ば: The Only Conditional In Japanese

Application

Let us break down how the historical provisional (えば) and conditional (あば) patterns appear in modern Japanese usage now.

ば Patterns

1. True Provisional (仮定) – Derived from えば

An important distinction needs to be made here. ば is not perse an “If” marker. It’s the combination of stem + ば that leads to nuance shifts that can correspond with an “If” like meaning in English.

That being said, えば uses the “realis” stem. It’s not about “If” something is the case, it’s about when or as it is. There is no doubt involved in えば, as it uses the said “realis” stem or 已然形 (izenkei) for that matter. As it's the case; Because it is or will be reality;

Example from Old Japanese:

sisi no yuuta wa: ware wa arufodo no kedamono no oo nareba …
“The lion said: ‘As I am the king of all animals…'”

The translation using “as” rather than “if” reveals something fundamental about the provisional えば:

• It’s not about uncertainty (“if I am king”)
• It’s about establishing a premise (“as I am king”)
• It’s treating the condition as a given reality (realis)

2. Natural Consequence (必然的な結果) – Causal/Temporal

Phrasing such sentence patterns with と would suggest a direct link between A and B. Whereas the provisional is treating A as a temporary realized state for the sake of discussion.

3. Other Common Usages

However:

Doesn’t work because:

• えば sets up a provisional premise (“as/given that…”)
• It establishes a framework for general truths or hypotheticals
• Cannot be used for specific, already realized past events because its function is to establish premises, not narrate sequences (not “if” but “as”)

Why this works:

• It’s not narrating what happened
• It’s establishing a framework for evaluation
• The hypothetical state is treated as a temporary “realis” condition for discussion

It’s not a pure “if-then” relationship. Rather, it’s: “given that state as real, this would be the evaluation”; “provide that state as real, this will link to it”.

These show how the provisional meaning evolved to express natural consequences. えば is treating the hypothetical as a realized state for the purpose of discussion.

The key is that えば isn’t actually marking uncertainty vs. certainty. Instead, it’s marking: “Given this realized state, then…”

This explains why it works for both:

1. Natural laws (because the condition is treated as a realized state)
2. Hypotheticals (because we’re treating the hypothesis as a temporary realized state)

This is supported by the fact that the provisional form functioned differently from the conditional form (あば), which was built on the perfective. The provisional えば is about setting up a premise or state, whether that state is natural law or hypothetical.

The common thread is treating the condition as a “given state” – which is exactly what the exclamatory/realis form was meant to do in Old Japanese.

たら Patterns – Derived from Perfective + ば

1. Temporal Conditional – Shows あば origins

たら on the other hand connects ば to た, raising a condition that’s in the past or continues in place due to (てあり). When A is done; When A is (ongoing) in the past;

2. Temporal Regret/Conditional

Contrasting たら and ば

なら Patterns – Copula Evolution

1. Information-Based Conditional – Shows に + あり + ば origin

2. Information-Based Consequences – Shows qualities of copula

Key Historical Insights

Provisional えば patterns:

• Uses “realis” stem to show future realized states
• It’s not about “If” but “When” -> future perfection
• No doubt involved

Conditional あば patterns:

• Used for pure conditional “if” relationships
• Forms a conditional subordinate clause
• Derived from perfective + ば

The copula なら:

• Combines both copula and conditional aspects
• Shows qualities of the copula in nominalization (can be used after verbs)
• Maintains strong connection to given information

All of this explains why:

• ば tends towards future realized states
• たら works better for specific/realized and temporal conditions
• なら specializes in information-based and topical conditions

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I quickly go over this to not cause confusion.

What about と?

と is in fact not a conditional. It is and always has been a linking and realization tool (と). It glues two individual things together in a “with” type of way.

I might make an entire post about the true と and it’s true clause linking qualities eventually.

Sources

Bjarke Frellesvig’s “A history of the Japanese language”

https://nihongo-arekore.com/n3-30