日本語の庭 - Nihongo no Niwa

“Good news for South African students and universities!
Anyone enrolled as a student, interested in Global Consumer Intelligence (GCI), is invited to take part in this free online programme offered by the Matsuo and Iwasawa Laboratory at The University of Tokyo I UTokyo.
For more information and to apply, please visit:
https://weblab.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/lecture/gci/
Early application deadline: 17 August 2026
(for those who would like to start learning early and get a head start before the course officially begins) Final deadline: 10 September
2026.” - Embassy of Japan in South Africa

GCI World 2026 September - Matsuo-Iwasawa Laboratory, The University of Tokyo - Matsuo Lab With the vision of “creating intelligence,” Matsuo-Iwasawa Laboratory promotes research on Deep Learning. In particular, we are advancing research on world models, robotics, large language models, and Brain x AI. In addition, we also focuses on returning the results of its basic research to soci...

1 day to go until the Japanese Film Festival in Joburg!

📌Thursday, 13 August at Cinema Nouveau, Rosebank Mall

17:00–🎟 Free tickets available at the cinema
17:15–🍷 Cocktail reception
18:00–🎬 "The Dancing Okami" film screening

For all our Johannesburg & Pretoria students, JLPT applications are now open! ✨ 📚

Applications for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) are now open!

The test assesses your reading, listening, vocabulary and grammar skills. It will take place on Sunday, 6 December 2026 at the Japanese School of Johannesburg.

Applicants must select one level to write from N5 (beginner) to N1 (advanced). The cost is R610 and examinees will receive a globally recognised certificate that proves your Japanese reading and listening ability and helps with job applications and other opportunities.

For more information and to apply, go to www.za.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_ja/11_000001_00046.html
Applications close on 31 August.

🕷️W o r d P l a y ! 🕵️

Do you feel a pun hovering in the air? That must mean it’s time for another Japanese 𝗱𝗮𝗷𝗮𝗿𝗲 ( #駄洒落)! This one is so sneaky, it could even be hiding in the corner of your room... 🕸️👀 Here’s the joke:

くもの仕事はなんですか？
𝘒𝘶𝘮𝘰 𝘯𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘰𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘶 𝘬𝘢?
“What is a spider’s job?”

スパイだ。
𝘚𝘶𝘱𝘢𝘪 𝘥𝘢.
“It’s a spy!” 🕵️

𝗦𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝘆?
The Japanese word for spider is くも (kumo), but the punchline uses the English loanword スパイ (supai), meaning “spy.”

Unlike many dajare that rely on identical-sounding Japanese words, this one plays with a loanword. “Supai da!” (スパイだ) means “It’s a spy!”, but when you say it out loud, it sounds like the beginning of “supaidā” (スパイダー), the Japanese word for “spider.” It’s a fun example of how borrowed English words can become the basis for Japanese puns! 🕷️🕸️

Puns like this are a great way to 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 together new vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar. Whether they make you laugh or groan, they’re always worth getting caught up in! 🪰

Do you know any fun Japanese wordplay? Don’t leave us hanging by a thread; share your favourites in the comments! 🇯🇵✨
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🔑 Key Words & Grammar

くも (kumo) - A noun meaning spider
仕事 (しごと・shigoto) - A noun meaning job or work
スパイ (supai) - A loanword meaning spy
だ (da) - The plain (casual) copula meaning is or it is
スパイダー (supaidā) - The loanword for spider
なん (nan) - An interrogative meaning what
か (ka) - A sentence-ending particle that marks a question
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#日本語の庭

H i g a n b a n a

Do you know this unusual flower?

#彼岸花 (ひがんばな / higanbana) is the Japanese name for the 𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗹𝘆, a mysterious and visually striking flower that blooms across Japan around the time of 𝘏𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘯, the Buddhist observance where people visit and clean the graves of their ancestors. 🍂

Its brilliant red flowers often appear in fields, at temples, and around graveyards - blooming suddenly and beautifully.

Because of this association with death, farewell, reincarnation, and the boundary between this world and the next, the higanbana has a deeply mysterious place in Japanese culture. It is even sometimes called 曼珠沙華 (𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘨𝘦), a name associated with a heavenly flower in Buddhist tradition. ✨

There is also a striking botanical peculiarity behind the flower, in that 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝘀. The red flowers bloom, fade, and only later do the leaves emerge. In spring, the leaves disappear, and in autumn, the flowers return. This has inspired the poetic idea that:

🇯🇵: 葉は花を知らず、花は葉を知らない。
🗣️: Ha wa hana o shirazu, hana wa ha o shiranai
🇬🇧: The leaves do not know the flowers; the flowers do not know the leaves.
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⭐️ 𝗩𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗯 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿 ⭐️

葉 (ha) - 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘧 🍃
花 (hana) - 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 🌸
知る (shiru) - 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸
知らない (shiranai) - 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸
知らず (shirazu) - 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨; 𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳, 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 𝘰𝘧 “𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸”
は (wa) - 𝘵𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘤 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦 (“𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳...”)
を (o) - 𝘰𝘣𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦
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Do you have a favourite Japanese flower? 👀 Tell us in the comments.

#日本語の庭

🍒 O u b a i t o r i 🍑

In Japanese, 𝗢𝘂𝗯𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶 ( #桜梅桃李) is a beautiful four-character idiom meaning “𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺, 𝘢𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘰𝘵, 𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘭𝘶𝘮.”

Rather than simply referring to four flowering trees, the phrase is used to express the idea that 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴. A cherry blossom does not need to become a plum blossom, and a peach does not need to imitate an apricot. 🌳✨

The expression encourages us to embrace our individuality and flourish as ourselves, rather than comparing ourselves to others. After all, each tree has its own beauty, its own season, and its own way of bringing colour to the world. 🌸 🍒🍑🌿
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The four characters are:

桜（おう) - cherry (sakura)
梅（ばい）- Japanese apricot (ume)
桃（とう）- peach (momo)
李（り）- Japanese plum (sumomo)
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Together, 桜梅桃李 is a good reminder that you do not have to bloom like anyone else; A valuable thought for those on of us on a Japanese language journey. 🌸✨

#日本語の庭

Don’t miss out on these amazing Japanese films! Why not use the opportunity to practice some Japanese listening too…? 👀All films are in Japanese with English subtitles. 🇯🇵 🎬

The Embassy of Japan presents the 32nd Japanese Film Festival in South Africa.

🎬 24 & 25 July at Road House Cinema, The Neelsie, Stellenbosch. Book at https://qkt.io/9MClOF
🎬 13, 15 & 16 August at Cinema Nouveau, Rosebank. Get tickets at the cinema 1 hour before.
🎬 22 & 23 August at Nu Metro, Menlyn Park. Get tickets at the cinema 1 hour before.

All screenings are FREE of charge!

Four films will be screened in Japanese with English subtitles:
💠The Dancing Okami, a Japanese-style dance movie set in the hot spring town of Kaga.
💠The Zen Diary, showing the joy of seasonal cooking and reminder of what it's like to live in nature and taste the richness of life.
💠Father of the Milky Way Railroad, the story of one of Japan's most beloved authors and the father who always believed in him.
💠Princess Arete, a contemplative and untraditional fairytale of an independent-spirited princess.

The screening of these films is made possible thanks to Japan Foundation 国際交流基金 and JFF Theater｜Moved, Touched & Inspired .

✨🎋 T a n a b a t a 🌌✨

Every summer, people across Japan celebrate 𝙏𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙖 (七夕), a festival of stars inspired by a centuries-old love story.

According to legend, 𝗢𝗿𝗶𝗵𝗶𝗺𝗲, a weaver princess, and 𝗛𝗶𝗸𝗼𝗯𝗼𝘀𝗵𝗶, a cowherd, fell deeply in love. So enchanted were they with each other that they neglected their duties, angering the Sky King. To separate them, he placed a river of stars (the Milky Way) between them. Moved by their sadness at being apart, however, he allowed them to reunite once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month (that’s today!).

Orihime and Hikoboshi are now identified with the stars Vega and Altair, and their annual meeting has come to inspire one of Japan’s most beloved traditions: writing wishes on colourful strips of paper (tanzaku) and hanging them on bamboo branches beneath the summer sky. 🎋📜

While Tanabata is celebrated throughout Japan, every region adds its own flair. From colourful streamers in Sendai and candlelit “Milky Ways” in Tokyo, to lantern festivals in Kyoto and spectacular floats in Akita, the festival continues to bring communities together while celebrating local traditions.
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🎋 This week at Nihongo no Niwa, we’re celebrating Tanabata too!

Why not write a wish, hang it on a bamboo branch, and become part of a tradition that has connected dreamers beneath the stars for generations? 🤩✨
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#七夕