讀後心得

Six Japanese place names that Taiwanese people often mispronounce are as follows: "澀谷" is commonly misread as "涉谷," but in fact, "澀" is the correct character. Other examples include "新潟" mispronounced as "新瀉"; "栃木" is sometimes written as "櫔木" or "櫪木"; "飛驒" is often incorrectly pronounced as "飛彈"; "道頓堀" is mistakenly read as "道頓掘"; and "祇園" may be pronounced as "祗園." Understanding these mistakes can help avoid embarrassment and make travel smoother.

It's Shibuya, not Shèbá! 6 Popular Tourist Places in Japan That Are Easily Mispronounced by Taiwanese. The trend of Taiwanese people traveling to Japan continues to heat up, and travel information about various places in Japan can be accessed online at any time. Additionally, since Japanese includes kanji, it reduces the difficulty for Taiwanese when traveling in Japan. However, sometimes when discussing travel information about Japan, different characters or pronunciations may arise, leading to curiosity about which character or pronunciation is correct. This time, we’ve compiled a list of Japanese kanji place names that Taiwanese people often mispronounce, so come see if you've also accidentally misunderstood them!

• Shibuya VS Shèbá

  

  One of the most popular areas among tourists in Tokyo is the frequently misspelled "Shibuya"! The traditional Chinese characters for "渋谷" is "Shèbá," where "渋" refers to bitterness in Japanese, so the official website of the administrative region "Shibuya Ward" also writes it as "Shèbá Qū" in Chinese. Due to the similarity between the characters "渋" and the Chinese character "涉", along with the similar pronunciations of "ㄕㄜˋ" and "ㄙㄜˋ," many Taiwanese accidentally misread it as "Shèbá."

• Niigata VS Xīnjiǎ

  

  Located in central Honshu, "Niigata" may be less known compared to Tokyo, but "Echigo Yuzawa" is a famous ski resort that attracts many foreign tourists. In fact, the Chinese and Japanese characters for "Niigata" are exactly the same, and the pronunciation for "潟" is "ㄒㄧˋ." However, because this character is less commonly used in Chinese, and the similar character "瀉" exists, many Taiwanese mistakenly pronounce it as "Xīnjiǎ."

• Tochigi VS Tí Mù / Lì Mù

  

  "Tochigi" is a renowned strawberry-producing area and a favorite tourist spot among Taiwanese. Travel information often features "Tí Mù" or "Lì Mù," but "栃" represents a type of tree, while the incorrect "櫪" has no relation. Currently, Tochigi Prefecture's official materials directly use the Japanese kanji "栃木."

• Hida VS Fēi Dàn

  

  "Hida," located in Gifu Prefecture, is famous for its black-haired wagyu beef. The Japanese kanji is "飛騨," and it can be directly written in Traditional Chinese as "飛驒." However, many people mistakenly pronounce "驒" as "Dàn," even typing it as "飛彈," leading to considerable confusion.

• Dotonbori VS Dōtùn Jué

  

  Dotonbori is a must-visit shopping street in Osaka for those traveling independently, but the character "堀" is used less in Taiwan, leading many to mistakenly think it is "掘," and thus mispronouncing "Dotonbori" as "Dōtùn Jué."

• Gion VS Zhī Yuán

  

  Kyoto's Gion, famous for its geisha and performing arts, is a popular spot for Taiwanese visitors to Kyoto. Although the Chinese characters for "Gion" are directly borrowed from Japanese kanji, the pronunciation of "祇" often confuses Taiwanese, leading to it being misread as "Zhī Yuán."

The presence of kanji in Japanese allows Taiwanese people to understand better during their travel, facilitating tourism activities. However, as the internet has developed, incorrect information has also become easy to spread, so everyone should pay special attention when discussing with family and friends to avoid misspellings and mispronunciations!