means" who broke a bowl around the water well." This last line is saying that even
though everybody should be hiding behind the house, someone is still out there and
what's more, they broke a bowl - who could it be?

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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

欠く か・く To chip 欠・Lack

お茶わん お・ちゃ・わん Rice bowl 茶・Tea

井戸 い・ど Well 井・Well

俵 たわら Straw bag 俵・Sack

抜ける ぬ・ける To pass through 抜・Extract

茶つぼ ちゃ・つぼ Tea jar 茶・Tea

10

Vocabulary (Review)
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参る [まいる] (hum) to go, to come1 Example

細道 [ほそみち] narrow road1 Example

通す [とおす] to let someone pass, to make way for1 Example

 ご用 [ごよう] business1 Example

お札 [おふだ] a strip of paper or small wooden tablet often consid

おさめる [おさめる] to dedicate, to make an offering1 Example

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Lesson Notes
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Lesson Focus

The Focus of This Lesson Is the Japanese Children's Song とおりゃんせ (Tōryanse).

This song is a very old song that people claim was written in the Edo period. It is a song
that children sing while playing a game, which is similar to the game of "London Bridge."
It goes like this: first, two people stand face to face and form an arch with their arms.
Then, other people go through under the arch while singing this song. Then, when the
music stops, the two people who are making the arch put down their arms and capture
the person passing beneath.
There are many variations of the interpretation of the lyrics of this song. The outline of
the most popular interpretation is as follows: This song is about parents taking their
child to a shrine because the child has turned seven years old, and they are asking
guards of the shrine to let them through. Something important to understand about this
song is that turning seven had a very important meaning in the past because many
children didn't make it to that age a long time ago. So, in many areas, people used to
make a talisman right after they had a baby and then return it to a shrine when their
child turned seven years old. It also means that the children must live without the magic
power of the talisman after age seven.

とおりゃんせとおりゃんせ (Tōryanse tōryanse)

The modern Japanese version of this line is とおりなさい, which is the imperative form of とお
る and means "pass through." This is thought to be a line a guard of the shrine said.

ここはどこの細道じゃ (Koko wa doko no hosomichi ja)

The modern Japanese version of this line is ここはどこの細道ですか, which means "Where does
this narrow road go to?" In this line, we use じゃ to form a question in the old Japanese.
This is a line the parents say to ask the shrine guard where this narrow road goes to,
just to make sure that they can get to the shrine using this road.

天神様の細道じゃ (Tenjin-sama no hosomichi ja)

The modern Japanese version of this line is 天神様の細道だ, which means "This narrow road
is the Road of the God Tenjin." So, in this line, we use じゃ to form a statement, which is
different from the usage the previous line, where the parents used it to ask a question.
The guard says this line as an answer to the question the parents ask in the previous
line.

天神 is one of the Shinto Gods. 様 is a honorific name suffix we add to the name of
someone of a higher rank than you to show your respect. So people often call gods
using 様 to show their respect.

ちょっと通してくだしゃんせ (Chotto tōshite kudashanse)

The modern Japanese version of this line is ちょっと通してください, which means "please let us
pass through." So, this is the line the parents of a child say when they ask a guard of a
shrine to let them through.

ご用のないもの とおしゃせぬ (Go yō no nai mono tōshasenu)

We can read this line as 用事のないものはとおさない, which literally means "We don't let people
who have no business here pass through." ご用 is the same as 用事（ようじ）, which means
"business" or "something to do." The ご of ご用 is an honorific suffix. もの means "person."
So ご用のないもの means "a person who doesn't have any business here." The guard says
this line telling the parents that they cannot go through if they don't have any business
at the shrine.

この子の七つのお祝いに お札をおさめに参ります (Kono ko no nanatsu no oiwai ni o-fuda o osame ni

mairimasu)

This line is the answer from the parents telling the guard what they want to do at the
shrine. この子の七つのお祝い means "in celebration of this child reaching age seven." お札 is "a
talisman." おさめに is the formation of the particle ni + the masu stem of the verb おさめる. おさ
める has many meanings, and among them is that of "to place or return something to a
shrine." This particle ni indicates the object of an action. So お札をおさめに means "in order
to place a talisman in the shrine." 参ります is the humble form of 行く, meaning "to go."

行きはよいよい帰りはこわい (Iki wa yoiyoi kaeri wa kowai)

We can read this line as 行きはよいが、帰りはこわい. 行き means "the way to the shrine," and 帰り
means "the way back from the shrine." よい means "good" and こわい means "scary." So
this literally means "You'll be fine on the way to the shrine, but you'll be scared on the
way back from the shrine." This is referring to the fact that the parents leave the
talisman at the shrine, and so the way back from the shrine without its protection is
scary.

こわいながらもとおりゃんせとおりゃんせ (Kowai nagara mo tōryanse tōryanse)

こわいながらも literally means "while you feel scared." We use ながら to connect two clauses
that have contrasting meanings. This も is a particle for emphasis. So this line literally
means "Pass through while you feel scared."
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KANJI READING MEANING 1ST CHARACTER

参る まい・る To visit 参・Visit

お札 お・ふだ Talisman 札・Tag

ご用 ご・よう Business 用・Business

通す とお・す To let someone pass 通・Pass through

細道 ほそ・みち Narrow road 細・Narrow