Dialogue 1: Introduction
Mr. Tamura and Ms. Kondo have met for the first time. When Japanese meet for the first time, they typically use a formal speech style as shown.
Grammar
See Grammar Notes for Dialogue 1.
Key Vocabulary
1. はじめまして How do you do?
2. たむら Tamura [family name]
3. です am/is/are [polite copula]
4. こんどう Kondo [family name]
5. どうぞよろしく Nice to meet you.　[Lit. "I request your best regard."]
6. こちらこそ Same here. [Lit. "It's this side."]
English
A: How do you do? I'm Tamura.
B: How do you do? I'm Kondo.
A: Nice to meet you.
B: Same here.
Culture

1.

Japanese say their family name first followed by their given name (e.g., "Ono Yoko"). Commonly, there is no middle name. When they give their name to Westerners, they usually follow the English pattern: given name + family name (e.g., "Yoko Ono").
2.

Although there are exceptions, women's names are more likely to have two to three syllables while men's names are more likely to have three to four syllables. Traditional women's names end with "ko" at the end, but there are many names that don't follow this tradition.