{"id":27234,"date":"2024-11-13T20:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-13T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/?p=27234"},"modified":"2024-12-27T19:05:21","modified_gmt":"2024-12-27T10:05:21","slug":"japanese-for-the-post-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/blog\/japanese-for-the-post-office\/","title":{"rendered":"Useful Japanese for the Post Office Transactions: What you need to know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Whether it\u2019s to send a postcard from your travels or a box full of goodies to your friends back home, you\u2019re bound to need to visit the post office while you\u2019re living in Japan. It can be difficult to find English-speaking staff, so it\u2019s best to go equipped with some Japanese for the post office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read on to learn more!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Japan<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Useful vocabulary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Post offices, or \u90f5\u4fbf\u5c40 y\u016bbinkyoku<\/i><\/b>, in Japan, are a great service, but they aren\u2019t the most English-friendly places. As mentioned, it can be hard to find English-speaking staff and you won\u2019t find a lot of English at most post offices in Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To help make it less of a bewildering experience, here are some phrases in Japanese for the post office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The basics<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u624b\u7d19 <\/b>tegami<\/i><\/b> – letter
\u8449\u66f8 <\/b>hagaki <\/i><\/b>– postcard
\u5c01\u7b52 <\/b>f\u016bt\u014d<\/i><\/b> – envelope
\u5207\u624b <\/b>kitte<\/i><\/b> – stamp
\u5c0f\u5305 <\/b>kozutsumi<\/i><\/b> – package
\u7bb1 <\/b>hako<\/i><\/b> – box
\u58ca\u308c\u7269 <\/b>kowaremono<\/i><\/b> – fragile goods
\u8ffd\u8de1\u756a\u53f7 <\/b>tsuisekibang\u014d<\/i><\/b> – tracking number<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delivery options<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u666e\u901a\u90f5\u4fbf<\/b> futs\u016by\u016bbin<\/i><\/b> – ordinary mail
\u8239\u4fbf <\/b>funabin<\/i><\/b> – surface mail (by ship)
\u822a\u7a7a\u4fbf <\/b>k\u014dk\u016bbin<\/i><\/b> – airmail
\u901f\u9054 <\/b>sokutatsu<\/i><\/b> – special\/express delivery e.g. urgent mail,
\u56fd\u969b\u30b9\u30d4\u30fc\u30c9\u90f5\u4fbf <\/b>kokusaisupi-doy\u016bbin<\/i><\/b> – Express Mail Service (EMS)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note: you would normally use surface mail (the cheapest option), airmail (the main option), or EMS (the fastest but most expensive option) to send post and parcels overseas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note that as of January 1, 2021, you need to print out a package label for international packages, rather than write the label out by hand. Visit the official Japan Post website<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The form will be in English if you access it through the English website, but it\u2019s always good to know some common Japanese for the post office that you\u2019ll commonly see anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u6c0f\u540d <\/b>shimei<\/i><\/b> – full name
\u96fb\u8a71\u756a\u53f7 <\/b>denwabang\u014d<\/i><\/b> – phone number
\u90f5\u4fbf\u756a\u53f7 <\/b>y\u016bbinbang\u014d<\/i><\/b> – postal code<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u3054\u4f9d\u983c\u4e3b\u306e\u4f4f\u6240 <\/b>goirainushi no j\u016bsho<\/i><\/b> – sender\u2019s address
\u3054\u5c4a\u3051\u5148\u306e\u4f4f\u6240 <\/b>gotodoke saki no<\/i><\/b> j\u016bsho<\/i><\/b> – <\/b>recipient\u2019s address<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u5185\u5bb9\u54c1\u306e\u8a73\u7d30\u306a\u8a18\u8f09 <\/b>
Naiy\u014dhin no sh\u014dsai na kisai<\/i><\/b>
<\/i>Detailed description of contents (of package)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u5185\u5bb9\u54c1\u306e\u500b\u6570 <\/b>naiy\u014dhin no kos\u016b<\/i><\/b> – number of items
\u6b63\u5473\u91cd\u91cf <\/b>sh\u014dmij\u016bry\u014d<\/i><\/b> – net weight
\u4fa1\u683c <\/b>kakaku <\/i><\/b>– value\/price\/cost<\/p>\n\n\n\n

READ MORE:
* <\/b>How to send a parcel in Japan<\/strong><\/a>
* Japanese post office – 9 services provided<\/strong><\/a>
* Japanese postcards – artworks to send home<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Japanese<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Japanese phrases for the post office<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here are some additional simple phrases in Japanese for the post office.

If you have everything packaged up already and you just want to send it off, you can say to the staff:
\u3053\u308c\u3092\u9001\u308a\u305f\u3044\u3093\u3067\u3059\u304c,<\/b> \uff5e\u307e\u3067\u304a\u9858\u3044\u3057\u307e\u3059\u3002
Kore o okuritain desu ga, \uff5e made onegaishimasu.
<\/i><\/b>I would like to send this, please send it to \uff5e (the name of the country, or prefecture\/city if you want to send it within Japan).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To get more specific, you can say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u822a\u7a7a\u4fbf\u3067\u9001\u308a\u305f\u3044\u306e\u3067\u3059\u304c…
K\u014dk\u016bbin de okuritai no desu ga.
<\/i><\/b>I would like to send it by airmail, please.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to double-check the price, say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u3059\u307f\u307e\u305b\u3093\u3001\u3053\u308c\u822a\u7a7a\u4fbf\u3067\u9001\u308b\u3068\u3044\u304f\u3089\u3050\u3089\u3044\u304b\u304b\u308a\u307e\u3059\u304b\uff1f<\/b>
<\/b>Sumimasen, kore<\/i><\/b> k\u014dk\u016bbin de okuruto ikura gurai kakarimasuka?<\/i><\/b>
<\/i><\/b>Excuse me, how much approximately would this be to send by airmail?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If that\u2019s too much of a mouthful, you can also say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u9001\u6599\u306f\u3044\u304f\u3089\u3067\u3059\u304b?<\/b>
<\/b>S\u014dry\u014d wa ikura desuka?<\/i><\/b>
<\/i><\/b>How much is shipping?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or if you want to double-check how long it\u2019ll take to arrive:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u822a\u7a7a\u4fbf\u306a\u3089\u3069\u306e\u4f4d\u6642\u9593\u304c\u304b\u304b\u308a\u307e\u3059\u304b\uff1f<\/b>
<\/b>K\u014dk\u016bbin nara dono gurai jikan ga kakarimasuka?<\/i><\/b>
<\/i><\/b>Around how long will it take to arrive by airmail?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re sending a letter or postcard and need a stamp, you can say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u5207\u624b\u3092\u304f\u3060\u3055\u3044\u3002
Kitte o kudasai.
<\/i><\/b>A stamp, please.
Note that the counter for stamps is \u679a<\/b> mai<\/i><\/b>.
For more about how to count in Japanese, read our article on Japanese counters<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, you would say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

84\u5186\u5207\u624b\u30922\u679a\u304f\u3060\u3055\u3044\u3002
Hachij\u016byon-en kitte o ni mai kudasai.<\/i>
<\/b>Two 84 yen stamps, please.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also use this same structure to ask for a box if you haven\u2019t already packaged up your parcel e.g.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u7bb1\u304a\u3092\u9858\u3044\u3057\u307e\u3059\u3002
Hako o onegaishimasu.
<\/i><\/b>A box, please.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But we would recommend you package your parcel before you arrive at the post office as their range of packaging can be limited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the process of using a post office in Japan can be daunting for the first time, the words and phrases in Japanese for the post office aren\u2019t difficult. The staff tend to be very helpful when they see you\u2019re a foreigner and you\u2019ll get the hang of it once you use the post office a few times. If in doubt, ask a Japanese friend if they can help you get the hang of things!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start your Japanese learning journey with our comprehensive 12-week<\/b> online beginner Japanese course<\/b>. Taught by Tokyo\u2019s largest Japanese language school, Akamonkai, this course is designed to give you a solid foundation upon which you can develop your language skills. Find out more information and sign up here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Follow our blog<\/a> to learn more practical Japanese for your everyday life in Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whether it\u2019s to send a postcard from your travels or a box full of goodies to your friends back home, you\u2019re bound to need to visit the post office while you\u2019re living in Japan. It can be difficult to find English-speaking staff, so it\u2019s best to go equipped with some Japanese for the post office. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":117,"featured_media":27262,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[404],"tags":[698,666],"class_list":["post-27234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-learn-japanese","tag-japanese-lessons","tag-language"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/117"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27234"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27234\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27262"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}