A few *culture* language questions

Quote from BridgetOfTheNorth
I've been studying Japanese for around a year from my home. I understand grammar ( so far anyway... yikes!), I'm learning vocabulary...but there are some things textbooks don't tell you!

Grammar is going to be tough in any language, but I always like to remind myself "hey at least its not English where even the native speakers don't quite get it." and considering I'm a native English speaker it kinda works to motivate me... but yeah whatever works for you works.

Quote from BridgetOfTheNorth

First off, my name is Bridget, or ブリジットis katakana (I hope! I say it like Bri-jit instead of Bri-jet, would this be right?). When I introduce myself, would I say "Burijitto desu" because it fits the Japanese sound system, or would I say "Bridget desu," and leave the sound system for writing? I don't want an unpronounceable name! Are gaijin expected to put their last names first?

Most of the time to slightly alter the sound so you get "jetto" instead of "jitto" you add smaller katakana/hiragana. In your case it'd be like ブリジェット notice the small エ or え　(e).

I'm not Japanese, so I have no idea what Japanese people expect out of gaijin. What I do know is that the more you try the more they respect you and as such 頑張れよ！

Quote from BridgetOfTheNorth

Second, I was wondering if Japanese people use sarcasm with their friends, or if that is just a trait of the English language. The closest things I can find in textbooks/on websites is using the word samui/samu for "that's not funny!"

I've experienced this countless times, and have been told by others who interact with Japanese people as well that they don't quite understand sarcasm. There are plenty of times in English conversations where I try to use sarcasm to convey a joke, but until I say "I was just kidding" or "It was a joke" everyone takes it literally. There's also not really a lot of room for it I don't think in Japanese culture/the language.

Quote from BridgetOfTheNorth

Lastly, just a random vocabulary question.
Do ai and koi have the same meaning, or is it different? (I thought ai meant love, but then I came across koi used in a lot of songs. Are they just synonyms?)

Sorry for the list any help would be appreaciated!
(A big thanks to Rocket Japanese; I love the easy-to-use layout!!)

あい　愛　(ai)
こい　恋 (koi)

My dictionary says they both can mean love, although the kanji associated with "koi" is the kanji I've known for a while to be defined as love.

Truth be told, I'm not too sure... However, a Japanese friend may be better able to answer! If you want to meet some Japanese people to make some friends, Lang-8 is a great site.

こんにちは　ブリジェットさん。
Hello Bridget!

Welcome to Rocket Japanese!
As Derek-san has written, your name would be pronounced as BU-RI-JET-TO with a jump on the -JET- part. When you introduce yourself, the Japanese people will generally (amongst themselves) and in formal situations, introduce by last name. So for example, if TANAKA was my last name, I'd say, TANAKA-desu. However, in informal situations, and foreigners in general, we introduce by first name - SAYAKA desu, BURIJETTO desu.

Japanese sarcasm changes like fashion. One word like SAMUI/SAMU can mean "that's not funny' - but then loose its meaning with time, and another word will pop up. Usually this happens when an actor/actress on TV says a phrase over and over again - it then begins to be used by young people.

愛and恋　(AI and KOI) do both mean "love", but it does have a slightly different meaning. あい(ai) is like "forbidden love" while こい(koi) is almost like puppy love - love between young people - maybe for a crush you have. あい is somewhat more serious. You rarely hear it used colloquially by Japanese people. To say "I love you" we prefer to use the phrase すきです (suki desu). While すき(suki) means "like", it's used in the same way that English uses "love" to express feeling.

-Hope that helps!

さやか Sayaka

どういたしまして！ You are very welcome.

-Sayaka