Gomenasobasei? A Cultural History of Japanese Women’s Language

Donald Richie has written an article and book review good for those of us fascinated by the language and what sounds feminine in Japanese.

When I was first studying Japanese back in 1947, I went to a local language school where the teachers were mostly older ladies, born in the Meiji Era (1868-1912). They taught the language of that period — in the form that they knew it. As a result, we students spoke some anomalous Japanese.

One day I accidentally bumped into someone on the street, turned, bowed and said, as I had been taught: “Gomenasobasei.” It was not until I noticed other passers-by convulsed with laughter at my apology that I suspected I might have been taught the wrong thing.

He goes on to talk about men picking up feminine language in modern usage. It’s been a curiosity for me, because I sometimes slip up and say something feminine, but nobody ever calls me on it. But then, that may just be the Japanese way; I’m rarely corrected for any of my many horrid language blunders. Anyways, I think the book will be an interesting read and worth looking at.
[source article from The Japan Times]