Otsuka Ai

[Noob]

Not sure if this is the right forum or not. so please move it if i am wrong.
First off, let me say that i really like her style. She can go from slow and serious, to upbeat and fun in a matter of minutes. However, this is not what i wish to discuss.
My problem is with Daisuki Da yo.
I saw a translated video, that labled it as "I love you, ya know!" Looking at it, i don't see the connection. I assume (and maybe thats where i messed up) that "da" is the informal form of "desu" and "yo" is there to give it more meaning.
So, looking at it like this, i read it more as " It's Love". Am i totally off base here?

[Near]

You're correct in saying that yo adds weight to a statement's meaning, but I've usually seen it translated as "you know?". This reinforces the idea that the speaker believes he is making a true statement.

http://thejapanesepage.com/lessons/chapter3.htm

That page explains its usage briefly, which might hopefully make it more clear than my explanation.

[prep_girl_Nessa]

Hm... I wouldn't translate the 'yo' as 'you know' since it's kinda more serious, especially when you listen to the song.

And with the rest... well, I like 'I love you' just because it fits in with the song more, I think. Without the song I could be either 'it's love' or 'I love you,' but within the context of the song I've always thought of it as 'I love you.'

I'm a huge Otsuka Ai fan too. Planetarium and Peach were the bests, but Daisuki da yo and Sakuranbo were awesome too, along with many others ^_^

[chikara]

As Near-san said it adds weight to a statement's meaning. I think of yo as a spoken exclamation mark in the same way that ka can be thought of as a spoken question mark.

よ (prt) (sentence end) indicates request, certainty, contempt, etc.;

From Tae Kim's site;

The 「よ」 gobi
When 「よ」 is attached to the end of a sentence, it means that the speaker is informing the listener of something new. In English, we might say this with a, "You know..." such as the sentence, "You know, I'm actually a genius."

I personally don't translate it as "you know" because that is a construct I don't use when speaking English

Edit: fix some typos

[Noob]

I see why it can be taken in different ways. Context has to be the deciding factor i guess. thanks for the replies. After seeing the video, it's pretty sad, so i can see why "yo" might be used in the "ya know" context ... sort of in despair. I don't know what she is saying, but she cries, so i imagine its more of a sad "ya know" than anything.

Oh, and prep girl .. don't forget about Heart, Cherish, and Yumekui.

i have a link to a bunch of her videos, so PM me if you want it. I can't be certain about copyright laws and such, so i won't post it.

[AJBryant]

That's exactly the issue. Context. What is the situation, how is the character saying it, to whom is it being said, how is it being received, etc...


Tony

[prep_girl_Nessa]

O~h, Yumekui, good song.

Yeah, I have a lot of her videos too, I love her during interviews. She's so innocent xD

[chiisu321]

pretaining to the sentence, this is what i was taught.

"da" is the informal term for "desu". they mean exactly the same thing of course, but there are times when da would be inappropriate. Anyways, to end a sentence with da makes a very harsh sound. When you use only da, it makes the sentence very serious and firm, but can sometimes be threatening. so "yo" is put at the end to make it sound less stressed/exclaimed. This was the explaination given to me by my first japanese instructor who was spending the year in america. She is from tokyo.

as for meaning "you know" it can in some instences translate that way (according to books) but with my experience talking, i have not really used it in this way, nor have i heard it used for this purpose.

Within the song, i doubt that is the proper translation, but rather a literal dictionary-ish translation.