Guides
Japanese Learning Guides
Six long-form guides that cover everything Inku teaches, end to end. Written from the founder's own path through the language.
These are the pillars. Each one stands alone, and together they map a path from zero Japanese to comfortable N5 reading and listening. They are long because Japanese deserves the room.
Learn Hiragana: Inku's Complete Guide
28 min readLearn all 46 hiragana in three days with this complete illustrated guide. Audio, mnemonics, stroke order, and a printable worksheet.
HiraganaKanaBeginnersLearn Katakana: A Practical Guide for Adults
22 min readThe complete katakana guide. 46 characters, side-by-side with hiragana, pronunciation audio, and the loanword patterns that make katakana click.
KatakanaKanaBeginnersJLPT N5 Vocabulary: The Definitive List
35 min readThe 515 N5 vocabulary words Inku's N5 deck is built on, organized by category with pronunciation and frequency notes.
JLPTN5VocabularyHow to Learn Japanese: An Honest Roadmap
32 min readIf I had to learn Japanese from scratch again, this is exactly what I would do. Six phases, real time estimates, specific tools.
LearningStrategyRoadmapSpaced Repetition, Explained Without the Hype
18 min readThe memory science behind Anki, WaniKani, and Inku. Why spaced repetition works, where it breaks, and how to use it without wasting your time.
MemorySRSLearningJapanese Particles: The Masterclass
26 min readA complete, example-dense guide to every core Japanese particle: は, が, を, に, で, へ, と, から, まで, の, も, や.
GrammarParticlesJapanese Numbers 1 to 100 (and Beyond), With Readings
11 min readEvery Japanese number from 0 into the millions, with kanji, kana, and romaji readings. The build pattern, the alternate readings, and the sound changes that trip people up.
NumbersVocabularyBeginnersKanji Radicals for Beginners: The Building Blocks
9 min readWhat kanji radicals are, why they make kanji learnable, the position names, and ten common radicals with example characters for beginners.
KanjiBeginnersStrategyJLPT N3 Vocabulary: The Bridge Level
9 min readWhat JLPT N3 vocabulary covers, how it differs from N4, representative example words, and how to study the bridge level without stalling. Estimates only, since the JLPT publishes no official list.
JLPTN3Vocabulary