What is Japanese Alphabet ? of Recent Article

Demonstrative in Japanese: Ko-so-a-do System

Demonstrative in Japanese

Japanese has a lot of demonstrative (Pronoun).
And, those Demonstrative (Pronoun) is often used with noun.
Almost all Japanese demonstrative has the "Ko, So, A, Do initials".

These are the basic definitions of "こ(ko), そ(so), あ(a), ど(do) system".

Ko-So-A-Do System

  Near speaker Near listener Far from both Question
What kore
これ
this one
sore
それ
that one
are
あれ
that one
dore
どれ
which (of 3 or more)
Which kono
この
this "***"
sono
その
that "***"
ano
あの
that "***"(over there)
dono
どの
which "***"
what kind of "***"
Where koko
ここ
here
soko
そこ
there
asoko
あそこ
over there
doko
どこ
where
Direction
(The word in parentheses is informal.)
kochira
こちら
this way
sochira
そちら
that way
achira
あちら
that way
dochira
どちら
which way
kocchi
こっち
socchi
そっち
acchi
あっち
docchi
どっち
Who
(Dirty words)
koitsu
こいつ
this guy
soitsu
そいつ
that guy
aitsu
あいつ
that guy (over there)
doitsu
どいつ
who guy
Way/manner kou
こう
in this manner
sou
そう
in that manner
aa
ああ
in that manner
dou
どう
in which manner
konna
こんな
sonna
そんな
anna
あんな
donna
どんな

These are the basic definitions of "こ(ko), そ(so), あ(a), ど(do) system".

  • ko(こ) - Something near the speaker.
  • so(そ) - Something nearer the listener than the speaker.
  • a(あ) - Something at a distance from both speaker and listener.
  • do(ど) - Question

Pronoun for things: Kore, Sore, Are, Dore

  • "Kore, Sore, Are, Dore" are demonstrative pronouns and you choose one depending on the position of the object:
  • "Kore(これ)" = This thing (close to you)
  • "Sore(それ)" = That thing (close to your listener; close to the other person, far to the speaker)
  • "Are(あれ)" = Tha over there (far both from you and the speaker)/That (far away to both the listener and the speaker. sharing information) Dore = which? (of 3 or more things.)
  • "Dore(どれ)" is the question word, that is translated as "which".

 

The following picture shows how to use the words for "Kore, Sore, Are, Dore".

Kore, Sore, Are, Dore

English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese
What is this? これは何?
kore wa nani?
これは何ですか
kore wa nandesuka?
What is that? それは何?
sore wa nani?
それは何ですか
sore wa nandesuka?
This is a frog. これはカエルだよ
kore wa kaeru dayo.
これはカエルです
kore wa kaeru desu.

English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese
What's that over there? あれは何?
are wa nani?
あれは何ですか
are wa nandesuka?
That is the sun. あれは太陽だよ
are wa taiyou dayo.
あれは太陽です。
are wa taiyoudesu.

English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese
Where is the thing for cracking nutshells? クルミを割るアレ、どこだっけ
kurumi wo waru are, doko dakke?
クルミを割るアレ、どこでしたでしょうか
kurumi wo waru are, doko deshita deshouka?
It is in kitchen. それは台所だよ
sore wa daidokoro dayo.
それは台所です
sore wa daidokoro desu.

English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese
Which one do you like? (あなたは)どれが好き?
(anata wa) dore ga suki?
(あなたは)どれが好きですか?
(anata wa) dore ga sukidesuka?
Which is correct? どれが正しい?
dore ga tadasii?
どれが正しいですか
dore ga tadasiidesuka?
"Look at that!" "What?" "あれ見て!"
"どれ?"

"are mite!"
"dore?"
"あれ見てください!"
"どれですか?"

"are mitekudasai!"
"doredesuka?"

Prenominal adjective: Kono, Sono, Ano, Dono

Kono, Sono, Ano, Dono are prenominal adjective.

  • "Kono(この)" = This (right here near you)
  • "Sono(その)" = This That (over there) further from you
  • "Ano(あの)" = That (over there) further from you
  • "Dono(どの)" = Which (of 3 or more objects)

Both "kono" and "kore" have the same meaning in English.
So if "kono" means "this" and "kore" means this, what is the difference in their uses?
The confusion comes from the fact that in English, the same word "this" is being used in 2 grammatically different sentences.

i.e."This(これ;kore) is a book" and "This(この;kono) book is expensive".

So a quick answer is: "kono", "sono", "ano" and "dono" are called pre-nominals and connect directly to a noun without any particles between the two.

Kono, Sono, Ano, Dono 

English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese

This frog is lovely.

This frog, close to the speaker.
=Kono kaeru.

このカエルはかわいい。
kono kaeru wa kawaii.
このカエルはかわいいです
kono kaeru wa kawaiidesu.

English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese

There is children in that bus.

That bus, close to the listener.
=Sono basu

そのバスに子供がいる
sono basu ni kodomo ga iru.
そのバスに子供がいます
sono basu ni kodomo ga imasu.
English Informal Japanese Formal Japanese

That sun over there is very glared.

That sun over there, not close to list. or speaker: ano taiyou

あの太陽はすごくまぶしい。
ano taiyou wa sugoku mabushii.
あの太陽はすごくまぶしいです
ano taiyou wa sugoku mabushii desu.
Which frog 

Which frog? (of 3 or more objects)

= どのカエル?(dono kaeru?)
= どのカエルですか?(dono kaeru desuka?)

 

 

Hararie

 


What is RENDAKU?

RENDAKU: a phenomenon in Japanese morphophonology 

連濁[RENDAKU](lit. "sequential voicing") is a phenomenon in Japanese morphophonology that governs the voicing of the initial consonant of the non-initial portion of a compound or prefixed word.

In modern Japanese, RENDAKU is common but unpredictable.

The "voicing" is not a strict change from voiceless to voiced sounds, but rather the action of adding a "濁点[dakuten](Dot marks for voiced sound)" to the first kana of the portion being altered.

It is also known as "sequential voicing".

 

RENDAKU example in Japanese

RENDAKU can be seen in the following.

1.
人[hito] + 人[hito] > 人々[hitobito] ("person" + "person" → "people")

People, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

手[te] + 紙[kami] > 手紙[tegami] ("hand" + "paper" → "letter")

Letter, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

 

Properties blocking RENDAKU

Research into defining the range of situations affected by RENDAKU has largely been limited to finding circumstances which cause the phenomenon not to manifest itself.

<Lyman's Law>
The most famous of the conditions affecting RENDAKU is known as Lyman's Law, which stated that RENDAKU does not occur if the second consonant of the second element is a voiced obstruent.

This was later modified to state that RENDAKU does not occur when the second element of the compound contains a voiced obstruent in any position (see third example below).
This is considered to be one of the most fundamental of the rules governing RENDAKU.

 

2.
山[yama] + 火事[kaji] > 山火事[yama kaji], not [yama gaji] ("mountain" + "fire" > "forest fire") ( indicates an unacceptable form)
Forest fire, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

一人[hitori] + 旅[tabi] > 一人旅[hitori tabi], not [hitori dabi] ("one person" + "travel" > "traveling alone")

Traveling alone, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

角[tsuno] + トカゲ[tokage] > 角トカゲ[tsuno tokage], not [tsuno dokage] ("horn" + "lizard" > "horned lizard")
Horned lizard, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

While this law is named after Benjamin Smith Lyman, who independently discovered it in 1894, it is really a re-discovery.

The Edo period linguists 賀茂真淵[Kamo no Mabuchi (1765)] and 本居宣長[Motoori Norinaga (1767--1798)] separately and independently discovered the law during the 18th century.

 

<Lexical properties>
Similar to Lyman's Law, it has been found that for some lexical items, RENDAKU does not manifest itself if there is a voiced obstruent near the morphemic boundary, including preceding the boundary.

Some lexical items tend to resist RENDAKU voicing regardless of other conditions, while some tend to accept it.

RENDAKU also occurs infrequently in Sino-Japanese words (Japanese words of Chinese origin) especially where the element undergoing RENDAKU is well integrated ("vulgarized").

The third example demonstrates that RENDAKU hardly manifests in most words of foreign origin.


3.
株式[kabushiki] + 会社[kaisha] > 株式会社[kabushiki gaisha] not [kabushiki kaisha]("stock" + "company" > "corporation")
Corporation, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

アイス[aisu] + コーヒー[kÔ-hii] > アイスコーヒー[aisu-hii], not [aisu-hii] ("ice" + "coffee" > "iced coffee")
Iced coffee, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

<Semantics>
RENDAKU also tends not to manifest itself in compounds which have the semantic value of "X and Y" (so-called dvandva or copulative compounds):

4.
山[yama] + 川[kawa] > 山川[yamakawa] "mountains and rivers".
Compare this to 山[yama] + 川[kawa] > 山川[yamagawa] "mountain river".
The pronunciation of "Yamakawa" as a general noun is "Yamagawa", and the meaning is "River that flows in the mountain."
Mountain river, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

The pronunciation by a Japanese family name has the family name with the pronunciation such as "山川[Yamagawa]" and "山川[san gawa]" though "山川[Yama kawa]" is general.

Mountain river in family name of Japan, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

This might be very confusing for you, but RENDAKU is important in the pronunciation of words in Japanese.

 

 

<Branching constraint>
Finally, RENDAKU is also blocked by what is called a "branching constraint".
The process is blocked in the second element of a right-branching compound:

5.
もん[mon] + しろちょう([shiro + cho-]) > もんしろちょう[mon shiro chou], not もんじろちょう[mon jiro chou] ("family crest" + {"white" + "butterfly"} > "cabbage butterfly")
Cabbage butterfly, voiced sound phrase in Japanese



尾([o] + 白[shiro])+ 鷲[washi] > おじろわし[o jiro washi] ({"tail" + "white"} + "eagle" > "white-tailed eagle")
White-tailed eagle, voiced sound phrase in Japanese

 

 

<Further considerations>
Despite a number of rules which have been formulated to help explain the distribution of the effect of RENDAKU, there still remain many examples of words in which RENDAKU manifests in ways currently unpredictable.

Some instances are linked with a lexical property as noted above but others may obey laws yet to be discovered.

RENDAKU thus remains partially unpredictable, sometimes presenting a problem even to native speakers (the Japanese), particularly in Japanese names, where RENDAKU occurs or fails to occur often without obvious cause.

In many cases, an identically written name may either have or not have RENDAKU, depending on the person.
For example, 中田 may be read in a number of ways, including both "Nakata and Nakada".

 

I made these images based on information on the RENDAKU page of Wikipedia.

 

At the end.
How do you think the Japanese is learning a lot of RENDAKU phrases?
We (the Japanese) don't learn the rule of RENDAKU but learn each RENDAKU phrase one by one.
Therefore, almost all the Japanese not know even word "RENDAKU".

 

Hararie

 


Web page for you to convert English words and phrases into Hiragana and Katakana easily.

Because I found the web page of Japan that can easily change the word into the Hiragana and Katakana, I introduce it to you.

But, that web page is written in Japanese.

http://europe.s9.xrea.com/convert/convert_tool.html


So, I made the explanatory on the page for the reader.

But, on this website, you have to use a "Roman alphabet."
It may be difficult.

Please refer to this Hiragana chart for Roman letters input.
And, refer to this Katakana chart for Roman letters input.

The image expands by the click.

Alphabet is changed to a Hiragana and Katakana


-文頭用 bunto yo <For beginnings of sentences>-

No.
Japanese
English
1
こんにちわ。
konnnichiwa
Hello.
2
久しぶり!
hisashiburi
It is been a long time.
3
元気にしてる?
genki ni shiteru ?
How are you doing ?
4
こっちは元気だよ!
kocchi wa genki dayo !
I'm fine.
5
メールありがとう。
me-ru arigatou.
Thanks for the mail.

 

-本文用 honbun yo < For the main body >-

No.
Japanese
English
6
ここからの文章、ひらがなと
カタカナが多くなるけど、
ごめんね。
kokokara no bunshou, hiragana to katakana ga ooku narukedo, gomennne
Though a sentence from here, a hiragana letter and katakana increase, I'm sorry.

 

-文末用 bubmatsu yo < For the end of sentence >-

No.
Japanese
English
7
じゃあ、またメールするね。
jaa, mata me-ru surune
I will e-mail you again soon.
8
よかったら、またメールちょうだい。
yokattara, mata me-ru choodai.
Could you send me e-mail again?
9
日本に帰ったら連絡するね。
nihon ni kaettara rennraku surune.
When I returned to Japan, will contact you.

 

-絵文字 emoji <Emoticons>-

No.
Japanese
English
10
(笑) Laughing mark
11
(苦笑) Wry smile mark
12
(泣) Crying mark
13
(爆) Suicide bombing mark
Burst-of-laughter mark
14
Star mark
15
Note mark
16

(^-^;

Laughing emoticon
17
(T-T ) Crying emoticon
18

(>_<)

Desperate emoticons
19

m(_ _)m

Emoticon of apology
20
\(´▽`)/ Happy emoticons
21
??? I'm sorry.
I was not able to understand this emoticon.

 

-日時 nichiji <The date and time>-

No.
Japanese
English
22
一昨日
ototoi ; issakujitsu
Day before yesterday
23
昨日
kinou; sakujitsu
Yesterday
24
今日
kyou
Today
25
明日
ashita
Tomorrow
26
明後日
asatte; myougonichi
Day after tomorrow
27
先々週
sennsennshu
Week before last
28
先週
sennshu
Last week
29
来週
raishuu
Next week
29
再来週
saraishuu
Week after next

 

-曜日 yobi <The Day of the week>-

No.
Japanese
English
31
月曜日
getsu youbi
Monday
32
火曜日
ka youbi
Tuesday
33
水曜日
sui youbi
Wednesday
34
木曜日
moku youbi
Thursday
35
金曜日
kin youbi
Friday
36
土曜日
do youbi
Saturday
37
日曜日
nichi youbi
Sunday

 

-旅行 ryoko <Travel>-

No.
Japanese
English
38
旅行
ryokou
Travel, Trip
39

出発
shuppatsu

Departure
40
到着
touchaku
Arrival
41
宿泊
shukuhaku
Lodging, a stay
42
帰国
kikoku
Homecoming, Return,
43
空港
kuukou
Airport
44
電車
densha
Train
45
飛行機
hikouki
Airplane
46
地下鉄
chikatetsu
Subway

 

-連絡 renraku <Communication>-

No.
Japanese
English
47
連絡
rennraku
Communication , Report , Contact
48
電話
dennwa
Telephone
49
手紙
tegami
Letters
50
住所
juusho
Address
51
日本語
nihonngo
Japanese
52
英語
eigo
English
53
日本
nihonn; nipponn
Japan
54
欧州、ヨーロッパ
oushuu, yo-roppa
Europe

 

Did you understand the explanatory drawing?
If this web page is useful for you, I am very glad.

 

By Hararie



Japanese kanji's pronunciation isn't often one, and further it has onyomi and kunyomi.

 

There are 音読み[onyomi ] and 訓読み[kunyomi] in a Japanese kanji.

Two kinds of pronunciations "音読み(onyomi) and 訓読み(kunyomi) of a Japanese kanji" are very important for you who is learning Japanese.

Onyomi and Kunyomi

 

Reason why Japan kanji has ONYOMI and KUNYOMI.

A kanji is a character introduced into Japan from ancient China, and onyomi is the pronunciation of the China form.
But, those kanji are used with Japan style pronunciation.

Therefore, please don't forget "The pronunciation of Chinese and Japanese is quite different."

Well, often the one kanji has many pronunciations.
The onyomi, the Sino-Japanese reading, is the modern descendent of the Japanese approximation of the Chinese pronunciation of the character at the time it was introduced. Some kanji were introduced from different parts of China at different times, and so have multiple on'yomi, and often multiple meanings.

In a word, most of a Japanese kanji is to have two or more onyomi and two or more kunyomi.

Look at the kanji as a example, please.
This kanji is "納[nou]".

<Kanji of Japan with the most a lot of onyomi >

Kanji of Japan with the most a lot of onyomi

This is the Japanese kanji that has most a lot of onyomi.

  • 音読み(Onyomi) : nou, tou, na, nat, nan,
  • 訓読み(Kunyomi) : osa(meru), osa(maru),

Please see the example of the word for which this kanji is used as onyomi kanji.

Kanji
Pronunciation
Meaning
納税
nou zei Payment of taxes
納豆
nattou Natto
結納
yui nou a ceremonial exchange of engagement gifts
納得
nattoku understanding, consent, satisfaction, conviction
納期
nou ki Delivery date
納品
nou hin Delivery of goods


These are a part of only idioms as the example.
Kanji with a lot of Onyomi; It shows that there are a lot of words for which that kanji is used.

 

When is ONYOMI used?

Onyomi is mainly used on a kanji idiom.

Japanese is a language of mixed writing of kanji and kana.
Kunyomi makes sense by accompanying the hiragana though Onyomi hardly needs the hiragana.

The meaning of the word is understood by reading the compounded kanji symbols aloud by Onyomi.
But , the Onyomi idiom kanji has the troublesome problem.

It means that there is many "idioms of the same pronunciation."
"The troublesome problem" is that quite a lot of kanji idioms with "Same pronunciation by Onyomi" exists in Japanese.

Look at the following examples, please.
The meaning is quite different though these have the same pronunciation.

Kanji
Pronunciation
Meaning
移動
idou

 movement, transfer.

異同
idou
 difference
異動
idou

 a change

 
監視
kanshi
 watch, keep, guard,
看視
kanshi
 on the lookout
冠詞
kanshi
 article
漢詩
kanshi
 Chinese poem
 
期間
kikan
 a period
機関
kikan
 an engine, a means, an agency
器官
kikan
 an organ
帰還
kikan
 return, repatriation
基幹
kikan
 a foundation
奇観
kikan
 a spectacular sight
季刊
kikan
 quarterly

 

Next, this is a kanji idiom where it has a different meaning though it has the most a lot of same pronunciations, in Japan.

交渉、高尚、公証、考証、厚相、公称、公傷、公証、鉱床、口承、哄笑、工廠、工商、興商、公娼、好尚、康正、工匠、高唱、校章、口証
(I omit the explanation about the meaning of these kanji idioms because there are quite a lot of numbers.)

Pronunciations: こうしょう[koushou]

The pronunciations of these kanji idiom are all "koushou."
(But, the idiom not so used is included in these kanji.)

 

Well, did you understand Onyomi?

To tell the truth, I feel that Japanese is very difficult language for the Japanese, too.
It is natural that you feel Japanese difficult.

Keep up your effort, please!

 

By Hararie

 

 

When is Hiragana used?

Building block of Hiragana

Hiragana is a script into which "Kanji that has been transmitted from ancient China" has transformed.

Hiragana is used along with kanji to write all native Japanese words

Hiragana is used for verb and adjective endings (okurigana), particles, words that have no kanji, words which are commonly written only in kana, words for which the writer does not know the kanji, and as furigana (hints provided by the writer to the reading of an unfamiliar kanji).

 

>>Hiragana are used when you can't use kanji, for sound symbolism, particles, help verb, and conjunctions.
Therefore, often you can see them together with a kanji to form a word.

Shimasu: Auxiliary verb of Hiraganadesu: Auxiliary verb of Hiragana

rareta: Auxiliary verb of Hiragana


demo: Conjunction of Hiraganadakara: Conjunction of Hiragana eeee: Interjection of Hiragana

 

 

>>Hiragana is used for changing meanings of kanji by adding a hiragana character after the kanji.
RainyHiragana is also used wherever kanji characters wouldn't be used.

 

>>Hiragana can be used to express and write all Japanese words without the use of kanji since hiragana is like an alphabet.

 

>>If you can't remember the right kanji for a word, you can just spell it out in hiragana.

dowasure  


>>Showing pronunciation

Hiragana characters are often written next to unusual kanji characters to show their pronunciation in the same way that you have added roman characters to the sentence above.

In this case the hiragana characters are referred to as "Furigana or Yomigana".

 

Hararie

 

Japanese has why "Katakana" must be used.

Katakana(カタカナ/片仮名) is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji, and in some cases the Latin alphabet.
Katakana are characterized by short, straight strokes and angular corners, and are the simplest of the Japanese scripts.

The katakana is used for the notation of the word of loan word mainly.

 

  1. Difficult loan word to translate into Japanese.
  2. Loanword that has been established as Japanese.
  3. Japanized English.
  4. Emphasis of word in advertising media.


1. Difficult loan word to translate into Japanese.

Example Katakana notation Pronunciation
Design デザイン dezain
Image イメージ imeeji(imēji)
Gasoline ガソリン gasorin
Fastener ファスナー fasunaa(fasunā)
Hard disk ハードディスク haado disuku(hādo dhisuku)
Antenna アンテナ antena

Other: country names, foreign places, personal names, animal ,plant species, and minerals etc.

2. Loanword that has been established as Japanese. .

Example Katakana notation Pronunciation
Camera カメラ kamera
Taxi タクシー takushii
Apron エプロン epuron
Elevator エレベーター erebetaa(erebētā)
U-turn ユーターン yuu taa n(yūtān)
Volume ボリューム boryuumu(boryūmu)
Monitor モニター monitaa(monitā)

 

3. Japanized English.

Example Katakana notation Pronunciation
PC パソコン pasokon
The keeping of one's own bottle of liquor in one's favorite bar. ボトルキープ botoru kiipu
Air conditioner エアコン eakon
Custom-made オーダーメード oodaa meido(ōdā meido)
Last orders; Last call オーダーストップ oda sutoppu(ōdā sutoppu)
One-room apartment ワンルームマンション wan ruumu manshon)
(wan rūmu manshon)
The state that does not become independent from mother mentally. マザコン mazakon


4. Katakana for emphasis by advertising media.

Katakana are used for emphasis, especially on signs, advertisements, and hoardings (i.e., billboards).
The consumer receives the strong impression to the advertisement by "Originally, word that should write by the kanji or the hiragana"'s being written by the katakana.

The katakana word used for this advertisement is very impressive.

Advertisement of Japan where katakana was used

 

Hararie

 

 

Kind of hiragana script that becomes cause of the mess.

Difference of shape of character-by font of Hiragana

 

The script in each language might have perhaps various fonts.

And, they might have a slight difference of shape by the font.

There is no problem if it is your mother tongue.

But, if it is a foreign language, you and I might be a little puzzled.

A Japanese hiragana has a lot of fonts.
Because the difference of those shape is a little, it might cause confusion.

Well, let's see "Each hiragana with a little difference" with me.

 

Connection of line

I displayed "All Hiragana with the difference in the form by a font" here.

The most is the difference in "existence of the break of a line."

I showed "All hiraganas with the difference of shape by the font" here.
Most of the difference is "Presence of the connection of the line."

Compare the parts enclosed by red circle, please.
Can you understand those differences?

 

Japanese children go to school at the age of seven.
And, they learns the hiragana and the katakana first.

The shape of the hiragana used by the textbook of the elementary school in Japan is different according to the times.

It is because the standard of the shape of the hiragana is not being defined by the Ministry of Education that has jurisdiction over the school system of Japan.

Because politicians in Japan always think only about own rights and money, they do not notice such a thing at all.

Sorry, I return to the subject.

Then when I say how the Japanese thinks about a difference of the form of Hiragana,
most Japanese will not have thought about the shape of the hiragana.

In conclusion, "These are all correct Hiragana."
Use Hiragana of the shape that you like, please.

 

Then, see "Hiragana with the difference in a special shape" next, please.

 

 

Hiragana script with special difference of shape

Difference of shape of character-by font of HiraganaThis is "[so]" of Hiragana.

I write "" by using the shape of a left hiragana.

In the times when I learned Hiragana in an elementary school, Hiragana of the right side was used.
My younger brother is using Hiragana of the left.

My younger brother is 14 years old younger than I.
A young Japanese seems to use shape of the left.

Then, see the last Hiragana, please.

 

Difference of shape of character-by font of HiraganaThis is "[fu]" of Hiragana.

Most of the font used in Japan is a left letterform.

The right-hand "Hiragana of FU" seemed to have been used at prewar days.
The left-hand "Hiragana of FU" is shape of the brush script type.
This is a letterform of "Japanese Kana calligraphy" written with a very thin brush.

But, if a left letterform is written in a hurry, it becomes the right-hand letterform after all.

 

Then, "Today's conclusion."---

"As for Hiragana, if the letterform that can be read is kept, all are okay." !!

 

 

To learn the hiragana

HIRAGANA GANBATTE

Hiragana Gambatte!:
Hiragana Ganbatte (The Gambatte! series)

Book: Hiragana Gambatte !
Product Description:

Instead of an alphabet, Japanese use katakana and hiragana to show the pronunciation of words. It is the purpose of this book to teach you how to read and write hiragana. In all, there are forty-six hiragana characters for forty-six different sounds. This is not as difficult as it seems. With this original picture book, you can learn to read and write hiragana in no time at all, and have fun doing it.

Key English words and pictures are linked to all the hiragana characters to help you fix their shapes in your mind. Manga-style illustrations and nearly 100 mini-articles about Japanese society and culture not only help you remember the characters but also add to your knowledge of Japan. Altogether, this makes Hiragana Gambatte! quite an unusual workbook.

Hiragana Gambatte! teaches you to: * Understand the differences between hiragana and the alphabet * Understand the systematic nature of hiragana * Use the correct stroke order when writing hiragana * Write hiragana so that each character is consistent in size and shape

 

 

 

The reason why there is Kunyomi

Conversation of the Japanese and Chinesekanji imported about 1500 years ago by China was the letter which was difficult for a Japanese.

The countries around China imported Chinese kanji as it is, but only Japan changed it into "way of reading in accord with Japan" and imported kanji.

The race which took in and used the Chinese character for the language of own country in this way is not other than a Japanese.

Therefore, Japanese may be a difficult language.

 

Kunyomi is a Japanese original reading.

But there is the case that "kanji that becomes an origin" has various meanings for 1 character.
Therefore, kunyomi isn't one in many cases.

As the example, let's see kanji of Japan with much kunyomi.

Japanese kanji which has a lot of Kunyomi

 

Look at left kanji.

It is said that this is "kanji having most Kunyomi" in Japan.

 

On-yomi

Pronunciation        Word as example
[しょう] : sho
: issho  [one's] lifetime
[じょう] : jo
日 : tanjo-bi  Birthday
[せい] : sei
: sensei  Teacher

 

Kun-yomi

Pronunciation Word as meaning or example
きる : i-kikru
live / be living / be alive
かす : i-kasu
keep...alive
ける : i-keru
arrange set roses in a vase.
む : u-mu
cause / lead to / give rise to
まれる :u-mareru
be born / come into existence / be formed / arise
える : ha-eru
grow / sprout / spring up / come in
やす : ha-yasu
grow
る : a-ru
Appearance of the sacred one.
る : na-ru
bear fruit / grow
: nama
生野菜 : nama-yasai  Raw vegetable/Fresh vegetables
: ki
生真面目 : ki-majime  Earnest / Seriousness
: o
生い立ち : o-i-ta-chi  One's background
: fu
芝生 : shiba-fu  Lawn
: ou
to grow/ to spring up/ to cut teeth
: ubu
Prefix of noun
: inochi
[one's] lifetime / Life


It is said that there is various pronunciation of this kanji besides these.

Besides, It is reported that this is kanji with 150 kinds of reading.

A lot of pronunciations are not used too much in present Japan.
But, most of the pronunciation that I wrote here is daily used in Japan.

 

Easy method of identifying Kunyomi

I teach the method that is good for you.

"Declensional kana ending is accompanied, and the meaning is comprehensible" is Kunyomi.

Though there is an exception, this method is a method of recognizing Kunyomi most quickly.

 

"Conversation" is the best learning method for studying Japanese.The children of the elementary school in Japan

The child before entering school learns language in "conversation."

Japanese is also so.

Japanese grammar is very difficult.
You will surely come to hate Japanese if you begin to study Japanese from the grammar.

Therefore, you had better study "Japanese grammar" shallowly.

And I think that study of a "daily conversation subject" is "a shortcut of your Japanese study."

 

 

 

By Hararie

 

 

Hello !
I'm Rie Hara.
I am Japanese, and I live in Japan.
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