I’m in the process of trying to learn Japanese. I may eventually take a class but for the time being I’m trying to teach myself some stuff so I can get a bit up to speed. I have spent the last few weeks practicing Hirigana both writing it out and using apps on my phone and that seems to be going pretty well. I've also been watching Japanese shows and reading the subtitles to hear the language spoken and pick up some words.
I’m at the point where now that I'm getting the hang of Hirigana (I haven’t looked at Katakana or Kanji yet) that I want to build up my vocabulary and start working on more words and phrases.
For those that have learned Japanese, did you find it easier to learn the vocabulary as English translation to Symbols or easier to go from English translation to Romanji to Symbols?
I don't think there's much difference between both.
You can learn say:
1. Love=ai=あい
2. Love=あい
I learned it the first way (1) because romanji translates so well and easy to hiragana. The problem is I still memorize mostly romanji instead of hiragana. Granted I only learned the Pimsuleur Japanese so I am not that good if at all in Japanese.
Depending on your ambition, if you read and write often enough hiragana, you can go from 1 to 2 easily. I only wanted to be somewhat literate when I go to Japan so I'm still stuck in 1.
Hirogana is a good start but learn katakana too. Hirogana is used for japanese origin words and katakana is used for english origin words/manga.
Kanji is difficult and will take a long time to memorize every symbol.
The hardest part I found was grammer.
Last edited by northcrunk; 07-02-2015 at 11:17 AM.
Reason: lol I'm surprised de shi ta is censored. (whole line translates to "I will never fully understand japanese")
Katakana is actually very hard. Even if you know English well who would have thought that is chokoreeto is chocolate in Katakana. I've heard even older Japanese struggle with the newer Katakana words.
Our Japanese language teacher in high school actually created this. It was a very avante garde class. It beat taking French. Unfortunately, all I remember are 60s era songs sung with mixed Japanese and English words - 'Chotto matte, Mr. Postman".
* if you bring this up with any of the Japanese citizens of Kelowna who were around at the time this was popular, they considered this an insult to the Japanese language.
I learned vocab with romanji first, but I think that develops a bit of a crutch. It's probably better to jump straight to hiragana and katakana. That being said, if you do end up taking a course, the first few will be taught using romanji. I found Dr. Moku to be the best app to learn hiragana and katakana. I haven't even looked at kanji yet.
I learned vocab with romanji first, but I think that develops a bit of a crutch. It's probably better to jump straight to hiragana and katakana. That being said, if you do end up taking a course, the first few will be taught using romanji. I found Dr. Moku to be the best app to learn hiragana and katakana. I haven't even looked at kanji yet.
good advice. Write each hirogana and katakana over and over again. 1000 times each. Best way to memorize the symbols and their sounds. Sound it out as you go: ka ki ku ke ko sa shi su se so ect.
If you just want to learn a phrase or two, you can probably get by with romanji. You're missing out though - it's really handy to be able to read hirigana and katakana in Japan, even with a small vocabulary. (Restaurant signs & menus for example)
If you're serious about learning Japanese, I found it really helpful to learn hirigana and katakana right off the bat. Pronunciation is much easier. You'll be thinking in Japanese syllables instead of trying to shut off the part of your brain that's been reading English for decades.
Take a trip to Japan for 2-3 weeks. When out in public, only speak Japanese. When back at your hotel, study what you need to improve on. I guarantee that will be the best way to learn, I learned most of mine just being there - as any experience in another country will do.
However, I found that the Pimsleur series on learning Japanese was very helpful. Half hour less each day, and I just listened to it on my mobile device every morning when I went to work. It's learning a bit more every day through repetition.
Boku wa Nihongo ga wakarimasu, demo mata, jotzu janai.
Honestly the best way for me to learn Japanese is be in Japan... TV is Japanese, everyone is speaking it, you just kind of absorb it since English is not very well known. I've been here 3 years and I am far from fluent but getting there.
Romanji will be a natural thing for you to want to use being a fluent English speaker. Practice your hiragana and katakana lots as mentioned as the only way to appreciate the language is getting that basis first.
Keep in mind that depending on the kind of media content you watch or listen to, it could be harmful (most anime) as they don't properly reflect normal Japanese conversation. It might be a little early to be listening to anything but surrounding yourself does help later on.
Only thing that was particularly tough for me is the grammar and Kanji. The grammar can be learned with repetition (both in writing, speaking and analyzing writing)
Kanji is just going to be another grind fest of repetition in writing to memorize. Difficult but necessary once you've got a solid hold on your hiragana and katakana.
This could be a helpful site later on as you can read/listen along to bits of random news in slow Japanese. http://newsinslowjapanese.com/
Learning Japanese
