Lesson 5: Self-Introduction — Your First Conversation

Introduce yourself, then invite a reply

An introduction works when the other person learns something about you and has an easy way to respond. Start with your name, add one relevant detail, and ask about them. You do not need to recite your age, nationality, job, and every hobby at once.

A self-introduction is 自己紹介（じこしょうかい / jikoshōkai）. This lesson gives you a short first conversation. Japanese words appear with readings so you can practice without already knowing kanji or katakana. Romanization supports pronunciation; ō and ū mark long vowels. In Japanese writing, the topic particle is は, pronounced wa.

1. A conversation you can adapt

Imagine meeting Tanaka at a language exchange. Sarah is from Canada and likes films.

Sarah: はじめまして。サラです。カナダ出身です。趣味は映画です。よろしくお願いします。
Hajimemashite. Sara desu. Kanada shusshin desu. Shumi wa eiga desu. Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.
Nice to meet you. I'm Sarah. I'm from Canada. My hobby is films. Pleased to meet you.

Tanaka: 田中です。私も映画が好きです。
Tanaka desu. Watashi mo eiga ga suki desu.
I'm Tanaka. I like films too.

Sarah: そうですか。いいですね。
Sō desu ka. Ii desu ne.
Oh, I see. That's nice.

Here はじめまして opens a first meeting. よろしくお願いします closes the introduction by expressing goodwill toward the new relationship. English translations depend on the situation: “Pleased to meet you” or “I look forward to getting to know you” can convey its function. It is not a demand that someone literally “treat me well.” 私も（わたしも / watashi mo） means “I too”; も adds the speaker to an already mentioned idea.

With suitable friends or peers, よろしく (yoroshiku) is a familiar shortened closing; よろしくね is another familiar version. The fuller polite expression remains possible when it fits the moment.

Try a first version now: はじめまして。[your name]です。よろしくお願いします。 You already have a usable introduction. Add the other pieces as you learn them.

2. Names, topics, and です

私はサラです。
わたしはサラです / Watashi wa Sara desu.
I'm Sarah.

The pattern is topic + は + noun + です. は tells the listener what you are talking about; it is a topic marker, not a word meaning “I” and not a rule that the topic must always be the grammatical subject. です is the polite copula in this noun sentence. English may translate it as “am,” “is,” or “are,” but it is not interchangeable with every English use of “be.”

When it is clear that you are introducing yourself, サラです is enough. Japanese often leaves understood information unspoken. Repeating 私は at the start of every sentence can sound unnecessarily heavy.

名前（なまえ / namae） is “name.” お名前（おなまえ） is a polite form used for the other person's name. The short question お名前は？ can be courteous with suitable delivery; short does not automatically mean rude or casual. The prefix お belongs in particular conventional expressions, not before every Japanese noun.

と言います is a normal way to give a name. と申します is a humble expression useful in formal introductions. A business setting does not make every other polite introduction incorrect.

Addressing the other person

田中さん（たなかさん / Tanaka-san） is an ordinary courteous way to address Tanaka. さん is gender-neutral. In a standard adult introduction, give your own name without adding さん to it. 先生（せんせい / sensei） is a respectful title used for teachers and some other professionals; say 田中先生, without stacking さん after 先生.

くん and ちゃん have relationship-dependent uses; they are not automatic labels for all men and all women. Start with the name or title the person uses and follow their preference. Japanese names conventionally put the family name first, but international introductions and personal preferences vary. Do not automatically reverse a foreign person's name.

3. Where you are from

イギリス ordinarily refers to the United Kingdom; it is not a precise synonym for England, which is one part of the UK. アメリカ commonly names the United States in this introductory context, rather than all the Americas.

カナダ出身です。
カナダしゅっしんです / Kanada shusshin desu.
I'm originally from Canada.

出身（しゅっしん / shusshin） expresses origin or background. With a place, it can refer to where someone was born or grew up; it does not necessarily identify citizenship or only their exact birthplace.

ロンドンから来ました。
ロンドンからきました / Rondon kara kimashita.
I came from London.

から marks “from,” and 来ました is the polite past of “come.” In an introduction this sentence may communicate where someone is from; in a travel conversation it can identify the place they just came from. Neither sentence automatically states nationality. Do not add です after 来ました: the verb is already politely inflected.

どこから来ましたか。 (Doko kara kimashita ka?) asks “Where did you come from?” To ask about someone's place of origin more directly, use ご出身はどちらですか。 (Goshusshin wa dochira desu ka?). These can lead to different answers when someone's hometown differs from their latest departure point.

4. Your role and where you work or study

お仕事（おしごと / oshigoto） is a polite work/job expression: お仕事は何ですか (Oshigoto wa nan desu ka?) asks What is your job? In this pattern, は is the topic particle and です is the polite copula.

Use noun + です to identify a role. Use place + で + activity to say where the activity happens.

会社員です。 (Kaishain desu.) — I'm a company employee.
会社で働いています。 (Kaisha de hataraite imasu.) — I work at a company.
病院で働いています。 (Byōin de hataraite imasu.) — I work at a hospital.

働いています（はたらいています） describes working or ongoing employment here. It does not necessarily mean that you are working at this very instant, and it is not simply a more formal version of 会社員です. One sentence names a role; the other describes work at a place.

大学生です。 (Daigakusei desu.) — I'm a university student.
大学で勉強しています。 (Daigaku de benkyō shite imasu.) — I study at a university / I'm studying at a university.

勉強（べんきょう / benkyō） means “study.” Again, student status and the activity of studying are related but different claims. The second sentence need not describe a lesson happening right now.

For your own occupation in an ordinary adult introduction, 教師です or 教員です is a useful neutral choice. 先生 is primarily a respectful title or form of address for someone else. A teacher can refer to themself as 先生 in some contexts, such as speaking to young pupils; this is a usage distinction, not a claim that every self-reference is ungrammatical.

Age is optional. If relevant, 二十二歳です（にじゅうにさいです / nijūni-sai desu） means “I'm 22.” You can omit personal information you would rather not share.

5. Offer one hobby the listener can ask about

趣味（しゅみ / shumi） means “hobby” in this pattern:

趣味は料理です。 (Shumi wa ryōri desu.) — My hobby is cooking.

料理 can also mean cuisine or a dish in other contexts. Here it names cooking as an activity. 趣味は映画です is an ordinary broad description of an interest in films. To say exactly what you do, use an activity phrase:

趣味は音楽を聞くことです。
しゅみはおんがくをきくことです / Shumi wa ongaku o kiku koto desu.
My hobby is listening to music.

聞く（きく / kiku） is “listen” here. を, pronounced o, marks 音楽 as its object. For this beginner activity-naming pattern, put the dictionary form 聞く before こと: 音楽を聞くこと. Do not insert the polite form 聞きます in that slot. Other verbs work too: 絵をかくこと（えをかくこと / e o kaku koto）, drawing pictures. 絵 alone means a picture, not specifically the activity of drawing.

Another easy pattern is [thing] が好きです（がすきです / ga suki desu）:

アニメが好きです。 (Anime ga suki desu.) — I like anime.

Japanese 好き is an adjective-like expression, not a transitive verb that takes the same structure as English “like.” Learn the whole X が好きです pattern.

趣味は何ですか。 (Shumi wa nan desu ka?) asks “What is your hobby?” A shorter 趣味は？ also works when the context and delivery are appropriate. To turn the question back to Tanaka, try 田中さんは？ (Tanaka-san wa?) — “How about you, Tanaka?” あなたは？ can mean “How about you?” too; using the person's name often fits more naturally when you know it.

6. Keep the exchange moving

For the polite sentence patterns practiced here, か marks a question: 学生です → 学生ですか。 In conversation, rising intonation or an elliptical expression can also make a question without か. Do not assume that appending か to any Japanese string makes a suitable question.

そうですか。 can acknowledge new information as “I see” or, with questioning intonation, “Is that so?” いいですね。 is a positive response such as “That's nice.” Their tone and context matter; neither guarantees surprise or enthusiastic agreement in every conversation.

Your turn: a conversation, not a recital

Choose a real or invented name, one place or role, and one hobby. Give your name, role and hobby, add opening and closing greetings, then ask about the other person. For example:

はじめまして。ケンです。大学生です。趣味は読書です。よろしくお願いします。田中さんの趣味は何ですか。
Hajimemashite. Ken desu. Daigakusei desu. Shumi wa dokusho desu. Yoroshiku onegai shimasu. Tanaka-san no shumi wa nan desu ka?

The final の connects Tanaka to “hobby”: Tanaka's hobby. Practice once with the text, once using just the prompts name → role → hobby → question. If you pause, a short accurate sentence is enough to keep the exchange going.