What is the best way to close a polite formal letter in Japanese?

Factual Questions
1

I’m asking this for a friend who is entering a “win a trip to Japan” essay contest. She wants to use it for the cover letter. I know that “dozo” is a generically applicable “thank you” that I would assume would be appropriate, but not knowing anything about the Japanese language that isn’t remembered from SHOGUN I have no idea and googling brings up several things. (One site mentioned omedetou [best wishes], but another site says this is closer to saying ‘congratulations’.)

Thanks for any help (and I’m at your mercy so please don’t give me the words for “I would like to borrow a small parrot for the boil on my butt”).

PS- I don’t need the Japanese characters; the English transliteration is fine.

2

“yoroshiku onegaitashimasu” is a pretty standard closing line.

3

yoroshiku onegai itashimasu

4

What’s it mean, “Very truly yours” or “Death to the American imperialists”?

5

yoroshiku = pleased to meet you, or, let’s get along together
onegai = please
itashimasu = polite form of “itasu”, a verb basically meaning “to do”.

6

It’s a statement of a desire for future, pleasant relations.

7

Thanks, or yoroshiku onegai itashimasu, y’all.

8

That sounds … provocative. :wink:

9

“Yoroshiku” is one of those fixed words that are conventionally used, in this case when meeting someone for the first time as well as when signing a letter. It’s similar to phrases like “Have a nice day” and “You’re welcome” in English: it’s said or written without really thinking very deeply about the meaning, because it’s said automatically by almost everyone in the context.

10

I get it. I was just having juvenile fun with Sage Rat’s translation.

Desiring future pleasant relations,
Tom Tildrum

11

Have a nice day – or, Bonne journée, as they say north-east of here.

12

Yaiten omae no inu da yo,
Sage Rat

Note: Don’t use that.

13

Oh yeah? Well, I think Yoroshiku!