There's something about Katakana that is just so much harder for me to learn. Hiragana was easy, I got that down in a day but Katakana just doesn't want to stay in my head, it all looks so similar. No matter how many times I write it out I just can't memorise it :c
The similarities can be really confusing!!! Even if you've got them down it can take time to get used to seeing them :) Practicing reading should help!!
that is completely true, Katakana is much harder to digests than Hiragana. I have drawn them in big, and hung them on my bedroom wall, that way I see them every time even when I am not studying. But I will learn them soon.
I'm having the same problem, but I think I've found a way to make it easier: try separating it into different "categories", like how shi, tsu, and n look similar. My thought process was kind of like "if you write the Hiragana over shi and tsu, they look similar since they go the same way. And maybe a calligrapher said 'SO what if I didn't finish my TSU?' and only put one line above it." Mnemonics help a lot too, and some Katakana look a lot like their counterparts, like Ki. I'm probably not making a lot of sense, but this is what I use, anyway.
I learning japanese hiragana character literally like a month ago and get a hang of it after 2 days and the i stopped because of the study week for the exam and dont even recognise hiragana character after two weeks ......i felt very useless
john dallas goku Doing a little every day will help! I forget things too if I don't use them. If you use Twitter, maybe you can follow some Japanese accounts on there, so that you're being exposed to Japanese writing everyday :)
MIMEI LAND wow!thanks!I did follow some actress and actors from tv shows that I saw! I will always remember that,thanks! P.s I am new to your channel did not expect that you would respond though thanks a lot!
I feel this comment in my soul. Since I study medicine I'm constantly learning a lot of more important things than Japanese so the medicine stuff kind of pushes the kana out of my head lol and I can't learn it well at all
I learned hiragana and katakana in a week then decided hey I'm gonna take one day off from Japanese and I forgot how to use them and how they looked but remembered how to play black Ops
+1210Nique I'm native japanese and what I recommend is just remember useful Kanji that uses in daily, and search learning Kanji of japanese public elementary school. Like this site www001.upp.so-net.ne.jp/NYAO/db/kanji/ Also, I think u don't need to remember how to write. Most of japanese can read kanji but forgot about how to write. Like I'm learning english in international school and I totally forgot how to write Kanji. I can just read.
My sister was once heavily sedated for an operation, and when she woke up she was counting in Japanese. "ich, ni, san..." and the nurse came over to her asking her what she was saying, so my sister tutted and said "I'm counting in Japaneeee~se" it was so funny.
I learned Japanese by a girl who was from Japan (we was in the 6th grade) & then later on I took the rest by myself so I've been speaking this language for 11 years & still going. (oh btw I'm african-american lady)
I have been learning Japanese for about 3 years, I'm not very good but I really enjoy it. I had a lovely girl named Miwa stay with my family and I for 10 days and we send each other letters and we help each other out with spelling, sentence patterns etc. I think it's great to have been learning Japanese and be able to have supportive teachers that make sure I understand and to answer any questions I have. I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to make friends from around the world. I am going to Japan next year and I'm so excited to see Miwa again!
I know immersion is the best way to lean a language, so I want to change my phone language to Japanese (bc that's the best I can do at the moment) but I'm afraid someone at school will see it over my shoulder and think I'm a weeb or something...
+Okio You don't have to denounce your citizenship to live in Japan, only if you want Japanese citizenship, which you don't really need unless you want to vote or be in the military or something. If you want to live in Japan permanently you can get a permanent residency visa
Immersion itself is not a magic bullet. I live in Japan and didn't learn anything particularly useful in the first 6 months. You still have to study. The single best technique is speaking it. It's also the hardest.
+Cain Martin I know someone who was in Japan for over 5 years and didn't learn much at all because she didn't converse with Japanese speakers. Getting real life experience without finding other english speakers is key :)... I went to Japan for a homestay, and I learned so much! I applied myself a lot so Yeahh :)
I lived in Japan for 6 months and reading katakana is still a pain in the ass sometimes. Sure you can learn it in a couple days but with how little it is used in addition to trying to understand English words through katakana it is a pain. If you have been learning Japanese for a few months and can't read katakana as easily as hiragana don't worry, that's normal. If you still can't read hiragana you got a problem.
I keep getting kanji confused with chinese haha. I know they're Chinese characters but since Chinese is my mother tongue and I'm studying it in school sometimes I will say out the Japanese pronunciation and everyone will be like the hell is she talking about? (I have goldfish memory so I will forget the Chinese pronunciation)
I'm currently self-studying, nearing the end of Genki II. After that, I guess I'll just read manga and stuff like that. Something that is a HUGE boon is a program called Anki. It's basically a flashcard program which helps a ton with vocabulary. It gives you a certain number of cards to go through every day (you can set how many). You can create your own decks as well as download pre-made decks from the Anki site. For Japanese, there are "Core" decks with 2000, 6000 or 10,000 words. And those are good to get you started. Anki's also available on iOS and Android so you can have it on your phone.
I use wanikani its great! For easy vocab and hiragana and anything really I recommend Memrise! Best. Language. Learning. App. I have EVER used! They have tons of different courses for Japanese alone, not to mention courses on things other than languages
I don't have any local Japanese classes nearby so I have to self teach and it's been rough. It's motivating though to see that you've managed which is why I think I love your channel so much 😊
最近ミメイさんとPDRさんのチャンネルを見つけました。動画はとても面白くて、いいと思います。私はアメリカの大学で七か月間ぐらい日本語を勉強しています。私のクラスも「げんき」の教科書を使います。毎週クイズが三つあるので、大変です。でも日本語が好きだから、がんばります。 :) Recently I found your and PDRさん's channels. I think your videos are really funny and great. I've been studying Japanese at my college in the US for about 7 months now, and we also use the Genki textbooks. My class has 3 quizzes every week, so it's a little tough. But I really like Japanese, so I'm going to keep doing my best. :)
hi! my name is Lily (リリーちゃん) I am learning Japanese too and you are my role model! I love you so so SO MUCH! I have two kittens called suki and blossom (Japanese theme :D) I hope you read my comment but I hope you do! ❤️❤️❤️
One of my biggest suggestions for Japanese learning/practice for those who are intermediate to advanced is to play Japanese video games (one's that require reading comprehension and have plots, etc). Don't be scared to challenge yourself with them. It's fun and immersive, so it's a good tool (but only as a supplement). Also, joining a fan translation team (or just translating things on your own) can be helpful! As for books, I like the one's you recommend, and "read real japanese" is great!
Oh man you're so lucky! I think that knowing kanji will make a huge difference :) The grammar isn't so bad once you get into it! And thanks for your tips :D
im taking japanese in college, and i am supplementing with some apps to work on vocabulary and kanji. the best app i can recommend is iKanji. it costs a couple dollars, but it is really excellent. it has a built in learning program that quizzes you strategically, as well as having other study options for practicing stroke order, different readings, and completing kanji words. it also has a kanji dictionary, where you can search by stroke order, radical, reading, or meaning. and it has a vocabulary dictionary too! its very excellent. the same company also has an app called ikana that teaches and quizzes you on kana.
I take online Japanese lessons and it's honestly a great way to learn! I'm doing a semester in Tokyo and Northern Japan in high school (one year away) so I have to learn fast :)
love that you referenced Hana Yori Dango for learning in the blog XD love that drama and I always found J-pop and J-dramas helped tons! Until I stopped for years...and now am getting myself back into the game!
I love that your from New Zealand! Same here!! xx It's good to have you tubers who don't feel like they're miles away from me because they're a completely different nationality :)
I'd say I'm at a high beginner, low intermediate level. I got half way thru genki 1 and finished the first book of Japanese from zero. I also use apps like memrise and tae Kim also has a lot of useful lessons.
I love japanese. Some languages sound really boring like my mothertounge (german). Japanese is so diffrent from the most other languages. It sounds way better and is way more interessting By now I learn japanese. twice a month I learn with a really kind and cool person from japan and during the week I do some self practice. Someday I want to go to japan. To see you in all this videos is really helpfull to me :D But like you I'm a vegeterian. I heard thats a little problem in japan :D
Das ist zu einem bestimmten Teil schon wahr, aber ich habe mal Leute aus dem Ausland gefragt, wie sie diese Sprache empfinden, und diese meinten, dass sie zu Beginn interessant klang, weil sie noch so unbekannt war, aber nach einiger Zeit soll es sich sehr streng oder besser gesagt hart angehört haben. Jedoch stimmt es auch, dass die eigene Sprache wohl immer etwas langweilig erscheint, wenn man andere Sprachen hört :D
I absolutely love German! I think it's anything but boring. It's very rich and interesting. I do speak German, but I so wish I could use it a lot more often. If I could choose an European country to live in, it would definitely be Germany! I also understand your passion for Japanese. The culture is very interesting. Loves from Finland :)
I'm a senior at my high school in Texas, United States. My school only offers German, French, and Spanish. I was really interested in learning a language with a different alphabet and a whole different feel to it. I've taken 2 years of Spanish (taking foreign language is required for 2 years. You can choose one of the 3 languages I talked about above). And it was so boring and uninteresting. I would've signed up for Japanese and taken it all four years if I had the chance. I'm self studying now, and hoping to find a Japanese course to take in college. Might be hard seeing as I live in Texas lol.
haha I'm self learning Japanese with Genki, too! it's our university's textbook, found it so useful when comes to studying Japanese by myself. Agree everything that you have said in the video!
Wow great tips!! I am 12 and I have been learning Japanese for a year and a half but this is going to help take me to the next level. I am going to Tokyo in October so my Japanese will come in really handy!
It is so good to know I am not crazy by trying to self learn Japanese. I can't take time off from work to actually go to class but I am trying to do it by myself. Babbling aside, thank you for the tips :3
Lol same, I have been living in New Zealand for most my life so yea, and it's rly hard to keep at farsi nd not forget it but I try, I also wanna learn Japanese, best of luck to the both of us I suppose :)
farima malik same here..i am learning japanese now..but i like farsi , which i dont know anything about lol, but i know some urdu which borrows heavily from farsi ..
It is! I think particularly if your mother tongue is a Romance language. I used to think it was soooo hard but then I just decided to approach it positively and be like "hey, kanji, you're not so hard. get in my brain" and I began to enjoy studying it!
Me encanto saber que estudiaste por tu cuenta se ve que si aprendiste al menos a los ojos de alguien que no sabe nada. Siempre he estado a favor del selflearnig, llevo 5 años de carrera en dos universidades (3 carreras, 3 years in my main carreer) y siempre me ha parecido que la universidad en bacheler level realmente sirve es para inspirar, nada más. Mismo aplica para cursos y todo tipo de conocimiento ya existente. Si tienes motivación, toda la información siempre estará ahí.
I learned kana a fee months ago and now I'm learning basic kanji and a bit of grammar thanks to internet courses and a friend of mine, who studies Japanese at university. I can't wait to improve my Japanese, I love this language so much. Thank you for the video, it was very helpful 😌
omg thank you for posting this! I have been trying to learn Japanese now for a year and haven't gotten anywhere. Thank you so much hopefully your tips and tricks help! ^.^
Off topic... Watching all the videos you make, you just seem to me that you are a very kind person:) I can always watch something of yours when I am down and know I will feel a lot better after watching. Thanks!
Maybe I'm just an extremely slow learner.. but it took me probably 2 weeks to memorize hiragana.. hopefully I'll go faster with Katakana.. Thank you for this video! I'm a self learner as well.
charlene straw Don't worry too much about how long it took you to learn it, but rather how much you can retain it (because at the end of the day, that's all that matters) I'm sure if you talk to students who were forced to learn all of it in less than a week for a test would have already forgotten most of the kana already.
Brian Wong charlene straw Brian is totally totally right! Everyone learns in different ways and there's no point rushing it! Sorry if I made it seem that way >.
I know this video is old but it helped me in trying to find some direction on where to start studying besides doing vocab with Anki. I also like my studies really structured. Thanks!
Thank you! I still have a long way to go but I do try to make sure that the Japanese in my videos is correct! Of course, making mistakes is a big part of learning :)
Maia Rostved It's not like the shelf itself is moving. It's just the contents of it. Unless everything inside the framework is somehow detached from it.
Google "The Ultimate Guide To Learning Hiragana" It is super easy with picture, videos, and signs. You'll love it. They also have one for katakana, I think. 😊 Oh, and it's free to read online.
When you said that you are self taught i was so amazed because for the past couple of months i'm trying to learn japanese on my own and what you said gave me more energy,patience and courage to keep learning.My dream is to live in Japan (before i am 31)and have a japanese husband(I know it sounds silly)but i really love Japan and it's music and mythology and i am so happy for you when i watch your videos.I hope you stay happy and energetic as you are now.I really like you and you are so beautiful and cute.I would love to meet you and your friends someday.So that's that.Matta ne🤗👋😍
Thanks for the advise! I am just finishing a very basic Japanese program (basically for tourists) and I really had no idea what to try to progress further.
Japanese from Zero series is an awesome book series, I'm still on hiragana after two months but I've taken a break for a while because of college. But they're really good, there's lots of grammar included and it's very progressive :)
Thank you Mimei, you've given me lots more confidence in self studying! Its definitely harder when you don't have the time to take a class, but its nice to know its possible if you work hard on your own. I work in a flower shop and have my books propped up everyday while im making up peoples wedding flowers and things haha x
Tae kim's guide to Japanese grammar is amazing. It's not so much a textbook but its still one of the best resources out there. Also its free so you can't beat that. Also anki is probably the best flashcard system I've ever used and its a must for learning thousands of new words. Tangorin is my favorite online dictionary. Anyway I think thats it.
minna no nihongo was really good for me! I got super busy and stopped doing it, but while I was doing it I learned a lot pretty quickly, including kanji.
BIGBANG T-shirt!!!!! Love them!!!!! I saw "Big Bang" written and thought "it can't be them" and then I saw "T.O.P." written bellow hihihihi nice shirt!!! Anyway…back to the actual topic of the video…I got distracted XD I’m studying Japanese at uni now and we are using Genki as well. The vocabulary part of the book is really good because you get to use it through every lesson which is really good for memorizing it. The grammar part can be a bit tricky because sometimes you need to connect lesson 13 and lesson 17 for example. Meaning you need to go back a bit. Sometimes I wondered why that thing for lesson 17 wasn’t in lesson 14 (after lesson 13) but in the end it does make sense. You just need to keep going through the book and really intake every lesson and connect it with other lessons. Personally, I think that’s a good way to learn a language. I’ve now finished the second Genki book and we are moving onto another book (I still don’t know which one it will be) but technically…after finishing Genki 2, they say you are a beginner. So yeah…still a lot of work and effort in front of me. People told me that the book we are supposed to use now is not so good and, as you said, it’s hard to find a good material after Genki 2. Thank you for your recommendation, I’m thinking of using these other books you mentioned. Interestingly enough, we use other books for kanji…Kanji look and learn (the book and the work book...really funny explanations of kanji but for me it’s useful). I have a question…did you have any method for learning kanji and memorizing them? It’s pretty difficult and I often find myself unable to read and it is really frustrating because I understand quite a bit and then I can’t write it or read it lol How did you learn kanji?
Not at all! It actually really does help you! It's been helping me and it's actually really interesting. Wanting to surround yourself with japanese things is not a bad thing to do either. If you surround yourself in just anime and cartoons and plushies however, people might think of you as one.
I love japan and the culture its just if you surround yourself with things in another culture. I don't think it will help you with your time in America, England, Canada, or what ever country you are from. that's what my dad told me.
there is a genki answer key; i recently bought the text, workbook, and answer key plus a kanji book and a book on basic japanese grammar for under $150 us (mostly "USED" in Very Good or Like New condition; i have paid much less for these than i would have paid purchasing them new. also, many of the books i have purchased are imports from japanese shops; many come with little thank you notes for buying from their stores!). i haven't had a chance to check it out much yet (the answer key, that is), but i looked and the answers do seem to match the questions in the text, so that might be helpful. also, regarding kana, my method was to learn half of each syllabary per day; after learning hiragana, i took an "easy" day to learn ten-ten and maru + contractions (so that is 3 days for hiragana), and then repeated with katakana, reviewing on 7th day to make sure i was writing them all correctly, &c., so i knew them in a week. i don't think it would be too wise to rush the learning of kana, since it is so crucial to learning the language (& it is important not just to recognise them but to be able to write them correctly as well!) but you don't want to be in your friend's position of not knowing it after a year in japan either!!
My auntie married someone from Japan I've always been interested in Manga, anime and just Japan in general but I'm even more motivated to learn. I'm going to start it after my exams and I'm excited. Plus, my auntie has bought me a Japanese book to learn katakana! :3
The Genki books have answer keys you can buy so that can help you with checking your answers. Though, the answers are mostly in kanji so you will have to be able to figure out what they mean. Also, the CD that comes with the book is also quite useful when you practice your speaking!
I linked to a few on my blog!! My favourite dramas are probably: GTO, Hana Yori Dango, Gokusen, 1 Litre of Tears, Kimi wa Petto, Attention Please, maybe Last Friends (I never finished it though). & I like YamaPi's dramas! But it depends on what genre you like! I don't watch a lot of variety but there are a cool segment on Himitsu no Arashi-chan called Share House (or something similar) where famous guests came to their house. Very funny!
Most of the book are in English you are lucky. I use j bridge and basic kanji book in class. I start by myself, now I'm in b1 level. This year kanjis are the most hard to memorize. 日本語を勉強する、がんばってください！
Just putting in my thoughts. In High School I studied with Genki, in college I switched to the Nakama series. Both were really great. They covered the same material but in a different order, and explained it in a different way, so whichever one can be found cheaper I would recommend. Now that I am in advanced level Japanese my university uses the Tobira series which I also find to be really great.
The books and the series that I have that I would like to mention are Elementary Japanese, the dictionary of basic japanese grammar, tobira, authentic japanese, and Introduction to Modern Japanese. I have other books as well, but I can say that after the authentic japanese books I would suggest going for the jlpt books if you wish to go for the textbook route. I also do self studying, but I would say after authentic Japanese level of textbooks that the amount of returns in the investment are going to diminish unless they are of the jlpt level if you are looking for pure proficiency of the language. If you are looking to do business, medical, industrial, or technical japanese, that is a totally different thing, of which I myself am not proficient in. Anyways, the way that the maker of the video mentioned is going to save you quite a bit of money and most likely time.
I use those red N2 books too! I used the N3 ones as well, and you're right, there is a bit of an overlap. Have you heard of Remembering the Kanji? I've found it's really helped with learning the kanji as I found I was always forgetting them! :S
How hard-working you are! Japanese is difficult for us, Japanese people, too though some foreign people are cleverer than us! They know well about Japanese. Keep going, Mimei-san!!
Funny thing about the Kanas, I tried the Heisig book on them, and basically what I got from it right away is to try and remember them instinctively, give each of the characters a little story, got all the hiraganas and katakanas as part of my effective memory in just under 6 hours Just started one of those Genki books
There's a lot of people who hate textbooks and reading and memorizing (like me) and I have to say English isn't my first language. I'm also self-taught and I guess a tip I's offer is: watch as many tv series and videos with the language you want to learn. If a textbook isn't your thing and you really wanna learn a language, try and find people who speak it and ask them for help in conversation. Take small notes and research online. That helped me a lot for learning English, hope it helps!
There's something about Katakana that is just so much harder for me to learn. Hiragana was easy, I got that down in a day but Katakana just doesn't want to stay in my head, it all looks so similar. No matter how many times I write it out I just can't memorise it :c
The similarities can be really confusing!!! Even if you've got them down it can take time to get used to seeing them :) Practicing reading should help!!
MIMEI LAND where is the amazon link/??
Shi and Tsu always throw me through a loop...
that is completely true, Katakana is much harder to digests than Hiragana. I have drawn them in big, and hung them on my bedroom wall, that way I see them every time even when I am not studying. But I will learn them soon.
I'm having the same problem, but I think I've found a way to make it easier: try separating it into different "categories", like how shi, tsu, and n look similar. My thought process was kind of like "if you write the Hiragana over shi and tsu, they look similar since they go the same way. And maybe a calligrapher said 'SO what if I didn't finish my TSU?' and only put one line above it." Mnemonics help a lot too, and some Katakana look a lot like their counterparts, like Ki.
I'm probably not making a lot of sense, but this is what I use, anyway.
I learning japanese hiragana character literally like a month ago and get a hang of it after 2 days and the i stopped because of the study week for the exam and dont even recognise hiragana character after two weeks ......i felt very useless
john dallas goku Doing a little every day will help! I forget things too if I don't use them. If you use Twitter, maybe you can follow some Japanese accounts on there, so that you're being exposed to Japanese writing everyday :)
MIMEI LAND wow!thanks!I did follow some actress and actors from tv shows that I saw! I will always remember that,thanks!
P.s I am new to your channel did not expect that you would respond though thanks a lot!
I feel this comment in my soul. Since I study medicine I'm constantly learning a lot of more important things than Japanese so the medicine stuff kind of pushes the kana out of my head lol and I can't learn it well at all
I learned hiragana and katakana in a week then decided hey I'm gonna take one day off from Japanese and I forgot how to use them and how they looked but remembered how to play black Ops
Unlimited Awesomeness My life in a nutshell.
hiragana is easy but kanji is taking forever to learn
katakana and hiragana's easy but kanji...
+AlphaBetaFoxface haha 50 a day is insane. have the closest mental asylum saved on your gps. Good luck.
+AlphaBetaFoxface mate, it's fine. I finished the 2200+ kanji like 1.5 years ago. Now, I'm learning vocab, and my god... the readings are annoying!!!
+1210Nique I'm native japanese and what I recommend is just remember useful Kanji that uses in daily, and search learning Kanji of japanese public elementary school. Like this site www001.upp.so-net.ne.jp/NYAO/db/kanji/
Also, I think u don't need to remember how to write. Most of japanese can read kanji but forgot about how to write. Like I'm learning english in international school and I totally forgot how to write Kanji. I can just read.
+1210Nique Use the Remembering the Kanji books by James Heisig. I learnt 2200 kanji in 6 months with them.
first thing i noticed was your big bang shirt then i had to pause video while i hardcore fangirled
Isabella Cat same
same
Watching this in 2016 and can I say that I love your shirt!!!
Paige Thorpe I'm watching this in 14585 (ง'̀-'́)ง
watching this in 225 BC.
Watching this when Jesus was born, except it isn't 25 Dec..
My sister was once heavily sedated for an operation, and when she woke up she was counting in Japanese. "ich, ni, san..." and the nurse came over to her asking her what she was saying, so my sister tutted and said "I'm counting in Japaneeee~se" it was so funny.
yes! talk to yourself in Japanese LOL
+Fancy Nancy TV ahahahhaha that is a good method
+Fancy Nancy TV I talk to my cat in Japanese. XD
+Crashandburn999 Please... Just stop.
I learned Japanese by a girl who was from Japan (we was in the 6th grade) & then later on I took the rest by myself so I've been speaking this language for 11 years & still going. (oh btw I'm african-american lady)
☠💀 Ms.Discombobulator 💀☠ how old were you when you studied for 11 years?
I have been learning Japanese for about 3 years, I'm not very good but I really enjoy it. I had a lovely girl named Miwa stay with my family and I for 10 days and we send each other letters and we help each other out with spelling, sentence patterns etc. I think it's great to have been learning Japanese and be able to have supportive teachers that make sure I understand and to answer any questions I have. I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to make friends from around the world. I am going to Japan next year and I'm so excited to see Miwa again!
OMG YOU SAW BIG BANG?!!! IM SO JELLY
Me too, and I love Bigbang especially Taeyang
CJ OMG HI I THOUGH I WOULD FIND YOU HERE OMG IM CRYING HIIII
HEY GIRL HEY!!!
Hey Catlin! :3 I'm Auzzie too!
Awesome! where abouts in australia?
I know immersion is the best way to lean a language, so I want to change my phone language to Japanese (bc that's the best I can do at the moment) but I'm afraid someone at school will see it over my shoulder and think I'm a weeb or something...
+carolinestories Me too :(
+Okio You don't have to denounce your citizenship to live in Japan, only if you want Japanese citizenship, which you don't really need unless you want to vote or be in the military or something. If you want to live in Japan permanently you can get a permanent residency visa
Immersion itself is not a magic bullet. I live in Japan and didn't learn anything particularly useful in the first 6 months. You still have to study. The single best technique is speaking it. It's also the hardest.
+carolinestories Hi. I've made the same thing haha
+Cain Martin I know someone who was in Japan for over 5 years and didn't learn much at all because she didn't converse with Japanese speakers. Getting real life experience without finding other english speakers is key :)... I went to Japan for a homestay, and I learned so much! I applied myself a lot so Yeahh :)
I lived in Japan for 6 months and reading katakana is still a pain in the ass sometimes. Sure you can learn it in a couple days but with how little it is used in addition to trying to understand English words through katakana it is a pain.
If you have been learning Japanese for a few months and can't read katakana as easily as hiragana don't worry, that's normal. If you still can't read hiragana you got a problem.
I keep getting kanji confused with chinese haha. I know they're Chinese characters but since Chinese is my mother tongue and I'm studying it in school sometimes I will say out the Japanese pronunciation and everyone will be like the hell is she talking about? (I have goldfish memory so I will forget the Chinese pronunciation)
i feel you.
Pocky draws can completely relate to your situation haha.
Are you a Singaporean?
SHYAN Yes
Cool!! We should learn Japanese tgt and be friends! :D XD
I'm currently self-studying, nearing the end of Genki II. After that, I guess I'll just read manga and stuff like that.
Something that is a HUGE boon is a program called Anki. It's basically a flashcard program which helps a ton with vocabulary. It gives you a certain number of cards to go through every day (you can set how many). You can create your own decks as well as download pre-made decks from the Anki site. For Japanese, there are "Core" decks with 2000, 6000 or 10,000 words. And those are good to get you started. Anki's also available on iOS and Android so you can have it on your phone.
YUUSS KIWI FTW!! I know someone who moved to Japan but she lost her nz accent. I love how you still have the nz accent when speaking English ^^
Grammar/vocab: Genki 1/2 second edition + Tae Kim online guide.
Kanji : WaniKani, which also gives you around 6000+ vocab items.
I use wanikani its great! For easy vocab and hiragana and anything really I recommend Memrise! Best. Language. Learning. App. I have EVER used! They have tons of different courses for Japanese alone, not to mention courses on things other than languages
0:47 is your bookshelf moving?!
There's another one at 1:22
Omg yes
👻 boo!
How the hell🤣
I don't have any local Japanese classes nearby so I have to self teach and it's been rough. It's motivating though to see that you've managed which is why I think I love your channel so much 😊
最近ミメイさんとPDRさんのチャンネルを見つけました。動画はとても面白くて、いいと思います。私はアメリカの大学で七か月間ぐらい日本語を勉強しています。私のクラスも「げんき」の教科書を使います。毎週クイズが三つあるので、大変です。でも日本語が好きだから、がんばります。 :)
Recently I found your and PDRさん's channels. I think your videos are really funny and great. I've been studying Japanese at my college in the US for about 7 months now, and we also use the Genki textbooks. My class has 3 quizzes every week, so it's a little tough. But I really like Japanese, so I'm going to keep doing my best. :)
I think you got used to japanese accent, I can hear it a bit in your english.
I don't think so :P That's my Kiwi accent.
hah yea, that is a pretty standard accent in New Zealand :)
hi! my name is Lily (リリーちゃん) I am learning Japanese too and you are my role model! I love you so so SO MUCH! I have two kittens called suki and blossom (Japanese theme :D) I hope you read my comment but I hope you do! ❤️❤️❤️
+lily starkey hi lily! just a tip, never refer to yourself as san or chan, its considered very rude in Japan
+RatedMelis thank you for telling me! I'm really new to it so I'm not great at the moment but that is a great tip! ありがと！
+lily starkey its okay! glad i could help
+godinajersey thanks 😂
One of my biggest suggestions for Japanese learning/practice for those who are intermediate to advanced is to play Japanese video games (one's that require reading comprehension and have plots, etc). Don't be scared to challenge yourself with them. It's fun and immersive, so it's a good tool (but only as a supplement). Also, joining a fan translation team (or just translating things on your own) can be helpful! As for books, I like the one's you recommend, and "read real japanese" is great!
I LOVE YOUR SHIRT
I registered for a Japanese class in university for Fall and I am so excited! You and fellow Japanese/English vloggers have inspired me.
Where did you/can you buy the Genki book in Japan? Want to pick one up when I visit
saneill17 Tower Records in Shibuya has a great textbook section :D But basically any big bookstore.
saneill17 Kinokuniya is your best bet.
saneill17 you can find it on Amazon too!
+saneill17 Or if you're a poor college student, google for pdfs.
on Japanese amazon its about 2000-3000 yen
I started studying Japanese 4 years ago, I still study it today at a school called Mazenod. Next year I'm sojourning to Japan, so excited.
0:45 YOOO! Her whole shit just moved in the background!
WTH!?!
Oh man you're so lucky! I think that knowing kanji will make a huge difference :) The grammar isn't so bad once you get into it!
And thanks for your tips :D
Her shirt omg yes
im taking japanese in college, and i am supplementing with some apps to work on vocabulary and kanji. the best app i can recommend is iKanji. it costs a couple dollars, but it is really excellent. it has a built in learning program that quizzes you strategically, as well as having other study options for practicing stroke order, different readings, and completing kanji words. it also has a kanji dictionary, where you can search by stroke order, radical, reading, or meaning. and it has a vocabulary dictionary too! its very excellent. the same company also has an app called ikana that teaches and quizzes you on kana.
I take online Japanese lessons and it's honestly a great way to learn! I'm doing a semester in Tokyo and Northern Japan in high school (one year away) so I have to learn fast :)
Where are you learning??
Emilia Haszard memrize :) i can leave a link to the course if you'd like
Delilah Fisher That would be cool thanks :)
Delilah Fisher Are you using Italki? xD
I use memrise as well but it doesn't teach you sentences and how to build them, just like vocab and kana and kanji.
This was one of the first videos of yours that I watched. Feeling nostalgic. Love you❤️❤️❤️
I came from Dan&Phil's video with you and I will subscribe to your channel beacause u like BIGBANG xD
+Maite Torreiro my thoughts exactly XD
BigBang!! yass
+Kpoping_Phandom Your username is my life
Right I get that a lot but....Hey it's who I'am!!
imjungshookth YOUR USERNAME IM GONNA FREAKING CRY IT'S BEAUTIFUL
I used Genki while studying Japanese for a year in uni. Definitely a great structured book and I recommend it as well :)
Wait... Are you from New Zealand? Because if you are then hello I am too :3 Nice to meet you. I like your videos
Hi fellow Kiwi ♡
so you ARE from NZ! I've been wondering for so long! I'm from NZ too and I'm taking Japanese at college this year :3
Oooh cool, I never had one of those! Thanks for commenting about it!
You like Big Bang!?!
Who's your bias?
Mine is GDragon and Taeyang
Bias is your favorite member in a group. Ultimate bias is your all time favorite member, who you like more than any other idol *****
love that you referenced Hana Yori Dango for learning in the blog XD love that drama and I always found J-pop and J-dramas helped tons! Until I stopped for years...and now am getting myself back into the game!
BIGBANG IS AMAZING!!
Sorry I noticed your shirt and got excited 😊
I love that your from New Zealand! Same here!! xx It's good to have you tubers who don't feel like they're miles away from me because they're a completely different nationality :)
I just discovered you today and i love you! haha especially now that I see your BIGBANG shirt!
Aw thanks! And yay for Big Bang!!!
I'd say I'm at a high beginner, low intermediate level. I got half way thru genki 1 and finished the first book of Japanese from zero. I also use apps like memrise and tae Kim also has a lot of useful lessons.
I love japanese. Some languages sound really boring like my mothertounge (german). Japanese is so diffrent from the most other languages. It sounds way better and is way more interessting By now I learn japanese. twice a month I learn with a really kind and cool person from japan and during the week I do some self practice. Someday I want to go to japan. To see you in all this videos is really helpfull to me :D
But like you I'm a vegeterian. I heard thats a little problem in japan :D
Das ist zu einem bestimmten Teil schon wahr, aber ich habe mal Leute aus dem Ausland gefragt, wie sie diese Sprache empfinden, und diese meinten, dass sie zu Beginn interessant klang, weil sie noch so unbekannt war, aber nach einiger Zeit soll es sich sehr streng oder besser gesagt hart angehört haben.
Jedoch stimmt es auch, dass die eigene Sprache wohl immer etwas langweilig erscheint, wenn man andere Sprachen hört :D
im not german but i do speak german fluently. i dont think its boring at all and it is a very interesting language.
Thats amazing :)
First time I heard something good about german. the most people I asked said it is a hard language and that german sounds strictly.
I absolutely love German! I think it's anything but boring. It's very rich and interesting. I do speak German, but I so wish I could use it a lot more often. If I could choose an European country to live in, it would definitely be Germany! I also understand your passion for Japanese. The culture is very interesting. Loves from Finland :)
I'm a senior at my high school in Texas, United States. My school only offers German, French, and Spanish. I was really interested in learning a language with a different alphabet and a whole different feel to it. I've taken 2 years of Spanish (taking foreign language is required for 2 years. You can choose one of the 3 languages I talked about above). And it was so boring and uninteresting. I would've signed up for Japanese and taken it all four years if I had the chance. I'm self studying now, and hoping to find a Japanese course to take in college. Might be hard seeing as I live in Texas lol.
haha I'm self learning Japanese with Genki, too! it's our university's textbook, found it so useful when comes to studying Japanese by myself. Agree everything that you have said in the video!
I love your shirt! BIG BANG!!
Wow great tips!! I am 12 and I have been learning Japanese for a year and a half but this is going to help take me to the next level. I am going to Tokyo in October so my Japanese will come in really handy!
Even native Japanese can't read all of the kanji
I'm Japanese so I can read kanji .but I can't write most kanji
As you see,Japanese English skills is cruelhaha
+わく かんじわすれてひとつもかけんなったはおれ
+わく I love you
It is so good to know I am not crazy by trying to self learn Japanese. I can't take time off from work to actually go to class but I am trying to do it by myself. Babbling aside, thank you for the tips :3
Hiiiii. So I speak farsi and I've finished English already now I really want to sat Japanese wish me luck aha
Lol same, I have been living in New Zealand for most my life so yea, and it's rly hard to keep at farsi nd not forget it but I try, I also wanna learn Japanese, best of luck to the both of us I suppose :)
farima malik same here..i am learning japanese now..but i like farsi , which i dont know anything about lol, but i know some urdu which borrows heavily from farsi ..
Syed Moin Doja I recommend you learn it although I've talked in farsi my whole life I enjoy speaking it it's beautiful haha
Niloo Shams that's amazing. but I live in Iran and self studied English
Farima Z saaamee im Persian too
I finished my german and english
Im learning russian and japanease
It is! I think particularly if your mother tongue is a Romance language. I used to think it was soooo hard but then I just decided to approach it positively and be like "hey, kanji, you're not so hard. get in my brain" and I began to enjoy studying it!
My oh my you look a lot like Tina Fey. At least with those glasses!
Me encanto saber que estudiaste por tu cuenta se ve que si aprendiste al menos a los ojos de alguien que no sabe nada. Siempre he estado a favor del selflearnig, llevo 5 años de carrera en dos universidades (3 carreras, 3 years in my main carreer) y siempre me ha parecido que la universidad en bacheler level realmente sirve es para inspirar, nada más. Mismo aplica para cursos y todo tipo de conocimiento ya existente. Si tienes motivación, toda la información siempre estará ahí.
I LIKE YOUR SHIRT
I learned kana a fee months ago and now I'm learning basic kanji and a bit of grammar thanks to internet courses and a friend of mine, who studies Japanese at university. I can't wait to improve my Japanese, I love this language so much. Thank you for the video, it was very helpful 😌
I first thought that she said christians when she actually said question LMAO XD
Haha same. I was like 'why do you get alot of Christians?' To argue about the big bang theory. Lol
Elsa James It's possibly an after-effect of talking too much japanese :-)
JustAName same here! thought she said christians first
No that’s how New Zealander pronounce the word for example if you say the number ten, seven, leg, pen, next, it will sound tin, lig, pin, nixt
@@Katy38316 Thank you for the reply! Now I learned something new. I wish to meet some New Zealanders one day.
omg thank you for posting this! I have been trying to learn Japanese now for a year and haven't gotten anywhere. Thank you so much hopefully your tips and tricks help! ^.^
Thanks for the tips! I'm wanting to learn Japanese in my upcoming 9th grade year, and I wasn't sure how to start. :P
'Tis true though >_>
+Alexandra Nussey weeb go away
Why can't we just be nice people ;-;
+Alexandra Nussey Sorry people are being rude to you. Just 'cause you want to learn about another culture doesn't make you a weeb.
+Alexandra Nussey I don't know why, but I laughed way too hard because of your comment. xD
Off topic... Watching all the videos you make, you just seem to me that you are a very kind person:) I can always watch something of yours when I am down and know I will feel a lot better after watching. Thanks!
Aw shucks :3 Thank you♥
Maybe I'm just an extremely slow learner.. but it took me probably 2 weeks to memorize hiragana.. hopefully I'll go faster with Katakana..
Thank you for this video! I'm a self learner as well.
No, not at all. It took me more than 2 weeks to memorize hiragana.
phew. Glad I'm not the only one..
charlene straw Don't worry too much about how long it took you to learn it, but rather how much you can retain it (because at the end of the day, that's all that matters) I'm sure if you talk to students who were forced to learn all of it in less than a week for a test would have already forgotten most of the kana already.
Thank you for reminding me of that.. I always get down on myself for learning too slowly. But you're completely right. Thank you. ^_^ Brian Wong
Brian Wong
charlene straw Brian is totally totally right! Everyone learns in different ways and there's no point rushing it! Sorry if I made it seem that way >.
I know this video is old but it helped me in trying to find some direction on where to start studying besides doing vocab with Anki. I also like my studies really structured. Thanks!
"Surrounding yourself with Japanese things."
I'm literally going to staple hiragana chart to my wall.
HAHAHAHA :3
I already did
Thank you! I still have a long way to go but I do try to make sure that the Japanese in my videos is correct! Of course, making mistakes is a big part of learning :)
love your T-shirt ^^
hehe!!! I love that song so much :) and I'm glad my tips were useful!!
WHY DID THE BOOK SHELF MOVE
Ohhh My university used this textbook(Genki ones) ! totally was surprised when you pulled the book out and i just subscribed :D
Why is the contents of the right shelf moving to the right at 0:47?
Marriuz There might be wheels on the shelf, not sure though :)
Maia Rostved It's not like the shelf itself is moving. It's just the contents of it. Unless everything inside the framework is somehow detached from it.
Marriuz mini earthquake? 0-0
It was probably because the jumpcuts
this helped me a lot! I'm trying to learn Japanese but I don't have money for classes and I had no idea where to start! thanks so much
what to do if i don't have money buy these books but i wan know japanese language :(
Svajūnė Antonovaitė There are lots of free resources online, so check those out :) And while you're learning the basics you can save up for classes!
MIMEI LAND ok thanx for answer :)
Svajūnė Antonovaitė I use JapanesePod101. They have youtube videos and are really helpful :3
ZuhZabet understand maybe i need whatch videos japanesepod101 because i wan know japan language
Google "The Ultimate Guide To Learning Hiragana" It is super easy with picture, videos, and signs. You'll love it. They also have one for katakana, I think. 😊 Oh, and it's free to read online.
When you said that you are self taught i was so amazed because for the past couple of months i'm trying to learn japanese on my own and what you said gave me more energy,patience and courage to keep learning.My dream is to live in Japan (before i am 31)and have a japanese husband(I know it sounds silly)but i really love Japan and it's music and mythology and i am so happy for you when i watch your videos.I hope you stay happy and energetic as you are now.I really like you and you are so beautiful and cute.I would love to meet you and your friends someday.So that's that.Matta ne🤗👋😍
looking at your shirt makes me sad because seunghyun's going to military soon :((
Thanks for the advise! I am just finishing a very basic Japanese program (basically for tourists) and I really had no idea what to try to progress further.
Can you show us the books in ur bookcase ? :D
Japanese from Zero series is an awesome book series, I'm still on hiragana after two months but I've taken a break for a while because of college. But they're really good, there's lots of grammar included and it's very progressive :)
I can see G dragon from over here
Thank you Mimei, you've given me lots more confidence in self studying!
Its definitely harder when you don't have the time to take a class, but its nice to know its possible if you work hard on your own. I work in a flower shop and have my books propped up everyday while im making up peoples wedding flowers and things haha x
Your welcome
I thought hiragana was fairly easy to learn.. Katakana tho.. It don't want to attach it self to my brain 😂
When I was in College and took Japanese I used the Genki books too. :) I liked them! Good job on saying motivated though, that's really impressive!
BIGBANG
Btw this helped me, ありがとうございます！
Tae kim's guide to Japanese grammar is amazing. It's not so much a textbook but its still one of the best resources out there. Also its free so you can't beat that. Also anki is probably the best flashcard system I've ever used and its a must for learning thousands of new words. Tangorin is my favorite online dictionary. Anyway I think thats it.
Tae kim's guide is very helpful, I found that it also comes with videos in some lessons.
well I live in South Africa and there definitely ain't no Japanese here
so you're a english native speaker i guess? i'm half japanese and would offer you help if you want any.
NKABoX I'm actually Afrikaans then English
hahaha seems legit, but hey afrikaans sounds quiet funny no offense :)
There are Japanese language schools around but depends if you're near Capetown or Joburg I think
minna no nihongo was really good for me! I got super busy and stopped doing it, but while I was doing it I learned a lot pretty quickly, including kanji.
THAT SQID ON UR SHIRT IS SO DISTRACTING, I was just staring at it the whole time. Lol
how dare you call anime "cartoon"!!
I have otaku friends who would kill you for saying that :P
as i said, they are otaku :d
BIGBANG T-shirt!!!!! Love them!!!!! I saw "Big Bang" written and thought "it can't be them" and then I saw "T.O.P." written bellow hihihihi nice shirt!!!
Anyway…back to the actual topic of the video…I got distracted XD I’m studying Japanese at uni now and we are using Genki as well. The vocabulary part of the book is really good because you get to use it through every lesson which is really good for memorizing it. The grammar part can be a bit tricky because sometimes you need to connect lesson 13 and lesson 17 for example. Meaning you need to go back a bit. Sometimes I wondered why that thing for lesson 17 wasn’t in lesson 14 (after lesson 13) but in the end it does make sense. You just need to keep going through the book and really intake every lesson and connect it with other lessons. Personally, I think that’s a good way to learn a language. I’ve now finished the second Genki book and we are moving onto another book (I still don’t know which one it will be) but technically…after finishing Genki 2, they say you are a beginner. So yeah…still a lot of work and effort in front of me. People told me that the book we are supposed to use now is not so good and, as you said, it’s hard to find a good material after Genki 2. Thank you for your recommendation, I’m thinking of using these other books you mentioned.
Interestingly enough, we use other books for kanji…Kanji look and learn (the book and the work book...really funny explanations of kanji but for me it’s useful).
I have a question…did you have any method for learning kanji and memorizing them? It’s pretty difficult and I often find myself unable to read and it is really frustrating because I understand quite a bit and then I can’t write it or read it lol How did you learn kanji?
If some one surrounds themselves with Japanese things. Would they be considered a weaboob?
oh ok
if its that then why do people call other people that for just wanting to travel their and just learn Japanese.
and yes I add the extra b because I like boobs :) jk
Not at all! It actually really does help you! It's been helping me and it's actually really interesting. Wanting to surround yourself with japanese things is not a bad thing to do either. If you surround yourself in just anime and cartoons and plushies however, people might think of you as one.
I love japan and the culture its just if you surround yourself with things in another culture. I don't think it will help you with your time in America, England, Canada, or what ever country you are from. that's what my dad told me.
Oh awesome, thank you so much! I'm going to look into these :)
tonnes!「かなりの数または量」という意味です。（アメリカ英語だとスペルはtons）
there is a genki answer key; i recently bought the text, workbook, and answer key plus a kanji book and a book on basic japanese grammar for under $150 us (mostly "USED" in Very Good or Like New condition; i have paid much less for these than i would have paid purchasing them new. also, many of the books i have purchased are imports from japanese shops; many come with little thank you notes for buying from their stores!). i haven't had a chance to check it out much yet (the answer key, that is), but i looked and the answers do seem to match the questions in the text, so that might be helpful. also, regarding kana, my method was to learn half of each syllabary per day; after learning hiragana, i took an "easy" day to learn ten-ten and maru + contractions (so that is 3 days for hiragana), and then repeated with katakana, reviewing on 7th day to make sure i was writing them all correctly, &c., so i knew them in a week. i don't think it would be too wise to rush the learning of kana, since it is so crucial to learning the language (& it is important not just to recognise them but to be able to write them correctly as well!) but you don't want to be in your friend's position of not knowing it after a year in japan either!!
My auntie married someone from Japan
I've always been interested in Manga, anime and just Japan in general but I'm even more motivated to learn.
I'm going to start it after my exams and I'm excited. Plus, my auntie has bought me a Japanese book to learn katakana! :3
The Genki books have answer keys you can buy so that can help you with checking your answers. Though, the answers are mostly in kanji so you will have to be able to figure out what they mean. Also, the CD that comes with the book is also quite useful when you practice your speaking!
I linked to a few on my blog!! My favourite dramas are probably: GTO, Hana Yori Dango, Gokusen, 1 Litre of Tears, Kimi wa Petto, Attention Please, maybe Last Friends (I never finished it though). & I like YamaPi's dramas! But it depends on what genre you like! I don't watch a lot of variety but there are a cool segment on Himitsu no Arashi-chan called Share House (or something similar) where famous guests came to their house. Very funny!
Most of the book are in English you are lucky. I use j bridge and basic kanji book in class. I start by myself, now I'm in b1 level. This year kanjis are the most hard to memorize. 日本語を勉強する、がんばってください！
Just putting in my thoughts. In High School I studied with Genki, in college I switched to the Nakama series. Both were really great. They covered the same material but in a different order, and explained it in a different way, so whichever one can be found cheaper I would recommend. Now that I am in advanced level Japanese my university uses the Tobira series which I also find to be really great.
The books and the series that I have that I would like to mention are Elementary Japanese, the dictionary of basic japanese grammar, tobira, authentic japanese, and Introduction to Modern Japanese. I have other books as well, but I can say that after the authentic japanese books I would suggest going for the jlpt books if you wish to go for the textbook route. I also do self studying, but I would say after authentic Japanese level of textbooks that the amount of returns in the investment are going to diminish unless they are of the jlpt level if you are looking for pure proficiency of the language. If you are looking to do business, medical, industrial, or technical japanese, that is a totally different thing, of which I myself am not proficient in. Anyways, the way that the maker of the video mentioned is going to save you quite a bit of money and most likely time.
I use those red N2 books too! I used the N3 ones as well, and you're right, there is a bit of an overlap. Have you heard of Remembering the Kanji? I've found it's really helped with learning the kanji as I found I was always forgetting them! :S
Yup. Genki is what we use in Temple University Japan classes, until the advanced level. Good ol' メアリーさん。
How hard-working you are!
Japanese is difficult for us, Japanese people, too though some foreign people are cleverer than us! They know well about Japanese.
Keep going, Mimei-san!!
Funny thing about the Kanas, I tried the Heisig book on them, and basically what I got from it right away is to try and remember them instinctively, give each of the characters a little story, got all the hiraganas and katakanas as part of my effective memory in just under 6 hours
Just started one of those Genki books
There's a lot of people who hate textbooks and reading and memorizing (like me) and I have to say English isn't my first language. I'm also self-taught and I guess a tip I's offer is: watch as many tv series and videos with the language you want to learn. If a textbook isn't your thing and you really wanna learn a language, try and find people who speak it and ask them for help in conversation. Take small notes and research online. That helped me a lot for learning English, hope it helps!