Japanese Naa is the 3rd hardest to translate, nah

[Taro Toporific]

[amdg]

[Taro Toporific]

[amdg]

'Hen' is just the negative marker in kansaiben, so

wakaranai = wakarahen

shinjirarenai = shinjirarehen

tabenai = tabehen

etc...

hen desho!?

[Taro Toporific]

'Hen' is just the negative marker in kansaiben, so

wakaranai = wakarahen

shinjirarenai = shinjirarehen

tabenai = tabehen

etc...

hen desho!?

Hen naa.

[Kanchou]

[danbarrett]

Actually, it's a bit more complicated than that...

"Naa" is used all over the place in more casual conversation; it's interjected into the other person's sentences to show that you're listening while also being added onto the end of your own sentences to make sure their listening.

As in:

A:"Uchi ha na..."
B:"mmm"
A:"saikin ha na, nani mo shitehen."
B:"naa..."


Etc...

Just inersting "hey" doesn't work here; it's something more like "right", as in "So, lately I haven't been doing anything, right?", asking for some kind of confirmation from the other party (which, as translations go, loses the pacing of the original and is pretty awkward).

Keep in mind it can also be thrown in just to include someone in an observation; as in the example of staring at the Grand Canyon and exclaiming "Ookii naa". In this situation no reply is really expected, though the other person will probably hit you back with another "Naa...".

It's not complicated, just doesn't have an obvious replacement in English, which, as a language, tends to want to let you finish a damn sentence.