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An Introduction to Kanji

Whether you are about to study your first Kanji character, or you have been studying for a while - welcome! In this first post of the Isshonihongo! Kanji section, I want to do a quick and simple overview of Kanji. In future posts we can deep-dive into the nitty-gritty of it all.

With that, let’s get into it!

A Super Brief History

Kanji characters originally came from China. How and who introduced them into Japanese is up for contention, but most likely it was through the nearby Korean peninsula. The thing is, it’s not like Japanese people were using ESP to communicate with each other. They had their own language that they were speaking. What makes things even more complicated is that Kanji didn’t get imported all at once; it happened slowly and over 3 different time periods. We’ll get into how that has affected the readings of the characters later in the on’yomi and kun’yomi posts. However, it’s safe to say that you can understand why Kanji is such a beautiful mess 😂

The Letter “A”

I want you to think of the English letter “a”. (I’m partial to it because it’s the first letter in my first and last name, but that’s neither here nor there.) It is one letter in, and thus one of the 3 sounds of the word “cat”. However, it can be a word all by itself too. Ok, keep that in mind.

When it comes to pronouncing the letter “a”, there are also different ways to go about it. The “a” in “cat” is not pronounced the same way as the one in “mate”. Furthermore, the pronunciation of the “a” in “car” is affected by the “r” that comes after it.

By now I think you see where I’m going. Our character “a” has A LOT in common with Kanji! (Coincidentally, the same is true with “I” / “i”.)

How Kanji Work

So how exactly Do Kanji work?? I’m glad you asked!

Kanji are logograms. This means that they are symbols that represent words or parts of words. This is in contrast to phonograms (the English alphabet has these*), which represent sounds.

Each Kanji also represents an idea or a concept. Let’s take the character 男 for example. It represents the idea of “man”. By itself, this Kanji is a word. We can alternatively combine 男 with okurigana to make different words. Our final choice is to combine 男 with 1 or more other Kanji to make other words. Take a look at the 3 different cases:

Now, not all Kanji can form words by themselves like case 1. Many characters only make sense if they are with other characters, or with okurigana. The main thing to remember is that in any case, Kanji characters carry their ideas or concepts with them when they form words.

We are lucky if we have a Kanji like 男 because it only has one idea associated with it. Every time you see 男 it is contributing the concept of “man”. A Kanji like 高 carries the idea of “tall” as well as “expensive”. Thankfully, context will mostly make it clear which idea is being expressed.

Reading Kanji

I love word puzzles! I especially enjoy cryptograms. Here is an example:

In the cryptogram above, each number represents a letter. Every time you see that number, you’ll see the same letter above it. Unfortunately… Kanji don’t work this way.

Most Kanji have at least 2 ways that they can be read - with on’yomi readings and with kun’yomi readings. Which reading you need to use will depend on the Kanji and the surrounding characters. In the 4 words with 男 you can see that sometimes it is read as だん and other times as おとこ. This is a consequence of mixing Chinese characters with pre-existing Japanese words and ideas.

How Native Speakers Learn Them

Elementary school students learn a set number of Kanji each year from 1st to 6th grade.

1st - 80 characters 2nd - 160 characters 3rd - 200 characters 4th - 202 characters 5th - 193 characters 6th - 191 characters

They do writing and reading drills almost everyday! The thing that I love about Kanji is that the amount of words you can use increases exponentially with the more characters you learn. With 80 characters alone, you wouldn’t believe how many words 1st graders can make and write!

By no means am I saying that you have to learn Kanji in the same way and order that they do. (After all, they are hearing Japanese words all day, everyday. Plus, they are getting gently corrected at home and at school.) However, if done right, learning even 3 to 5 characters a day will increase your vocabulary by an incredible amount!

Why Kanji Are Important

Technically, you COULD learn Japanese words by sound only and stick to Hiragana and Katakana. But if you plan on texting with Japanese friends or reading anything not aimed for elementary kids, then you’re going to be up Schitt’s Creek. 😉

Take a look at this paragraph about karaoke:

I can read that, but it’s annoying actively looking for / thinking about the end of one word and the beginning of the next. A mix of Kanji, Hiragana, Katakana and numbers actually make paragraphs EASIER to read. This is just 1 reason Kanji are helpful.

Kanji may seem daunting at first, but learning vocabulary actually helps you learn Kanji better. I recommend thinking about each character as a flashcard. On the front you have the character, and on the back you have keywords, nuance, and its readings.

Nuance is very important because sometimes 2 Kanji may have the same or similar keywords but differ slightly. For example, the following 2 characters may be / are easily confused by beginners:

温 keyword: warm

暖 keyword: warm

Both of them carry the idea of “warmth” but the nuance is different. 温 is warmth that you feel when you touch / hold something while 暖 is ambient warmth. Think of the temperature in a room, or outside in the spring. When you learn a character, knowing information like this will prevent confusion down the line.

Conclusion

There you have it! I hope that reading this post has given you a glimpse into the vast world of Kanji. Yes, there will be difficult times in the Japanese road ahead but believe me, it’s worth it. I’m so glad that I jumped into the “Kanji pool” early on. It has helped me understand certain words and concepts, as well as the culture much better. I hope you have a similar experience! Good luck!

Rice & Peace,

– AL (アル)

👋🏾

*English has several logograms too! An English-speaker knows what the following symbols represent without needing any words:

&, $, ¢, @, °, #, £, and €

10 Countries Names in Katakana Edition (Asia - South/East Asia Edition) - Learning Katakana Script!

<< Part 1

China, Korea & Japan are written in Kanji - so would be skipped from this list :) still I'll write them at the end for anyone who wants to know. I have something bonus at the end of the post hehe!

1. インド (いんど)

2. スリランカ (すりらんか)

3. パキスタン (ぱきすたん)

4. シンガポール (しんがぽーる)

5. べトナム (べとなむ)

6. インドネシヤ (いんどねしや)

7. ブタン (ぶたん)

8. バングラデシュ (ばんぐらでしゅ)

9. ネパール (ねは一る)

10. カンボジヤ (かんぼじや)

bonus!

1. 日本 (にほん)

meaning: Japan

pronunciation/romanji: ni-ho-n

kanji breakdown: 日→に (meaning: Sun) & 本→ほん (meaning: Book, also origin, basis depending on context the meaning changes). The Kanji essentially means "Sun's Origin" or as Japan is also called "Land of the Rising Sun"

2. 中国 (ちゅうげく)

meaning: China pronunciation/romanji: chu-u-go-ku kanji breakdown: 中 -> generally this kanji means "inside, in or center" 国 -> くに (meaning: country). Together we can say these words mean "Center Country" or "Middle Kingdom"

3. 韓国 (かんこく)

meaning: Korea pronunciation/romanji: ka-n-ko-ku kanji breakdown: 韓 -> this kanji is referred to as Korea in both Japanese and Mandarin (I believe) and the kanji is taken from Mandarin into Japanese. I couldn't exactly find the meaning of this particular kanji or why has it come to mean Korea, however, if someone knows please do comment or reblog :) to note: generally Korea is written in Hiragana and not Kanji.

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Learn basic Kanji for beginners

Kanji is one of the most challenging for Japanese learners because of its complex stroke orders, multiple readings and meanings. However, if you have effective method, Kanji will be an easier task.

MochiKanji is a platform applied unique method that helps you learn Kanji fast and effectively. Let's learn some common Kanji with us:

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How to learn Kanji & vocab easily?

Today we will guide you how to learn Kanji and Japanese words effectively!

MochiKanji website helps you learn Kanji fast, and memorize 1000 Japanese words effectively with a joyful learning experience.

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Japanese Break Up Phrases| Learn Japanese Phrases

It's hurt to end a relationship with someone. However, sometime it'd better to stop than continue hurting each other. When it's time to say goodbye in peace, this list might help you!