One aspect of Japanese pronunciation is long vowel sounds (an extended vowel sound). It is mainly used for loanwords. Loanwords are written in katakana, using Japanese sounds that are close to how it is heard. For example, “party” is written as “pa-thi-,” but some people write “pa-thi.” Similarly, “computer” is commonly written as either “konpyu-ta- ” or “konpyu-ta.” The “ー (onbiki ),” indicating elongation, may or may not be included. This is not a universal requirement. You may write a script in hiragana, katakana, kanji or the alphabet. You can use characters that are able to express the nuances you want to communicate. Even when the content remains the same, changing the ending of a word can change the impression the other person receives. For example, “watashi ha sensei desu,” “watashi ha sensei da,” and “watashi ha sensei de aru.” all convey different impressions. In Japanese, there are different ways of saying “I” such as “watashi, ” “boku, ” “ore, ” etc., and “sensei ” as “kyoushi,” “shishou,” etc., all of which have different nuances. In this way, Japaneseʼs various ways of saying and writing something with the same meaning can be used to effectively convey the speakerʼs feelings and emotions to the listener. It may be complex for learners of Japanese, but that is why subtle differences can be expressed similarly to that of different colors and hues. ( From September issue, 2022 / 2022年9月号より）