Translation guide
This entry covers key philosophical concepts introduced by Martin Heidegger, focusing on terms that are central to his thought and often encountered by English-speaking learners. It provides natural Japanese expressions and explanations for each concept.
The fundamental concept of human existence as being-in-the-world, emphasizing the unique way humans exist and question their own being.
The standard Japanese translation of Heidegger's 'Dasein'. It literally means 'being-there' and is used in philosophical contexts.
ハイデガーの現存在の概念は、人間の存在の独自性を強調する。
Heidegger's concept of Dasein emphasizes the uniqueness of human existence.
The katakana rendering of 'Dasein', often used in academic texts alongside the kanji term.
ダーザインは世界内存在として分析される。
Dasein is analyzed as being-in-the-world.
The idea that human existence is always already situated in a world, not as a subject separate from objects.
The standard translation for 'being-in-the-world'. It captures the unitary phenomenon of Dasein's existence.
世界内存在は、ハイデガーの基礎的存在論の中心概念である。
Being-in-the-world is the central concept of Heidegger's fundamental ontology.
The authentic awareness of one's own mortality as a defining characteristic of Dasein.
The common translation for 'being-toward-death'. It emphasizes the forward-looking relation to one's own end.
死への存在の自覚は、本来的な生き方を可能にする。
The awareness of being-toward-death makes an authentic way of living possible.
The fact that Dasein finds itself already existing in a particular situation without having chosen it.
The standard translation for 'thrownness'. It conveys the passive aspect of being thrown into existence.
被投性は、現存在の事実性の一側面である。
Thrownness is an aspect of the facticity of Dasein.
The anonymous, inauthentic social self that dictates everyday norms and averageness.
The Japanese translation for 'das Man', literally 'world-people', capturing the impersonal 'they'.
世人は平均的日常性において支配的である。
The 'they' is dominant in average everydayness.
The katakana rendering, used in some texts to preserve the original German term.
ダス・マンは、非本来的な存在様式を表す。
Das Man represents an inauthentic mode of being.
The fundamental structure of Dasein's being, characterized by ahead-of-itself-being-already-in-a-world as being-alongside entities.
The most common translation for 'care' in Heidegger's sense, though it can also mean 'concern' or 'worry' in everyday Japanese.
気遣いは現存在の存在の全体構造をなす。
Care constitutes the whole structure of Dasein's being.
The katakana rendering of the German 'Sorge', used in academic contexts to avoid ambiguity.
ハイデガーはゾルゲを現存在の存在性格として分析した。
Heidegger analyzed Sorge as the character of Dasein's being.
The mode of existence in which Dasein chooses itself and owns its possibilities, as opposed to being lost in the 'they'.
Often used as a phrase meaning 'authentic existence'. The adjective '本来的' means 'authentic' or 'proper'.
本来的存在は、死への先駆によって可能になる。
Authentic existence is made possible by anticipation of death.
The noun form for 'authenticity', directly corresponding to 'Eigentlichkeit'.
本来性と非本来性は現存在の二つの存在様式である。
Authenticity and inauthenticity are two modes of being of Dasein.
The openness or lighting in which beings can appear and be understood; the truth of being as unconcealment.
A common translation for 'Lichtung', literally meaning 'opening' or 'clearing'. It suggests a space of illumination.
存在の開けにおいて、存在者はそのものとして現れる。
In the clearing of being, beings appear as what they are.
The katakana rendering of the German term, used in specialized philosophical discussions.
リヒトゥングは、存在の真理が生起する場である。
Lichtung is the site where the truth of being occurs.
Many Heideggerian terms have both kanji translations and katakana renderings. In academic writing, the kanji terms are standard, but katakana is often used when first introducing a term or when emphasizing the original German. In conversation, katakana may be more immediately recognizable to some audiences.
Heidegger's terminology is highly specific. Directly translating English phrases like 'being-in-the-world' word-for-word into Japanese without using the established philosophical vocabulary can lead to confusion. Always use the accepted translations when discussing Heidegger's philosophy.