日本NHK電視臺因過多使用外語遭控訴

中國日報網 2013-07-02 10:46

Some older Japanese people would prefer broadcasters did not use "loanwords"

A disgruntled viewer is suing Japan's national broadcaster for mental distress caused by an excessive use of words borrowed from English.

Hoji Takahashi, 71, is seeking 1.4 million yen ($14,300; ￡9,300) in damages from NHK.

"The basis of his concern is that Japan is being too Americanised," his lawyer Mutsuo Miyata told the news agency AFP.

English became more prevalent in Japan after World War II during the US-led occupation.

This was followed by a growing interest in American pop culture.

The country's modern vocabulary is littered with borrowed words, many of which are changed to fit the Japanese phonic structure.

Complaint

Mr Takahashi, who is a member of a campaign group supporting the Japanese language, highlighted words such as "toraburu" (trouble), "risuku" (risk) and "shisutemu" (system) in NHK's news and entertainment programmes.

He accused NHK of irresponsibility by refusing to use native Japanese equivalents.

"With Japanese society increasingly Americanised, Takahashi believes that NHK, as Japan's national broadcaster, shouldn't go with the trend, but remain determined to prioritise the use of Japanese, which he thinks would go a long way toward protecting Japanese culture," Mr Miyata told The Japan Times on Wednesday.

Mr Takahashi filed his complaint on Tuesday with the Nagoya District Court in the central Chubu region of Japan, the newspaper said.

NHK said it would not comment until it had studied the legal documents.

Other examples of English words often used in Japanese include:

telebi (TV)

lajio (radio)

kompulaianse (compliance)

kolaborasion (collaboration)

dejitaru (digital)

taoru (towel)

Vocabulary is also borrowed from other foreign languages. The German "arbeit" becomes "arubaitois" to mean work, and the Spanish "pan" is understood as bread.

Traditionalists in France and French-speaking Canada also worry about the influx of English words into their native tongue.

France's 1994 Toubon Law makes French compulsory in government publications, most workplaces, advertisements, parts of the media and state-funded schools.

However, the French parliament is debating relaxing these rules so that university courses can be taught in English.

"Loanwords" commonly used in the English language include the German "kindergarten", "zeitgeist" and "blitz" as well as French terms such as "faux-pas", "decor" and "cafe".

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據英國廣播公司6月27日報道，一位日本觀眾指控日本的全國性電視臺過度使用英語外來詞，造成精神上的痛苦。

現年71歲高橋鵬二（Hoji Takahashi）要求日本NHK電視臺賠償其140萬日元精神損失費。

老人的代理律師宮田康弘（Mutsuo Miyata ）對法新社說：“他的憂慮來源于日本過度美國化?！?/p>

二戰后，美國占領日本期間，英語越來越多地滲透入日本社會之中。

隨之而來的是日本民眾對美國流行文化日益高漲的興趣。

日本的現代詞匯中充斥著外來詞，其中大部分外語詞經過修改，以適應日語的語音結構。

控訴

高橋鵬二是支持日語活動團體的成員，特別指出NHK電視臺的新聞節目和娛樂節目大量使用toraburu" (trouble), "risuku" (risk)和"shisutemu" (system)等外語單詞。

他指責NHK電臺拒絕使用相應的本土詞匯，很不負現任。

宮田康弘在26日周三對《日本時報》說：“由于日本社會越來越美國化，但高橋鵬二先生覺得NHK作為全國性電視臺不應跟風，而應努力維護日語的優先使用權。對此，他認為保護日本文化任重道遠。”

據《日本時報》報道，高橋鵬二已于本周二（25日）向日本中部（Chubu）地區的名古屋地方法院（Nagoya District Court）提起申訴。