THE PATTERN OF MISUSE OF “NI” AND “DE” AS THE PARTICLES THAT FUNCTION AS PLACE MARKERS

Abstract

Japanese has many particles that confuse students, including students from Indonesia. This is because many particles, when translated into Indonesian, have the same meaning even though their use is very different in Japanese. This research aims to analyze the misuse patterns of the particles “ni” and “de”, which function as place markers, and what caused them. This research used a qualitative approach on 60 students learning elementary Japanese, consisting of 23 males and 37 females. The data collection technique was a test filling in the correct particles in the blank spaces in sentences. Based on the results of the analysis, it can be seen that (1) learners tend to use the particle “ni” as a place marker, either indicating activity or simply indicating presence; (2) the use of the particle “de” as a marker for the location of activity tends to be more confused with the use of the particle "ni" as a marker for the location of objects or people and animals; (3) whether the particle “ni” or “de” is located at the beginning of a sentence, namely following the first word in the sentence, then students tend to use the particle “wa” (the particle marking the subject/point of the sentence), because the first word is considered the subject or main sentence; (4) If the particle “ni” or “de” is located at the end before the predicate in the sentence, then students tend to use the particle “o/wo” (object marking particle), because the previous word is considered the object of the sentence. The causes of errors found were the influence of the mother tongue, overgeneralization, and fossilization.