I’ve been watching quite a bit of subtitled anime recently and I noticed they never say “domo arigato”. Sometime they’ll say “domo” and sometimes they’ll say “arigato” but never both together. Was this made up by Mr. Roboto or is it only used in certain circumstances?
I remember the Okinawans using Domo Arigato sometimes when I was there in 1949 - 1950. I know that it means Thank You, but there are different levels of that, so don’t know any more.
It’s a level of formality that probably isn’t used in cartoons.
My Japanese SIL uses “domo” to mean “thanks”. Ditto for arigato.
Domo Arigato (according to her) means something approximating “Thank you very much.”
And Domo arigato takimas(sp?) means “Thank you very, very much, oh kind and benevolent one.” Or words to that effect - it’s the most effusive and formal thank you, you can give.
Domo arigato means thank you very much. How often do you say “thank you” or even “thanks” instead of “thank you very much”. It’s just very, very formal and anime Japanese is often somewhat informal.
I have heard “Domo arigato gozaimasu” many many times when I was in Tokyo, so it’s definitely in use. Unfortunately I don’t speak Japanese so I can’t comment on the level of formality, but it seems to be appropriate in a business setting.
BTW arigato means just thank you.
Ah, I just found this on the Internet:
http://www.elite.net/~runner/jennifers/thankyou.htm
Japanese (Japan) Arigato
Japanese (Japan) Domo arigato
Japanese (Japan) [act of thanks not ended] Arigato gozaimasu
Japanese (Japan) [act of thanks has ended] Arigato gozaimashita
Japanese [Izumo] (Japan) Dan san
Japanese [Kansai Ben](Kansai, Osaka Japan) Ookini
Japanese [Kansai Ben](Kansai, Osaka Japan) Ookini arigatou
Japanese [Kumamoto] (Japan) Kora doshi
Japanese [Kyo Kotoba] (Kyoto Japan) Ohkini
Japanese [Shodoshima] (Shodoshima Japan) Ookini
Japanese [Tohoku Ben] (northeast Japan) Oshoshina
Japanese [Uchinaaguchi] (Okinawa Japan) Nihwee-deebiru
You got a lot of good replies. The “domo arigato” is indeed a very formal and polite way. BTW, it is usually pronounced, “dom arigato,” but when “domo” is used alone, then the final “o” is pronounced.
It is akin to our greeting “good morning” when many people just say “morning.” An amusing (to me) take on this is the greeting for “good morning” which is “ohiyo gozimusu” where the final “u” is not heard either. Many years ago in Kyoto, at least, the young people kept shortening that greeting, until it finally ended up “OS.”
For what we would normally say “thank-you” to, you’d probably say arigato gozaymashita in Japanese. It’s past tense, so it assumes the thing you’re thankful for has already been done. Domo arigato is more formal.
Not quite as simple as that.
“Arigato” is short for “arigato gozaimasu” (Japanese sentences are notorious for leaving words out which you’re expected to take as read).
“Arigato” is a highly formal version of the adjective “arigatai”, meaning “grateful”. When combined with the verb “gozaru” (another highly formal verb meaning “to be”), it becomes “Arigato gozaimasu” which literally means “I’m grateful” but is used idiomatically to mean “Thank you”. (If you just wanted to say “I’m grateful” you’d say “arigatai desu”.)
Likewise, “Ohayo gozaimasu” (Good morning) is a formal version of “hayai desu” (it’s early). “Omedeto gozaimasu” (Congratulations!) is derived from “medetai desu” (it’s auspicious).
When I stayed in Kagoshima [Kyushu Ben], I was told that thanks could be said in the order of politeness and gratitude (not textbook, just what Japanese people told me):
Domo
Arigato
Domo arigato
Domo arigato gozaimas
Domo arigato gozaimashita
I’m intrigued by where you heard dom arigato. I’ve never heard anyone not pronounce the “o” in domo. And, the final ‘u’ sound is dropped off of most words that have it, not just gozaimasu (hence, watashi wa baka desu is pronounced “watashi wa baka dess”). Additionally, ohayou gozaimasu is the only acceptable way of saying “good morning” to someone with whom you are not close.
To summarize:
Domo by itself is used to mean “thanks” or, very casually, “hi.” It can also be used in a variety of other situations, but you’d probably have to be pretty fluent to be confident of those.
Arigato means roughly “thank-you.”
Domo arigato means “thank-you very much.”
Domo arigato gozaimasu is the very polite way of saying “thank-you very much.”
(slight hijack)
Humorist Dave Barry once took a trip to Japan and stayed in an Inn complete with Geisha.
He often heard the words ‘domo arigato’ and, in its context, concluded the words meant ‘thank you very much’.
The same Geisha would greet them in the morning with ‘hai domo’ which he concluded means ‘yes very’. :dubious:
The family henceforth referred to her as the Very Lady.
What, nobody’s started singing or quoting Mr. Roboto yet? It’s the best one-minute song segment Styx ever did!
And assuming KlondikeGeoff is correct, they didn’t even pronounce “Domo Arigato” correctly!
I’ve always heard both o’s in domo pronounced. The u in gozaimasu is another story. I read that the rule on that was that a u preceeded by a non-vocal consonant (a consonant that sounds basically the same whispered) isn’t pronounced. Examples are su, ku, fu, tsu, etc. There seems to be other cases where vowels aren’t pronounced as well, such as chi and shi. Gozaimashita sounds like gozaimashta.
Of the explanations here, this is probably the closest. However, the difference between the the last two is less between formality than an indication if the act for which gratitude is express has been completed or not.
As you are walking to the cashier in a restaurant, the service staff will say “arigato gozaimasu” and after you have paid and are on the way out, they will say “arigato gozaimashita,” which is the past tense. There is no difference in either gratitude or formality.
Note that one does not use the –gozaimasu ending for close friends or family, even to express deep gratitude. For that, “honto ni” (truly) or an equivalent is used before the arigato. “iya, honto ni arigato” “No, really! Thank you!” would be used to tell a friend thanks for a great birthday gift, for example.
This may be regional, but it’s not true for Tokyo, and certainly not for formal Japanese.
Japanese will tend to use an expression of asking forgiveness or apology instead of thanks if they are not expecting the act or gift, or if they do not believe they should be in a position of receiving the act or object. Thanking people can imply an expectation or a right to receive, which could be taken as arrogance. One hears “sumimasen” (forgive me) as often as “arigatou” especially from strangers, but also among friends and accountancies. If I treat a friend or my staff for drinks, for example, they will apologize rather than thank me for that, since the person wouldn’t have a “right” to receive my “kindness.” Bosses will use expressions for thanks since there is an expectation of subordinates doing their work, but for unexpected acts, they too apologize.
To answer the OP, most anime is geared towards young people who are less formal, and conversations are among friends or family. As noted above, you would not say “domo arigato” in this situation.
What interesting timing …
Last night I took two ladies around San Francisco so they could so do some sightseeing before heading home to the Marine Corps base in Japan.
It was their first time here, and they really wanted to go down Lombard Street. After I drove them through the eight turns, they both said, “Doumo arigatou gozaimashita”.
It was very cute, hearing their voices in stereo. They were in the back seat, and I’m sure they were trying to bow, despite wearing safety belts.
After dinner, just for kicks, I drove down Lombard Street again before dropping them off at their hotel. They really enjoyed it. I’ve never heard “Kirei ne!” (How pretty), “Sugoi ne!” (Wow), “Suteki ne!” (How wonderful), “Atta!” (There it is) exclaimed with such energy so many times in my life. They must have said, “Doumo arigatou gozaimashita” at least half a dozen times during the day. They were so gracious and grateful, it just made my week.
// mini-digression below //
Watching anime to learn Japanese is a bit like watching Looney Toons (Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, et al.) to learn English. Dialog in animation programs tends to be skewed toward the casual, dramatic, or downright weird. Once when I was on the Speech and Debate Team, we played a what-if game: what if we wrote a skit consisting only of lines from the Star Wars movies?
When was the last time you heard “It made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs” in everyday speech? Or “Eat my shorts”? (I forgot to ask if The Simpsons are popular in Japan.)
During dinner, we had some interesting conversations. Since they were suffering from jet lag and Time Zone Disorder, they couldn’t sleep in their hotel room and turned on the TV.
They were gobsmacked by seeing Inu-Yasha. Dubbed in English.
I explained that anime has a big following here in The States, which had them saying some things that confirmed what I’ve read on other boards (check out this enlightening post ). The word “otaku” has negative connotations in Japan and people associate otaku with NEET or hikkomori.
It took me considerable mental power to avoid talking about the explosion of American anime conventions within the past ten years. I may have briefly mentioned fansubs, but the conversation quickly turned to cultural observations and travel stories.
I also heard a lot of "eeeehhhh?"s (think of a drawn out “Huh?”) when I tried to dispel the stereotypes they heard back home. No, not all of us carry guns. In fact, it’s illegal to have a gun in this city. We don’t all act like we’re from Texas. Yes, Northern California and Southern California are like two different states. No, McDonald’s is definitely not universally loved by all Americans as an example of fine cuisine. (I recommend In-and-Out Burger.) Yes, we do like sweet stuff – have you tried a Krispy Kreme? (I could see the mental shudders when I explained what one was.)
Yes, you only need six hours of Driver’s Ed to get a driver’s license in my neck of the woods. (That shocked them – some Japanese go through a hundred hours to qualify.)
Yes, CostCo does sell meat in huge batches. See? (Their eyes bugged out when I took them to CostCo. There’s a CostCo in Tokyo, but our selection and serving sizes are Godzillian compared to over there.)
It was a fascinating and education experience. I wouldn’t mind doing this kind of thing–part-time tour guide for young Japanese women–in the future. I’m sure I can do a better job than the herding-cattle-by-bus deals I see around here. Heck, I’d do it for free (since I’m not giving up my day job). 
I lived near Nagoya for a year, and while I didn’t become a completely fluent speaker, I did manage to pick up some more “native” pronunciation habits than what you generally learn in Japanese classes here in the States.
When I say “Domo Arigatou” aloud to myself, I find I tend to drop the second “o” in “Domo.” It’s not exactly completely dropped. It, rather, becomes just barely a hint of a “w”-ish sound between the “m” and the “a.” You’re thinking, maybe, that means it’s not dropped at all. But what I mean is, it becomes just part of the act of switching between the “m” and “a” sounds.
To someone who doesn’t hear much japanese, it would sound exactly as though I had said “Domarigatou” with kind of a long “m.”
-Kris
Wow, glad it isn’t just me!!! I lived in Kyoto,and began to wonder if it was just a Kansai thing. Perhaps the Japanese I hear doing this are just sloppy with their diction.
I seem to recall that in James Clavell’s Shogun(set in 1600), it’s said that Domo Arigato is from an inferior to a superior. I think some examples were from a wife to her husband, or a samurai to his liege lord. Was this correct?