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What generally accepted mnemonic phrases are there in Japanese that are used
for memorizing a sequence of numbers or words?
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2011-09-17T02:29:29.413
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2011-12-27T17:02:23.210
2011-12-27T17:02:23.210
question
learning puns
Mnemonic phrases for memorizing a word or number sequence
* Square root of two

> 1.41421356...  
> 人世人世に人見頃 (ひとよひとよにひとみごろ)  
> 'It's peoples world; peoples world. It's time to observe people.'

  * Square root of three

> 1.7320508...  
> 人並みにおごれや (ひとなみにおごれや)  
> 'Treat me as if you do to other people.'

  * Square root of five

> 2.2360679...  
> 富士山麓オーム啼く (ふじさんろくオームなく)  
> 'Base of Mt. Fuji, a parrot cries.'

  * Base of natural logarithm

> 2.718281828459045...  
> 鮒一鉢、二鉢、一鉢、二鉢、至極おいしい (ふなひとはちふたはちしごくおいしい)  
> 'One bowl, two bowls, one bowl, two bowls of crucian carp. Very delicious.'

  * Months that do not have 31 days

> 2, 4, 6, 9, 11  
> 西向く士 (にしむくさむらい)  
> 'A samurai facing west'

  * Beginning year of the Heian era

> 794  
> 啼くよ鶯、平安京 (なくようぐいすへいあんきょう)  
> 'Crying is a bush warbler, the Heian capital.'

  * Beginning year of the Kamakura era

> 1192  
> いい国作ろう、鎌倉幕府 (いいくにつくろうかまくらばくふ)  
> 'Let's make a good country: The Kamakura shogunate.'

  * Order of first elements in the periodic table

> H (水素, すいそ), He, Li, Be, B, C, N, O, F, Ne, Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, Cl, Ar, K,
> Ca  
> 水兵リーベ僕の船 名前があるシップス クラークか （すいへいリーベぼくのふねなまえ…）  
> 'Sailor, _Liebe_ (de:love), my boat. Ships with names; maybe Clark?'

  * Chemical elements in the halogen group

> F (フッ素; ふっそ), Cl (塩素; えんそ 'chlorine'), Br (臭素; しゅうそ 'bromine'), I (ヨウ素; ヨウそ
> 'iodine'), At (アンチモン 'antimony')  
> ふっくらブラジャー、愛の痕 (ふっくらブラジャーあいのあと)  
> 'A plumpy brasier: trace of love'
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2011-09-17T02:43:35.943
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2011-09-17T10:39:26.967
2011-09-17T10:39:26.967
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answer
The ones that I am most familiar with are for tying historical events to
years. They can be found in vast numbers on websites
[like](http://hyakuten.fc2web.com/)
[these](http://529eqfaxoxa7m.finito.fc2.com/)
[ones](http://www.geocities.jp/niginiginomiko/goroawase2.htm) and in exam
study guides.

I'm not sure about "generally accepted"; some are probably more widely known
than others. I would not be surprised to observe patterns corresponding to the
流派 (schools) of traditional Japanese arts, where the _goroawase_ students
learn can be linked to geographical location/study guide used/target
school/etc.

I am personally fond of the variants on "naku yo uguisu" in your example (e.g.
"haku yo uguisu", "the warbler vomits" for 894, etc.), and of course "Iroiro
sankyū, Porutogaru" for 1639 when Japan's ports were officially closed to
Portuguese ships.
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2011-09-17T06:42:05.343
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2011-09-17T06:42:05.343
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answer