Abstract:
The technique of writing Japanese business letters is very helpful for students who learn
Japanese as a foreign language, especially if they wish to work for a Japanese company. With
the aim of improving knowledge on business Japanese, a new Japanese course called “Business
Japanese” was started in Kelaniya University in 2014. But the area of writing business letters is
identified as a difficult area for students to master, although there are many books about
techniques of business writing in Japanese. Most of the time students tend to memorize the
examples that are given in text books and if they memorize it incorrectly that mistake will be
made by them repeatedly. So this paper aims to specifically extract the errors found in the
business letter writings of students, examine the frequency of errors and to point out often
committed errors. In this paper, examples of errors made by undergraduates who are
specializing in Japanese language, in writing Japanese business letters were collected, analyzed,
and evaluated. The data were collected from a course taught in the first semester of 2016, and
consisted of errors in internal and external letters written as practice on the use of honorific
expressions. Many types of errors related to word choice were found. In particular,
inappropriate combinations of recipient name and honorific title, inappropriate combinations of
verbs and objects, mixing of respectful and humble language, and insufficient understanding of
fundamental Japanese constructions were prevalent. Other types of mistakes included
inappropriate layout, incorrect use of abbreviations, and incorrect use of Arabic and Japanese
numerals. There was a tendency to make the same mistakes repeatedly, and it was concluded
that the guidance offered by textbook examples is insufficient and that systematic training in
formal written Japanese is desirable.
