Katakana
- Thread starter Inter
- Start date
Konnichiwa Inter-san!
If you live in Japan, you must learn Kanji at least 1000 or more. Of course, you must learn Katakana and Hiragana too.
I attach a newspaper to this post. If you can read a newspaper, you are free from letter trouble in Japan.
But the most important matter is speaking but not writing.
NANGI
If you live in Japan, you must learn Kanji at least 1000 or more. Of course, you must learn Katakana and Hiragana too.
I attach a newspaper to this post. If you can read a newspaper, you are free from letter trouble in Japan.
But the most important matter is speaking but not writing.
NANGI
- 6 Mar 2003
- 6,578
- 4,598
- 337
Actually you can live in Japan without knowing katakana, hiragana or kanji -- many people do.
Of course the more you know the better. I highly recommend learning katakana & hiragana to start.
As for the answer to your question, it takes practice practice practice...
My own suggested method is to write the entire "alphabet" from memory in the correct order. Keep doing it until you get all of them perfectly. Write the roman pronunciation under the katakana as well. Repeat until you've got it memorized.
Of course the more you know the better. I highly recommend learning katakana & hiragana to start.
As for the answer to your question, it takes practice practice practice...
My own suggested method is to write the entire "alphabet" from memory in the correct order. Keep doing it until you get all of them perfectly. Write the roman pronunciation under the katakana as well. Repeat until you've got it memorized.
Keiichi
Hi
- 9 Mar 2003
- 979
- 18
- 28
I'm not sure, but it may seem like you may currently not understand the current types of Japanese characters right now since you've stated 'katakana' which isn't as often used as 'hiragana.'
Although I'm not the best person to explain the difference and I currently don't know of any webpages to show you, but I'll try.
(and someone correct me if I'm wrong ^_^)You probably wanted to say 'kana' which means both hiragana and katakana. They both are very similar and have basically the same amount of basic characters in each set (some difference in what I said, but I'm not going to go into that). Hiragana is the more common one as it is the basis of pronounciation of Japanese words and writing. Katakana is like hiragana, but less used since it's more used for thing like foreign words and other miscellaneous things like empasizing certain words.
It's kind of hard to point out in that one newspaper as both looks the same to a starter (and of course the complicated looking ones with a lot of lines are kanji, or Chinese characters).
That explaination probably sucked.
If you are looking for a good website to learn the kana and some kanji from, www.kanjistep.com is nice and even has practice sheets you can print out.
jeisan
Kongming
- 24 Feb 2003
- 3,414
- 69
- 58
this site also helps with learning katakana, hiragana and kanji have if you wanna know what the romanized equivalent is then you just have to put your mouse over it. http://www.kanjisite.com/html/start/kana/index.html
a suggestion for learning it would prolly be to put it in a song sort of way like with the english alphabet, which is set to the tune of ''twinkle twinkle little star'' so some thing like: a, i, u, e, o, ka, ki, ku, ke, ko...etc just make it up but be sure to keep the right order
a suggestion for learning it would prolly be to put it in a song sort of way like with the english alphabet, which is set to the tune of ''twinkle twinkle little star'' so some thing like: a, i, u, e, o, ka, ki, ku, ke, ko...etc just make it up but be sure to keep the right order
dogcountry
後輩
- 14 Dec 2002
- 48
- 0
- 16
As one said, you don't have to speak any kana or kanji to live in Japan. Thing is you'd be lost without the native language. I had 500 hours, native teachers, but you'd never know it today. I had a 2nd or 3rd grade or so knowledge of Kanji. All that today is gone. I did well with Katakana, but did better with hiragana. With hiragana you have the chance to really develope your own style.
The Japanese word is mostly put together in two letter syllables.
So you are speaking the word in a series of syllables, and of course you're using the English translation. I doubt if this comment makes any sense, but am sure others can do better.
The Japanese word is mostly put together in two letter syllables.
So you are speaking the word in a series of syllables, and of course you're using the English translation. I doubt if this comment makes any sense, but am sure others can do better.
dogcountry
後輩
- 14 Dec 2002
- 48
- 0
- 16
Jeisan post reply
The Jeisan post and thread on Kana and Kangi he makes mention of a URL that would help others to learn katakana or hiragana. I viewed that and find that to be the very best system I have ever seen or tried to learn from. Where he got that I can't guess, but for those that are looking for a good system of "comparing" take a look . So easy. Go for it.
The Jeisan post and thread on Kana and Kangi he makes mention of a URL that would help others to learn katakana or hiragana. I viewed that and find that to be the very best system I have ever seen or tried to learn from. Where he got that I can't guess, but for those that are looking for a good system of "comparing" take a look . So easy. Go for it.
Hehe!!! One day it might be! katakana is taking over! When I look around these days, I see more and more and more katakana everywhere. As language changes, many more Japanese words are borrowed from other languages (mainly English) so sometimes I see signs which are nearly all katakana.
A few days ago I read an article in a newspaper moaning about too much katakana in modern Japanese. It said older people are struggling to understand the language now because of the amount of new loan words. Even sometimes when there is a Japanese word for something, the katakana is used instead because people think it looks cooler.
Tiger
dogcountry
後輩
- 14 Dec 2002
- 48
- 0
- 16
When I resided in Japan and was then learning some adanced stuff like special terms and learning to speak more like the street person I too noticed that katakana was more readily seen. I was also trying to break myself from speaking Japanese that I learned from my lady, you know, those feminine expressions, I was loaded with them. When you learn them they are stuck with you for a time. Also, I always felt Hiragana was for writing etc. Katakana took the lead. In my observation.
ghettocities
Sempai
- 16 Jun 2002
- 796
- 13
- 28
I read the newspaper, something about CNN but tell me this, what does Katakana mean? Katana in a past-tense form? Haaaai-yah!
Josh
Josh
dogcountry
後輩
- 14 Dec 2002
- 48
- 0
- 16
I dug out some of my stashed away Japanese language reference books. Some really moth-eaten from age. Can't find any reference to Katakana, either in past tense or otherwise. It's simply a form of Japanese writing. You'll have to settle for that. Why on earth do you want to know the past tense? And your mention of CNN, what association does that have to do with Katakana? You'd be much better off if you stuck to your "search and conquest" program.
