Japan Signs: Under Construction
Monday, November 16th, 2009
I took this photo in the back streets of Meguro near Gakugei-daigaku train station on a recent trip to Japan. Besides thinking it was a great image for the Japan Signs section of zonjineko, I also have a laugh every time I see a happy little character for almost any situation in Japan – even sewerage!
| Kanji | Hiragana | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 下水道 | げすいどう | Sewer or a drain |
| 工事 | こうじ | Construction work |
| 中 | なか | in the middle of |
So we put that all together and get “in the middle of sewerage construction” or as the sign states “Sewerage Under Construction”
It’s worth having a closer look at the kanji for the sewer as they make for an interesting lesson about how the words are formed.
| Kanji | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 下 | Under, below |
| 水 | Water |
| 道 | Path, course, route |
The three kanji quite literally spell out a sewer – “a course of water under (the ground)”
We can all rest a little easier at night knowing our happy little friend is taking care of our drain pipes!
Our happy little friend also comes in a not-so-little, but still quite happy version: http://bit.ly/6NxiIw
I had a big laugh the first time I discovered him by accident
Wow nice find. I wonder what/who he is?
Nice pic.
I just want to clarify that in the situation that 中 is “in the middle of,” it is read as either ちゅう (chuu) or in special occasions as じゅう (juu)(世界中、せかいじゅう, around the world), and not as なか (naka). So the actually pronunciation is こうじちゅう (koujichuu).
Thanks Peder – I needed to make more clear my intention on using なか. The listing is the table is simply a breakdown of the kanji and not a listing of each reading of the kanji as that can get a bit more complex then what I am aiming for here.
I can see how that has not been made very clear by me though and appreciate the feedback.