Japanese for Fishing: Tackle Shops, Piers and Fishing Talk

The four lines every angler uses

Fishing conversation in Japan revolves around a few questions and exclamations. Nani ga tsuremasu ka uses tsureru, the potential form of tsuru (to catch a fish), and means what can be caught, or what are people catching. It works at the tackle shop, on the pier and with anyone holding a rod.

Tsureta is the plain past of the same verb: it caught, I got one. People shout it without thinking. Bōzu is the opposite: a day with nothing, said with a shrug.

At the tackle shop: bait, rigs and local information

The tsurigu-ya is your best source of information. Staff often keep track of what is being caught nearby, and they are used to beginners. Tell them where you plan to fish and they will suggest a rig, called shikake (仕掛け), and bait. For pier fishing, a common beginner set-up is a sabiki rig: a line of small decorated hooks with a basket of krill, okiami, that attracts schools of small fish such as aji (horse mackerel), iwashi (sardines) and saba (mackerel).

Shoshinsha (初心者), beginner, is a magic word in Japan. Saying it early makes staff slow down and explain the basics without you having to ask for each thing.

Core fishing vocabulary

These are the words you will hear most often on a pier or in a tackle shop. Many are katakana loanwords, which makes them easier, but a few native words such as sao and esa are used far more than their English equivalents.

On the pier: asking for a spot and reading the mood

Popular breakwaters can be crowded at dawn and dusk, when fish are most active. Anglers call these times asamazume and yūmazume (朝マズメ, 夕マズメ). Before you set up beside someone, ask. Leave space for casting, and watch which way people are casting so your line does not cross theirs. If lines tangle, anglers jokingly call it omatsuri (お祭り), a festival, and the usual response is a quick apology and patient untangling together.

Rules about where you may fish differ by harbour and change over time, and some piers are closed to anglers because of litter and safety problems. Take your rubbish home, including line and bait packets; it is the best way to keep spots open.

Talking about a bite and the catch

When something bites, the language turns short and excited. Hiite iru, it's pulling, and kita, here it comes, are typical. Afterwards, people compare size in centimetres and count fish with the counter hiki (匹), which changes sound with the number: ippiki, nihiki, sanbiki. Showing off a catch is normal and expected, and the person next to you will usually comment.

Nigerareta uses the passive to show the loss happened to you: the fish escaped, and you suffered for it. It is the standard sigh of every angler. Ask what a fish is before you keep it; some species are poisonous to handle or eat, and experienced anglers will warn you.

Scenario: chatting with an older angler on a breakwater

It is just after sunrise. You have set up a few metres from a man in his seventies who has clearly been coming here for decades. His bucket is already full of small fish. Yours is empty. Older anglers often speak casually and in regional dialect, but they are usually happy to share advice with a polite newcomer. Keep your side polite, and let him set the tone.

Bochibochi means so-so, not bad, and it is a classic modest answer about how things are going. Neratte goran is a friendly, slightly fatherly way of saying try aiming for. You do not need to use either form yourself; just recognise them.

Seasons, boats and staying safe

What you can catch changes with the season and the place, and anglers talk about it constantly. In many coastal areas, small fish such as aji and saba are easy targets from summer into autumn, but the details vary by region and by year, so the tackle shop and the people on the pier are your best guides. Night fishing, yozuri (夜釣り), is popular in summer, and many harbours run fishing boats, tsuribune (釣り船), which take groups out for half a day with rods and bait provided.

Breakwaters can be slippery and waves can surprise you. Many anglers wear a life jacket, raifu jaketto, and some boats and fishing parks require one. If the wind is strong or the waves come over the concrete, people simply go home: kyō wa yamete okimasu, I'll give it a miss today.

Talking about fishing as a hobby

Back at work or in class, someone will ask what you did at the weekend. Fishing is a great topic because many Japanese people have fished as children, and they will often share their own memories.

• Common mistake: saying sakana o torimashita. Toru is understandable, but tsuru is the fishing verb.
• Common mistake: forgetting the counter. Say sanbiki, not san sakana.
• Do not boast too much. Modest answers like bochibochi desu go down well.