Topic hubs

Japanese: Topic Hubs

Short orientations to every major area of Japanese. Start here if you want a map of the terrain.

Each of these is a compact briefing on an area of Japanese. The deep work lives in the pillar guides; these hubs are the map.

Hiragana: The Japanese Cursive Script
The 46-character cursive script used for native Japanese words, particles, and verb endings.
Katakana: The Japanese Angular Script
The 46-character angular script used for foreign loanwords, brand names, and emphasis.
Kanji: The Japanese Imported Characters
The thousands of Chinese-derived characters that carry meaning in Japanese. The long tail of Japanese learning.
Japanese Particles
The one- and two-syllable markers that do in Japanese what word order does in English.
Japanese Grammar: What You Actually Need
The grammar patterns that cover most real-world Japanese. Shorter than the textbook makes it look.
Japanese Pronunciation
Phonetically simpler than English, but with pitch accent that most apps ignore.
Essential Japanese Phrases
The phrases you actually need in your first week of using Japanese.