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The Kana Crash CourseA quick yet thorough introduction to

Japanese phonetic writing

Andrew Scott Conning

© 2016 by Lexica Global Language Systems, LLCAll rights reserved.

LEXICA

TheKanaCrash

CourseA quick yet thorough introduction to

Japanese phonetic writing

EXCERPTED FROM THE MOBILE APP

Kana Keys: A comprehensive course inJapanese phonetic writing

Andrew Scott Conning

LEXICA GLOBAL LANGUAGE SYSTEMS

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WELCOME

Japanese is a rich and fascinating language. Among its many extraordinary qualities is its unique script, which combines two parallel phonetic syllabaries (kana) with Chinese characters (kanji), Roman letters (rōmaji) and Arabic numerals (Arabia sūji). Mastering kana is the essential first step in learning Japanese, meriting top priority so that

the other aspects of the language can be studied by means of kana, rather than via the ill-advised expedient of rōmaji transliteration.

The information in this free Kana Crash Course is excerpted from the Kana Keys course set - comprising the Kana Keys mobile app, the Kana Keys Workbook, and The Ultimate Kana Wall Chart -- which together are designed to ensure that you achieve advanced proficiency in reading, writing, and collating complete kana words. These tools also ensure that you master the standard rōmaji spellings required to input Japanese text on an alphabetical keyboard.

Kana Keys is unique among kana learning tools for its comprehensive, self-guiding, and effortlessly self-reinforcing cur-riculum. Completing its 40-hour course of study will leave you far better prepared for the rigors of reading, writing, and collating Japanese words than conventional kana study tools, which tend to cover only basic aspects of kana instruc-tion.

Partly due to these deficiencies, learners all too often assume that they can master the kana in two or three days and move on to other tasks. Though by doing so they save a few days of study up front, they later find themselves unable to read or write kana with confidence, manage the full range of kana combinations and variations, or master the nuanc-es of kana spelling and keyboard input. They also find themselves unable to properly distinguish between similar-look-ing kana, switch confidently between hiragana and katakana as needed, or efficiently locate information indexed in kana order. Kana Keys is designed to remove all these barriers from the start, and in a focused, efficient, and systematic manner.

If you find Kana Keys helpful, please also take full advantage of the widely praised Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Course. In it you will find the same meticulous curation that has gone into developing this Kana Keys curriculum, multiplied by a degree of magnitude corresponding to the 2,300 characters it contains. By developing a comprehensive, efficient, and pedagogically sound system for remembering kanji meanings and understanding how they are used in forming com-pounds, the kanji course makes it possible for all learners to attain genuine literacy in Japanese.

Whatever path you choose to follow in learning Japanese, I welcome you to a challenging and extremely rewarding adventure, and wish you the very best.

Sincerely,Andrew Scott Conning

Connect with Andrew [email protected]

linkedin.com/in/andrewscottconning

Connect with other learners atkeystojapanese.com

Home base for learning kana & kanji

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

あ/A 1. JAPANESE PHONETIC WRITING 日本語の表音文字体系 7

2. GOJŪON COLLATION ORDER 五十音順 13

3. GUIDE TO THE KANA KEYS COURSE 学習指導 15

4. KANA KEYS STUDY SCHEDULES 学習スケジュール 17

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1. JAPANESE PHONETIC WRITING ・日本語の表音文字体系

IntroductionThe term “kana” (仮名) refers to syllabic scripts used to represent the sounds of the Japanese language. The earliest kana was the man’yōgana (万葉仮名), a set of Chinese characters the Japanese borrowed in the seventh century as phonetic symbols for similar native sounds. As these complex ideographs proved unsuitable for the transcription of a polysyllabic tongue, the Japanese soon invented two sets of phonetic kana symbols: the relatively curvy hiragana (adapted from cursive man’yōgana), and the more angular katakana (adapted from fragments of man’yōgana).

Modern Japanese is written in a combination of hiragana, katakana, and Chinese characters (kanji), along with Roman letters (rōmaji) and Arabic numerals (Arabia sūji). Kanji are used mainly for Chinese-derived nouns, proper nouns, and the stems of native verbs and adjectives. Hiragana are used for all types of native words not written in kanji, and for the inflected endings following a kanji stem, known as okurigana (e.g., the 「く」 in 巻く). Katakana are used mainly for West-ern loanwords, scientific names (such as names of species), sound-mimicking words, and emphasis (like italics). Rōmaji are used mainly for alphabetical abbreviations (GHQ, ISO) and foreign names.

The rōmaji spellings in this booklet follow the widely used Hepburn system, which best approximates Japanese sounds for speakers of English and Romance languages. In addition to Hepburn, you may sometimes come across spellings based on the competing Kunrei system, especially in writing by native Japanese. Kunrei spellings can generally be deduced from the tables that follow by combining each character’s alphabetical row and column headings (e.g., t + ya = tya, corresponding to Hepburn’s more phonetically instructive cha).

To input Japanese on an alphabetical keyboard, it is possible – and in a few cases necessary – to use non-Hepburn spellings. Kana Keys always lists Hepburn spellings, but also notes in angular brackets any non-Hepburn spellings required for keyboard input.

Native Japanese syllablesThe table on the next page displays the kana characters and Hepburn romanization for all native Japanese syllables, di-vided between 清音 seion (“clear [unvoiced] sounds”) and 濁音 dakuon (“turbid [voiced] sounds“). For the purpose of learning kana, we can somewhat loosely use the term seion here to refer to syllables that are not followed by diacritic voicing marks (though some of these syllables in fact have voiced consonants). Similarly, we can loosely use the term dakuon to refer to syllables that do have such marks.

Seion and dakuon are each further divided into one-character 直音 chokuon (“straight sounds”) and two-character 拗音 yōon (“bending sounds”). Yōon are contractions formed by adding a small version of a Y-row kana, such as ょ yo, to an I-column kana, such as き ki. This eliminates the i sound, leaving the one-syllable きょ kyo (“residence”), not to be confused with the two-syllable きよ kiyo (“contribution”). Kana Keys refers to chokuon as “monographs” and yōon as “digraphs”.

The leftmost column displays the hiragana, katakana, and Hepburn Romanization for all 48 basic Japanese sounds (including two obsolete sounds in parentheses). Because all but one of the sounds can be arranged into a 5×10 grid according to their initial (consonant) and final (vowel) sounds, this table is known as the “fifty sounds table” (五十音図 gojūonzu). The one misfit sound is syllabic n, a late entrant to Japanese phonology made necessary by the borrowing of words from Chinese.

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Excerpted from the mobile app Kana Keys: A Comprehensive Course in Japanese Phonetic Writing. © 2016 by Lexica Global Language Systems, LLC. All rights reserved.

清音 S E I O N 濁音 D A K U O N

五十音 Gojūon (“50 sounds”)

Monographs直音 (Chokuon)

Digraphs拗音 (Yōon)

Monographs直音 (Chokuon)

Digraphs拗音 (Yōon)

A I U E O YA YU YO A I U E O YA YU YO

あいうえおアイウエオa i u e o

Kかきくけこきゃきゅきょ

Gがぎぐげごぎゃぎゅぎょ

カキクケコキャキュキョガギグゲゴギャギュギョka ki ku ke ko kya kyu kyo ga gi gu ge go gya gyu gyo

Sさしすせそしゃしゅしょ

Zざじずぜぞじゃじゅじょ

サシスセソシャシュショザジズゼゾジャジュジョsa shi▼ su se so sha▽ shu▽ sho▽ za ji▼ zu ze zo ja▽ ju▽ jo▽

T

たちつてとちゃちゅちょ

D

だぢづでどぢゃぢゅぢょ

タチツテトチャチュチョダヂヅデドヂャヂュヂョ

ta chi▼ tsu▼ te to cha▽ chu▽ cho▽ daji ●

[di]zu ● [du] de do

ja▽

[dya]ju▽

[dyu]jo▽

[dyo]

Nなにぬねのにゃにゅにょ

ナニヌネノニャニュニョB

ばびぶべぼびゃびゅびょna ni nu ne no nya nyu nyo バビブベボビャビュビョ

Hはひふへほひゃひゅひょ ba bi bu be bo bya byu byo

ハヒフヘホヒャヒュヒョ

Pぱぴぷぺぽぴゃぴゅぴょ

ha hi fu▼ he ho hya hyu hyo パピプペポピャピュピョ

Mまみむめもみゃみゅみょ pa pi pu pe po pya pyu pyo

マミムメモミャミュミョma mi mu me mo mya myu myo

Yやゆよヤユヨya yu yo

Rらりるれろりゃりゅりょラリルレロリャリュリョra ri ru re ro rya ryu ryo

W

わ (ゐ) (ゑ) をワ (ヰ) (ヱ) ヲwa i ●

[wi]e ●

[we]o ●

[wo]

ん

ンn

The “50 sounds table” includes four initial consonants that are unvoiced: k, s, t, and h. These become the voiced sounds g, z, d, and b when followed by dakuten (濁点), a diacritic resembling inverted commas ( ゛). In non-technical usage, we can use the term dakuon (濁音) to refer to syllabes voiced in this manner.

The five vowels are pronounced as in Italian. Hepburn spellings offer generally reliable guidance to pronouncing consonants by English orthography -- except for r.

The circular handakuten (半濁点) ( ゜) changes the initial h to p, which though unvoiced is known as a “semi-voiced sound” (半濁音 handakuon).

ぢ and づ are pronounced identically to じ and ず in the Z row, though key-board input requires “d”. See the blue inset for details on the D row.

を must be typed wo, and is often romanized that way to distinguish it from お o.

Phonetically irregular particles: When used as sentence particles, は/へ are read & spelled wa/e. を, used only as a particle, is read & spelled o.

Hira

gana

Kat

akan

a

▽ ▼ ● Irregular readings & spellingsSyllables marked with superscripts have irregular romanization:▽ Hepburn departs from the “initial” and/or “final” to better represent the

syllable’s reading. For example, it represents ちゃ・チャ (initial t + final ya) as cha, not tya. Initials & finals can always be used for keyboard input, sometimes saving strokes. Where shown in brackets, they are required.

▼ Ditto, plus the kana is phonetically irregular vis-à-vis its row. ● Ditto ▼, plus Kunrei also drops or replaces the “initial”.

Typing syllabic n: To input syllabic n (ん/ン) on a keyboard, one may type either “n” or “nn” prior to a period, a comma or another kana that is not in the vowel, Y or N rows. Otherwise, one must type “nn” (a simpler rule is always to type “nn”). Thus to type a final ん/ン followed by an N-row kana, one must type “nnn”, as in こんな konna (typed “konnna”). Practice inputting the words in the next column:

かねん kanen (flammable) type “kanenn”かんえん kan’en* (hepatitis) type “kannenn”かんねん kannen (notion) type “kannnenn”かんや kan’ya* (cold winter’s night) type “kannya”* Hepburn spelling requires an apostrophe between syllabic n and vowels or y.

D-row peculiarities: While there are D-row kana pronounced ji & zu, these sounds are usually written with their Z-row forms. The D-row forms are only used to indicate the repetition voicing of T-row ち or つ (as in ちぢめる chijimeru or つづく tsuzuku), or their liaison voicing (as in みぢかい mijikai, from み mi + ちかい chikai; or よこづな yokozuna, from よこ yoko + つな tsuna). As these exceptions are specific to Japanese, ヂ & ヅ are not normally used. D-row yōon normally go unused even in cases of repetition/liaison voicing; e.g., いちにち + ちゅう is usually written いちにちじゅう.

Blank cells:Japanese has no yi, ye, or wu sounds

Gray font indicates obsolete sounds (wi & we) or unused kana (kata ヲ o, hira みゅ myu & several D-row syllables).


JAPANESE PHONETIC WRITING

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TokushuonTo more accurately transcribe foreign sounds not used in their language, the Japanese have developed a special system of phonetic combinations unique to katakana. All but one of these 特殊音 tokushuon (“special sounds” or transcription katakana) are digraphs formed by joining a small katakana vowel or ユ yu to a standard katakana; the character’s small size identifies it as a combining form rather than a stand-alone syllable. For example, the compound フェ fe, (from fu + small e) is used in transcribing “café” カフェ kafe, which otherwise would have to be rendered rather poorly as カヘ kahe or カフエ kafue.

If the initial character in such a combination is not itself a vowel, its final vowel sound is generally displaced by the small vowel that follows, as illustrated by フェ fe above. The exceptional combinations in which the initial character’s vowel is preserved include クィ kwi, クェ kwe, and クォ kwo, but these, not coincidentally, are also frequently written as a combination of two standard katakana (クイ, クエ, クオ).

The table below displays the Hepburn Romanization and katakana for all tokushuon:

特殊音 T O K U S H U O N

(Alternative kana spellings) [Special rōmaji for keyboard input]

A I U E O YU YE

Kwクィ

(クイ)kwi

クェ(クエ)

kwe

クォ(クオ)

kwo

S シェshe▽

Z ジェje▽

Tティ

ti[texi]

トゥtu

[toxu]

テュ(チュ)

tyu[texyu]

チェche▽

Ts ツァtsa

ツィtsi

ツェtse

ツォtso

Dディ

di[dexi]

ドゥdu

[doxu]

デュdyu

[dexyu]

F ファfa

フィfi

フェfe

フォfo

フュfyu

Y イェye

Wウィ

(ウイ)wi

ウェ(ウエ)

we

ウォwo

[uxo]

Vヴァ(バ)va

ヴィ(ビ)

vi

ヴ(ブ)vu

ヴェ(ベ)ve

ヴォ(ボ)vo

ヴュ(ビュ)

vyu

V-row tokushuon are mildly unorthodox alternatives to the B-row kana (バ, ビ, ブ, etc.) for transcribing the English “v” sound, even though the latter are pho-netically less similar. Thus “valve” is still generally transcribed as バルブ rather than ヴァルヴ, even though this renders it indistinguishable from “bulb”.

Typing Hepburn or Kunrei spell-ings generally produces small-form kana as needed, due to standard rōmaji-kana conversion rules in soft-ware. In a few cases, it is necessary to preface the small form with a system-designated character such as “x” or “l”, as in the bracketed rōma-ji. The section below on Inputting small kana gives further information.

The lone tokushuon monograph is ヴ vu, formed by adding a dakuten to ウ u.


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Long vowelsLong vowels in native Japanese words are indicated in the following ways:

1. To extend a, i, or u, the corresponding vowel is added: まあ mā かなしい kanashii くうき kūki

2. To extend o, う is added (though its phonetic value is お): そう sō こうじ kōji

except for a handful of special exceptions in which お is added, such as おおきい ōkii おおい ōi

3. To extend e, either an え or (more frequently) an い is added: へえ hē ええと ēto めいし meishi せいさん seisan

To input long vowels of native Japanese words on a keyboard, simply type the rōmaji equivalent of each kana.

Katakana follows the above rules for the writing of native Japanese words. But for indicating long vowels in foreign loanwords, a long dash known as the chōonpu (長音符) – typed with the dash key – is used to extend the final vowel of the preceding kana: サービス sābisu “service” [type: sa–bisu] スープ sūpu “soup” [type: su–pu] メール mēru “e-mail” [type: me–ru] グループ gurūpu “group” [type: guru–pu] ソーセージ sōsēji “sausage” [type: so–se–ji]

In Hepburn Romanization, all long vowels are indicated by a flat line (macron) above the vowel, except for the ei combination (see meishi and seisan above) and the doubled i in native Japanese words (see kanashii and ōkii above).

Some instances of vowel extensions are not in fact “long vowels” but rather consecutive vowels from separate morphemes (these should not be Romanized with a macron):

1. any extensions of o or u resulting from a う verb ending: ぬう nuu “sew” くるう kuruu “go crazy” まよう mayou “get lost” きそう kisou “compete”

2. any other coupling of separate morphemes: はあく haaku “grasp” (from ha “grip” + aku “grasp”) みずうみ mizuumi “lake” (from mizu “water” + umi “sea”) かれえだ kareeda “dead branch” (from kare “dead” + eda “branch”) ほおん hoon “thermal” (from ho “conserve” + on “warm”) こうし koushi “calf” (from ko “small” + ushi “ox”)

Within loanwords, all long vowels (even i) are Romanized with macrons: コーヒー kōhī “coffee” セーター sētā “sweater” スープ sūpu “soup”



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Double consonantsThe initial consonants of kana in the K, S, T, and P rows can be doubled by prefacing them with a small tsu っ/ッ. Unlike the full-size つ/ツ, these small tsu markers – known as sokuon (促音) – do not represent the sound tsu but rather a slight pause: サッカー sakkā “soccer” メッシ Messhi “Messi” セット setto “set” タッチ tatchi “touch” チップ chippu “tip, gratuity” さっか (作家) sakka “writer” けっきょく (結局) kekkyoku “in the end, eventually” ちっそ (窒素) chisso “nitrogen” いっしょ (一緒) issho “the same” わかった (分かった) wakatta “Got it, OK” まっちゃ (抹茶) matcha “powdered green tea” はっぱ (葉っぱ) happa “leaf”

In katakana loanwords, other consonants may also be doubled: バッグ baggu “bag” バッハ bahha “Bach”

Though not classified as sokuon, a “doubling” effect for initial n consonants is achieved by prefacing them with ん/ン: みんな (皆) minna “everyone” ペンネ penne “penne”

In all such cases, the ん/ン represents an extra n sound rather than a pause. Note that the initial n cannot be doubled by adding っ/ッ: WRONG みっな minna WRONG ペッネ penne

Glottal stopsWhen small っ/ッ appears at the end of a word, it indicates a glottal stop: あっ! Ah! “Oh!” えっ? Eh! “Huh?”

Inputting small kanaAs noted above, typing Hepburn or Kunrei spellings generally produces small-form kana as needed, due to standard rōmaji-kana conversion rules in software. In cases where one must manually produce a small kana (such as when using っ to signal a glottal stop), it is necessary to preface the small form with a system-desig-nated character such as “x” or “l”. This is important to remember for typing the following tokushuon, whose Hepburn spellings would instead generate the output shown in the far right column:

Tokushuon Keyboard input Hepburn spelling Katakana output of Hepburn spelling

ティ texi ti チディ dexi di ヂテュ texyu tyu チュデュ dexyu dyu ヂュトゥ toxu tu ツドゥ doxu du ヅウォ uxo wo ヲ


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Stroke order and stroke countThe workbook provides a guide character for every basic kana character in the course, with stroke order numbers positioned at the beginning of each stroke. Follow the guide character closely. Always write kana strokes in the conventional direction and order, as both are essential to writing legibly and learning to read cursive.

For hiragana it is common in handwriting – and even in typeface – for nominally separate strokes to run together. An extreme example is ふ, which can be shown with all four separate strokes, with only three strokes, or even in a single cursive stroke. To bring such variations to your attention, the workbook displays each kana in four typefac-es.

Kana sourcesThe tables below illustrate the origins of hiragana and katakana in the the man’yōgana:

Man’yōgana Sources of the Kana

Use of these images is governed by the GNU Free Documentation License, version 1.2. These images may be accessed or downloaded @ commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hiragana_origin.svg & ...Katakana_origine.svg

Hiragana Katakana

Knowledge of kana order is essential for using Japanese, just as knowledge of alphabetical order is essential for using alphabet-based languages. The kana base characters are most commonly ordered according to the 五十音 gojūon (“fif-ty sounds”) table, which arranges the characters into a 5×10 grid according to their initial (consonant) and final (vowel) sounds:

Gojūon order progresses row-by-row through the table, starting with あ a い i う u え e お othen

か ka き ki く ku け ke こ ko

and so forth through the ten rows, plus ん n. There are no kana corresponding to the theoretical combinations yi, ye, or wu, and the kana for i [wi] (ゐ) and e [we] (ゑ) are no longer used.

To master gojūon order, you need only memorize the sequence of the table’s first column

a-ka-sa-ta-na-ha-ma-ya-ra-wa-nand first row

a-i-u-e-o.

Combining these two sequences, it is possible for you to locate any information collated in gojūon order. Follow these steps to master this important skill:

1. Memorize a-i-u-e-o order, and practice it by reciting each row, first a-i-u-e-o, then ka-ki-ku-ke-ko, and so forth. Take special care when reciting the phonetically irregular sounds (shi, chi, tsu, fu, and o), as well as the Y and W rows, which have missing and/or obso-lete kana.

2. Memorize a-ka-sa-ta-na-ha-ma-ya-ra-wa-n order. An excellent way to master this longer sequence is to sing The Galloping Gojūon, a mnemonic verse set to the famous finale of Rossini’s “William Tell Overture” (also known as “The March of the Swiss Soldiers” and as the theme music of The Lone Ranger):

a∙ka∙sa, ta∙na∙ha, ma∙ya∙ra∙wa∙na∙ka∙sa, ta∙na∙ha, ma∙ya∙ra∙wa∙na∙ka∙sa, ta∙na∙ha, ma∙ya∙ra∙wa∙n—a∙i∙u— e∙o: go∙jū∙o∙n!

The last line incorporates the a∙i∙u∙e∙o sequence, which in repeating the refrain can be successively replaced by ka∙ki∙ku∙ke∙ko, sa∙shi∙su∙se∙so, and so forth, allowing you to practice the gojūon table’s vertical and horizontal sequences together in the same song. Naturally, you’ll need at first to slow the tempo way down, but soon your gojūon will be galloping along like a horseman riding to the rescue!

2. GOJŪON COLLATION ORDER ・五十音順

A I U E O

あいうえおa i u e o

Kかきくけこka ki ku ke ko

Sさしすせそsa shi▼ su se so

Tたちつてとta chi▼ tsu▼ te to

Nなにぬねのna ni nu ne no

Hはひふへほha hi fu▼ he ho

Mまみむめもma mi mu me mo

Yやゆよya yu yo

Rらりるれろra ri ru re ro

Wわ (ゐ) (ゑ) をwa i ●

[wi]e ●

[we]o ●

[wo]

Superscript symbols are explained in the main kana

tables in Chapter 1

んn

五十音順 Gojūon order


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GOJŪON COLLATION ORDER

3. Practice kana collation with the “Gojūon Lookup” tests in the “Comprehensive Tests” section of the Main Menu of the Kana Keys app. These tests require you to locate specified words by scrolling through an index.

Along with the comprehensive writing test, the “Gojūon Lookup” tests are the most challenging in the Kana Keys course. A few of the words given in the tests may require you to consider finer points of kana-based indexing, including the collation of the small っ/ッ or unvoiced vs. voiced sounds. At this point in your studies, you need not concern yourself with mastering these fine distinctions, but it is helpful to know that they exist. Although there are no univer-sal conventions regarding these fine points, do note the rules followed in the simulated index within the app’s Gojūon Lookup test:

1. The small っ/ッ for doubling consonants is collated identically to full-size つ/ツ (tsu):

はち hachiはっきり hakkiriはと hato

However, full-size つ precedes small っ if two words are otherwise equivalent:

はつか hatsukaはっか hakka

2. Voiced and unvoiced variants are collated identi-cally:

は haば baぱ paばか bakaはち hachiはは haha

except to break ties, in which case a. an unvoiced kana precedes its dakuon

(voiced) variant:か – が ka, gaそ – ぞ so, zoは – ば ha, baetc.

b. dakuon ば precedes handakuon (semi-voiced) ぱ.

To find words that begin with voiced sounds, search the Gojūon Lookup index (or most real-life indexes) in the section of the corresponding un-voiced sound (e.g., look for ジーンズ under シ and ペルシャ under へ).

The following collated word list illustrates these rules: は haば baぱ paばかり bakariはち hachiばっかり bakkariはっきり hakkiriはっさい hassaiばっちり batchiriはっぱ happaばっぱい bappaiはっぱぎし happagishiはと hatoはは hahaはば habaばば babaばばあ babāばばさき babasakiぱぱっと papattoばばぬき babanuki


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3. GUIDE TO THE KANA KEYS COURSE ・学習指導

A thoroughly curated curriculumKana Keys provides a carefully crafted curriculum designed to make it easier than ever to master the kana. To progress most efficiently, follow the sequence provided in the app, first completing the Overview (equivalent to chapters 1 and 3 of this booklet), then the Hiragana and Katakana Courses, and finally the Comprehensive Tests (including the Gojūon Lookup Tests). The study schedules in the next section make it easy to organize your studies according to your own preferred pace.

The Hiragana and Katakana units are referred to as “courses” because they provide a self-guiding, step-by-step curriculum. Both courses begin with basic characters, then cover variants used for contractions and voiced sounds, and conclude with a series of tips on differentiating between easily confused kana. Within each kana set, tapping the app’s “Study” button initiates a sequential lesson that progresses row-by-row through the set. The lessons teach you to read, write, and pronounce each kana, and familiarize you with a selection of useful example words that allow you to learn kana within the context of authentic Japanese. These example words incorporate only kana you will have already learned, making the course both streamlined and effortlessly self-reinforcing.

Within the Katakana Course, the unit on Tokushuon teaches you a group of special katakana combinations used in the transcription of non-Japanese words. This unit – adapted from the set of transcription katakana recognized by the Jap-anese government – includes all the combinations you can expect to regularly encounter in reading Japanese.

While the built-in study sequence is designed to maximize your learning efficiency, Kana Keys also allows you custom-ize your learning in various ways. To select specific rows of kana to study, simply tap on the rows’ initial consonants on the Lessons pages within the app. You can also study any of the individual kana from that page by tapping on it.

To ensure you remember everything you study, a review drill appears after every row (usually consisting of 3-5 kana) requiring you to both recognize and produce each kana before proceeding further. These drills also require you to read and write complete Japanese words containing the kana you have just studied. Conveniently, these drills continu-ously reinforce your knowledge of kana studied in previous rows. They also allow you to master a vocabulary of over 1,000 words, if you require yourself to remember the English equivalent of each kana example word.

At the conclusion of each lesson, a varied sequence of Lesson Tests (reading, writing, fill in the blank, and timed rec-ognition) ensures that you have thoroughly mastered the set before proceeding to the next one. At the conclusion of the kana courses, a series of Comprehensive Tests ensures that you are truly ready to meet the challenges of phonetic reading and writing in real-world Japanese.

An exceptional feature of this course is the lesson and tests on Gojūon Collation, an essential skill for organizing and locating information in Japanese. Additional features include special units on Easily Confused Hiragana and Easily Confused Katakana, and Examples Lists for convenient reference or self-testing.

15

GUIDE TO THE KANA KEYS COURSE

Which to study first – hiragana or katakana?In keeping with typical curricula for introductory Japanese courses, the Hiragana Course precedes the Kataka-na Course in the Main Menu. Yet the two courses are completely independent and non-cumulative (other than a handful of hiragana embedded in example words for katakana characters). If you are already in Japan or are about to travel there, consider studying the katakana first, as these will be more immediately useful to you. On the other hand, if you are enrolled in a Japanese course, there may be strong reasons to start with hiragana (con-sult with your teacher).

How to studyLaunch the app, and confirm that the voice files are activated in the Settings menu (and that your device’s sound is turned on). Within either the Hiragana Course or Katakana Course, open the first lesson and tap the “Study” button, or the initial consonant of a row you would like to study.

When you reach the first “Study Card” (a screen containing a pencil icon), open the workbook to the page corre-sponding to the lesson and row you have opened in the app, and practice writing the kana in the spaces provid-ed. Follow the guide character closely. If you do not have the workbook and a writing instrument at hand, tap the pencil icon to use the Writing Practice Tool built into the app.

When you have finished the writing practice for a character, swipe the app forward to the next screen, try to remember the sound of the new character shown, then swipe again to display its Study Card and hear its pronun-ciation. Use the next column in the workbook to practice writing it.

When you reach a Study Card that contains examples (starting from the second character in the Hiragana Course and the sixth character in the Katakana Course), try to pronounce them, then tap the Uncollapse button to con-firm their readings and view any notes that may be provided for that character.

Repeat this process for each character in the row, until you reach the drill at the end of the row. Do the reading portions of the drill with the app alone. For the writing portions of the drill, do not use the writing field within the app; instead, use the row’s drill section in the workbook. When you have finished writing the character or word being drilled, tap outside the writing field in the app to display the answer. Tap the green bar if you have written the character or word correctly, or the red bar if you have written it incorrectly. Items answered incorrectly will appear again at the end of the drill, until answered correctly.

Repeat the above pattern with each row in the lesson. When you have completed the lesson, the workbook will prompt you with instructions for taking the tests corresponding to that lesson. Take these tests in the order shown in the Study Schedules. Use the app alone for the reading tests (these are marked “あ → A” in the app), fill in the blanks test, and timed recognition test. For the writing tests (A → あ), proceed as with the writing drills, using the lesson test sections provided in the workbook. As with the drill sections for each row, the lesson test sections provide extra squares for spacing and repeating items.

When you have completed both kana courses, use the Comprehensive Tests to practice reading and writing both hiragana and katakana at once, just as you will need to do in real-life Japanese. The penultimate chapter of the workbook provides space for completing as many of the Comprehensive Writing Tests as you like.

16

4. KANA KEYS STUDY SCHEDULES ・学習スケジュール

Select one of the study schedules in this section to organize your studies according to your own preferred pace. The ta-ble on this page, translated into Japanese as a courtesy to instructors, makes it easy to map out a study plan to match a fixed timeframe, such as an academic term.

先生方へ：学生たちの仮名学習計画を立てるため、本章において四つのスケジュールを提供します。本ページの比較表をご利用いただけば、学期に合わせた学習プランを簡単に作成することができます。

学習スケジュールの比較詳細は個々の課程表参照

Table of study schedulesSee individual study schedules for assignments

≅ 100 mins.×

24 lessons

≅ 90 mins.×

27 lessons

≅ 80 mins.×

30 lessons

≅ 60 mins.×

40 lessons

6 days 4 les./day

8 days 3 les./day

9 days 3 les./day

12 days 2 les./day

13.5 days 2 les./day

15 days 2 les./day

20 days 2 les./day

24 days 1 les./day

27 days 1 les./day

30 days 1 les./day

40 days 1 les./day

6 wks 4 les./week 5 les./week

7 wks 4 les./week


9 wks 3 les./week


12 wks 2 les./week

13.3 wks 3 les./week

13.5 wks 2 les./week

15 wks 2 les./week

20 wks 2 les./week

≅ 100分×

24課

≅ 90分×

27課

≅ 80分×

30課

≅ 60分×

40課

6 日間毎日４課

8 日間毎日３課

9 日間毎日３課

12 日間毎日２課

13.5 日間毎日２課



24 日間毎日１課




6 週間毎週４課毎週５課

7 週間毎週４課

8 週間毎週３課毎週５課

9 週間毎週３課

10 週間毎週３課毎週４課

12 週間毎週２課

13.3 週間毎週３課

13.5 週間毎週２課



17

Kana Keys in lessons of about 100 minutes ・毎回約１００分の学習スケジュール24 lessons ・ 24 課

OVERVIEW ・紹介Japanese Phonetic Writing

1 ≅ 1:30Guide to This Course

HIRAGANA COURSE ・平仮名コース

Seion/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

あ Row - さ Row 2 ≅ 1:36た Row - は Row 3 ≅ 1:56ま Row - ら Row 4 ≅ 1:37わ Row - ん

5 ≅ 1:38

Seion/Tests/

Monographs

Reading tests (あ→A)

Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2

Writing tests (A→あ)

Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2

6 ≅ 1:46Other testsFill in the blanks

Timed recognition

Seion/Lessons/Digraphs

Studysequences

きゃ Row - にゃ Row

ひゃ Row - りゃ Row

7 ≅ 1:52Seion/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words

Other testsFill in the blanks

Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

が Row

ざ Row - だ Row 8 ≅ 1:26ば Row - ぱ Row

9 ≅ 2:06

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2

10 ≅ 1:51


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequencesAll rows

Dakuon/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

KATAKANA COURSE ・片仮名コースSeion/

Lessons/Monographs

Studysequences

ア Row - タ Row 11 ≅ 1:30ナ Row - マ Row 12 ≅ 1:48ヤ Row - ン


MonographsReading tests

(あ→A)

Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2

Seion/Tests/

Monographs(continued)


Syllables

14 ≅ 1:38Example words 1, 2


Timed recognition


Studysequences All rows

15 ≅ 1:49

Seion/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


16 ≅ 1:36Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequencesガ Row - ザ Row

ダ Row - パ Row 17 ≅ 1:46

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

18 ≅ 1:31

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

Example words 1, 2


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequences All rows

19 ≅ 1:30Dakuon/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Tokushuon/Lessons

Studysequences

クィ Row - ディ Row 20 ≅ 1:24ファ Row - ヴァ Row 21 ≅ 1:25

Tokushuon/Tests


Shuffled table

22 ≅ 1:15

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

COMPREHENSIVE TESTS ・総合試験Reading Tests 1 - 3

23 ≅ 1:30Writing Tests 1 - 6

GOJŪON COLLATION ・五十音順Gojūon Collation Lesson

24 ≅ 1:55GojūonLookupTests

Hiragana 5 tests

Katakana 5 tests

Mixed 10 tests

STUDY SCHEDULES

18

STUDY SCHEDULES

Kana Keys in lessons of about 90 minutes ・毎回約９０分の学習スケジュール27 lessons ・ 27 課




Seion/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

あ Row - さ Row 2 ≅ 1:36た Row - は Row 3 ≅ 1:16ま Row - ら Row 4 ≅ 1:40わ Row - ん

5 ≅ 1:29

Seion/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

6 ≅ 1:40Example words 1

Example words 2


Timed recognition


Studysequences All rows 7 ≅ 1:27

Seion/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

8 ≅ 1:18

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

が Row

ざ Row - だ Row 9 ≅ 1:26ば Row - ぱ Row 10 ≅ 1:21

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

11 ≅ 1:31

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequencesAll rows


Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

KATAKANA COURSE ・片仮名コースSeion/

Lessons/Monographs

Studysequences

ア Row - タ Row 13 ≅ 1:30ナ Row - マ Row 14 ≅ 1:48ヤ Row - ン



(あ→A)

Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2

Seion/Tests/



Syllables



Timed recognition




Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequencesガ Row - ザ Row 18 ≅ 1:31ダ Row - パ Row 19 ≅ 1:46

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

20 ≅ 1:31

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

Example words 1, 2


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequences All rows


Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Tokushuon/Lessons

Studysequences

クィ Row - ディ Row 22 ≅ 1:24ファ Row - ヴァ Row 23 ≅ 1:25

Tokushuon/Tests


Shuffled table

24 ≅ 1:15

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition





Hiragana 5 tests

Katakana 5 tests

Mixed 10 tests 27 ≅ 1:00

19

STUDY SCHEDULES

Kana Keys in lessons of about 80 minutes ・毎回約８０分の学習スケジュール30 lessons ・ 30 課




Seion/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

あ Row - さ Row 2 ≅ 1:36た Row - は Row 3 ≅ 1:16ま Row - ら Row 4 ≅ 1:17わ Row - ん 5 ≅ 1:21

Seion/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table



Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2


Timed recognition


Studysequences

きゃ Row - しゃ Row

ちゃ Row - りゃ Row

8 ≅ 1:11

Seion/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

が Row

ざ Row - だ Row 10 ≅ 1:26ば Row - ぱ Row 11 ≅ 1:21

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table



Syllables

Example words 1, 2


13 ≅ 1:12

Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequencesAll rows

Dakuon/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

KATAKANA COURSE ・片仮名コース

Seion/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

ア Row - タ Row 14 ≅ 1:30ナ Row - ハ Row 15 ≅ 1:08マ Row - ヤ Row 16 ≅ 1:04ラ Row - ン



(あ→A)

Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2

Seion/Tests/



Syllables



Timed recognition

19 ≅ 1:27Seion/Lessons/Digraphs


Seion/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

20 ≅ 1:16

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

ガ Row

ザ Row - ダ Row 21 ≅ 1:14バ Row - パ Row 22 ≅ 1:18

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

23 ≅ 1:31

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

Example words 1, 2


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequences All rows

24 ≅ 1:28

Dakuon/Tests/

Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


25 ≅ 1:26Timed recognition

Tokushuon/Lessons

Studysequences

クィ Row - ディ Row

ファ Row - ヴァ Row 26 ≅ 1:25

Tokushuon/Tests


Shuffled table

27 ≅ 1:15

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition





Hiragana 5 tests

Katakana 5 tests


20

STUDY SCHEDULES

Kana Keys in lessons of about 60 minutes ・毎回約６０分の学習スケジュール40 lessons ・ 40 課

OVERVIEW ・紹介Japanese Phonetic Writing (through “Tokushuon”) 1 ≅ 0:50

Rest of Japanese Phonetic Writing & Guide to This Course 2 ≅ 0:40


Seion/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

あ Row - か Row 3 ≅ 1:00さ Row - た Row 4 ≅ 1:13な Row - は Row 5 ≅ 1:18ま Row - や Row 6 ≅ 1:00ら Row - ん 7 ≅ 0:58

Seion/Tests/

Monographs

Reading tests(あ→A)

Shuffled table



Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2


Timed recognition


Studysequences

きゃ Row

しゃ Row - みゃ Row 10 ≅ 1:00りゃ Row


Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

が Row 12 ≅ 0:41ざ Row 13 ≅ 0:43だ Row 14 ≅ 0:43ば Row 15 ≅ 0:44ぱ Row

16 ≅ 0:58

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table

Example words 1, 2


Syllables

Example words 1, 2

17 ≅ 1:10Other tests

Fill in the blanks

Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequencesAll rows


Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

KATAKANA COURSE ・片仮名コース

Seion/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

ア Row - サ Row 19 ≅ 0:52ナ Row - ナ Row 20 ≅ 1:11ハ Row - マ Row 21 ≅ 1:14ヤ Row - ラ 22 ≅ 1:04ワ Row - ン 23 ...

Seion/Tests/



Shuffled table



Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2


Fill in the blanks

Timed recognition


Studysequences

キャ Row - ヒャ Row 25 ≅ 1:02ミャ Row - リャ Row


Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

MonographsStudy

sequences

ガ Row 27 ≅ 0:44ザ Row - ダ Row 28 ≅ 1:14バ Row - パ Row 29 ≅ 1:18

Dakuon/Tests/

Monographs


Shuffled table



Syllables

Example words 1

Example words 2


Timed recognition

Dakuon/Lessons/

DigraphsStudy

sequencesギャ Row

ジャ Row - ピャ Row


Digraphs


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Timed recognition

Tokushuon/Lessons

Studysequences

クィ Row - ツァ Row 33 ≅ 1:05ディ Row - ウィ Row 34 ≅ 1:07ヴァ Row

35 ≅ 0:53

Tokushuon/Tests


Shuffled table

Example words


Syllables

Example words


Fill in the blanks

Timed recognition

COMPREHENSIVE TESTS ・総合試験Reading Tests 1-3 & Writing Tests 1-2 37 ≅ 0:42

Writing Tests 3-6 38 ≅ 0:48



Hiragana 5 tests

Katakana 5 tests


THE KANA KEYS WORKBOOK

Companion to the Kana Keys app

US $9.99 on Amazon

(102 pages)

The Kana Keys Workbook provides the most conve-nient way to combine the powerful features of the Kana Keys app with the obvious benefits of writing with pen on paper. Following the app’s curriculum lesson by lesson, drill by drill, and test by test, the Workbook makes it easy for you to track your progress and experience a sense of material accomplishment. Whenever possible, use the Workbook for practice, drills, and tests, in lieu of the touch pad writing practice feature built into the app.

In addition to providing printed versions of the main materials in this booklet, The Kana Keys Workbook inte-grates several important features to assist learners:

• Ample space for practicing all of Kana Keys’ 235 characters and variants, as well as every one of its drills, lesson tests, and comprehensive tests for kana writing.

• Guidance for mastering proper stroke forms and or-der. Each basic kana character is displayed with its stroke order. Both the guide characters and the practice squares are cross-hatched to help you achieve precise form.

• Typeface variation. Each character is shown in four dis-tinct typefaces to illustrate the range of variation among proper kana forms.

• Cumulative examples. Each character is shown with its sample vocabulary from the app, incorporating only pre-viously learned characters to provide automatic review.

THE ULTIMATE KANA WALL CHARTA visual guide to Japanese phonetic writing

Workstation size (31×44cm/12.25×17.25in): US$14.99. This compact size is ideal for posting above a desk or laying under a translucent desk pad. Available on Ama-zon:

amzn.to/24vKorEThe Ultimate Kana Wall Chart arranges all 249 kana syl-lable variations into an illuminating visual framework that allows learners to readily perceive the underlying phono-logical structure of the Japanese language. Its detailed color display reinforces learners’ grasp of kana order and clarifies the principles behind how kana are written, pronounced and romanized. Post it beside your desk — or lay it under a translucent desk pad — for convenient reference as you learn to write and type in Japanese.

Unlike virtually all other kana charts, The Ultimate Kana Wall Chart does not ignore or detach kana variants and combinations, but integrates them into an single frame-work permitting learners to grasp how the writing system works as a unified whole. Far more than a simple “Fifty sounds table”, this chart systematizes the kana in all their surprising complexity, giving learners a comprehensive view of Japanese sound structure from the standpoint of both Roman letters (important for their use in typing) and native kana.

In addition to illustrating the systematic nature of Japa-nese phonology, The Ultimate Kana Wall Chart conve-niently integrates numerous elements of kana instruction into a clear, concise, and attractive visual presentation:

• Guidance for alphabetical keyboard input. The chart guides learners in the important task of mastering the Roman spellings required to input Japanese text on an alphabetical keyboard, including guidance on special exceptions and how to save keystrokes.

• Irregular readings and spellings. Special symbols and annotations allow learners to easily identify irregular readings & spellings, and master the different approach-es to typing them.

• Alternative romanization patterns. The principles un-derpinning Hepburn and Kunrei romanization — and the similarities and differences between these two systems — are clarified both graphically and textually.

• Tokushuon (transcription katakana). Unlike most kana charts, this poster displays the special katakana combi-nations used in the transcription of non-Japanese words, along with a helpful introduction and thorough guidance on alternative kana and irregular spellings required for keyboard input.

• Stroke order. The stroke order for each basic kana character is subtly displayed for convenient reference.

• Kana sources. The chart displays the original source of each hiragana and katakana character in the seventh-cen-tury Man’yôgana, a set of Chinese characters the Japa-nese borrowed as phonetic symbols.

• Enlarged characters. The 92 base characters are dis-played in large size for viewing at a greater distance.

THE KODANSHA KANJI LEARNER’S COURSEA step-by-step guide to mastering 2,300 characters

The Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Course is a step-by-step guide to mastering all the kanji needed for genuine liter-acy in Japanese. The 2,300 entries adeptly integrate the three essential elements for mastering kanji meanings:• Accurate keywords. Each character’s core meaning

is encapsulated into a concise, easily memorized key-word. The keywords for all 2,300 entries have been carefully chosen to be semantically accurate and to integrate the character’s various senses into a core concept.

• Key vocabulary to illustrate meaning and usage. The concept captured in each keyword is illustrated with up to five sample words and phrases, carefully selected to clarify how the kanji is used in building typical words and phrases.

• An unparalleled system of mnemonic aids. Each entry contains an original mnemonic aid that is care-fully designed to help learners remember the char-acter’s core meanings. Mnemonic keys pay special attention to helping learners immediately recognize each kanji and distinguish it from similar ones.

A self-guiding, self-reinforcing curriculumThe Course arranges all the information needed to master 2,300 characters into a streamlined, self-guiding, and mnemonically self-reinforcing curriculum. The course follows a sequence that aids learning by introducing kanji components step by step, by grouping related kanji together, and by teaching kanji in rough order of impor-tance. Moreover, sample compounds include only such kanji as have previously been learned. This ensures that learners are able to understand and use each compound, and provides a built-in review of all the kanji already studied.

The ultimate kanji learning resource• Provides a sophisticated, pedagogically sound

method for remembering the core meaning of each kanji, conveniently summarized in concise keywords to facilitate memorization.

• Introduces the meaning and usage of each graph-eme the first time it appears, helping learners seam-lessly acquire new kanji based on a sound under-standing of their component parts.

• Innovatively uses concrete imagery to simplify com-plex characters and make their meanings immediate-ly recognizable in their graphical forms.

• Teaches characters in a pedagogically effective sequence, presenting graphically related characters together to help learners give significance to their contrastive features as they learn them, and thereby avoid having to re-learn them later.

• Helps learners actively apply each character’s prin-cipal meanings and readings using key vocabulary words, carefully chosen to illustrate the character’s usage.

• Helps learners differentiate among graphically similar kanji by showing how to remember the char-acters in a mutually contrastive manner that connects their graphical distinctions to their underlying seman-tic differences. Along the way, the course introduces nearly 800 pairs of easily confused kanji.

• Helps students learn to write kanji accurately, by indi-cating each kanji’s stroke order and placing careful emphasis on distinctions among similar characters.

• Includes all the kanji needed for genuine literacy.• Extensive cross-referencing allows learners to easily

find the entries of lookalike kanji, as well as all kanji appearing in the sample compounds.

As a kanji learning tool, this book has no peer… Absolutely essential for

all students of Japanese!

– Robert Nagell

Available on Amazon: amzn.to/1Os6OgT

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