# Momma, you're home!



## danielfranco

Hello, Japanese enthusiasts!
I'm sorry to bother you with something so fundamental, but my efforts in learning Japanese have not progressed at all. I will need to apply myself better. In the mean time, I have these few questions regarding how a child would say this phrase:

"Momma, you're home!"?

I mean, would he use the honorific for "Mother", or is there a "pet" name equivalent to "momma"?
If possible, I would appreciate it very much if you could write the translation of the phrase in romaji (is that the correct term?), because I'm not good at reading kanji or katakana, yet.

Thank you for your consideration.

Danforth François IV


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## Brave Heart

It depends on how old he is and what kind of family he is from.

"Mama! (=Mom!)  Mama!" ---- a little child

"Mama! Iru?/Iruno?" --- maybe, elementary school age

"Oka-a-san!/Ka-a-san! (=Mom!)  Iruno?"  --- maybe, middle school age to adult

"Oka-a-sama! (=Mom!)  Irasshai-masuka?"  --- very rare, snob or high-society, middle school age to adult

Hoe this helps.


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## danielfranco

Thank you. 
It's interesting to see that even Japanese, which has little to do with the Romance or Germanic languages, also uses the "mama" sound small children make for "mother": SP, EN, IT, FR (well, I suppose "maman" is close enough) and probably others use "mama" too.
So, what does "iruno?" mean? From the very little I can understand, the "no" ending is to denote an emotional emphasis, right?
But the "iru" verb, is that "to exist"?
In that case the child is expressing emotion for finding mom, Do I understand correctly? Does the Japanese expression change if the child wasn't expecting mother to be at home already?
Sorry for all the questions, but I'm realizing I shouldn't try to learn on my own and should probably take some real classes.
D.


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## MariposaChou

"Mama" is probably a borrowed word into Japanese from English or some other Indo-European language.

"Iru" does mean "to exist".  

"No" is a particle that marks questions.  You can think of it as an informal form of the "ka" question marker.

So "iru no?"  would be something like "are you (at home / here)?" 

The location is implied in Japanese, so you don't have to explicitly say "uchi ni" or "koko ni" before saying "iru no".  

Hope that helps. ^^

xxx I prefer being in a physical classroom on campus.


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## Brave Heart

Mama was origninally a word borrowed from, maybe, English, but mama has become a very common Japanese word now.

>the "iru" verb, is that "to exist"?

Yes. Or "to be"
We don't usually say "Uchini" (=at home) in this case, assuming he is already home and searching for her mom in the house.

>the "no" ending is to denote an emotional emphasis

I don't know about this. Probably it depends on context.

"no" in "iruno" doesn't mean much at all. "no" in this case is just to make the phrase sound a little softer, I guess.

>Does the Japanese expression change if the child wasn't expecting mother to be at home already?

Yes. He would say, "Mama! Inaino?" (= Mom! You are not home?)


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## Flaminius

I am wondering what you mean by "You're home."  Assuming it is a quotidian expression for "You have arrived at the destination, which is your home," I'd translate;
Okāsan, uchi-ni tsuita yo.
mother, toHome arrived.


> [W]ould he use the honorific for "Mother", or is there a "pet" name equivalent to "momma"?



Honorific and pet names are really close in Japanese.  While _okāsan_ is the most common appellation for one's mother, _kāsan_ and _kāchan_ may be heard more often than are recorded in writing.  When yours sincerely was small, _mama_ (probably from French _mamman_) was rare and somewhat loaded with negativity.  This may not be the case nowadays but it sure grates my nerves.


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## Brave Heart

Regarding "no", I think MariposaChou's comment is more accurate than mine.
As MariposaChou says, you can think of this one as an informal form of the "ka" question marker, EXCEPT that there are many cases where "no" is not interchangeable with "ka".


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## danielfranco

Thank you very much for all your answers. Japanese seems to be *evidently is* such a _deep_ and rich language!
Indeed, the phrase is just an everyday thing that any child would say. The question occurred to me after trying to learn some phrases that seemed to me rather... erm... pompous for everyday use. I think one of the examples was supposed to read something like, "we are all so very pleased of your presence in this humble abode", or some such thing. I understand many phrases are customary (like "I'm going to eat now!"), but I wondered if there was much difference in the more "familiar" setting of children.
Thank you much, again.
D.


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## Brave Heart

Hi danielfranco,

>we are all so very pleased of your presence in this humble abode

I'm afraid I don't really understand what kind of phrase you want to know. Adults might say things like that when their mom, who lives separately from them, visits their home, but not children, I believe. 

Or, do you want to know such phrases as "We love you, Mom" and "Mom, we are very happy because we are your children" ?  Probably, you should give us specific context to get what you really want to know.


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## danielfranco

I'm sorry for the confusion.

I often digress even while I steadily plod onward with my posts.

What I meant to say is that, when I was reading one of those "phrase books" and I tried to analyze the way words were put together, I realized all those phrases were very formal and stiff. 
So, out of the blue, for no reason at all, I wondered if a familiar or friendly setting would require different forms. In Spanish and other Romance languages, different pronouns and verb conjugations are used. Sometimes, the inclusion of more pedestrian words is more acceptable, too.
I was curious to see how this contextual situation is handled in Japanese.

The translation to my original phrase was really all I wanted to learn today and then meditate upon it, but you guys have managed to give me many days' worth of learning in a few posts.
Thank you kindly.
D.


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## I_like_my_TV

danielfranco said:
			
		

> What I meant to say is that, when I was reading one of those "phrase books" and I tried to analyze the way words were put together, *I realized all those phrases were very formal and stiff*.


I think I understand what you mean. Even ordinary Japanese can sound very formal and stiff when translated into a foreign language under these circumstances:
- When translated by a not very good translator.
- When translated for the benefit of beginning language learners (ie. where every customary "o", "go", polite & respect endings are also translated).

However, once you're better in the language and more accustomed to it, I believe much of the stiffness and formality you feel now will have disappeared. This of course is not to deny that formal Japanese (used in formal occasions) can be very formal indeed.


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