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A compilation of free online resources, PLUS learner-friendly little somethings.

(pro publico bono, compiled by a non-native speaker of English, so bear, or should I say bare, with me)
Stroke order gifs with a red dot are copied from:
http://jisho.org/kanji/details/%E6%B5%B7

!K Kanji kaku - strokes.doc this document

FONTS
The printed form, and even more so the digital form, of Japanese characters can differ quite a lot from the written
form, use a calligraphic font if youre going to write by hand
HGSeikaishotaiPRO calligraphic font HGSSikaishotaiPRO calligraphic font\HGRSKP.TTF
MS Mincho computer font
KanjiStrokeOrders.ttf font, copy to Windows\Fonts

CONTENTS (click):
Rules of Stroke Order short version.........................................................................................1
Kaku strokes - categories.........................................................................................................2
Rules of Stroke Order longer version, examples.....................................................................5
Info from...................................................................................................................................17
Learning materials....................................................................................................................18

FOLDER !.pls .mov files, you can see kanji written with a brush.
! 1.pls ! 2.pls ! 3.pls ! 4.pls ! 5.pls ! 6.pls ! 7.pls animated, according to Grades of
Japanese Elementary School.

Rules of Stroke Order short version

1. Top to bottom:
a. upper stroke first
b. upper part first
2. Left to right:
a. left stroke first
b. left part first
3. Horizontal then vertical:
exceptions: (part inside)
4. middle first (exceptions: ( 61)
Center usually precedes right and left where latter do not exceed two strokes each
(Henshall).
5. Outer frame first exceptions. and
(if a square, bottom line last )
6. Right-to left diagonal stroke precedes left-to-right
7. A vertical line running through the center is written last
When a vertical stroke doesnt stick neither at the top nor at the bottom:
upper part, vertical stroke, bottom part
8. A horizontal stroke that goes through the entire kanji is written last :
exception:
9. Diagonal stroke first, if shorter than horizontal
10. Horizontal first if shorter than diagonal:
11. Nyou, (two of the radicals which wrap around the lower left of a kanji) are written last
(plus the one as in this kanji ):
12. These nyou (wrapping) are written first (there are four of them and this
one bushu 199)
13. First the vertical stroke then the short horizontal stroke which adjoins it on the right :

14. Right-to left diagonal strokes in these kanji
a. first: (the stroke that looks like 3 is the second)
b. last:

Additional:
Rad. 85 [3 strokes] () kai3324.mov
Rad. 104 [5 strokes] byou4942.mov

Henshall:
The following pointers should also be observed.
a. squares are written with three strokes not four kou387D.mov
b. vertical strokes should not slope
c. horizontal strokes may slope, but should be parallel
d. characters should be of uniform size

4. Center first, then left and right shou3E2E.mov gaku335A.mov

12. A dot at the north-east corner is written last ken3824.mov dai4265.mov

kanji alive\intro-to-kanji.pdf, strokes page 5, radicals by category p10

Kamermans - an_introduction_to_japanese_-_syntax_grammar_language compiled 26 April
2010.pdf page 19 1.3.2 Writing Kanji (it wont properly copy into .doc)

Kaku strokes - categories

0015 StrokeEndings Mitamura.djvu
0016 StrokeEndings 8StrokeCategories Mitamura.djvu
0017 8StrokeCategories Mitamura.djvu
A stroke is the most basic part of a kanji.
A single stroke includes all the motions necessary to produce a given part of a character
before lifting the writing instrument from the writing surface; thus, a single stroke may have
abrupt changes in direction within the line.

Examples:

The Eight Major Stroke Categories:

1. ten abbreviated strokes like the ones at the top:
2. yoko sen, horizontal, from left to right
3. tate sen, vertical, top to bottom
4. naname sen - diagonal, top to bottom
5. kado kagi corner
6. naname kagi sharp angle
7. magari curve
8. ahiru (duck) sharp angle-and-curve combinations
And here ten categories (the same as above, in fact):
kanji alive\intro-to-kanji.pdf, strokes p5, radicals by category p10

Rules of Stroke Order longer version, examples

A leaflet by Japanese Ministry of Education, it contains the rules.

0019 Stroke Order.djvu

0020 Stroke Order.djvu
0021 Stroke Order.djvu

1. From top to bottom

a. upper stroke first

b. upper part first

kyaku3552.mov

2. From left to right:

a. left stroke first

sen406E.mov

kou387D.mov

gaku3358.mov

tai4253.mov
 ha4749.mov

b. left part first

chiku435D.mov

kyuu3559.mov

rei4E63.mov

u3129.mov

soku4226.mov

3. 3. Horizontal then vertical:

exception. den4544.mov
ou3226.mov

juu3D3D.mov

do455A.mov

shichi3C37.mov

dai4267.mov

boku4C5A.mov
 shi3B56.mov

ki346E.mov

exceptions: (part inside)

den4544.mov

yu4D33.mov

kyoku364A.mov

kaku3351.mov

ou3226.mov

4. Middle first
if symmetrical, then left, then right
Center usually precedes right and left where latter do not exceed two strokes each (Henshall).

wyj.

shou3E2E.mov

tou4576.mov

sui3F65.mov
 hyou4939.mov

shou3E2F.mov

shou3E35.mov

1movie\seki4056.mov
gyou3648.mov

exceptions: 61 ( in , etc.)
- [3]

exception.

ka3250.mov

sei402D.mov

sei403A.mov

5. Outer frame first

(if a square, bottom line last)

exception. ku3668.mov

exception. i3065.mov
 koku3971.mov

dou4631.mov

nai4662.mov

shi3B4B.mov

en315F.mov

in3078.mov

niku4679.mov

6. Right-to left diagonal stroke precedes left-to-right

bun4A38.mov

ko384E.mov

fu4963.mov

shi3B59.mov

jin3F4D.mov

nyuu467E.mov

ketsu3767.mov

kin3662.mov
7. A vertical line running through the center is written last

chuu4366.mov
sha3C56.mov

chuu4366.mov

shin3F3D.mov

shin3F40.mov

sha3C56.mov

han483E.mov

sho3D71.mov

sai3A4A.mov

hei4A3F.mov

you4D53.mov

you4D4E.mov

shu3C6A.mov

When a vertical stroke doesnt stick neither at the top nor at the bottom:
upper part, vertical stroke, bottom part

ri4E24.mov
 juu3D45.mov
dou4630.mov

ya4C6E.mov
koku3975.mov

8. A horizontal stroke that goes through the entire kanji is written

last: exception:

jo3D77.mov

an3042.mov

do4558.mov

shi3B52.mov

ji3B7A.mov

bo4A6C.mov

kai3324.mov

exception:

sei4024.mov

9. 9. Diagonal stroke first, if shorter than horizontal:

yuu4D2D.mov
 u3126.mov

fu495B.mov

ki3475.mov

10. Horizontal first if shorter than diagonal:

yuu4D27.mov

sa3A38.mov

son4238.mov

zai3A5F.mov

11. Nyou, (two of the radicals which wrap around the lower left of a
kanji) are written last (plus the one as in this kanji ):

162
162

(as in: etc)

Abbreviated form of . The top stroke of the abbreviated form is
generally eliminated in contemporary use.

54
dou463B.mov

kin3661.mov
 ken377A.mov
chi4356.mov

12. These nyou (wrapping) are written first

These nyou (wrapping) are written first (there are four of them and this one
bushu 199))

156 () sou4176.mov

ki352F.mov

ben4A59.mov
dai426A.mov

and the fourth one:

(couldnt find any example words)

I found these ones, too. KanjiStrokeOrders Font is necessary to see:



13. First the vertical stroke then the short horizontal stroke which
adjoins it on the right:

jou3E65.mov

sei4035.mov

soku422D.mov

156 () sou4176.mov

ten4540.mov
 ji3C2A.mov

14. Right-to left diagonal strokes in these kanji

a. first:
kyuu3665.mov
kyuu355A.mov
(the stroke that looks like 3 is the second)
b. last:

ryoku4E4F.mov

tou4561.mov

man4B7C.mov

hou4A7D.mov

betsu4A4C.mov

Additional
short:

Rad. 85 [3 strokes] () kai3324.mov

Rad. 104 [5 strokes] byou4942.mov

Info from
1. Bogusaw Nowak - Sownik znakw japoskich wyd. Wiedza Powszechna (ksika
drukowana, a printed book)

2. Mitamura:
Mitamura J.Y., Mitamura Y.K. Let's learn Kanji (Kodansha Int.,1997)(600dpi)(T)
(270s)_LJa_.djvu
An introduction to radicals, components and 250 very basic kanji
Mitamura J.Y.,Covington R.G., Mitamura Y.K. Let's learn more Kanji (Kodansha Int., 1999)
(600dpi)(.djv
Family groups, learning strategies and 300 complex kanji
0015 StrokeEndings Mitamura.djvu
0016 StrokeEndings 8StrokeCategories Mitamura.djvu
0017 8StrokeCategories Mitamura.djvu
0019 Stroke Order.djvu
0020 Stroke Order.djvu
0021 Stroke Order.djvu
0026 Postion Radicals.djvu
0028 Table7TypesTraditRadicals 92MostCommon Mitamura.djvu
0029 Table7TypesTraditRadicals 92MostCommon Mitamura.djvu
0062 Components.djvu
0063 Components.djvu
!K Mitamura - Let's Learn Kanji1 mp3 links.doc (audio links up to 29 page in the djv file)

3. animated mov, stroke order:

1\1index.php.htm 2\2index.php.htm 3\3index.php.htm 4\4index.php.htm
5\5index.php.htm 6\6index.php.htm 7 sono ta\7index.php.htm
1htm doc.htm
Playlists:
! 1.pls ! 2.pls ! 3.pls ! 4.pls ! 5.pls ! 6.pls ! 7.pls
!KANJI\ Folder

5. Henshall - General Principles of Stroke Order.doc (Guide to Remembering Japanese

Characters)

Learning materials
Attention: You should check stroke order in at least two sources, if in doubt.

!KANJI\ Folder, click to open the folder

Stroke order is shown here:

1.: KanjiStrokeOrders\ font, make the characters really big to see, more than 6 000 kanji and
kana.
2. gahohKANJI.mov Grades 1-6 + some 7, !KANJI\ Folder, mov animated, playlists (no
audio)
3. Kanji100LG\full-new.html Elementary School Grades 1-6, audio, animated gif
FOLDER !Kanji100\1\ audio Unicode playlists
4. 2001KanjiOdyssey.iso 2001 kanji, 1-555 animated, 556-1100 kakijun stroke by stroke, gif
5. wakan_full_167.exe 6355 kanji from Edict Jim Breen, not all have stroke order
6. Folder zkanji.exe Edict Jim Breen, many kanji are animated, you can set the speed
7. Mitamura J.Y., Mitamura Y.K. Let's learn Kanji (Kodansha Int.,1997)(600dpi)(T)
(270s)_LJa_.djvu
An introduction to radicals, components and 250 very basic kanji
Mitamura J.Y.,Covington R.G., Mitamura Y.K. Let's learn more Kanji (Kodansha Int., 1999)
(600dpi)(.djv
8. Kakijun (stroke order, to write by hand, (first print), 500 kanji:
kakijun01_001.pdf kakijun02_101.pdf kakijun03_201.pdf kakijun04_301.pdf
kakijun05_401.pdf kakijun06_501.pdf
9. Hadamitzky, a self-stufy workbook, kana i jouyou kanji 1945 kanji
A guide to writing Kanji and Kana Book1.pdf
A guide to writing Kanji and Kana Book2.pdf
10. Kj Pract eg.mean.read.pdf
howTo_Genkooshooshi.pdf
Genkooyooshi.pdf
kanji_practice_sheet_K&R.pdf
kanji_practicesheet_K&M.pdf
kanjisheetLg.pdf
KanjisheetSm(K).pdf
11. Yookoso Book 1 and 2 FOLDER, a living person writes with a brush mov, 1030 kanji
12.
JLPT Level 2 Kanji Dictionary\JLPTL2DictFV.pdf 1000 kanji, 5 000 examples, animated and
stroke by stroke
JLPT Level 2 Kanji Dictionary\JLPTL2Dict.pdf 1000 kanji, 5 000 examples, stroke by stroke
13.
NTC_New Japanese-English Character Dic_Gray.djvu full version, stroke by stroke
Halpern_The_Kodansha_Kanji_Learners_Dictionary.djvu shorter version, stroke by stroke

Added:
Kanji WriteNow Stroke Order\index.html some basic kanji, animated stroke order
First Step to Kanji Stroke Order\firstkanji.jsp.htm