JAPANISED ENGRISH

YOU may have come across some signs in Japan, which made you wonder whether the spelling was correct. In Japan, “v’s” and “b’s” are as interchangeable as are “l’s” and “ r’s”, because the locals’ ears and tongues are not attuned to these sounds. The Japanese language has one consonant in place for L and R. When you pronounce a word with ra, ri, ru, re, or ro; you start out with an r sound and finish with a kind of short l sound.

There are sets of sound symbols, which represent all Japanese sounds, and until a few years ago the Japanese never used any other. But that’s changing fast, especially with the younger generation that doesn’t go to rabu hotels just to watch terebi and bideo.