日本語

Welcome to my (WIP) Japanese page! This page is dedicated to my favorite hobby, learning Japanese! Feel free to bookmark this page or suggest anything

I have had an interest in learning Japanese since I was in middle school. It's been a really long time since then, but I'm so happy I continued learning! I took the N2 level of the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) and passed last year! I'm still not the best, but I want to continue working to maybe get to the point where I pass the N1 level.

My plans for this page are to archive resources, practice, and whatever helps me learn Japanese. The grammar for the N2 and N1 pages will be from the 新完全マスター series books, which are EXCELLENT by the way. Sometimes it's harder to find resources for N2 and N1 level grammar, so I want to write down my grammar lessons here lol. I also come across lots of examples of grammar "in the wild" while reading Japanese media which I also want to archive. I'll put a list of websites I use A LOT for anyone interested^^
Learning a new language has been incredibly fulfilling. I want to continue to learn other languages such as Spainish, German, etc. I recommend it a lot! Also if you have problems feeling like you are "wasting your time" while relaxing, it's always productive to practice listing to raws in a language you want to learn!

My Story...

As a Gen Z kid, I used the internet a lot as a kid. I discovered Hatsune Miku from a Kids React video on her virtual concert. I then clicked on her "The World is Mine" music video from the recommendations! I was hooked! Soon I had an interest in this kind of "style" (anime). Well, actually even before that, I was OBSESSED with Pokémon. And this was before I knew it was a Japanese IP. So I went down the Hatsune Miku rabbithole... and then I came to "Bad Apple!". Yes, the Touhou music video. I was even more obsessed...I listened to almost every Touhou character and stage theme while drawing or surfing the web. I also kept watching the remixes and animations fans did. This was also around the time I watched my first anime outside of ones broadcast on cable TV, Lucky Star! I watched it on YouTube in TERRIBLE quality back when people just uploaded every episode of show on there. This was before Viacom and the copyright strike system fiasco.

So one day, I was watching the IOSYS music video for "Cirno's Perfect Math Class" when I kept thinking about the text at the bottom of the screen. You see, it bothered me SO MUCH when I had no idea what the characters in anime or songs were saying. How was I supposed to know what to sing or say myself? So I googled "Japanese text characters" or something and came across a page on Hirgana and Katakana. Then I looked at the Kana charts and mapped each sound to the words. It made me so happy! Later I downloaded a flashcard program someone made for Hiragana. I practiced all the time. In class, I would write every character in order like on the charts and then erase and start again.
And well, life happened. And I've gotten to this point! I want to continue going and learn more languages as well. I'm sure my middle-school self would be proud!

Japanese Resources I Use

I'll add more later like always.

Sites

Jisho: I use this like 20 times a day.
コトバンク: An actual dictionary for Japanese people. More in-depth. I use this over Jisho when there's an uncommon reading or word. Also Jisho doesn't go into context for different kanji uses when it comes to words. Example: 断つ vs 絶つ
漢字辞典オンライン: Another (kanji) dictionary
Tips on Japanese: Tips on learning Japanese Wordpress blog. Lots of wisdom.
honto: Popular site used to buy ebooks. I usually buy books on Kindle from Amazon.jp though.
Tae Kim's Guide to Learning Japanese: My favorite grammar guide. Great for self-study.
丈夫な屈狸: great Neocites guide to grammar
Bunpro: I've used this as a grammar reference. Awesome and in-depth
青空文庫: Japanese digital library
Anki: THE flashcard software. There's good decks for JLPT vocab / kanji. I like one kanji deck aimed for Kanken test takers, but it has a lot of rare readings for kanji that aren't really used in daily life (duh).
Tatsumoto's Guide to Learning Japanese: You might recognize this linked on a certain imageboard. Great guide.
dmm and DLsite: This is where you can buy digital versions of Japanese visual novels or play games! : D You can't really buy games outside of Japan due to legal restrictions though. What a Very Pretty Novelty!
Animelon: Sometimes janky, but you can watch anime with Japanese subtitles online here. I recommend using ONLY Japanese subs (no kana, English, or romanji). Also, look up the definitions on your own.
Kitsunekko: Download subtitles.
It would be nice if there was a site named after the sound a cat makes in Japanese.: Maybe said site has almost every raw version of media for you to torrent?
小説家になろう: Read light novels online for free.
音読み・訓読みを問はず、とにかく一字一音の漢字一覧: Website on Man'yōgana / Old Japanese. Not a resource for modern Japanese, but pretty neat!

Books

Genki Textbooks: Standard beginner textbooks
Tobira: Standard post-Genki textbooks
新完全マスター: Great series for all aspects of Japanese (listening, vocab, Kanji)
Tsubasa Bunko: Books for kids. You can buy them off on Amazon.jp. They have Kirby!
All about Particles by Naoko Chino: LOVE this book! Instant reccomendation.

Fun Media

Here's a list of media I've consumed in Japanese that has helped me learn. This is very personal, and I'm sure anything would work if you're a weeaboo.

Love Live! Series: HUGE multimedia series. The personalities are easily digestable, the plot is simple, and the characters are in everyday settings. Check out the radio shows, Love Live! Days / 電撃G's scans, the radio (audio) dramas, the school idol diaries, ... I mean really everything. You have endless material to immerse yourself. I have been a fan for almost a decade now. My favorites are Ruby, Yoshiko, Rin, Keke, Natsumi, Ai, and Rina. Lily White and Guilty Kiss sound great!
Pretty Cure Series: Had to mention it. There's almost 1000 episodes as of writing this, 32 stand-alone movies, manga for each season, and countless hours of music. It's for kids, so start watching the raws and focus on what the characters are saying.
Is This Order a Rabbit?: More moe stuff! The characters in this series talk quite simply, and the plots are relaxing and basic.
Yotsuba&: Alright, so I actually haven't read most of this. I'm already going against what I said. But I just had to mention Yotsuba& because it's the most recommended manga for people learning. Seriously, it's like a meme.

How I Learn

I don't like giving advice because I am not a fluent speaker / learner. I am not an academic. I am just an imperfect hobbyist. But people have asked me this before so ....

I genuinely just try to consume as much Japanese native content as possible. I see a new word or phrase, it bothers me that I can't understand it, I look it up, I make the sentence make sense in my head, and then I continue. I think reading Japanese "levels up" your learning greatly. I have used Genki and Anki in the past though, which helped build vocab. I am not someone who believes in pure immersion. I think that as an adult, you need to learn the foundation of a language first before trying to immerse yourself in content.

There are a lot of methods, including new ones people swear by like RTK (remember the kanji). I haven't tried them or did stuff like Wanikani, Rosetta Stone, Duolingo, etc. I guess my "method" is just sentencing mining? But I also don't mine every single sentence when I play games or read. Sometimes I just play or try to guess a meaning on context.

I would personally recommend learning hiragana and katakana first. Before anything else. Then learn basic grammar and vocab. Look up the most common words. Then look at particles. And then dip your feet into basic material and kanji as early as possible.

Read. Read all the time. Read novels, manga, articles. Just read if it's by and for Japanese people. Remember all of those READ posters in school? Think of them every day. Progress adds up.

I find that my health also makes an impact with learning. Workout, eat properly, and sleep well. Seriously sleep well. Also don't drink or smoke weed if you are seriously trying to learn something. Your brain is a machine.

General Tips

Here's some fun random tips! All of these are based on what I've seen from learner communities. Again, not an academic or fluent speaker, full disclaimer.

Learn kana before anything else.: Don't ever bother with "romanji" or romanized Japanese.
Don't be afraid of kanji, start learning it early on.: If you do not want to learn kanji, this may not be the language for you.
Don't ask questions you can easily Google.
Be careful of "toxic input".: AKA, getting exposed to incorrect Japanese from other non-native speakers.
DON'T ASK QUESTIONS YOU CAN EASILY GOOGLE.: Do not ask people on a Discord "where do I begin" or "how do I learn Hiragana". Why should people have to find stuff for you when you clearly didn't look yourself? This isn't a hobby like BJDs or EGL where resources can be hard to find.
Don't overestimate your own ability.: This goes for everything, it's okay to be a beginner!
Look up the most common words and kanji for Japanese.
Even if you aren't taking JLPT tests, I find that the JLPT-ordered guides help organize my self-study.

JLPT Tips

Here's some tips for JLPT test takers. I have not taken the JLPT N1 level yet.

Look up when and where the test opens in your region.: You will want to plan in advance for travel, studying, etc.
Look at the sample test questions for each level.: The JLPT organization provides examples for what they will be testing you on.
I would advise against taking the N5 personally.: I would probably start with the N4 to save some effort and money if you want to go down the JLPT route.
I found the N3 -> N2 jump to be quite large.: And have heard that the N1 jump is even larger.
The JLPT's difficulty is very time-based.: Especially for the reading section.
Do practice problems.: This is how you learn most things.
Look up how the listening questions are set up.: Alright, this is the best advice I can give. The listening questions almost always follow a pattern, and you can get them down with practice.
Also practice questions with the sentences out of order.: A lot of people don't like these. I actually think they get a lot easier as you get better.
Bring 3 sharpened #2 pencils, a good eraser, and even a sharpener.: You won't actually end up using all the pencils, but it will help calm your nerves.
Don't talk with the other test takers.: Your call, but I find that this just distracts me during breaks.
Don't think about how you did until you actually see your results.

新完全マスター文法：日本語能力試験N2

一課：～時・～直後に

～際（に）

～に際して・～あたって

～たとたん

～（か）と思うと・～（か）と思ったら

～か～ないかのうちに

社交の場が苦手な私、2024年1月25日 (木)

社交的になりたいなんだけど、時々抜けたどころもある。例えば、一週間前コーヒーを沸かす時に同僚が部屋に入った。びっくりさせられたから音がしまった。一日に一度必ずドジをやらかす…最近、そんな気がする。新しい人と友達になりたい。友達ともっと仲良くなりたい。頑張れば頑張るほど上手になるはずだよね?　でも、失敗を恐れる。しかし、どんどん勇気が湧いてくる。短所があるけど、自分が今までにないほど好きだ。自分が嫌わなくてもいい…やっとそれと本当に言える。自分に自信を持ってる。

「今は小さな小さな蕾だけど
いつの日にか　きっと咲かせましょう
大輪の花」