In English, rain is mostly just rain — with a few words like drizzle, shower, and downpour. But in Japanese, there is an entire dictionary devoted to rain alone, collecting around 1,200 words. In this episode, we use one ordinary thing — rain — as a doorway into how the Japanese language sees the world. We explore why Japanese grew so many words for rain (the answer has more to do with rice, the seasons, and poetry than with being "poetic"), and we walk through the rain itself: the sudden 夕立 (yuudachi) of a summer evening, the precise terms of the weather forecast, the season-words (kigo) like 春雨, 五月雨, and 時雨, the onomatopoeia that lets you hear the rain grow heavier, and finally the expressions where rain stops being weather altogether — a fox's wedding, ground made firm by rain, and a quiet day given over to reading. By the end, you may find that the next time you stand under a grey sky, it isn't quite "just rain" anymore. Too busy or too 'old' to learn Japanese? Think again. 🎌 ⬇️Check this to learn Japanese as a busy adult. https://shop.funjapaneselearning.com/go/pd You can watch the video version of this episode here Learn travel-themed Japanese (with audio and e-flash cards) for your next Japan trip! Japanese Language Learning Guide for Travelers https://amzn.to/3SeluZu Are you interested in learning Kanji? Japanese Kanji for Beginners For Hiragana and Katakana learning Complete Japanese Hiragana Complete Japanese Katakana 🎓Who is Asuka sensei? Asuka sensei, Dr Asuka Tsuchiya, is an award-winning psychologist, a qualified Japanese educator, an Amazon UK, US, and Japan #1 best-selling author, and a mother with two adorable kids. She studied linguistics and education at the University of Tokyo, earning a Master's degree, and later obtained a PhD in psychology from Nara Women's University. While in Japan, she worked as a psychotherapist, supporting individuals in their personal growth and well-being. After she moved to the UK, she dedicated herself to Japanese education by pursuing Japan's official qualification for professional Japanese teachers and taught Japanese to adult learners in the Lifelong Learning Department at the University of Southampton for nearly 10 years. Now she runs the online Japanese school specifically for busy adults who want to feel the depth and richness of Japanese culture through language learning.
