Lesson 1 - Alphabets In Japanese Language

Welcome to the Write Japanese blog!

1.1 About the different alphabets.
Did you know that Japanese writing language mixes three (!)
symbol alphabets? Imagine if the English language did not
only use its ordinary western style latin alphabet, but instead
would include a mix of two other alphabet systems as well?!
(Like a mix of the English, Arabic and Chinese alphabets.)

1.2 Names of the alphabets.
These are the 3 different Japanese writing alphabets:

1. Hiragana
2. Katakana
3. Kanji

1.3 Is it about sounds or words?
The two first alphabets (Hiragana and Katakana) are both
phonetic alphabets. It means their symbols represent the
pronunciation of Japanese words as sounds.
The third alphabet (Kanji) expresses complete words as symbols.

1.4 Are these Japanese alphabets old or new?
3000 years ago: No written language in Japan, but in China they
invent the image based Chinese symbols to record their language.

2000 years ago: Chinese writing symbols were brought to Japan
by Buddhist priests and it became the image based Kanji alphabet.

1000 years ago: Japanese people simplified the Kanji characters
because they were too difficult for normal people to learn.
Image based Kanji symbols were then possible to write as sounds
by using the new Hiragana and Katakana phonetic alphabets.

1.5 Which Japanese alphabet is used for what?

• Hiragana is used for ordinary Japanese language.
• Katakana is used to express words of foreign origin, like for example a foreign person's name.
• Kanji is used to shorten Hiragana from several character into a single word.

Often Kanji is commented with Hiragana - so that
ordinary Japanese people who have not learned a specific
Kanji sign can have a clue how the word itself is read.

1.6 As a beginner - which alphabet should I begin with?
Hiragana is the most important Japanese alphabet to begin with.
Then after Hiragana it's time to learn Katakana...and finally Kanji.

1.7 Which alphabet is most easy to learn as a foreigner?
Katakana is the most easy of the 3 alphabets to learn, but it's mainly
used for loan words, signs, advertising, food menus, equipment
operation instructions...and foreign people's names.

This blog begins with Hiragana, so that everybody who want can
learn it from beginning. Kanji is usually explained in Hiragana.
I recommend everybody to learn the Hiragana alphabet first.