Single Letters As Abbreviations
Many single letters of the Latin alphabet have names that resemble the pronunciations of Japanese words or characters. Japanese people use them in contexts such as advertising to catch the reader's attention. Other uses of letters include abbreviations of spellings of words. Here are some examples:
- E: 良い (ii; the word for "good" in Japanese). The letter appears in the name of the company e-homes.
- J: The first letter of "Japan" as in J.League, J-Phone.
- Q: The kanji 九 ("nine") have the reading kyū. Japanese "Dial Q2" premium-rate telephone numbers start with 0990.
- S, M: used for sadism and masochism respectively, often referring to mild personality traits rather than sexual fetishes. "SM" is also used for sadomasochism, instead of "S&M" used in English, in a more sexual context.
- W: The English word "double." Japanese people sometimes pronounce the letter "double." For example, ”Wデート” (W deeto) means "double date(s)"; "WW Burger" from Freshness Burger has double beef and double cheese.
Read more about this topic: Japanese Abbreviated And Contracted Words
Famous quotes containing the words single and/or letters:
“Ye taught my lips a single speech,
And a thousand silences.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“Bolkenstein, a Minister, was speaking on the Dutch programme from London, and he said that they ought to make a collection of diaries and letters after the war. Of course, they all made a rush at my diary immediately. Just imagine how interesting it would be if I were to publish a romance of the “Secret Annexe.” The title alone would be enough to make people think it was a detective story.”
—Anne Frank (1929–1945)