Learning Japanese 101: Home

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Welcome to this LibGuide on Learning Japanese 101! This guide is intended for the use of people who enjoy anime, manga, Japanese culture, or Japanese videogames, and who are interested in learning the language of Japan, but don't know where to start. It is tiered into four sections, based on the order of learning recommended by many experts: Hiragana, Katakana, Kanji, and Grammar and Vocabulary. 

Learning Japanese may seem daunting, but don't fear! Developing competence in just a few of the fundamentals outlined in this guide will greatly increase your confidence and prepare you to tackle learning this language head-on. Not only that, but developing these first few skills should prove fun and rewarding, as well as renew motivation when things get tough.

As the Japanese say: Ganbatte~! (Do your best!)
 

How to Use This Guide

It is recommended that you go through the content tabs in chronological order. Each section is outfitted with links to trusted resources to help learners fulfill the following learning goals:

• Understand that Japanese is a phonetic language with three writing systems.
• Learn to read and pronounce all hiragana and katakana.
• Understand the origins of kanji, its attributes, and its relationship to hiragana and katakana.
• Begin to acquire kanji, grammar, and vocabulary.

From these basic competencies—or "stepping stones"—learners have the option to use further resources to expand their knowledge and (if they wish) gain eventual fluency in the language. (Check the end of the guide for those resources!)

Before You Begin

Some things to review and remember before proceeding to the next sections:

Japanese is a phonetic language. 

• Sentences are written out in characters (or kana) that correspond to different sounds. Example:
  • ひ = hi
  • ら = ra
  • が = ga
  • な = na
  • (put it all together) ひ ら が な  =  HI - RA - GA - NA = hiragana
• There are three character sets: hiragana, katakana, and kanji.
• Romaji is when Japanese sounds are converted into the Roman alphabet. (Example: The word "hiragana" is the romaji for ひらがな.)
• While hiragana and katakana are purely phonetic—with each character representing a single sound—kanji is not. Instead, kanji are ideograms or pictures that represent ideas.
• Japanese sentences use a mix of hiragana, katakana, and kanji.

Many experts recommend learning how to pronounce the phonetic characters before beginning any grammar or vocabulary. Particularly, it is recommended to begin learning how to read hiragana before anything else. Not only is it the easiest character set to learn, it is Japan's version of the alphabet, used mainly for grammar and native Japanese words. Knowing hiragana ahead of time is also a prerequisite in most Japanese-learning classrooms and textbooks. Many language learning apps also require some knowledge of hiragana beforehand. 

The next section will explain how to master reading/pronouncing hiragana.

(Source: Canva.com)

Attributes of Hiragana

Hiragana is Japan's version of the alphabet. It is used for grammar, native Japanese words, and some loanwords (foreign words written in Japanese).

• There are 46 basic characters.
• There are 25 modified characters.
• Hiragana is the easiest set to learn for newcomers to Japanese.
• Hiragana can be distinguished from the other sets by its "loopy" and "cute" appearance.

Because it is the most basic character set, hiragana is abundant in Japanese media. Even if you knew the other two kana sets, you wouldn't be able to read most Japanese text without knowing hiragana.

Mnemonics and Repetition

Fortunately, all the hiragana can be easily mastered in less than a week through application of a mnemonic learning method. Mnemonics are a type of memory aid that use pictures, sounds, or phrases to help the learner remember new information. For example, the phrase "don't touch my mustache" is a mnemonic phrase that helps most people remember how to pronounce doitashimashite (Japanese for "you're welcome"). The first resource, Hiragana: The Ultimate Guide, pairs a memorable image with each hiragana character to help you remember it.

Next, repetition is required in order to help you permanently retain (or "burn") the images you've learned and their associated sounds. The next two resources, Real Kana and Drag n' Drop Hiragana, use repetitious memory games to help you pair hiragana characters with their proper sounds.

Once you have completed Steps 1 and 2 and mastered how to read hiragana, you are ready to move to the next section.

Visit Tofugu's Hiragana: The Ultimate Guide to learn the reading and pronunciation of each character, using pictorial mnemonics. This comprehensive guide includes videos, worksheets, and mnemonic charts to help you acquire all the basic and modified characters.

Next, you will want to practice reading and pronouncing the characters until they are all "burned" into your mind. To do this, visit Real Kana and Drag n' Drop Hiragana and complete the repetition activities. 

Idaho residents can visit LiLi.org for access to Pronunciator (our language-learning program) to see hiragana in sentences and hear how native speakers pronounce the characters.  

(For some added fun, try to read the English words in this sentence after learning all your katakana! Source: The Simpsons Tapped Out Addicts)

Attributes of Katakana

Katakana is what the Japanese use to spell foreign words. Foreign "loanwords" (words from other languages—including English!—brought into regular Japanese usage) make up almost 10 percent of vocabulary used in Japanese. It's also used to spell company names and sound effects, or to denote "foreign" or "robotic" speech in books/manga/videogames.

• There are 46 basic characters.
• There are 25 modified characters.
• The phonemes (sounds) in katakana are exactly the same as in hiragana, so you will not be learning any new sounds—just a different spelling of what you already learned in hiragana. 
• Katakana is distinguished by its "angular" and "cool" appearance.

Just like with hiragana, all the katakana can be easily mastered in less than a week through application of pictorial mnemonics and repetition. Katakana is learned in just the same way as hiragana and with just the same resources. Tofugu's Ultimate Katakana Guide uses the familiar pictorial mnemonic method to teach katakana, while Real Kana and Drag n' Drop Katakana use repetitious memory games to help you pair katakana characters with their proper sounds.

Once you have completed Steps 1 and 2 and mastered how to read katakana, you are ready to move to the next section.

Visit Tofugu's Katakana: The Ultimate Guide to learn the reading and pronunciation of each character, using pictorial mnemonics. This comprehensive guide includes videos, worksheets, and mnemonic charts to help you acquire all the basic and modified characters.

Next, you will want to practice reading and pronouncing the characters until they are all "burned." To do this, visit Real Kana and Drag n' Drop Katakana and complete the repetition activities.

Now that you have mastered recognition and pronunciation of hiragana and katakana, it is time to look at the third character set: kanji. Kanji is very different from hiragana/katakana and is far more complex. Before choosing one of the resources in "Learning Kanji" to start learning kanji, you will need to know some basic information.  
 

Attributes of Kanji

• Kanji is not phonetic. A kanji character does not correspond to a sound. Instead, it is an ideogram or picture that depicts an idea.
• The average Japanese person spends a decade-plus learning over 2,000 kanji. (That is the number needed to be truly fluent in Japanese, although there is well over 50,000 kanji—even so, almost nobody, not even most Japanese speakers, knows that many!)
• Kanji is distinguished by its "Chinese" appearance.

Japan adopted Chinese characters as its official writing system in 5th — 6th century BC. However, the characters are pronounced differently depending on what reading you use for them. Example: The kanji 山 (meaning mountain) is pronounced san for the Chinese-derived reading and yama for the Japanese reading. What readings you use depends on what context the words appear in. 

Kanji's Relationship with Hiragana and Katakana

Here is an example of how kanji connects to the two phonetic character sets (hiragana and katakana):

愛 (ai—pronounced "ah-ee" quickly) is a kanji meaning "love." However, just looking at it will not tell you how it is pronounced. For that, you need to "spell" the word in either hiragana or katakana.

In this case, because the character is a kanji, that usually means it is a native Japanese word, so you use hiragana to "spell" it.

(Source: Myself)

Here is one more example of kanji being "spelled" with characters from the phonetic set:

(Source: Japanese Level Up)

You might also notice the smaller characters written next to the kanji. Japanese teens and young children rely on these smaller characters (called furigana) to know how the kanji is supposed to be pronounced. (You can learn more about furigana at Legends of Localization.)

Kanji Reduces Confusion in Written Japanese

Kanji is used in written Japanese because phonetic characters on their own are not always clear. Using kanji in sentences helps distinguish between homonyms.

For example, かみ (kami, paper) and かみ (Kami, God) are homonyms. Writing these words as kanji helps you tell the difference.

紙 = paper (pronounced かみ, kami)
神 = God (pronounced かみ, Kami)
 

Because kanji is so complex and because there are so many characters, you are not expected to master this character set before moving to the next section—it is enough to understand its basic function in Japanese. As you proceed with learning grammar and vocabulary, you will also want to keep learning kanji on the side. Check the "Learning Kanji" box for different methods on how to do that.

• WaniKani is a comprehensive online resource that uses fun mnemonics to teach you kanji characters and everyday vocabulary. The first few "levels" are free. The free edition of WaniKani makes it possible to learn the first ~100 kanji characters within a few weeks.
   
• Kanji from Zero is a workbook series that teaches you how to write and read several kanji. ($27) There's a corresponding free YouTube channel, "Learn Japanese From Zero!"
   
• Kanji Teacher is a phone app that teaches kanji, vocabulary, and how to write characters. (Free!) Get it for Apple!
   
• Explore the seven different ways to learn kanji, with corresponding resources for each method. 

Tofugu: Tofugu is the ultimate resource in learning about Japanese language learning, culture, food, and much more. Expert advice issued in a readable, conversational style, featuring articles, worksheets, videos, and illustrations. 

TextFugu: An online Japanese-language learning textbook. (The first "season" is free.)

Tae Kim's Guide to Japanese: This free website walks you through the necessary grammar and vocabulary.

The Genki Textbook Series is a highly acclaimed textbook series well worth looking into. ($20–150 each)

Nihongo Ichiban teaches you grammar and vocabulary with lessons, tests, and games. It even teaches you how to write kanji in the proper stroke order!

And speaking of writing kanji, here's where you can learn to write the hiragana stroke order and learn to write the katakana stroke order.

Duolingo: This free phone and desktop app uses fun exercises to teach vocabulary and grammar.

Need more apps? Check out LingoDeer, Flowlingo, and JASensei (check your phone's app store for JASensei).

Are you an Idaho resident? Use Pronunciator, a free language learning program from Libraries Linking Idaho (LiLI). This resource teaches you vocabulary, grammar construction, and pronunciation in a highly visual, easy-to-grasp style. Pronunciator is a desktop program that can also be accessed on mobile browsers.

If you have a library card with the Coeur d'Alene Library or a Cooperative Information Network library:

• Visit the CDA Library's Learning Japanese List of print, audio, and visual materials available for checking out. This list is continually updated as new materials are acquired for the library's collection, so check back frequently.

Japanese-language children's books are a great place to start reading Japanese—they use simpler sentences and are usually written in the easier-to-read hiragana.

Kinokuniya Bookstore Seattle: Great selection and online shopping available.

Amazon Japan: Shop in English for Japanese titles. International shipping available.

Legends of Localization: Meagan's favorite blog! Discusses facets of Japanese-to-English videogame localization. The author, Clyde Mandelin, also writes books discussing how bad videogame translations happen, how machine translations render Japanese into English, and how videogames like the original Legend of Zelda were translated. Tons of interesting linguistic and cultural insights!

Need a list of manga books to read? Check out this link for a list of beginner's Japanese-friendly manga. Need more Japanese reference books and dictionaries? Check out this link.