Oyaji (親父) Gaggu  Corner

In Japanese language, Oyaji  is an informal word meaning "dad".  "Gaggu" is the Japanese word for 'gag'.  Put them together and you have what is roughly equivalent to 'old man's joke'.  Another similar word is Dajere (駄洒落) which according to Wikipedia, is a play on words. The common response to an Oyaji Gaggu is "samui!" (literally means 'cold', but basically means "wow, really bad joke!")....Of course foreigners living in Japan think we are quite clever when we can show off our Japanese language skills by learning a few of these...Here are some of my favorites:

The Gag In English Explanation

海豚 いるか どうか わからない
(iruka iru ka douka wakaranai)

Is the dolphin here or not?

'iruka' = dophin
'iruka douka wakaranai' = is here or not?
The gag: repeating 'iruka'

いくら が いくら ですか?
(ikura ga ikura desu ka?)

 

How much does the ikura cost?

'ikura' = a popular sushi dish consisting of salmon roe. It also means 'how much is it'
The gag: repeating 'ikura'

はまち は How Muchy ですか?
(Hamachi wa how muchy desu ka?)

How much does the hamachi cost?

'hamachi' = another popular sushi dish consisting of yellowtail fish.
This one is a hybrid O.G...Mixing words in English and Japanese which sound the same.

楽すきかった
(tanosukikatta)

Enjoyed (skiing) - not real Japanese word! My invention...

"tanoshii" = to enjoy
"ski" = ski (English)
The gag: blending the two words into one.

Tomorrow 止まる?
(Tomorrow tomaru?)

Tomorrow (will you) stay overnight?

"tomaru" = stays overnight (like a friends house or hotel).
The gag: Mixing English and Japanese words that sound almost the same.

これはナンですか?
(kore wa nan desu ka?)

Is that Nan (Indian Bread)

The gag: 'kore wa nan desu ka' means 'what is that'.  The word for Indian bread is also nan...Get it?? Use this at an Indian restaurant...Waiters love it.

鯵の味どうですか?
(aji no aji dou desu ka?)
How is the taste of the aji (horse mackeral sushi) Aji = horse mackeral sushi
Aji = taste
The gag: Repeating aji...I love the sushi jokes...
A: 先週韓国にいきました!
B: そうですか!韓国のどこですか?
A: Seoul です。
B: ああ。。。Seoul ですか!

A: senshuu kankoku ni ikimashita!
B: soudesuka! kankoku no doko desu ka?
A: Seoul desu.
B: Aaa...Seoul desu ka!
A: Last week I went to Korea!
B: Oh yeah? Where in Korea?
A: Seoul!
B: Ah, I see...
The Gag: Ahh Seoul desu ka sounds a lot like 'Ahh so desu ka'.  Get it?  Need to really say this one out loud...
A riddle:
Q: How do you answer the phone when an ant calls?
A: 虫虫 (mushi mushi
  The gag: Mushi is the word for bug.  'Moshi-moshi' is how you answer the telephone in Japanese...Sounds the same, thus the gag...This is best done over a chat window...type the question in English and the answer in Japanese...
One for the chat window:

Ant x 10
  The gag: This is an English to Japanese gag...
Ant = Ari
X = Ga
10 = to
Put them together, you get 'Arigatou' which, of course, means 'thanks'.
This gag courtesy of Kudo's Mom.

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