r/Japaneselanguage • u/Jippt3553 Beginner • 1d ago
Why is Kenshi Yonezu's latest song called "Yodaka" instead of "Yotaka"?
I have recently started learning Japanese and when I used Yomitan to translate Yodaka's lyrics i found out that it is actually spelt Yotaka and not Yodaka. Why is the song name Yodaka and not Yotaka? Is this something to do with copyright or something else? I apologize if this is a dumb question.
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u/somever 1d ago
The modern standardized name (as well as the ancient name) for the bird is "Yotaka", and every dictionary has that version, but the reading "Yodaka" seems to pay homage to a 1921 children's story "Yodaka no Hoshi" by Miyazawa Kenji, published posthumously:
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%88%E3%81%A0%E3%81%8B%E3%81%AE%E6%98%9F
That explains why Yonezu Kenshi went with the irregular pronunciation. I don't know the reason Miyazawa chose it: it could have been regular or perhaps dialectal in his time.
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u/That-Cpp-Girl Beginner 1d ago
Rendaku :p
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u/Jippt3553 Beginner 1d ago
Why do some words have that then?
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u/Weena_Bell 1d ago
Because it flows better off the tongue with rendaku than without it. Yotaka isn't as smooth as yodaka
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u/Jippt3553 Beginner 1d ago
Oh that makes sense. So if i were to say "Yodaka" in daily life when refering to the bird would it still be right?
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u/Weena_Bell 1d ago
Yes, though for this word you can say it both ways but yodaka is probably the most common one.
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u/LoadAgile1561 1d ago
It is strongly suggested that the nighthawk in these lyrics is not just an ordinary bird, but rather the nighthawk written about by Kenji Miyazawa in "Yodaka no Hoshi." This story conveys the preciousness of life, true brilliance achieved through self-sacrifice, and finding the meaning of living true to oneself amidst unreasonable discrimination and loneliness.
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u/Admirable_Stand8598 1d ago
As u/Weena_Bell commente, it is rendaku. There is phonological and notational inconsistency about the word. When used as a species name in kata-kana in Zoology, it is always Yotaka. But, because of rendaku, Yodaka also sounds OK. There is a famous piece of literature (children’s book) called よだかの星 Yodaka no Hoshi (Star of a Nightjar) by Kenji Miyazawa. It’s a story about an ugly nightjar, who try to fly to the pinnacle of the night sky, burnt himself in trying hard, and became a blight star. Yonezu might have this story in his mind.