On Volition

Prerequisites
Learning Japanese
Outline
1. Kana
2a. Kanji
2b. Vocabulary
2c. Grammar
3. Practice
Learning Resources
Kana
Kanji
Vocabulary
Grammar
Practice
IME
Anki
Lookup Resources
Misc Tools
Questions & Thread Etiquette
Frequently Asked Questions
Guide Discussion
On Volition
This guide is by no means the end all be all of your learning options. There are an infinite
amount of different directions you could go, and this guide exists mostly to give people
some direction. There probably exists a method better for you than what you will find here,
and it is your place as a learner to search for it.
Prerequisites
Before you start you will need 3 pieces of software. The first is called Anki. It is essentially a
flashcard program. The second piece of software is Rikai, this will allow you to look up
definitions of Japanese words in English by highlighting them. And the last one is an IME -
This will allow you to type Japanese characters using a keyboard. There are several you can
install, so look at the options. More information on these programs, including links and brief
descriptions, can be found in the Tools section.
Also, be sure to have a quick glance at the Thread Etiquette section before posting. And be
sure to refer to the FAQ section, because while some things are covered there, people dont
always look, and these questions get asked repeatedly, which is unpreferable.
Learning Japanese
Outline
This section will explain the outline of each step. Once you have read this section, go to the Learning
Resources section and choose the resources appropriate for your level.
Sections 2a, 2b and 2c should be completed simultaneously.
1. Kana
You will need to learn this before any other part of the language. To repeat, you will need to
learn the kana before moving on to anything else. The kana refer to the two syllabaries
used in Japanese that consist of about 50 characters each. Hiragana is what is normally
used, while katakana is used for loan words, onomatopoeia, and emphasis. It doesnt matter
whether you start with hiragana or katakana first. Note: you do not need to master this as
you will come across each kana many times while learning Japanese completely before
moving on, a and you can master it as you go. Still, you should be able to read well enough
without mixing up any characters before moving on.
2a. Kanji
Kanji are characters which originated from China and represent both ideas and
pronunciations. There are about six different types of official classifications for kanji in the
sense of how the characters are formed, as you can read about here. One common
misconception is that kanji are the same as vocabulary. This is not the case. There are some
kanji that are words on their own, but many of them need to be combined with either other
kanji or hiragana before they can be words. This site can explain it in detail, however it has
some (numerous) errors and generally you should doubt or double-check anything written on
it (read). On the other hand, it does give a pretty good overview. Read everything under the
getting started section. This is important. Some people choose to not learn the kanji
individually at all and choose to simply gain the knowledge through vocabulary study. If you
would like, then you may choose to do that.(Supplementary Information Via Picture)
2b. Vocabulary
For vocabulary you will need Anki. From there you can download a pre-made deck
(recommended) with pronunciation as well as listening comprehension. The custom deck
should preferably have audio in it, as that could assist you in both your listening
comprehension and your pronunciation. Others may like sentence mining (gathering sentences
and having the meaning of a sentence on one side, and the actual sentence on another) which is a
good way to teach yourself how to say something and remember it.
2c. Grammar
Grammar will allow you to both form and understand sentences in Japanese. There are three
guides that we recommend:Genki, Tae Kim, and Japanese the Manga Way. The pros and cons
of each are listed in the Learning Resources section. If you are unsure of which one to
choose, we recommend you to try them all and see which suits you the best.
When you want to refer to something for grammar, the Dictionaries Of
(Basic/Intermediate/Advanced) Japanese Grammar are fantastic and can be found in the
pastebin (Ctrl+F DOBJG). There is also a simplified online version here, which takes the
example sentences from the book and sorts them by each grammar point for quick lookup.
3. Practice
After learning (at least) basic Japanese grammar, you can, and should, start reading and
learning words from actual Japanese texts. It is recommended that you create your own
Anki deck with new words that you encounter. If you are reading manga, or anything that
uses images instead easy kanji lookups using OCR, See the Tools section for more
information.
You can find recommended reading, including games, in the Learning Resources section,
along with some websites to assist you with listening and writing.
When reading while aided by tools (as all beginners should be), its best for the purposes of
learning to look at the words youre looking up, and try to make an educated guess as to
what the meaning is before completing your lookup, as studies have shown that anticipating,
or guessing the answer helps with committing it to memory.
Its also a good idea to jump into the deep end of the difficulty pool from time to time. This
is especially true at the very beginning even when you know its impossible, and that youll
understand next to nothing and in general have a bad time of it. These experiences are
important for both future motivation(Theres nothing quite like the feeling of going back and
breezing through something that you vividly remember kicking your ass), and having a better
idea of where you are/were at in the larger scheme of consuming Japanese media, and where
your current learning method is getting you. If you have no exposure to things which are
difficult, then you will be unable to overcome them when you do meet them, so if you only
make use of beginner-level media, then you will only have proficiency in the language at that
level.
Learning Resources
Note: There is no correct way of learning, so we would recommend that you try out the resources appropriate for your
level and see which one you feel is best.Use multiple resources if you wish.
Kana
Wikibooks - Has stroke order and mnemonic. The stroke order is quite useful, although the
mnemonics make almost no sense.
Real Kana- Tests kana recognition. Does not teach stroke order or pronunciation.
Tae Kim - This site has a section on kana, includes a video lesson, stroke order, as well a
pronunciation guide.
Memrise - Offers various SRS courses including kana courses which are perhaps the only
thing the site does well in regards to the Japanese language.
- Download Remembering the Kana. It takes about 6 hours to learn both hiragana and
katakana. Way better than just attempting to remember them. By all means, use Real Kana
alongside it because it provides mental images with the kana to ensure you remember.
Kanji
KanjiDamage - Everything on this site should be taken with a grain of salt, but it can
be effective for some. With KD, you learn the meaning and readings all at once, but
not the stroke order (which you can lookup for yourself in jisho or any dictionary).
Sometimes the method is liberal with the radical usage.
Heisig - Read about it here and here. With RTK, you are learning the stroke order and
meaning of each kanji, eventually learning the readings in the second book (alternatively, you
can learn the readings in the context of real material after the first book). The order of the
kanji is even more messed up than the one used in Kanji Damage. Heisig is pretty convoluted,
so much that the community needs to correct almost everything hes written in the books. It
pretty much requires using the Koohii fansite, so register an account.
JLPT (contains various sets, so order and suspend them accordingly) - Sets of kanji as
described by the Japanese Proficiency Test. Usually ordered by level. More info on Wikipedia.
Jouyou (same deck as above) - A set of 2136 kanji announced by the Ministry of Education
that is to be taught before graduating from secondary school. Usually ordered by grade.
More info on Wikipedia.
Kyouiku - A subset of 1006 of the jouyou kanji that is taught in primary school. Has many
simple words in the beginning (the numbers, elements of nature, body parts). Usually ordered
by grade. More info on Wikipedia.
-saiga-jp.com/kanji_dictionary.html - Quite possibly the best Kanji dictionary out there.
Can search Kanji by grade, number of strokes, and by radicals. Will also show Kanji stroke
order in animated gif form for a wide variety of Kanji.
Vocabulary
Anki Shared Decks - This is highly recommended to learn vocabulary. Obviously, you will
need Anki to use it. It is you use a deck with audio, such as CorePlus, however you will need
to install audio yourself. There are other decks, you may search for them and see which one
will best suit your needs.
Grammar
Tae Kim - This method is faster than the others listed here, As for exercises, Tae Kim only
has exercises in the beginning, after which there are no exercises to work on.
Genki - Genki tends to be more comprehensive than Tae Kim, and it has exercises that you
can practice with, which may help drill grammar rules into your mind. The obvious downside is
speed of course. This resource can found on the bottom of the pastebin.
Genki 1 - An edited version of Genki 1 with the distracting romaji edited out can be
found here. This version is preferred over the one in the pastebin as it encourages the
learning of hiragana & katakana.
Japanese the Manga Way - This book teaches grammar through examples from actual
Japanese manga. They are mostly older comics, but it is still an engaging way to learn new
grammar points, and subsequently see them executed in a practical manner. It does have a
few quirks. For one, it uses romaji too often. It can be easily ignored, however. New grammar
points tend to be summed up rather succinctly la Tae Kim. Those looking for a more
in-depth style could likely do better elsewhere (Genki). Recommended as a supplement, or as
a simple introduction to the major grammar points of Japanese.
Japanese in Mangaland -
Ixrec's Guide to Japanese -
Dictionaries of Japanese Grammar (DOJG) - A collection of three books, Basic,
Intermediate and Advanced. As the name implies, these are dictionaries rather than guides. It
goes in-depth into the various grammar rules, more so than virtually any other resource.
An introduction to Japanese - Syntax, Grammar & Language -
Imabi -
Practice
Reading List - This is a list of books, games and manga which we have compiled. You can
sort through the list by skill, platform, etc. We recommend you have a look, regardless of skill
level. Please contribute anything you read as well to it so it can become a better resource.
Yotsuba Reading Pack - This pack is designed for beginners who have just started reading.
This is an accompaniment to the first two volumes off Yotsubato!. This includes a
vocabulary list and a pre-made Anki deck. Yotsubato! is a manga that is often
recommended to beginners.
Aozora - This site contains a collection of Japanese literature. This site is mainly for
advanced readers and not recommended for beginners.
Kitsunekko - This site has a selection of Japanese subtitles for popular shows. The timing
often does not match up with most available downloads, but you can try to retime it in a
subtitle editing program or just look at it in the editor to compare with what you hear.
D-Addicts - This is a great site to find Dorama with subtitles.
Fengyunzhibo - This site is a good, easy place to watch some TV.
Lang-8 - You can write to a Chinese streaming site but it has Japanese channels on there
which are of good quality for a stream journal entries which are corrected by Japanese
natives and in turn you correct their journal entries, this is a great way to increase your
writing/production ability.
Nyaa - If you type in the Japanese name, you can find the raw version of whatever media
you are looking for most of the time. If what youre looking for is ero use this. Note that
most VNs will contain ero, and sometimes even non-ero VNs are uploaded to sukebei instead
of the main site.
Jpopsuki - Great place to get and find Japanese/Asian music, not just jpop. Requires that
you either get an account by either applying for one, or by having someone refer you.
Sometimes you will be unable to apply for one, and so if you want access, you might ask for
a referral either in the threads or on /mu/. If you do have someone refer you, make sure to
keep a good ratio as you could end up causing that person to possibly lose their account as
well as yours because all those you refer are considered to be under your responsibility.
Nijishow - Free Japanese TV. You get a choice of several channels. You need to register
here before being able to watch. Its made for windows but it works via wine.
Tools
IME
Input Method Editor - It will allow you to type in Japanese using your keyboard. Required.
(Note: MAC already has a Japanese IME which works quite well, so installing an external one might be unnecessary.
Windows has one too, but its not as feature-full as Google IME.)
Google IME (Windows, Mac OS) - Google IME generally includes a larger collection of words,
inclusive of internet slang. The downside, however, is that its handwriting recognition is
rather lacking (see sljfaq below). To switch to romaji press alt+` (just above tab key). Ctrl + Caps
Lock for hiragana, hold shift while in hiragana mode to type in katakana. Alt + Caps is
katakana. Shift + Caps reverts back to hiragana. This does not affect Caps Lock.
Protip: Type in kaomoji and hit space.
`
Mozc (Chromium OS, Android, Windows, Mac OS, GNU/Linux) - This is a project that stems
from Google IME, except that it is available on a greater number of operating systems.
iBus - (GNU/Linux) - If you use (K/X/L)Ubuntu, you probably already have it. You just need to
install the Japanese IME packages using the language support in the settings and select iBus
as your keyboard input method system. You can select the keys to press to change the
keyboard layout or do it manually using the icon on the panel. For the rest of us that dont
use Ubuntu or its variants, you can probably find iBus in the official repositories of your
distribution. You can make iBus autostart when you boot by adding ibus-daemon to your
~/.xinitrc. And you will probably want to add & to the end, ala: ibus-daemon & (also your
windows manager might have its own autostart file, use that instead) that you can find in
your Home folder. Dont forget to configure Qt for input in Qt apps.
$ qtconfig-qt4
>interface >default input method >select ibus
For the superior non *buntu users:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/IBus
Anki
Flashcard Software. Required.
Anki - Anki is a flashcard program which uses a method called Spaced Repetition in order to
drill information in your head. You can download premade decks.It shows you a set amount
of new cards each day (default 20) and will show you the same cards again when you are
most likely to forget them through algorithms. This program has a lot of features that cant
be covered here so read the manual if you wish to totally utilize Anki. You can also get this
on mobile and sync your deck between both versions. The official App Store version costs
money (to support the devs) so you might just want to use Safari in that case instead.
If you use GNU/Linux and you want to change the size of the Japanese characters, you need
to install the appropriate Japanese fonts, if you dont have them.
Lookup Resources
You use it to look up words. One Rikai-chan variant Required.
Rikaichan (Firefox) - This is a tool that shows you equivalent or close meanings (in English)
of Japanese words in plaintext format, by hovering over them (No pros over Rikaisama).
Rikaikun (Chrome) - Essentially a clone of Rikaichan. Has the exact same features, not much
difference other than a few bugs and only having the Japanese dictionary. Very outdated and
essentially dead.
Rikaisama (Firefox) - Has many useful features not in Rikaichan, such as audio playback and
the ability to save words to a file or import it straight into Anki.
Jisho.org - Online J>E/E>J dictionary. It also contains information on kanji including stroke
order, readings, etc. You can also search a kanji by its radicals, if you dont know the correct
stroke order many useful features not in Rikaichan, such as audio playback and the ability to
save words to a file or import it straight into Anki.
KanjiTomo - This is an Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. Scans for words on
your screen and tells you what they are and what they mean. Success rate varies widely
based on image / character quality.
Capture2Text - Another OCR program.
sljfaq - Handwritten kanji search. Just draw the kanji using the correct stroke order and a list
of possible kanji will appear. The results will link you to the WWWJDIC project, which is where
the data for Jisho comes from. You can simply copy and paste the kanji to the Jisho
website, if you prefer.
Interactive Text Hooker - This allows you to extract text from Japanese games as its
being displayed. The extracted text is put in your clipboard for an application like Translation
Aggregator to make use of it. Designed for reading VNs so it will not work for most non-VN
type games and unsupported engines.
Translation Aggregator - Usually used for machine translation, but in your case, youll be
using JParser (preferably with Mecab hinting) to help you parse Japanese sentences and
enable you to easily look up words in the same fashion as with Rikaichan and the like.
Hiragana Megane - This site adds furigana to Kanji on websites.
Weblio - Great E>J/J>E translator/dictionary for small sentences. Uses real life sentences
to contextualize and to give examples similar to the input.
Misc Tools
Useful things that dont fit into any of the other categories.
Kanji Stroke Order Font - Not always correct, so be careful. Kakijun is a great website for
checking the proper stroke order.
Wikibooks - A small collection of resources for learning Japanese. Does not seem to go into
too much depth. Good supplement.
The Pastebin - List of resources
Japanese Text Analysis Tool - Takes a .txt, youd probably use a (term for .txt
books, frequently LN), and creates a frequency list based on that.
Japanese Language Pack - 27 gigs worth of various learning materials including the
essentials, and much more (a lot of it is awful) (might trigger virus warnings).
JNovel Formatter - Breaks down a .txt into bite-size (your choice of length) chunks and
converts it to html. Makes the task of reading LN's, especially since it's slow going, less
daunting.
cb's Kanji Word Association Tool - Will generate a list of words that are associated with
each kanji and ensure that each word consists only of kanji that you have already studied up
to that point and kana. In addition, words are sorted by frequency and no duplicate words are
used.
Questions & Thread Etiquette
>The Daily Japanese Thread
We have a thread everyday, a new thread gets put up at around 1930 EST (0030 UTC/GMT). On top of that, there is an
IRC you can use, details are in the thread. (Due to removal of OPs to delete their threads, the timing is no longer consistent)
Please be on your best behavior, and try not to bring elements of your native-board culture into the thread, or any other
low-level internet trash if you can abstain from it (/jp/ and /a/ shit included). Also, please do not promote any memes.
If you refer people to this thread, please do not do it on a shitboard, such as [any board], and if you do, make sure the
person you refer is at least somewhat intelligent, and the thread isnt a poor one.
Please do not engage in lengthy and fruitless arguments, especially those unrelated to the thread subject. Be the
bigger man, and be the first to discontinue the argument.
Please do not label anything as shit, especially anything controversial, such as writing. Such as in the case of
writing, the reasons for one to do it are subjective, and while it may or may not be useful to you, the other person may or
may not find it to be useful or unuseful to them.
Recognize what is opinion, and what is fact, and submit to the fact that what is subjective, holds no real truth.
>I have a question.
Does it matter (Is it a Y/N Question, Or a bi-question (e.g. Tae Kim or Genki?); Is it a lazy question where you're asking
whether you should learn something or not; Could you have easily found your answer yourself; Will this just lead to an
argument). Not all questions need answers, or have answers.
>How long does it take to learn Japanese
A very long time.
>The Thread 404d early.
Go to the Archives. We will be chilling there till the new thread comes up (Its not like we have lives).
Style Note: We are not /vg/, do not call the the thread /djt/. We are not a sub-board, we are /a/. Also, if you cant
post the official OP image dont post the OP.
Please read the Guide before posting
Guide (Start here):
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1G5C7fCe07CDzYalZYZObzxv_fhw7RUNsLHiMAY-t7FA/edit
Reading List:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?key=0Agk2IH0ZXhn7dDNmSW1BVFU5dVgyOHkzWjU4b2l2dkE
#l/a/nguage on irc.rizon.net
Pastebin
http://pastebin.com/w0gRFM0c
Previous Thread:
[Insert archive link here]
>Namasensei (you bitch)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQlq-hxWRzQ
Namasensei is often watched by beginners learning Japanese, because his alcohol-fueled antics are strangely both
entertaining and powerfully motivating, especially for anons. Unfortunately, this is a double-edged sword; since hes
always shitfaced drunk, Namasensei tends to teach in an ineffective fashion, has terrible handwriting, and messes up
the stroke order of some of the kana. Get wasted and watch this guy when you need some motivation.
Suck it up, write this shit 50 fucking times, and drink fucking beer. You bitch.
(You can also acquire his videos here.)
(His te-form is mutually agreed to be the only worthwhile video he has.)
>Using Google for Japanese
>I cant figure out what this means
Use google.co.jp
Google X, X, X() where x is your inquiry., etc. also
yields results.
>How to find reading materials?
Search for the Japanese title in Japanese along with the keywords txt
P2P: Nyaa.com, Share, Perfect Dark
>I dont seem to have the motivation to do this.
If you have any trouble with Mozc for GNU/Linux read the following.
GNU/Linux - The open source project mozc is based on the Google IME
Instructions for Ubuntu:
http://chris.bracken.jp/2011/10/installing-ibus-mozc-on-ubuntu-1110.html
Packages also exist in Fedora, Debian, GNU/Linux Mint, and. For Arch, its available in the AUR.
Frequently Asked Questions
vs
`The (unquestionably) best explanation is provided in the Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar in the
pastebin. I would refer to that, and take all others with a grain a salt or not at all.
http://Japanese.about.com/library/weekly/aa051301a.htm
http://nihonshock.com/2010/02/particles-the-difference-between-wa-and-ga/
How many words do natives know?
Elementary School Level: 5-20 thousand
Middle School Level: 20-40 thousand
High School Level: 40-45 thousand
College Level: 45-50 thousand
Source: http://www.kecl.ntt.co.jp/icl/lirg/resources/goitokusei/goi-test.html
Words only include the dictionary form. Proper nouns and compound words are excluded.
These two words have the same reading, and meaning. How do I distinguish them, and why is Japan trying to
fuck me?
They have the same English meaning. Which, in case you couldnt guess it, means youve gotta look it up in a J>J
dictionary, or otherwise perform a google search. If your grammar isnt at a level where you can understand the
descriptions, or distinctions you should be bettering your grammar instead of your vocab. If you can only read English
definitions, then assume they are flawed before assuming that youve been fucked.
Ive been presented contradictory opinions about various methods, and can no longer judge for myself which
method is the best, aside from differences in speed, the discussed methods are correct(or at least not outright
wrong).
Try both, make a decision. Try neither, find your own solution. Try one, ignore the other. You do not have to ask. All
roads lead to the same destination. If you continue to walk them, and advance, then you will reach your goal. Nothing
is going to damage your learning if you simply continue onward.
Guide Discussion
Discuss the guide here.
Specific matters (such as rewording of a section) should be done via a comment in that section.
Header PSD file (including font)
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1471453/DJT%20Header.zip
Old guide
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QkKNc3AYP5sOv23FRjBoCs2dDzHN83BuT1T_aRU21t0/edit
Pronunciation guide
I have yet to find a suitable guide that covers everything about pronunciation in Japanese, Ive found different guides
covering specific aspects about pronunciation but thats it.
We could collaborate our own.
Or we could just link the different guides for different aspects of it.
I think listening to each kana on Tae Kim is pretty good reference http://www.guidetoJapanese.org/learn/complete/hiragana
Or do you mean an actual guide about how to place your tongue?
Tongue placements would be useful to people who cant figure out how to mimic the sound.
Kan make our own full introduction to the writing systems, like KanjiDamages Kanji_Info page. It doesnt have to be in
this particular guide, as I think we should try to make this as concise as possible, but we could have another doc that
fully introduces it.
This raises the question of what exactly is this guide trying to be, the guide of guides(which is to say all
encompassing, but probably confusing to a beginner), or djt guide 2.0, which is to say a concise guide of a
specific(KD>Vocab) method?
Recall vs recognition
Shouldnt there be something on this? Some people dont realize the difference and just go with whatever their
pre-made deck uses. It does not take much effort to be able to learn a Kanji and be able to recognize it or even know the
correct pronunciation of it. Be sure to practice the ability to recall Kanji. In other words, start with the English words and
try to write the corresponding Kanji. This will ensure seamless memorization and comprehension. Practicing this at
multiple times of day rather than only at one time each day is the optimum thing to do.