Thank You in Japanese

Hello, konnichiwa!

So you want to know how to show your gratitude in the Japanese language? There are a few ways. These ways depend on: 1) The situation (Work? Casual?) and the person you're thanking (a superior, like a boss? Or a small child?)

According to WikiHow, the most common and casual way is to say 'Domo Arigatou'. It cannot be used in formal situations though. To write it in Kanji: どうもありがとう

If it's really casual (like thanking a cashier) it can be shortened to just 'Arigatou' which is comparable to our 'thanks'. Phonetically it's pronounced like 'Ah-ree-gah-toh-oo' and to write it in Japanese looks like: ありがとう  If you're visiting Japan, you may see it written like that along various public spaces, subways, malls, etc. It's a very polite society.

You may also see a more polite 'Domo' (though it often means something like 'very much', in this context it's meant as 'thanks very much'). Still not super appropriate for formal situations like meeting a new boss or getting a tour of a company. Looks like:  どうも


Formal Thank Yous

This one is a little tougher - but thankfully only required for meeting elders, older strangers or persons in higher ranking, such as politicians, police officers, store managers, and the like. It expressed very heartfelt gratitude and humility.
In Romanji (Japanese written in Latin letters) it looks like: 'Arigatou Gozaimasu', is pronounced like: Ah-ree-gah-toh-oo Go-zah-ee-mas' (yes the u is silent). Written it looks like: ありがとうございますいます

And to be even more formal (for high-end circumstances, like a fancy dinner with Japanese business colleagues, or an interview with a panel of managers of a top company), you can add Domo (どうも) to the very beginning of the above phrase.

Wow! That is a lot to learn! Just make sure not to accidentally mix up casual with formal ones, because it can be just as embarrassing either way. If you're travelling to Japan for leisure purposes, then it only makes sense to study and remember 1 casual way and 1 formal way, for the people you will meet on your journey.



So, why am I sharing all this info about saying thank you? Because gratitude is the theme behind today's #Kawaii365 project! I got to thinking about all the kawaii greeting cards I make for my Etsy shop (DarylArt Digital) and so far, I've made: Christmas cards, Valentine's Day cards and a popular Birthday card - but today is the first time I've made a Thank You card!

Get this cute new card from my Etsy shop

And today's official project is another weird art one. I like doing these because the borderline abstract quality gets people thinking. When we expand the art, we expand our minds...

And when we expand our minds, then the art we create is more expanded. Oh my!


*_*Stay tuned for next week's 'Are They Kawaii?' or 'Retro Kawaii' post! Have an awesome day xoxo Daryl J.