Breakdown of tosyokan de nihon no syasinsyuu wo karimasita.
Questions & Answers about tosyokan de nihon no syasinsyuu wo karimasita.
Japanese often omits the subject when it’s clear from context.
In 図書館で日本の写真集を借りました。, the verb 借りました (borrowed) in polite past form, plus the context (e.g., you talking about what you did), makes it obvious that the subject is “I”, so 私 is left out.
You could say 私は図書館で日本の写真集を借りました。, but it usually sounds more natural to drop 私 unless you need to contrast or emphasize it.
で marks the place where an action happens — “at/in” as a location of an activity.
So 図書館で means “at the library (that’s where the borrowing took place).”
に would mark the destination or existence (e.g., 図書館に行きます “I’m going to the library,” 図書館にいます “I’m at the library”), but for doing something at a place, で is the usual choice.
の is linking 日本 (Japan) and 写真集 (photo book) in an attributive/possessive way.
Here it means “photo book of/about Japan” or “Japanese photo book (whose subject is Japan).”
This の is very general: it can mean possession (日本の本 = “Japan’s book”), origin (日本の会社 = “Japanese company”), topic/content (日本の歴史の本 = “a book on Japanese history”), etc.
写真（しゃしん） means “photo” or “photograph.”
写真集（しゃしんしゅう） literally means “photo collection” = “photo book / photo album” that’s been published as a book.
So 日本の写真集 is specifically “a (published) photo book of Japan,” not just “photos of Japan.”
を marks the direct object of the verb — the thing the action is done to.
In 日本の写真集を借りました, 日本の写真集 is what was borrowed, so it takes を.
In general, [object] を [transitive verb] is “do [verb] to [object].”
借りました（かりました） is the polite past form of the verb 借りる（かりる）, “to borrow.”
Plain forms:
- Non‑past plain: 借りる (“borrow / will borrow”)
- Past plain: 借りた (“borrowed”)
Polite forms: - Non‑past polite: 借ります
- Past polite: 借りました (used in the sentence).
Yes. As long as particles are correct, Japanese word order is fairly flexible before the verb.
Both 図書館で日本の写真集を借りました and 日本の写真集を図書館で借りました are natural and mean the same thing.
The main rule is that the verb (借りました) comes at the end; the other elements can move for emphasis or flow.
You can say 図書館から日本の写真集を借りました, and it means “I borrowed a photo book of Japan from the library.”
- 図書館で focuses on where the action took place (the borrowing happened at the library).
- 図書館から focuses on source/origin (the item came from the library).
Both are correct; which one you use depends on whether you’re highlighting the place of the action (で) or the source (から).
A simple statement like this doesn’t need an explicit topic; the whole sentence can function as a neutral, topic-less statement.
You can add は to introduce or contrast a topic:
- 図書館では日本の写真集を借りました。 – “At the library (at least), I borrowed a photo book of Japan.” (contrast with other places)
- 日本の写真集は図書館で借りました。 – “As for the photo book of Japan, I borrowed it at the library.”
Adding は shifts the focus and often implies contrast or known information.
借りる is a transitive verb: you borrow something (object marked by を) and optionally from someone/somewhere (marked by から or sometimes に).
In 日本の写真集を借りました, the source is simply left out because it’s not important or is obvious from context.
If you want to include it, you can say, for example, 図書館から日本の写真集を借りました (“I borrowed a photo book of Japan from the library”).
Both mean “borrowed,” but they differ in politeness:
- 借りました – polite past; used in most everyday conversations with people you’re not very close to, in shops, with teachers, etc.
- 借りた – plain past; used with family, close friends, diary entries, casual online posts, etc.
The choice depends on your relationship with the listener and the level of formality.
- 図書館 – としょかん (toshokan) – “library”
- 日本 – にほん (nihon) or にっぽん (nippon) – “Japan” (here, usually にほん)
- 写真集 – しゃしんしゅう (shashinshū) – “photo book / photo collection”
- 借りました – かりました (karimashita) – past polite of 借りる（かりる）, “to borrow.”