Overview
This lecture explains the three main Japanese writing systems—hiragana, katakana, and kanji—their purposes, differences, and strategies for memorization.
Japanese Writing Systems Overview
- Japanese uses three writing systems: hiragana, katakana, and kanji.
- Hiragana and katakana are phonetic syllabaries called kana (or kana-moji).
- Kanji is an ideographic syllabary where each character represents both sound and meaning.
Kana: Hiragana and Katakana
- Both hiragana and katakana represent syllables and are based on the same chart of sounds.
- The kana chart starts with five vowels: a, i, u, e, o.
- Each new column adds a consonant to the vowels (e.g., ka, ki, ku, ke, ko).
- Each kana character corresponds to one syllable.
Hiragana
- Used for sentence (grammar) particles and words without assigned kanji.
- Sentence particles are connecting words that help form sentence meaning.
- Words lacking kanji are written in hiragana by default.
Katakana
- Used for words borrowed from foreign languages.
- Also used for onomatopoeia (sound-effect words) in Japanese.
- Foreign names, like "Daniel," are written in katakana.
Kanji
- Kanji characters each represent a meaning and can have multiple pronunciations.
- Kanji abbreviates sentences by replacing multiple kana with a single character.
- Kanji distinguishes homophones, which are otherwise identical in hiragana.
- Example: "ame" (candy) and "ame" (rain) are written with different kanji to tell them apart.
Strategies for Learning the Writing Systems
- Memorize hiragana and katakana columns one per week; expect to learn each set in about a month.
- Practice by repeatedly writing each character.
- Focus on learning the 2,000 most important kanji (jouyou kanji) for basic literacy.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Kana — The collective term for hiragana and katakana syllabaries.
- Phonetic syllabary — Writing system where characters represent sounds only.
- Kanji — Characters derived from Chinese representing both meaning and sound.
- Ideographic syllabary — Writing system where characters have both meaning and sound value.
- Homophones — Words pronounced the same but differing in meaning and written form.
- Jouyou kanji — The set of 2,000 essential kanji for Japanese literacy.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Start memorizing hiragana and katakana, one column per week.
- Practice writing kana repeatedly to reinforce memory.
- Begin learning basic kanji, aiming for jouyou kanji mastery over time.
- Prepare for future lessons on kanji pronunciations and usage.