Years ago in my first-ever Japanese language class at the Hanabatacho YMCA were two Japanese-Brazilian students who could not read or write but spoke passably - and their spoken Japanese sometimes made our teacher laugh as it was that of their grandparents. For example, they used the word “shashinki” (写真機) rather than “kamera” (カメラ) and “jibiki” (字引） rather than “jisho” (辞書) - the latter being far more common today.
Nomenclature, I learned, is difficult. For example, “buruushiito” (ブルーシート） conveys two nuances: securing ground space such as at a hanami, or covering damaged structures after, say, an earthquake, while “shiroishiito” (白いシート) are those which cover tents erected at public events. To be sure, their compositions likely differ - the former tend to be more disposable, while the latter are durable enough to last for years (look at the tents at a sports festival and you’ll likely see markings on the “shiroishiito” indicating they were gifted by a long-ago graduated class) - but more than that, it is the emotive response they elicit which matters.
As such, Kumamoto City has decided to replace the blue sheets covering damaged portions of the castle with white sheets, not only due to aesthetic reasons but to the emotive reasons noted above. Kumanichi has the full story here. - William
