How to

How to Learn Japanese

Konnichiwa (こんにちは)! Japanese is a great

language to learn, whether you plan to use it to

conduct business, absorb your favorite Japanese

media, such as manga, or to talk to a friend in

Japanese. At first, learning Japanese can seem

intimidating, since it's not related to western

languages like English. The writing system and

formalities are complicated, but grammar,

pronunciation and basic conversation are actually

quite straightforward. Start by learning some useful

phrases, then dive into Japanese sounds and writing

systems.

The Basics

1 Learn the Japanese writing systems. Japanese

language has four writing systems, each of which is

composed of different characters. This may sound

like a lot to learn, but every word in Japanese,

regardless of which writing system it comes from, is

pronounced with some combination of only 46 basic

sounds.[1] Sorting out the different writing systems

and their uses is an important part of learning

Japanese. Here's a brief overview:

Hiragana is a Japanese syllabary, phonetic

characters that make up one Japanese writing

system. Unlike the English alphabet, each character

stands for one syllable, which may include a vowel

and a consonant sound.

Katakana is also a syllabary, most often used for

foreign words or onomatopoeic sounds (like bang or

squeak). Together, hiragana and katakana account

for the entire range of sounds in the Japanese

language.

Kanji are Chinese characters that were adopted as a

Japanese writing system. Whereas hiragana and

katakana are simply phonetic letters, kanji are

ideograms, characters which have meaning. There

are thousands of kanji characters, with about 2000

in common use. Hiragana and katakana were

derived from these characters. The same 46 sounds

that are used to pronounce hiragana and katakana

are also used to pronounce kanji.

The Latin alphabet is used in Japanese to write

acronyms, company names, and other words for

aesthetic reasons. Called Romaji ("Roman letters"),

Japanese can also be written in Latin letters. This is

not done in Japan, but it is used by beginning

Japanese speakers to "spell out" Japanese

characters. However, there are many sounds in

Japanese which are difficult to express in Latin

letters, and many homonyms (many more than

English) which become confusing. Therefore,

students of Japanese are encouraged to begin

learning Japanese characters as soon as possible,

and avoid using Latin letters as a crutch.

2 Practice Japanese pronunciation. The 46 sounds

in the Japanese language are composed of one of

five vowel sounds or a combination of a vowel and a

consonant, with the exception of one sound

composed of only a consonant. Vowel sounds are

not inflected (unlike in English, where "a" in apple vs

ace are different). You can start practicing

pronunciation by learning how to pronounce each

character in hiragana and katakana. Seethis site for

examples of how to pronounce the sounds.

Focus on the intonation of the different sounds.

Variations on the sounds change the meaning of the

words you speak. A long syllable may have a

completely different meaning from the same sound

made shorter ("o" vs. "oo").

3 Learn variations on the basic sounds. Japanese

characters may add marks to indicate that they

should be pronounced slightly differently, sometimes

changing the meaning of the words they make up.

This similar to "s" sometimes sounding like "z" in

English.

Hard consonant sounds are pronounced with a hard

stop in between two sounds.

Long vowel sounds, pronounced by holding the

vowel sound for an extra beat, are distinguished

from short sounds, indicating a different word.

4 Get to know Japanese grammar. Knowing a few

basic grammatical rules will help you start

understanding Japanese and creating your own

sentences. Japanese grammar is simple and

flexible, so it's easy to string words together in a way

that makes sense.[2]

The subject is optional and may be omitted.

The predicate is always at the end of the sentence.

Nouns do not have gender. Most also don't have

separate plural forms.

Verbs do not change according to the subject

(he/she/it). They also don't change according to

number (singular/plural, like I/we or he/they).[3]

Particles, which mark words as subject, object, etc,

always follow the word to which they relate.

Personal pronouns (I, you, etc) differ according to

the level of politeness and formality that is needed in

each situation.

Guided Instruction

1 Get audio learning software. After learning the

basics, it's time to get some outside instruction so

you can improve your skills. If you are learning

Japanese for fun because you like Japanese culture

such as manga and anime or for travel, an audio

learning CD might be all you need. Just spending an

hour a day can build up grammar usage and teach

you simple stock phrases and useful vocabulary.

Listen to the software during your commute to work

or have it ready on your portable music player for

lunch and breaks or walks in the park.

It isn't necessary to learn the reading and writing to

enjoy the language and culture, so if you plan on

taking a short trip to Japan, knowing a few useful

phrases will be more practical than cramming

obscure characters into your brain.

2 Sign up for classes. If you are learning for business

or you want to live in Japan, consider enrolling in a

college level course, an intensive language program,

or online classes. Learning to read and write will be

crucial to your long term success, and having a

mentor during the early stages is ideal for

developing good study habits and asking all the

questions you will have about Japanese language

and culture.

Study the writing systems. Begin studying all four

writing styles early on if literacy is important for your

purpose of learning the language. Hiragana and

katakana can be learned in a few weeks, and you

can use them to write anything you want in

Japanese. Around 2,000 kanji are currently in

common use in Japanese, so it typically takes

several years to learn, but it's worth it if you want to

actually be able to understand and speak Japanese.

Use flashcards to learn vocabulary and simple

phrases. They can be used while waiting for a

meeting, on a train, and so on. Some free cards can

be found on the web to get you started, or you can

buy higher quality cards at most college bookstores

or online.

To practice kanji, look for cards that show stroke

order (how to write the character) represented in

calligraphy on one side and have example

compound words on the other side. You can pick up

a pack of blank 3x5 cards to make your own flash

cards with exactly what you want to learn.

Participate in class discussions and activities. Do all

of your homework, raise your hand a lot, and be as

involved as you can to make the most of language

classes. If you don't, your skills will not improve.

Immersing Yourself

1 Join a Japanese language conversation

group. Conversation groups abound and are usually

easily found with a simple Internet search or phone

call to your local civic center or library. Train your

ears to pick out what is being said. Even if you don't

understand it, try to repeat what was said so you can

begin to pick it apart and develop comprehension.

2 Make Japanese friends with whom you can

regularly practice. Lots of Japanese people want to

learn English, so you may be able to find some who

are willing to help you in exchange for help in

English. Simply having friends to trade notes with

can help everyone improve their abilities.

Do things with your friends that involve language but

aren't "study time." If your Japanese friends haven't

lived in your country very long, show them around

town. Go sightseeing. Remember, you have to blow

off steam regularly or you'll get stressed out about all

those Kanji you have to memorize. Having fun is the

best way to accomplish two goals at the same time.

On the days when you don't have outings, call up a

friend every day and have a half-hour conversation

during which you speak only Japanese. The more

practice you get, the faster you will improve.

3 Consume Japanese media. Whether it's the

newspaper, a novel, a movie, or a show, read or

watch Japanese language media every day. There is

lots of TV content on the internet, from comedy to

game shows to drama. Find something which fits

your interests and learning will be much easier.

Japanese newspapers will expose you to the most

practical vocabulary and grammar. As you improve,

read novels, which will give you a warmer style of

writing. Mix things up by watching classic Japanese

films and anime without subtitles, or with Japanese

character subtitles.

Comic books (Manga) can make good reading

material, but be aware that the level of sophistication

varies greatly. A more mature, literary comic might

be good practice (especially since the illustrations

help you understand what you are reading),

something intended for smaller children is likely to

be full of sound effects and slang. Be careful about

repeating what you've read in a comic book.

4 Study in Japan. This is simply the best way to

practically apply what you have learned and learn

more. It's a very exciting and unpredictable

experience to immerse yourself in another culture,

even for a short period. Even if you have researched

exhaustively, actually experiencing a place will

expose you to things you could never have

imagined.

If you're enrolled in a college or university, ask about

programs to study in Japan. This is one of the best

ways to gain long-term exposure to Japanese

language, and you may be eligible for financial aid.

Don't be discouraged if you do not understand

everything that is said to you or you can't read or

write as well as you expected. It takes many years to

become fluent in another language. The intricacies

and nuances of the Japanese language make it

difficult to master, but they are also part of its

beauty.

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