meandyoulearn

Hiragana Chart

2007-06-15T20:57:05Z

あ a	い i	う u	え e	お o
か ka	き ki	く ku	け ke	こ ko
さ sa	し shi	す su	せ se	そ so
た ta	ち chi	つ tsu	て te	と to
な na	に ni	ぬ nu	ね ne	の no
は ha	ひ hi	ふ fu	へ he	ほ ho
ま ma	み mi	む mu	め me	も mo
や ya		ゆ yu		よ yo
ら ra	り ri	る ru	れ re	ろ ro
わ wa				を *o

ん

* を is also pronounced as "wo."

These are the 46 basic hiragana syllables. Once you memorize this chart you will be able to transcribe all of the Japanese sounds.

Brief History and Facts on Japanese Language

2007-06-12T19:36:49Z

There has never existed an independent, purely Japanese system of writing. Around the 7th century the attempt was first made to use Chinese characters to note down Japanese speech. In the 9th century the Japanese simplified the complex Chinese ideographs (characters)into what are now the kana. It is quite possible to write exclusively in kana, but in practice this would hamper communication due the large number of words pronounced alike but different in meaning (homophones), which are distinguished from one another by the use of different kanji.

There are three kinds of characters in Japanese hiragana, katakana, and kanjji. Both katakana and hiragana are identified under the umbrella term kana. In these two writing systems, each symbol represents the sound of one syllable.

Hiragana: テ,レ,ビ
Katakana: を,ま,す
Kanji: 猫,狗,魚

Hiragana and katakana, like our alphabet, represent sounds. Hiragana has a roundish shape and is used for conjugation endings, function words, and native Japanese words. Katakana has rather straight lines and is normally used for writing words imported from outside of Japan and also for foreign names. Kanji or Chinese characters, represent not just sounds, but meanings as well. Kanji is mostly used for nouns and the stems of verbs and adjectives.

Romanization or romanji is another writing system which is used for the transliteration of Japanese into roman or arabic letters. This writing system is primarily used in Japan for station names, signs, and so on. Outside of Japan it is used to help foreigners, like you and me, with pronunciation and recognition alongside it's corresponding characters or symbols.

Useful Daily Expressions

2007-06-12T07:26:23Z

These are a list of useful phrases you can use for every day life. The format is written as:

#.Hiragana
• Romaji
• English

(Apologies ahead of time for the pronunciation help in italics, I tried to make it as easy as possible to understand. Say each syllable individually and then put them all together at once to make it work.)

1。おはよございます。
• Ohayōgozaimasu. oh-hi-oh-go-zai-mah-s Note: the "s" is pronounced like the "s" in hospital.
• Good Morning! (Used until about 10 a.m.)

2。こんにちは。
• Konnichiwa. kone-ee-ch-ee-wa
• Hello. (Informal greeting used from 10 a.m. until sundown.)

3。こんばんは。
• Konnbanwa. kone-bah-n-wa
• Good Evening.

4。さよなら。
• Sayōnara. sigh-oh-nah-rah Note: emphasis is placed on the "oh" sound.
• Good-bye. (On more formal occasions, such as in the work place, you use Shitsurei shimasu.)

5。おやすみなさい。
• Oyasumi nasai. oh-yah-soo-me-nah-sigh Note: the "soo" is pronounced the same way as the "sui" in the word suit.
• Good night. (Said at night before going to bed.)

6。ではまた/じゃまた。
• Dewa mata/ Ja Mata. deh-wah mah-tah/ jah-mah-tah
• Well then… (Informal goodbye used when leaving friends or relatives.)

7。いってらっしゃい。
• Itte rasshai. ee-teh rah-sh-I
• So long. Literally means “Go and come back.” (Said to household as you leave the house.)

8。いってまいります。
• Itte mairimasu. ee-teh my-ree-mah-s
• So long. Literally means “[I’m] going and coming back.” (This is the reply to the above term.)

9。ただいま。
• Tadaima. tah-die-ee-mah
• I’m back. Literally means “[I have returned] Just now.” (Used when you return home.)

10。おかえりなさい。
• Okaeri nasai. ok-ah-eh-ree nah-sigh
• Welcome home. (This is the reply to the term above.)

11。おげんきですか。
• O-genki desu ka. oh-gen-key des-kah Note: the "g" in gen is pronounced the same as the "g" in gum.
• How are you? Literally means “are you well?”

12。ありがとございます。げんきです。
• Arigatō gozaimasu. Genki desu. ah-ri-gah-toh go-zai-mah-s. gen-key des Note: the "s" in des is prounounced like the "s" in hospital.
• Fine, thank you.

13。おめでとございます。
• Omedetō gozaimasu. oh-meh-deh-toh go-zai-mah-s
• Congratulations!

14。おだいじに。
• O-daijini. oh-die-gee-nee Note: the "g" in gee is pronounced like the "g" in magic.
• Take care of yourself.

15。どうもありがとうございます。
• Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu. doh-moh ah-ri-gah-toh go-zai-mah-s
• Thank you very much.

16。どういたしまして。
• Dō itashimashite. doh ee-tah-shee-mah-sh-teh
• You’re welcome.

17。すみません。
• Sumimasen. Su-me-mah-sen
• Excuse me or I’m sorry.

18。ちょっとまってください。
• Chotto matte kudasai. ch-oh-toh mah-teh koo-dah-sigh
• Wait just a moment, please.

19。もういちどおねがいします。
• Mō ichido onegaishimasu. moh ee-chee-doh go-zai-mah-s
• Once more, please.

20。おさきに。
• Osakini. oh-sah-key-nee
• Pardon my going before you. (Said when you leave the office or a meeting early, ahead of the other people.)

21。どうぞおさきに。
• Dōzo osakini. doh-zoh oh-sah-key-nee
• Please, go ahead.

22。きをつけて。
• Ki o tsukete. key oh ts-keh-teh Note: The "ts" is pronounced the same way as the "ts" in the surname Gretsky.
• Take care! /Be careful

23。あぶない。
• Abunai. ah-boo-n-I
• Look out! Literally means “It’s dangerous.”

24。だめです。
• Dame desu. dah-meh des
• Out of the question/ Impossible/ No good.

25。がんばってください。
• Gambatte kudasai. gah-mm-bah-teh koo-dah-sigh
• Keep your chin up! (This is said to encourage someone.)

Tomorrow's post will be a brief history on the Japanese language. ^^ I just thought I'd give you guys some terms to start out with.