I couldn’t let too much time go by without writing something about the Japanese language. Whilst learning it is genuinely the most difficult task I have ever undertaken, I am truly fascinated by it. Now seems like right time to write about what I have learnt so far as I recently unlocked the Japanese IME on my computer and learnt how to type in Japanese - so I can show you exactly what I’m talking about!
Ok, for those of you who know little / nothing of Japanese: There are basically three writing systems - two alphabets (where each symbol represents a syllable) and kanji (ancient Chinese characters where each one has a different meaning and pronunciation.
The first two alphabets are called hiragana and katakana. Hiragana is derived from the Chinese characters and are pronounced more less as they are read (unlike English where words are often spelt differently from their pronunciation). Hiragana are slightly more rounded, cursive symbols, and can look like this:
わたしは (I am)
Katakana is used in a similar way but is employed for foreign words and onomatopoeia:
マイケル (Maikeru - Michael)
It’s slightly more angular.. I prefer hiragana.
Kanji is used for many words, and there is a basic foundation of about 2000 kanji that will help you get by in daily life. In newspapers about 40% of the words are actually in kanji. They are so difficult to learn for foreigners, especially as there is no true way to look them up in the dictionary. You can look them up by stroke order (so the number of lines you use to write them) or by radical (a smaller kanji within a kanji). The concept of a radical might be easier to explain with an example.
火 this is ‘hi’, meaning fire. It sort of looks like a little flame. This can be used as an element of bigger kanji, making this a radical in some cases.
炎 this is ‘honoo’, meaning blaze. A double fire! Makes sense I guess.
災 and this kanji means disaster. If you use your imagination you can see a destructive fire doing some real damage in the symbol.
So, many kanji are symbols which represent ideas. Reading names of people and places is really fascinating as the kanji that make up their names portray different ideas and aspects of the culture. Take the common surname ‘Yamashita’.
山下 ‘yama’ is the first symbol and it means mountain. It looks like three mountains in a row. Or three Diglett. But mountains for the sake of this explanation. The second, ‘shita’, by itself means to come down. When part of this name, however, it means ‘person who lives under the mountain.’ So, ‘a well balanced person.’ At least, this is how it has been explained to me.
I live in Nishinomiya. 西の宮。The first symbol means West. The final symbol means palace. The middle one is a particle which is often dropped when the name is on signs.. It links the two together. I like the name more now that I know the meaning!
I realise that this is the most basic of summaries so I hope my Japanese friends won’t think I’m simplifying things too much. I have a long way to go yet. Of the 2000 or so kanji, I have thus far memorised… 30 odd. Of these 30 odd I can only remember the pronunciation of about… 10. Of these I can probably reproduce half on paper; I am only capable of recognising the rest. It’s going to be a long year of flashcards!
Ok, for those of you who know little / nothing of Japanese: There are basically three writing systems - two alphabets (where each symbol represents a syllable) and kanji (ancient Chinese characters where each one has a different meaning and pronunciation.
The first two alphabets are called hiragana and katakana. Hiragana is derived from the Chinese characters and are pronounced more less as they are read (unlike English where words are often spelt differently from their pronunciation). Hiragana are slightly more rounded, cursive symbols, and can look like this:
わたしは (I am)
Katakana is used in a similar way but is employed for foreign words and onomatopoeia:
マイケル (Maikeru - Michael)
It’s slightly more angular.. I prefer hiragana.
Kanji is used for many words, and there is a basic foundation of about 2000 kanji that will help you get by in daily life. In newspapers about 40% of the words are actually in kanji. They are so difficult to learn for foreigners, especially as there is no true way to look them up in the dictionary. You can look them up by stroke order (so the number of lines you use to write them) or by radical (a smaller kanji within a kanji). The concept of a radical might be easier to explain with an example.
火 this is ‘hi’, meaning fire. It sort of looks like a little flame. This can be used as an element of bigger kanji, making this a radical in some cases.
炎 this is ‘honoo’, meaning blaze. A double fire! Makes sense I guess.
災 and this kanji means disaster. If you use your imagination you can see a destructive fire doing some real damage in the symbol.
So, many kanji are symbols which represent ideas. Reading names of people and places is really fascinating as the kanji that make up their names portray different ideas and aspects of the culture. Take the common surname ‘Yamashita’.
山下 ‘yama’ is the first symbol and it means mountain. It looks like three mountains in a row. Or three Diglett. But mountains for the sake of this explanation. The second, ‘shita’, by itself means to come down. When part of this name, however, it means ‘person who lives under the mountain.’ So, ‘a well balanced person.’ At least, this is how it has been explained to me.
I live in Nishinomiya. 西の宮。The first symbol means West. The final symbol means palace. The middle one is a particle which is often dropped when the name is on signs.. It links the two together. I like the name more now that I know the meaning!
I realise that this is the most basic of summaries so I hope my Japanese friends won’t think I’m simplifying things too much. I have a long way to go yet. Of the 2000 or so kanji, I have thus far memorised… 30 odd. Of these 30 odd I can only remember the pronunciation of about… 10. Of these I can probably reproduce half on paper; I am only capable of recognising the rest. It’s going to be a long year of flashcards!
