How to Learn Japanese From Scratch
Summary
TLDRThis video script offers an unconventional approach to learning Japanese, emphasizing the importance of starting with authentic materials like TV shows, anime, and manga with Japanese subtitles. It suggests learning through context and curiosity rather than rote memorization. The script also touches on the use of common particles and inflections to understand sentence structure, advocating for an immersive learning experience that leads to acquiring the language naturally.
Takeaways
- 📚 Start learning Japanese with hiragana and katakana, which are foundational to the language.
- 🌐 Engage with authentic materials like TV shows, anime, and manga with Japanese subtitles to enhance learning.
- 🎬 Use anime like 'Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san' for clear audio input and to learn short sentences from context.
- 🗣️ Balance scripted content with unscripted, real-life Japanese from reality shows or YouTube to understand natural speech.
- 🔍 When you recognize half of the letters, it's a good time to start memorizing the rest to complete your collection.
- 🤔 It's okay not to understand everything; language learning is not about linear progression but gradual understanding.
- 📚 For kanji, learn basic concepts to start incorporating them from authentic materials, not just from textbooks.
- 🔑 Learn common particles and inflections to help divide sentences and understand their structure.
- 📈 Use repetition and context to grasp grammatical concepts, such as particles and inflections, more effectively.
- 🎧 Repeat after native speakers in the media to practice pronunciation and intonation.
- 📈 As you progress, shift your focus from instructional materials to spending more time with authentic materials.
Q & A
What are the first two Japanese scripts one should learn according to the transcript?
-The first two Japanese scripts one should learn are Hiragana and Katakana.
What alternative method is recommended to start learning Japanese instead of memorizing all the letters of Hiragana and Katakana?
-The alternative method recommended is to start with authentic materials such as TV shows, books, anime with Japanese subtitles, and family-friendly manga.
Why are TV shows and anime beneficial for learning Japanese according to the transcript?
-TV shows and anime are beneficial because they provide audio inputs, which help in learning short sentences and identifying each letter on the Hiragana chart.
Which anime is used as an example in the transcript to demonstrate learning Japanese through authentic materials?
-The anime 'Karakai Joshi no Takamaru-san' is used as an example to demonstrate learning Japanese.
What is the importance of including unscripted, real-life Japanese in the learning process as mentioned in the transcript?
-Including unscripted, real-life Japanese helps learners to hear natural language use, which can be different from scripted content, thus providing a more well-rounded learning experience.
At what point in the learning process does the transcript suggest starting to memorize the remaining letters of Hiragana and Katakana?
-The transcript suggests starting to memorize the remaining letters when you know about half of them, using the motivation of completing the collection of letters.
What role does curiosity play in the language learning process according to the video script?
-Curiosity and the desire to learn play a significant role as they are much better than passively memorizing what textbooks and teachers provide.
What is the transcript's stance on learning grammatical rules before using authentic materials?
-The transcript suggests that it is not necessary to learn a lot of grammatical rules before using authentic materials; instead, one can start learning with easy sentences.
What are 'particles' in the context of Japanese language learning as discussed in the transcript?
-Particles in the context of Japanese language learning are words that indicate relations of words or add nuances, and recognizing them helps in dividing sentences into words.
How does the transcript suggest learning about Japanese inflections?
-The transcript suggests learning about inflections by encountering them in authentic materials and understanding their context, rather than memorizing rules.
What is the final advice given in the transcript regarding the balance between instructional and authentic materials in learning Japanese?
-The final advice is to spend more time with authentic materials than instructional ones as you progress, which indicates that you are acquiring the language rather than just memorizing rules.
Outlines
📚 Learning Japanese with Authentic Materials
The script suggests starting Japanese language learning with hiragana and katakana, but instead of rote memorization, it recommends engaging with authentic materials like TV shows, anime, and manga with Japanese subtitles. It uses 'Karakai Joushi no Takagi-san' as an example to demonstrate learning from short sentences and emphasizes the importance of audio input for language acquisition. The script also advises not to rely solely on scripted content and to seek out real-life Japanese through reality TV, YouTube videos, or direct interaction. It suggests that a natural curiosity and desire to learn are more beneficial than passive memorization and encourages learning kanji through authentic materials after mastering hiragana and katakana.
🗣️ Understanding Particles and Inflections in Japanese
This paragraph delves into the importance of understanding particles and inflections in Japanese, which are key to dividing sentences and grasping meanings. It uses examples from anime titles and reality TV shows to illustrate common particles like 'no' and 'wa' and their various uses in context. The script explains how recognizing particles can simplify the process of identifying words in sentences. It also covers the concept of verb inflections, such as changing 'omo' (to think) to 'omota' (thought) for past tense, and 'omoitai' (want to think) to express desire. The paragraph encourages learning grammatical rules when they become relevant through exposure to authentic materials rather than through formal instruction.
📝 Advanced Japanese Learning through Context and Practice
The final paragraph focuses on advanced learning techniques such as understanding the te-form and its various uses, which can be grasped more effectively through context and repetition. It provides examples from a reality TV show scenario to illustrate the practical application of the te-form. The script encourages learners to say phrases aloud, record themselves, and mimic native speakers to improve pronunciation and understanding. It also touches on the importance of moving from instructional materials to spending more time with authentic materials as a sign of language acquisition. The paragraph concludes by inviting viewers to subscribe for more in-depth lessons on real-life Japanese usage.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Hiragana
💡Katakana
💡Authentic materials
💡Anime
💡Particles
💡Inflections
💡Kanji
💡Waifu
💡Reality TV shows
💡Grammatical concepts
💡Te-form
Highlights
Start learning Japanese with hiragana and katakana as they are the foundational scripts.
Instead of memorizing letters, begin with authentic materials like TV shows, books, anime, and manga with Japanese subtitles.
Use TV shows and anime for audio input and to identify short sentences and corresponding letters.
Karakai Joshi no Takakura is recommended for beginners due to its realistic Japanese and clear pronunciation.
Explore reality TV shows and YouTube videos for unscripted, real-life Japanese.
Engage with real-life people to practice conversational Japanese.
Memorize remaining letters once you know half, creating a sense of completion.
Cultivate curiosity by looking up unfamiliar words to enhance learning.
Utilize the Google Translate app for identifying letters and understanding words.
Learning a language is not linear; it involves a mix of memorization and authentic material learning.
Learn basic kanji concepts to start incorporating them from authentic materials.
Don't wait to use authentic materials; start with simple sentences even without mastering grammar.
Learn common particles to understand sentence structure and word relations in Japanese.
Particles like 'no' and 'wa' can indicate possession or addition in sentences.
Anime titles often use common particles that can be learned through exposure.
Inflections in Japanese change word forms to express different meanings, similar to English verbs.
Learn to recognize inflections like past forms, desires, and potentials to understand context.
Practice saying phrases aloud and recording them to improve pronunciation and understanding.
Focus on spending more time with authentic materials as you progress in your Japanese learning.
Explore additional concepts like levels of politeness and pitch accent for deeper understanding.
Transcripts
so you wanna learn japanese where to
start the first thing you need to learn
is hiragana and katakana because that's
what we use conventionally people start
memorizing all the letters but i wanna
recommend something else start with
authentic materials including tv shows
books anime with japanese subtitles and
family friendly manga etc tv shows and
anime are good because they have audio
inputs
find short sentences and learn the
letters
let me demonstrate using karakai josh
notakisan as i always do
they are playing hide and seek
now pick a short sentence and find each
letter on the hiragana chart
this is yo
this is
so it's
another one
visa
nanda
now it's true that anime characters
don't always talk like real life
japanese people but with anime like
karaka jones
the characters more or less talk like
real life japanese people with some
exceptions so this is a good anime to
start and voice actors pronounce words
clearly so anime are actually pretty
good for beginners but before you start
saying that 2d waifu are better than 3d
women let me just add that don't just
watch anime watch something like reality
tv shows or youtube videos where you can
hear unscripted real life japanese
or you can go outside and talk to real
life people like a normal human being if
you keep learning like this there will
be a moment where you know half of the
letters when you don't know half of the
letters this could be a good time to
start memorizing the other letters this
is like having an incomplete collection
of letters when you have an incomplete
collection it makes you want to complete
it but of course you can also keep
learning with authentic materials and
you might get curious about some of the
words you see and if you do
look them up
if you want to know what nande means
look it up it means why and if you have
trouble identifying letters you can use
google translate app technologies are
amazing but this kind of curiosity a
desire to learn something is very
important it's much better than
passively memorizing what textbooks and
teachers feed you people have this
misconception that learning a language
is a linear process like studying a
textbook from cover to cover
that's not how it works in the real
world but remember you don't have to
understand everything
[Music]
this sentence is probably too difficult
for you if you are a complete beginner
even if you use a dictionary it's
completely normal because you don't
understand everything you only
understand what you understand but how
about kanji i recommend learning the
basic concepts so that you can start
learning them from authentic materials
i have a separate video for learning
kanji and after learning hiragana and
katakana you can continue using
authentic materials to acquire the
language many people think that they
need to learn a lot of grammatical rules
before using authentic materials but
that's not true
there's many easy sentences to start
with such as
[Music]
but the japanese writing system isn't
big enough friendly because it's not
easy for beginners to divide sentences
into words to solve this problem you can
learn a couple of grammatical concepts
particles
and inflections there's a lot of
resources for this but if you want to
learn japanese with me i will teach you
the kind of japanese that real life
japanese people today actually speak
because textbooks and apps don't explain
real life japanese so click the link in
the description and subscribe so
particles
these are some of the most common ones
particles generally indicate relations
of words or add nuances for example no
indicates possession as in oregon
is a masculine way of saying i
and yome is wife but this particular
expression is actually a slang word for
your favorite female anime character aka
waifu so this is where the word waifu
came from another example
he said
so it means
next class
no is actually used a lot in anime
titles boku no hero academia
boku is another masculine first-person
pronoun
what is another particle by the way this
hiragana is ha but when it's a particle
you read it as what
in this context is and kamikakshi is a
supernatural phenomenon where somebody
disappears for no reason but how about
this no this is a dating show and the
guy is talking about meeting his
girlfriend's parents
[Music]
no here is a very contextual word that
refers to something like a pre-existing
context and in this case it's the fact
that the guy hasn't met his girlfriend's
parents
this is not a very easy word to use for
english speakers so it's okay if you
don't understand it right away now
recognizing particles makes it easy to
divide sentences into words
this is another dating show
[Music]
let me highlight the particles now it's
easy to identify words like
coco here
[Music]
let me highlight the particles did you
notice that they used the word mokteki
many times
if you see the same word repeatedly it
would be a good idea to look it up and
mokteki means objective but can i just
talk about how i love this scene so this
is a popular reality tv show called
ainori where guys and girls travel
together in a foreign country and hope
to fall in love
but the girls are unhappy because the
guys aren't trying hard enough to find
the romance so they are questioning the
guys why did you come here
anyway did you notice no in these
sentences
objective
which is pronounced as nan here ainari
is a title of the show and tabi is
chip
as you can see learning common particles
really helps you understand japanese and
another useful grammatical concept is
inflections
japanese words often change or inflect
to express different meanings
for example
omo
means to think this is called a
dictionary form because you find this
form in a dictionary and omota is a past
form of omo this is probably not very
hard to understand because english verbs
also have past forms speak spoke watch
watched take a look at this
[Music]
now you know they are describing a past
action you can also inflect omou to
omoitai to express a desire i want to
think when you see tai
you know that they are expressing a
desire now how about kateru
[Music]
is an inflection of katsu to win
kateru means to be able to win so this
form expresses a possibility of
potential
can do something how about this one
is a dictionary form and it means to go
and ikanai is actually a negative form
so not to go they're talking about
adjusting his appearance to see his
girlfriend's parents and he said no i
don't go making these adjustments
meaning shaving his facial hair now if
this makes you want to learn the rules
of inflections you can certainly do it
but if you find the idea kind of boring
you don't have to you can use
grammatical rules and explanations to
understand authentic materials it's
better to learn them when you feel like
they are relevant to you for example
in this sentence is an inflection of
and
is called the te-form because it ends
with te there's many ways of using the
platform but if i just randomly talk
about the te-form you might not feel
that it's very relevant to you but what
if you come across this scene
[Music]
to wait can you guess what she meant
she told the guy to wait now it's easier
to understand one of the ways of using
the te-form because you have a context
and when you come across a short phrase
like this
you should say it yourself and you
should say it exactly the way it said
and you should record it
[Music]
mate
[Music]
oh to think you can also use the tefon
this way to connect sentences or a
series of actions
[Music]
to meet and do you see nai so maybe it's
a negative form of something here the te
form plus nai expresses that you haven't
done something and when you see the same
form over and over again it makes you
want to know more about it in the
beginning you might spend a lot of time
on instructional materials but as you
progress and maybe sooner than you think
you can spend a lot of time on authentic
materials and that's a sign that you are
actually acquiring japanese rather than
just memorizing a bunch of rules
if you're spending more time with
authentic materials than instructional
materials you are doing it right but i
haven't covered everything in this video
there are other important concepts like
levels of politeness or pitch accent so
if you want to learn japanese with me i
will explain the kind of japanese that
real life japanese people today
actually speak because textbooks and
apps don't do that so click the link and
subscribe to my email group japanese
with utah
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