おはよう、友よ
ohayō, tomo yo
The Japanese phrase for "good morning, my friend," is おはよう、友よ (ohayō, tomo yo).
This phrase is a friendly greeting used to say hello to a companion in the morning. However, it is important to note that おはよう、友よ sounds highly literary or dramatic. You are more likely to encounter this specific phrasing in a book, song or anime than in natural daily conversation.
Which one should you use?
While 友よ (tomo yo) translates to "my friend," it is a stylized way of addressing someone and is not how people typically address their friends in casual speech.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The phrase おはよう (ohayō) is the informal version of the greeting, used with friends or people of lower social status. For more formal situations, such as when speaking to teachers, superiors or strangers, you should use the polite form おはようございます (ohayō gozaimasu).
How do you pronounce it?
ohayō, tomo yo
Did you know?
- In many Japanese workplaces, even if it is late in the afternoon, staff often use おはようございます (ohayō gozaimasu) as a standard greeting when meeting for the first time that day.
- The word おはよう (ohayō) comes from the adjective 早い (hayai) meaning 'early'. Literally, you are not wishing someone a 'good' morning, but rather acknowledging that they have woken up 'early'.
- While 友 (tomo) means 'friend', Japanese speakers rarely use words for 'friend' when addressing someone directly. Instead, they typically use the person's name followed by a suffix like くん (kun) or ちゃん (chan).
Example conversation
Two classmates meeting at the school gate in the morning.
- 大翔 Hirotoおはよう、友よ。早起きしたな。Ohayō, tomo yo. Hayaoki shita na.Good morning, my friend. You woke up early.
- 結衣 Yuiおはよう、大翔。昨日は早く寝たの。Ohayō, Hiroto. Kinō wa hayaku neta no.Good morning, Hiroto. I went to bed early yesterday.
- 大翔 Hirotoそれはいいことだ。準備はできたか？Sore wa ii koto da. Junbi wa dekita ka?That's a good thing. Are you ready?
- 結衣 Yuiうん、結衣はもう準備できてるよ。Un, Yui wa mō junbi dekiteru yo.Yes, Yui is already prepared.
