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Me, Myself and I went to Japan and were astonished at how many counterparts we had. In English, aside from the three words just mentioned and the occasional ‘yours truly,’ there isn’t much variation, but in the Japanese language, how you say ‘I’ can change depending on your social status, gender, your relationship to the person you’re addressing, and various other factors. Each different expression carries its own contextual implications, so choosing the standard “Watashi” (私) may not be the best choice depending on who you are and the situation you’re in. The same holds true when localizing your content to or from Japanese. Read on to learn more.
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The superstar of ‘I’ in Japanese and its derivatives
“Watashi” (私) is the first-person pronoun most often used by Japanese people. Although formal, it’s actually a colloquial way of saying the more polite “Watakushi” (using the same character 私). In the past, there was a time when only the “Watakushi” reading was allowed for 私, so “Watashi” had to be written in hiragana as わたし, but with the 2010 revision of the Joyo Kanji list, the “Watashi” reading for 私 also became officially acceptable.
“Watakushi” (私), as mentioned above, is the more polite version of “Watashi” and is well suited for business situations and other scenes where you want to look and sound as proper as possible.
There are many derivatives of “Watashi” that span age, gender and occasion, such as the following examples.
“Washi” (儂 or ワシ) is used by elderly men nearly everywhere in Japan, and even younger adult men in western Japan. And due to the popularity of some TV personalities who use this term, some children have even picked it up in recent years. Etymologically it’s considered to be from “Watashi” where the middle “ta” eroded. (A lot can happen over the centuries.)
“Atashi” (あたし) is a colloquial expression of “Watashi” (私). Most Japanese women use either “Watashi” or this “Atashi,” but in formal situations “Watashi” is more appropriate. In Edo (back before the name was changed to Tokyo), “Atashi” was used among craftsmen and merchant men, and even today it’s sometimes used by both male and female Rakugoka (traditional comic storytellers) when referring to themselves.
“Atakushi” (あたくし) can be taken as a casual version of “Watakushi” or a fancy version of “Atashi”, take your pick. In literature, it is often used by the character of a haughty woman, but is rarely heard in real life. In the traditional Tokyo dialect, it is used by both men and women as a formal first-person pronoun, especially among Rakugoka as is the case with “Atashi”.
“Atai” (あたい) is a vulgar form of “Atashi” that is used by lower class women, which is rare nowadays outside of creative writing to set the tone of such a character. In the past, it was also used in the Kagoshima dialect.
“Aashi” (あーし) is a relatively new and more informal form of “Atashi” that has been embraced by Japanese Gyaru culture in contemporary Japan.
“Asshi” (あっし) is a devolved form of “Atashi” that, although is rarely used in modern life, was regularly used among the commoner class of Edo and appears in TV shows and movies set in that era.
“Achiki” (あちき) was used among courtesans of pleasure districts like Yoshiwara and Fukagawa during the Edo period. It was a way to hide the regional accents of the ladies, and although variants like “Wachiki” and “Achishi” appear alongside “Achiki” in dramas depicting this era, they are actually fictional.
“Wate” (わて) is an expression used in the Kinki region in western Japan, and is the corrupted form of “Watai” (わたい) which is rooted in “Watashi”.
“Wai” (わい) is a dialectical form of “Washi”. It is used in the Kinki region of western Japan exclusively by men, but northeast in Aomori Prefecture, “Wai” is used by both men and women. And down south in Kyushu, especially in Nagasaki, “Wai” is often used as the second-person pronoun when “Oi” is used for the first-person (see separate entry).
“Watakushime” (私め) is a combination of “Watakushi” and “-me”, a self-deprecating suffix. It may be used by a servant to address their master (regardless of gender either way), or by a person of low rank to address a superior.
“Wadasu” (わだす), “Adasu” (あだす) and “Wasu” (わす) are sometimes used when expressing the Tohoku dialect in print media, but they are actually heavily accented iterations of “Watashi”, “Atashi” and “Washi” and not different words technically.
Other common expressions of ‘I’
“Boku” (僕 or ボク) is mainly used by men in private situations, but its use in formal settings is also acceptable. In the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters written around the 8th century), Susanoo no Mikoto and the White Hare of Inaba refer to themselves as “Boku.” After being adopted by the samurai class, and subsequently by commoners during the Meiji era (1868-1912), the word landed where it is today. Interestingly, “Boku” is sometimes used as a second person pronoun when addressing little boys, so although the statement “Boku tanoshinderu” ボク楽しんでるwould translate as “I’m having fun”, the question “Boku, tanoshinderu?” ボク、楽しんでる？in the presence of a boy would be more like “having fun, kiddo?” Although used mostly by males, “Boku” is also used by females occasionally, especially by tomboy characters whether in anime or in real life.
“Ore” (俺 or おれ or オレ) is mostly used by males, and is widely considered to be more arrogant than “Boku”. “Ore”, pronounced like “oh-ray” instead of the “ore” of iron ore, is used almost exclusively in private situations rather than public. Interestingly, until the Kamakura period (1185-1333), “Ore” was used as a second-person epithet, but gradually shifted into first-person. During the Edo period (1603-1867), it was widely used by both men and women, from all walks of life, but after the Meiji period (1868-1912), the number of female users decreased overall although it still persists in dialects, especially in the Tohoku region, alongside its dialectical variant “Ora” (see entry in ‘Colorful regional expressions that survive in daily life and literature’ below). The character 俺 had long been absent from the Joyo Kanji list (due to it being considered an unrefined term), but was added during the revision of 2010.
“Oira” (おいら or オイラ) is mainly used by men in the Kanto region of Eastern Japan. It is thought to have originally come from “Orera” (俺等), a plural form of “Ore”, and is sort of a bratty expression.
“Uchi” (うち or ウチ) has been in use mainly in western Japan, predominantly women, for quite some time. In the 21st century it came to be used throughout Japan by female teens and its use continues to increase as its users get older.
Ways of expressing ‘I’ in business situations
“Watakushi” (私), the politer “Watashi”, would be your go-to expression in a business setting since it strikes the right tone for a formal setting, but depending on the situation or profession, you may come across other expressions too.
“Jibun” (自分) literally means “myself”, but in some professions (and fictional depictions of such professionals), it is used for ‘I’. Examples would be among male athletes, police, and other organizations where there is a strict vertical hierarchy, with “Jibun” used by the subordinate. But in the Kansai region of western Japan, “Jibun” can also be used in the second-person to mean ‘You’ similar to the way “Ware” is used both ways.
“Toho” (当方) is used in business communications to mean both ‘I’ and “Us” in that it includes the speaker as well as the organization to which he or she belongs. Also in business, you will frequently run across terms for “Our company” and it’s important to note that while “Tosha” (当社) is fine for written correspondence, when speaking you should say “Heisha” (弊社) instead. Likewise, “Your company” would be “Kisha” (貴社) in writing, but should be “Onsha” (御社) when spoken.
“Kamei” (下名) is a word used to express ‘I’ in a humble way, mostly in correspondence. It can be used whether the person you are addressing is a superior or subordinate.
“Kochira” (こちら) is a blanket term meaning something like “Over here” that can be used to mean ‘I’, and in wireless communications such as walkie-talkies, “Kochira” takes on the meaning of “This is” when put before your name.
“Temae” (手前) is also a common business term with the same nuance as “Kochira”, and perhaps more frequently as “Temaedomo” (手前ども) to mean ‘Us’.
Archaic expressions used mostly in literature and entertainment
“Wagahai” (我輩 or 吾輩) is a pompous way of saying ‘I’ that was given main billing in the title of Natsume Soseki’s novel “Wagahai wa Neko de aru” (I Am a Cat). To convey an arrogant and not-so-likable air, fictional characters like Severus Snape from Harry Potter also refer to themselves in this way (when translated into Japanese, that is).
“Shosei” (小生) is used mainly in writing by men to refer to themselves in a most humble, irreverent manner. It is still used in correspondence today.
“Usei” (迂生) and “Gusei” (愚生) were also used in correspondence to show humility. Here the 小(small) of “Shosei” gets replaced with 迂(meandering) and 愚(silly) to further highlight how irrelevant you are.
“Hisai” (非才) and “Fusai” (不才) are some more examples of extreme humility that have men branding themselves ‘incompetent’ and ‘lacking talent’.
“Soregashi” (某) was used during the middle ages, starting out as an expression of humility but later taking on an image of arrogance. Used mainly as the first person pronoun of a samurai during Japan’s Warring States period (1467-1568) and later.
“Sessha” (拙者) is another phrase that samurai buffs may recognize as it was used in feudal Japan by not only samurai but also ninja. Variants of this are “Sessou” (拙僧) used by monks, and the abbreviated “Setsu” (拙) which was a slangy way of saying “Sessha” that became popular among some samurai later on.
“Chin” (朕) is what the Emperor of Japan traditionally referred to himself as in an official capacity, although the current Emperor is more likely to call himself “Watakushi” or “Watashi” in formal settings, and “Boku” in private.
“Maro” (麻呂 or 麿) was used in ancient Japan as part of the name for a male born of noble origin (such as Sakanoue no Tamuramaro), but since the Heian period (794-1185) it has been used as the first-person pronoun for nobility.
“Midomo” (身共) was used by men of the samurai class when speaking to someone of the same or lower rank. It can mean both singular ‘I’ or plural ‘We’.
“Yo” (余 or 予) represented by these two characters were originally read “Ware” and “Wa” respectively, but the readings were standardized as “Yo” in the 20th century, and hence historical drama series and samurai flicks all feature Daimyo calling themselves “Yo”. And even in modern Japan, it’s not uncommon to hear a dad jokingly say “Yo wa manzoku ja” 余は万足じゃ(I am very pleased) after enjoying a delicious meal.
“Warawa” (妾) is a first-person pronoun used by a woman (as the kanji character having 女 in it suggests) born to a samurai family… as well as Boa Hancock of One Piece if you’re interested.
“Yatsugare” (僕) uses the same kanji character as “Boku”, and while used by both men and women in antiquity, it gradually become a term used only by men. It is extremely rare to hear modern Japanese people use this term, however.
“Onore” (己) was already present in classical poetry such as the Manyoshu, subsequently becoming widespread as a personal pronoun after the Heian period and continuing to be used today. In the second-person, it can be used to belittle the other person in some cases, but in the first-person, it can also mean a humble attitude of looking down on oneself. It is known nationwide in literary fields, from classic biographies to early modern literature, and is also used as colloquial term in the Kansai dialects of western Japan.
“Konata” (此方) is an old term that is equivalent to current day “Kochira” (over here), originating from the awareness that it is impolite to directly refer to a person, and therefore referring to an ambiguous location. It was mainly used by women of the samurai class, nobles, and aristocracy.
“Kochitora” (此方人等) is a vulgar term that commoners began using in the 17th century which also corresponds to the “Kochira” of today. It can be used to mean both ‘I’ or ‘We’ and still can be heard among some people in Tokyo today.
Colorful regional expressions that survive in daily life and literature
“Ora” (おら or オラ) is a Tohoku dialect version of “Ore” that continues to be used today, including by the character Shinnosuke Nohara of Crayon Shin-chan, a five-year-old who picked it up from his grandfather in Akita Prefecture.
“Ware” (我 or ワレ) is an archaic way of saying ‘I’ which still survives in modern Japanese as part of “Wareware” (我々) meaning ‘Us’, “Waga” (我が) meaning ‘My’ or ‘Our’, and phrases like “Ware o wasureru” (to lose control of oneself), and continues to mean ‘I’ in some western Japanese dialects as well. “Ware” (ワレ) also doubles as a rather rude way of saying ‘You’ in some western dialects such as the Kawachi-ben of Osaka where “Nani shitonja ware!” would translate as “What the heck are you doing?!”
“Wae” (わえ) evolved from “Ware” (我) and is used by both men and women mainly in the Seto Inland Sea coastal areas, but also on some southern islands and parts of northern Japan. Like “Ware”, it may even be used in the second person to mean ‘You’.
“Oi” (おい) is used by men in Kyushu, especially in the southern Kyushu region. It is thought to be a variation of “Ore”. Famous singer and actor Masaharu Fukuyama, who is from Nagasaki City, uses “Oi” while in his hometown.
“Oidon” (おいどん) is used by older men (and women born before the war). It became well-known through Leiji Matsumoto‘s work “Otoko Oidon”.
“Ura” (うら) is mainly used by some men in the Hokuriku dialect (Fukui and Ishikawa Prefectures) and the Tokai-Tosan dialect (Gifu, Aichi, Nagano, Yamanashi, Shizuoka and Niigata Prefectures). In the past, it was also used by women.
“Wa” (わ) and its variant “Waa” (わー) are thought to be personal pronouns that have existed since antiquity and is used by both men and women in the southern coastal areas of Hokkaido and in the Tsugaru dialect. In parts of Shikoku, it is mainly used by older men, and is equally often used in the second-person. In the Okinawa dialect it is mainly used by men as the first-person pronoun.
“Orecchi” (おれっち) is a variation of “Ore” that was traditionally spoken by Edokko (people who lived in the older downtown districts of Tokyo), where it still can be occasionally heard, as well as in the central area of Shizuoka Prefecture.
“Mii” (ミー) is borrowed from the English first-person objective pronoun ‘me’ and is used in the creole-type Ogasawara dialect of Japanese. But even in standard Japanese, “Mii” can be used (for both ‘me’ and ‘I’) when someone is trying to sound like they’ve returned from abroad, whether it’s a fictional character or a real person. It’s no coincidence that the customizable avatar used on the Wii game platform was also called Mii.
Why so many I’s ?
So, why does Japanese have all of these first-person pronouns in the first place? There are two main reasons for this. First, Japanese is a highly contextual language, which gives rise to new words and phrases to add nuance. Second, Japanese is a language where the first person pronoun is not grammatically necessary, so its function can become more decorative or symbolic. In fact, it’s quite common to not use the first person pronoun at all because the subject of the sentence can often be implied or understood from the context. Whereas an English speaker would say “I am going to the store”, a Japanese speaker might say 店に行く (to store go) because ‘I’ is obvious. Since the function of the first-person pronoun was not locked down grammatically, there was plenty of time and many occasions for nuance to be added and new terms to appear over the years.
When localizing your content into Japanese, be sure to consider which ‘I’ or ‘We’ to use or avoid. Usually stick with business expressions, but if you’re dealing with a fictional character, whether the character is a man, woman, boy or girl, and what sort of attitude the character is bringing, should all factor into your word choice. Be sure to seek the advice of a language service provider who can suggest the ‘I’ that’s best for ‘you’.
Douglass McGowan
