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Japanese writing L Hello i finished learning Katakana(i learned it before Hiragana),and i wonder how do i write La Li Lu Le Lo? do i add dakuten on ラリルレロ(Ra Ri Ru Re Ro),L doesn't exist in Japanese Language? or i pronounce L words with R instead? Thanks.
Feb 23, 2015 8:50 PM
Answers · 3
6
There isn't a distinction in Japanese. For example, restaurant can be said using the gairaigo レストラン and live (as in a live concert) is written ライブ. As you can see, there isn't a special katakana used for the l sound of live. In fact, ラリルレロare pronounced neither with a complete r sound nor a complete l sound. Rather, there is the "Japanese r sound" which sounds like a mix between an r and an l. This Japanese r sound, however, is commonly represented in romaji as just a plain "r", though it is not pronounced like the English "r" sound. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2wzUuGm7yw and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perception_of_/r/_and_/l/_by_Japanese_speakers for more info on the sound.
February 23, 2015
1
Hi, Yes, When we pronounce "らりるれろ" is "Ra Ri Ru Re Ro". We don't use "L" like English. That's why a lot of Japanese people struggle with pronouncing " L" in English. Yes, we pronounce "R" instead of " L". For instance, When we say "Love" in Katakana, we pronounce "Rabu". I hope it helps you:)
February 23, 2015
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