Jul 8, 2009

”teigaku-Gyuufu-kin”


IMG_2329.JPG, originally uploaded by bikenglish.

People in Japan often use a little bit changed name from the original name to attract other's attention. It is a kind of "word play"(言葉遊び).

Last Sunday, I found this small sign in MacDonald's shop. This is a name of a meal coupon that is worth of 20,000yen (but you can buy it in only 12,000yen.)

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (総務省)has translated "Teigaku Kyufu-kin"(定額給付金) into "Supplementary Income Payments". It says that their objectives are
to support the livelihoods of residents in Japan in order to alleviate peoples’ concerns during this recession and to contribute in stimulating local economies by issuing to residents throughout Japan.

In this case, a
Kanji character "給(kyuu)" is replaced with another character "牛(gyuu)". "給"means "payment", and "牛"means "cattle". MacDonald has several goods made from beef, so the stuff has used "牛" in this word.

1 comment:

Helen said...

i think 言葉遊び is very funny and my Japanese boss teaches me one or two about that sometimes~ can you write more about that?