Japanese

Japanese is a language spoken by about 125 million people, mainly in Japan. It is the official language of Japan and is also spoken by some communities in other parts of the world.

Japanese uses a combination of three scripts in it's writing system: kanji, hiragana, and katakana. Kanji are Chinese characters that were introduced to Japan around the 5th century AD and represent ideas or concepts. Hiragana and katakana are syllabic scripts, each consisting of 46 base characters representing syllables. Hiragana is used for native Japanese words and grammar, while katakana is used for foreign loanwords and onomatopoeia.

Why should I learn Japanese?

If you are considering learning Japanese, it may be helpful to know that it is a useful language for business and academia, as Japan is a major economic power and many academic papers are published in Japanese. In addition, knowing Japanese can be a great way to connect with the culture and history of Japan.

In addition, if you are interested in anime or manga, learning Japanese can be a great way to improve your understanding of these popular forms of entertainment. Many anime and manga are originally created in Japanese, and knowing the language can help you to better appreciate and understand these works, as well as to participate in online communities and discussions related to these topics.

How hard is it to learn Japanese?

One of the unique features of the Japanese language is its writing system, which uses a combination of three scripts: hiragana, katakana, and kanji. Hiragana and katakana are syllabaries, meaning that each symbol represents a syllable, while kanji is a system of logographic characters that represent ideas or words. Japanese grammar is also relatively straightforward, with no conjugations or grammatical gender.

On average, it may take an English speaker around 88 weeks of regular study to become proficient in Japanese, making it one of the harder languages for an English speaker to learn.