It’s Old, Though It’s Been Well Kept って・である・と言っても

上がる and 上げる can mark a quantity or degree going up; the first is intransitive (“rise”), while the second takes an object (“raise”).

って is a casual quotation and topic marker, common in conversation. である is a formal written copula used in reports and essays. と言っても qualifies a description: “even if we say X,” the reality may be more limited or nuanced than the label suggests. いわゆる means “so-called” and introduces a commonly recognized label. These forms let you adjust register and avoid overstatement.

って often introduces a topic or repeats something heard, especially in casual speech. In formal contexts, use という or と聞きました instead. Its meaning is clear from whether it introduces a subject or a quoted statement.

である is a formal alternative to です/だ in written explanations. It attaches to nouns and な-adjectives as である; the modifying form is である + noun, though であること is also common.

と言っても accepts a label but limits what should be inferred from it. The continuation often gives the contrast or qualification: 古いと言っても、まだ十分使える, “though it’s old, it’s still usable.”

Vocabulary