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How many years can you learn Japanese. We begin to learn Japanese. How much to learn the language.

You will need

  • - hiragana alphabet;
  • - Katakana alphabet;
  • - kanji alphabet;
  • - grammar book;
  • - films in Japanese;
  • - books in Japanese.

Instruction manual

Before you start learning, determine for what purpose it is planned to master the Japanese language. Some people need a language for work, others want to move to Japan itself, and still others want to learn a language for themselves.

What makes Japanese easy to learn

There are many resources and methods for learning Japanese. We have broken our recommendations in Japanese, so whether you are starting from scratch or looking for a new advanced Japanese tutorial, this list will help you. If you are starting from scratch, start here. If you have just started learning Japanese, also start here. In this section, we will take the order so that you know what to use and learn from the very beginning in order to create a strong foundation of the Japanese language.

You will want to start by exploring hiragana. This is one of two phonetic "alphabets" that are used in Japanese. Hiragana is by far the most useful at the beginning, and with the ability to read, it will allow you to use almost any resource for beginners. It will also allow you to search for words in a dictionary that, as you might imagine, come in handy from time to time. It uses mnemonics and exercises to teach you how to read hiragana in a very short amount of time.

Now, if possible, you need to find a tutor or courses. This is a very important step if self-study is not affordable. Indeed, the speed of learning will depend on how the material is taught. A good teacher should be a great methodologist. He must present the material to study in a quality and accessible way. Of course, it is good if the teacher is a native speaker, but because of this, some kind of problems may arise. Most often, native speakers, knowing the nuances of the language, cannot correctly explain where they came from and in what situations they are needed. Therefore, the optimal teacher would be one who simply lived in Japan, knew firsthand about the language he teaches.

Many people send emails to say that they can read hiragana after a day of study.


You can try the first season, and after passing this first season, you will have a basic Japanese language base that you can take elsewhere.


If you want a physics textbook to be held in your hands, this is our general recommendation. This is a good primer for beginners and covers everything you need to know when you start learning Japanese. Kanji, vocabulary, grammar, etc. All here.

If for some reason it is impossible to hire a tutor, then you should start learning the language yourself. One of the most difficult to learn Japanese elements is the alphabet. Therefore, it is worth starting with it. There are only 46 sounds in the Japanese language, but there are as many as 4 alphabets. Start your study with hiragana. Each symbol in hiragana denotes a syllable. A similar alphabet is katakana. These are also syllables, but used for foreign words that came to Japan. There are a total of 92 syllables in these two alphabets. Therefore, their study should not cause problems.

These two textbooks complement each other well, covering some different things. In general, a good textbook for those who begin to learn Japanese. Be sure to also buy a book - it fills a lot of holes and makes the textbook much more "complete."


Some time soon after you learn hiragana, you can also learn katakana. These are all the same sounds that are found in hiragana, but they all have different characters associated with them. It uses mnemonics, has worksheets, and will make you read katakana during your training day.

Now start learning the kanji alphabet. Unlike the other two, each character in the kanji alphabet has its own designation. That is, one character is equal to one word. A normal vocabulary will appear when the studied characters pass for 2000. Learn the words that you use in everyday life. Browse the frequency dictionaries and select the most frequently spoken words to learn.




After learning hiragana, it's time to start learning kanji. Kanji is usually a big, terrifying mess for most students, and this is also the only thing that distracts people from moving to advanced and smooth learning stages. But a good kanji resource can go a long way. You will learn a lot of lexical words, be able to read and simplify the study of grammar. Not bad, given that many students are still struggling with kanji after 5 or even 10 years.




This Japanese language guide is one of the most famous on the Internet. The complete guide is not very beautiful, but there is a lot of information. Many people use this guide as their primary tutorial to get started, and many others use it as a complement. The best part, however, is that it is completely free, so this is a good resource for a modest Japanese student.

Cards will help in the study. Make them for each word and repeat daily. These cards can be taken with you anywhere and in your free time repeat the words. Make 20-30 cards with words and repeat them in any free time for three days. Then set them aside and make new ones. In order not to forget the learned words, take out the cards with the passed characters once a week and repeat the words.

Dictionary of basic Japanese grammar

No matter which textbook or resource you use to study grammar, some things just won't make sense to you. This is natural, but not all explanations work for all people. This grammar dictionary will explain all the basic grammar with clarity, examples and a different perspective. In fact, you could even read this book as if it were a textbook, although you will have to come up with your own ways to practice. This is a great book and certainly a must for anyone who wants to understand why Japanese grammar works the way it is.

As you study the kanji alphabet, start learning Japanese grammar. This will help to significantly accelerate the development of the language. Grammar is quite simple and flexible, therefore, in order to master it, you will not need to spend a lot of time and effort.

You need to learn Japanese ...

Some argue that you can learn Japanese only by watching anime with subtitles. I can not agree with them. Without knowledge of the vocabulary and rules of the Japanese language, nothing will work. Of course, if you are not a genius who grasps everything on the fly.




This is not the deepest material, but it is not the main thing. Use this resource to use what you have learned in different ways. Or use it to practice listening and speaking. The resources here are, of course, flexible, so be sure to bend them as you wish.


You are no longer a newbie, which means that you are smart enough to know what you are doing. These resources will help you move from beginner to advanced.

First, the three most important rules of learning Japanese, without which nothing will work out:

  1. Studying should give you pleasure.
  2. Get involved everyday   at least an hour (you can do one day off per week)
  3. Put yourself specific goal   (learn to read Japanese, learn to watch anime without translation, learn to communicate with the Japanese on everyday topics, if you are planning a trip to Japan, pass an exam, etc.) and strive to achieve it.

And now, the Japanese language learning algorithm:




Although it is called Elementary Japanese, it is more like an intermediate Japanese, so don't let the name fool you. This is a good general tutorial, covering most of your Japanese training bases and providing you with a broad base.

Understanding Kanji Order

He adds a lot and fills some of the holes.


At this point, you should write some simple complete sentences, reading a few simple things and figuring out how the basics work. However, the best way to achieve this is to make many mistakes. In return, you can help someone find out who is learning your native language by correcting journal entries. This is an interesting way to learn to write, learn a lot, and meet new people.


In terms of writing, people no longer write by hand. Sometimes you have to write, and this is where this guide comes in handy.

Step 1: Katakana and Hiragana

Learn katakana and hiragana first. These are syllabic alphabets. Katakana   used by the Japanese to write words borrowed from foreign languages, and   hiragana- in writing along with the characters "kanji". In principle, Japanese words can be written using only katakana or hiragana, without hieroglyphs.

Do not remember each individual kanji hatching pattern. Instead, learn stroke ordering rules to spell any kanji correctly. This saves you a lot of time, but many people do not know what an opportunity.


You must answer how to read these kanji in context, that is, you get reading practice and kanji practice.

You will learn new words, increase reading speed, and even track progress with individual kanji. These are great resources if you have a foundation under you. With each part of the audio there is also a text script, vocabulary and other useful features.

This is hiragana

Personally, it was easier for me to take hiragana, but there are still problems with katakana. Learning these ABCs is best done using the “slotting” method, as we all once learned the multiplication table.

Step 2: Learn Grammar and Vocabulary from a Textbook

Intermediate Japanese Grammar Dictionary

You can find audio that is at your level and practice. We suggest doing “language shading”, although there are many other useful things you could do here.


This is the second in the trilogy of Japanese grammar dictionaries. If you could not find a specific grammar in the first book, there is a chance that you will find it in this.


It will contain intermediate content and cover the gap between beginner and advanced.

Take a tutorial Minna no nihongo   and learn from it to complete enlightenment. This will help you learn Japanese words and Japanese language rules. Best of all, use the tutorial in its entirety, with all audio applications. This will help you learn how to pronounce words more or less correctly. Still there is a good textbook for universities Nechaeva.

Many Japanese students are stuck on this plateau and do not know how to escape, but Kappa will help you do this by teaching you intermediate Japanese grammar. So you think you're very good, huh? These resources will help you begin this journey towards Japanese.

An integrated approach to intermediate Japanese




This tutorial will help you get closer to the point where you can jump out of the notorious nest and start learning on your own.

Advanced Japanese Grammar Dictionary




Third in the Japanese Grammar Dictionary series. Of the three, this is the most useless, although if you are so serious that you have reached the advanced level of the Japanese, be sure to take this book. For most people, the first two books will be more than enough, but if you are not like most people, we highly recommend completing the trilogy.

Minna no Nihongo

If you know more good tutorials, write in the comments.

Step 2.5 Audio

When learning foreign languages \u200b\u200bit is very useful to listen to various audio materials. With their help, knowledge is eaten right into the brain. Listening can be combined with other things and it saves a lot of time.

Download the audio guide. And listen to it until you feel that the Japanese language has eaten into your brain. And then, (Rutracker was blocked, therefore, links may not work) These are excellent audio guides (I won’t advise bad ones), though they are only suitable for those who know English.

Read Real Japanese Fiction: Short Stories by Modern Writers




At some point in your Japanese studies, it becomes important to read "The Real Japanese." These two words are true in the title of this book. This is a good book to help bridge this gap between “using a textbook” and “one movement.” This is a tutorial that shows you how to “go it alone,” and the real Japanese you read has a lot of help to go along with it. One page is text, the other is notes to help you. And the fiction used is not so bad, which makes it especially interesting to use, especially if you are in Japanese literature.

There are also good podcasts for learners of Japanese, they can also be found on Rutreker.

Step 3: Learn Kanji

Learn the hieroglyphs. “Love the hieroglyphs and they will love you”. I don’t know who came up with this phrase, but I really like it. The method of "swotting" with hieroglyphs can not cope. After all, you need to learn about 2000 characters to read Japanese texts. Use the methods of mnemonics (mnemonics - a set of rules and techniques that allow you to remember the necessary information) It is important to memorize not only the character itself, but also the words in which it is included.

If you are just starting to learn kanji, try reading a book with a strange name. "Kanjavye essays". It can give a good impetus to the study of hieroglyphs.

By the way, you need to memorize not only the appearance of the character, but also the order in which the traits are written. This also has a hidden meaning and its own logic.

There are many great programs for memorizing hieroglyphs and Japanese words. The most famous card memorization program is .   I advise you to use it. If you want to learn how to read Japanese, then every day you need to teach them at least an hour   using cards.

I also recommend installing a dictionary of hieroglyphs. Great program.

Step 4: Getting Started with Your Japanese

At this point, you can start watching anime in Japanese and reading manga. There’s a little secret when watching anime. If characters speak too fast, slow down. This can be easily done using for example VLC media player. Then you will understand the words in Japanese.

As for manga, start with a simple children's manga, where not many characters are used. I can also recommend simple Japanese tales. Very suitable to start learning to read.

Step 5: Chat with the Japanese

Start communicating with the Japanese on the Internet, or in life, if possible. It all depends on how sociable you are. If everything is fine with this, then you can easily find Japanese friends on social networks or on special sites.

The article is not finished yet, because Japanese can be taught indefinitely. Hopefully Japanese connoisseurs who wander into the blog Nippon-otaku   will make their additions.

Yes, by the way, there is more information on this topic on the blog. In the section and by tag.