The Japanese Alphabet - Hiragana

In Japanese, there are many words or particles that have no Kanji, or Chinese symbol, associated with them. Therefore, Hiragana was developed to express these words. The closest thing we know to Hiragana is an alphabet, but that it is not. Hiragana is a syllabary, which represents entire syllables instead of consonants and vowels. It may seem intimidating at first, but once you learn to read and pronounce Hiragana properly, learning the Japanese language really takes off. You'll find it makes learning much more convenient.

Below is a chart representing each Hiragana symbol with its respective sound. In Japanese, vowels are pronounced very similarly to Spanish. "A" is pronounced "ah," "e" is pronounced "eh," "i" is pronounced "ee" (like free), "u" is pronounced "oo" (like shoe), and "o" is pronounced "oh." As you start learning, you'll find that Japanese pronounciation of words rarely deviates from normal pronunciation, unlike in English, where there are many letters that remain silent, like in the word "weigh." Also, most of the Japanese consonants are pronounced just the same as English, except for "r," which is pronounced, once again, much like the spanish "r." The sound is sort of between the English "r" and "l". To make "r" sound, start to say "l", but make your tongue stop short of the roof of your mouth, almost in the English "d" position.

The best method I have found is using notecards to practice learning each symbol. When you get somewhat proficient, you can start practicing by reading Japanese text as fast as you can, until you can read fairly well. NOTE: ALWAYS read outloud when you are practicing. This will help you when you start speaking IMMENSELY!

The next lesson will be on Katakana, the more modern Japanese syllabary. Study up now, there'll be a quiz!