Hakata dialect


Hakata dialect is a Japanese dialect spoken in Fukuoka city. Hakata dialect originated in Hakata commercial district, while a related Fukuoka dialect was spoken in the central district. Hakata dialect has spread throughout the city and its suburbs. Most Japanese regard Hakata dialect as the dialect typical of Fukuoka Prefecture, so it is sometimes called.
Hakata dialect is being increasingly spoken in television interviews in Fukuoka, where previously standard Japanese was expected.
Hakata-ben, a dialect of Kyushu with historically strong ties to Okinawa, retains a rich vocabulary that appears to share roots with the Ryukyuan languages. One example is the Okinawan word フーチバー, which means "mugwort." In Hakata-ben, related terms such as フツ and フツッパ are used, suggesting a common linguistic origin.

Grammar

The basic grammar of Hakata dialect is similar to other Hichiku dialects such as Saga dialect, Nagasaki dialect, and Kumamoto dialect. For example, Hakata dialect uses to or tto as a question, e.g., "What are you doing?", realized in standard Japanese as nani o shiteiru no?, is nan ba shiyo tto? or nan shitō to? in Hakata and other Hichiku dialects.

Characteristics

Among the various distinctive features of Hakata-dialect, some representative expressions include:〜どげん – meaning "how" or "what kind of"〜っちゃん – used to emphasize a statement, similar to "you know"〜と？ – a sentence-ending particle indicating a question, similar to "is it?" or "are you?"〜やけん – meaning "because" or "therefore"〜ばい – a sentence-ending particle meaning "it is" or used for emphasis〜たい – another sentence-ending particle conveying affirmation, similar to "-bai"
In particular, among younger speakers, the usage of 〜ちゃん is often preferred instead of 〜たい for a softer expression.

Accent

When a verb is followed by the particle 「と」 , which corresponds to the standard Japanese particle 「の」 used for questions, the pitch tends to rise toward the end.帰ると? – low-high-high-high帰りよーと? – low-high-high-high-high-high
When two verbs are connected in an auxiliary relationship, only the first syllable of the first verb and the last syllable of the second verb are pronounced with a low pitch.出てきた – low-high-high-low帰ってきた – low-high--high-high-low
In phrases where the particle 「の」 attaches to a noun or a clause, the main word generally adopts a rising intonation.雨のあがった – low-high-high-high-high--low
When a verb stands alone or is concluded with the past or perfective marker 「た」 , the final syllable must drop in pitch.
Examples:見る – high-lowきく – low-high → high-lowかえる – high-low-lowあるく – low-high-lowさがす – low-high-high → low-high-lowきこえる – low-high-high-high → low-high-high-low

Anime and Manga

Many Japanese anime and manga works feature characters who speak Kyushu dialects, including Hakata-dialect.
Anime:Namiuchigiwa no Muromi-san – Muromi-san, Hii-chan Rascal Does Not Dream – Koga Tomoe Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki – Nanbashi Toyone Grand Blue – Yoshihara Aina SELECTION PROJECT – Tōma Mako Tamayomi – Nakamura Nozomi Saki: Achiga-hen episode of side-A – Shiramizuhira Satomi, Tsuruta Himiko Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens – Baba Zenji Haganai: I Don't Have Many Friends – Hasegawa Kobato Zombie Land Saga The Idolmaster: Shiny Colors – Tsukioka Kogane Hakata-ben no Onnanoko wa Kawaii to Omoimasen ka? – Hakata-no Donko