謙譲語 (Kenjougo): the Humble Language in Japanese

My students often ask: why do I have to lower myself to be polite? The answer is that it's not about lowering yourself. 謙譲語 is a linguistic move: by phrasing your own action more modestly, the other person is automatically elevated. This is how Japanese linguistic politeness preserves balance.

Kenjougo is the hardest part of keigo, because it's not enough to know the form — you also need to know exactly who the sentence is directed at.

Because a decisive part of business Japanese communication is about YOU doing something for the other person: sending the material, reviewing the document, going to the meeting. These are all your own actions — meaning they all require kenjougo.

If you only learn sonkeigo, half of your emails will be wrong. There's no usable business Japanese without kenjougo.

A keigo a leggyakoribb pont, ahol az önálló tanulás megreked, mert itt a visszajelzés nélkülözhetetlen. Ha munkahelyi helyzetekre készülsz, a vállalati japán nyelvórákon valós szituációkban — telefonos ügyintézés, e-mail, tárgyalás — gyakoroljuk az udvariassági szinteket.

• When you act toward or on behalf of a higher-ranking person.
• When you talk about your own group (your company, your family) to an outside party.
• In business emails, phone calls, and when receiving clients.
• At an admissions or job interview, when talking about yourself.
• In an official written request or application.

Kenjougo always works in a triangle: there's the speaker, the recipient of the action, and sometimes a listener who is not the same as the recipient.

• Subordinate → boss: 資料をお持ちいたします。
• Company representative → client: 明日、御社に伺います。
• Student → teacher: レポートを拝見していただけますか — this is wrong! Correctly: ご覧いただけますか。
• About your own company to a client: 弊社の山田が参ります。
• About your own family to a stranger: 母が申しておりました。

Japanese linguistics divides this into two types: 謙譲語I is humble toward the recipient of the action (伺う, 差し上げる), while 謙譲語II (also called 丁重語) simply gives a modest tone toward the listener (参る, 申す, おる). This distinction comes up at N1 level, but it's worth knowing about earlier.

• お + masu-stem + する: 持つ → お持ちする.
• お + masu-stem + いたす (stronger): お持ちいたします.
• ご + noun of Chinese origin + する／いたす: 連絡する → ご連絡いたします.
• お／ご + masu-stem + いただく: ご確認いただけますか — you're asking the other person for a favor.
• ～させていただく: a humble, permission-requesting form — 説明させていただきます。

～させていただく is very popular in modern business Japanese, but be careful: overused it sounds mannered. It's only correct if the action genuinely depends on the other person's permission.

• 行く／来る → 参る, 伺う
• いる → おる
• 言う → 申す, 申し上げる
• する → いたす
• 見る → 拝見する
• 聞く／訪ねる → 伺う
• 食べる／飲む／もらう → いただく
• あげる → 差し上げる
• 会う → お目にかかる
• 知っている → 存じております／存じ上げております
• 借りる → 拝借する

存じております refers to things, 存じ上げております to people — this is the detail that trips up many N2-level learners.

• Applying kenjougo to the other party: 先生が申しました。— offensive.
• Using 拝見 for the other person's viewing: 部長が拝見しました。— incorrect.
• Stacking ～させていただく: 参加させていただかせていただきます。
• Elevating your own boss in front of a client: 社長がいらっしゃいます。— for an outside party it should be 社長は参ります.
• お伺いいたします — disputed as double keigo; 伺います is enough.
• Confusing 存じております and 存じ上げております.

• "I'll visit you tomorrow." — 明日、伺います。
• "I received the material and reviewed it." — 資料を拝見いたしました。
• "I'll be in touch shortly." — 後ほどご連絡いたします。
• "I'm glad we could meet." — お目にかかれて光栄です。
• "I'll explain, if you'll allow me." — ご説明させていただきます。
• "I'm Tanaka from XY company." — 〜社の田中と申します。

It's worth memorizing these phrases word for word, since in business Japanese they function as ready-made building blocks. In lessons we practice them through email writing and phone simulations.

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