What does “inaka” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “inaka” often to mean ‘countryside’ in Japanese. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this word as it is sometimes used in Japanese conversations. In this blog post, however, I will explain this word in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners understand “inaka” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
Definition and meanings of “inaka”
Let me start with the definition and meanings of “inaka”.
- inaka – 田舎 (いなか) : a noun meaning ‘countryside’ or ‘rural area’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
Native speakers use this noun to refer to a rural area or areas in Japanese. This can be written in kanji, but the hiragana expression is often used too.
The definition and meanings are simple and clear. To understand this noun more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.
What does “inaka” literally mean in Japanese?
The kanji expression of “inaka” consists of the following two kanji characters:
- 田 : a kanji character used to mean ‘rice field’.
- 舎 : a kanji character used to mean ‘hut’ or ‘house’.
From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “inaka” literally means ‘rice fields and huts’ in Japanese. This literal interpretation is not in line with the actual meanings, but still a good metaphor for rural areas, I think. Indeed, we can see beautiful rice fields and some huts in Japanese rural areas.
When we meet new kanji expressions, we should check their kanji characters in detail to understand their meanings clearly and deeply. In many cases, kanji characters tell us a lot about the meanings of the words they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “inaka” through the detailed kanji check above.
So far, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “inaka” together with its kanji characters. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentences below.
Example #1: how to say “countryside” in Japanese
kanojo wa nippon no inaka made it ta – 彼女は日本の田舎まで行った (かのじょはにっぽんのいなかまでいった)
She went to the countryside in Japan.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “kanojo” to make the subject in the sentence.
- nippon – 日本 (にっぽん) : a noun meaning ‘Japan’ in Japanese.
- no – の : a case particle joining two nouns. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this works to join “nippon” and “inaka”. The formed phrase literally means ‘the countryside of Japan’ in Japanese. It has been translated as “the countryside in Japan”, though.
- made – まで : an adverbial particle used to indicate a destination. In the example, this is used after the noun phrase, “nippon no inaka”, to say where she went.
- it – 行っ (いっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “iku“, which means ‘to go’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. In the example, this is used after “it” to make its past tense form, “it ta”.
This is a typical usage of “inaka”. In this example, it works as a part of the noun phrase, “nippon no inaka”, which means ‘the countryside in Japan’. When we want to refer to a rural area or areas in Japanese, this noun is a very good option.
Example #2: another usage of “inaka”
boku wa inaka no keshiki ga suki desu – 僕は田舎の景色が好きです (ぼくはいなかのけしきがすきです)
I love rural views.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is used mainly by boys and young males.
- keshiki – 景色 (けしき) : a noun meaning ‘view’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after the noun phrase, “inaka no keshiki”, to make the object in the sentence.
- suki – 好き (すき) : the stem part of the na-adjective, “sukina”, which means ‘favorite’ in Japanese. Native speakers, however, often use this as an individual word to mean ‘to like’ or ‘to love’ in Japanese. In the example, this is used to mean ‘to love’.
- desu – です : an auxiliary verb used after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, this is used after “suki” to make it sound polite.
This is another typical usage of “inaka”. In this example, it works together with the case particle, “no”, to describe the following noun, “keshiki”. So, it works more like an adjective. It has been reflected as “rural” in translation.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “inaka” in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- inaka – 田舎 (いなか) : a noun meaning ‘countryside’ or ‘rural area’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Native speakers use this noun to refer to a rural area or areas in Japanese. These two kanji characters literally mean ‘rice fields and huts’ in Japanese. This literal interpretation is not in line with the actual meanings, but still a good metaphor for rural areas, I think. Indeed, we can see beautiful rice fields and some huts in Japanese rural areas.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
