Introduction
I write this article as documentation to help me learn Japanese (日本語 nihongo). This article will cover the basics of the Japanese language, including the Japanese writing systems (hiragana, katakana), numbers, time, days, months, and years. I hope this article will help you learn Japanese as well. Let’s get started!
Hiraganas (平仮名/hira-gana)
The Japanese hiragana system (平仮名 hira-gana) is used to write native Japanese words, grammatical elements, and particles. The hiragana system consists of 46 characters.
| あ (a) | い (i) | う (u) | え (e) | お (o) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| か (ka) | き (ki) | く (ku) | け (ke) | こ (ko) |
| さ (sa) | し (shi) | す (su) | せ (se) | そ (so) |
| た (ta) | ち (chi) | つ (tsu) | て (te) | と (to) |
| な (na) | に (ni) | ぬ (nu) | ね (ne) | の (no) |
| は (ha) | ひ (hi) | ふ (fu) | へ (he) | ほ (ho) |
| ま (ma) | み (mi) | む (mu) | め (me) | も (mo) |
| や (ya) | ゆ (yu) | よ (yo) | ||
| ら (ra) | り (ri) | る (ru) | れ (re) | ろ (ro) |
| わ (wa) | を (wo) | |||
| ん (n) |
Dakutens and Handakutens
Some hiragana characters have dakuten (濁点) and handakuten (半濁点) to indicate the voiced and semi-voiced consonants. The dakuten is represented by two small dots ( ゛) and the handakuten is represented by a small circle ( ゜) after the hiragana character.
| が (ga) | ぎ (gi) | ぐ (gu) | げ (ge) | ご (go) |
| ざ (za) | じ (ji) | ず (zu) | ぜ (ze) | ぞ (zo) |
| だ (da) | ぢ (ji) | づ (zu) | で (de) | ど (do) |
| ば (ba) | び (bi) | ぶ (bu) | べ (be) | ぼ (bo) |
| ぱ (pa) | ぴ (pi) | ぷ (pu) | ぺ (pe) | ぽ (po) |
Yoons (拗音)
Some hiragana characters have a small version called yoon (拗音) which is used to indicate the contracted sounds. The yoon is represented by a small ya, yu, or yo after the hiragana character.
| きゃ (kya) | きゅ (kyu) | きょ (kyo) |
| しゃ (sha) | しゅ (shu) | しょ (sho) |
| ちゃ (cha) | ちゅ (chu) | ちょ (cho) |
| にゃ (nya) | にゅ (nyu) | にょ (nyo) |
| ひゃ (hya) | ひゅ (hyu) | ひょ (hyo) |
| みゃ (mya) | みゅ (myu) | みょ (myo) |
| りゃ (rya) | りゅ (ryu) | りょ (ryo) |
Katakanas (片仮名/kata-kana)
The Japanese katakana system (片仮名 kata-kana) is used to write foreign words, onomatopoeic words, scientific names, and technical terms. The katakana system is based on the Chinese kanji system, but it’s simplified and used for phonetic sounds. The katakana system consists of 46 characters.
| ア (a) | イ (i) | ウ (u) | エ (e) | オ (o) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| カ (ka) | キ (ki) | ク (ku) | ケ (ke) | コ (ko) |
| サ (sa) | シ (shi) | ス (su) | セ (se) | ソ (so) |
| タ (ta) | チ (chi) | ツ (tsu) | テ (te) | ト (to) |
| ナ (na) | ニ (ni) | ヌ (nu) | ネ (ne) | ノ (no) |
| ハ (ha) | ヒ (hi) | フ (fu) | ヘ (he) | ホ (ho) |
| マ (ma) | ミ (mi) | ム (mu) | メ (me) | モ (mo) |
| ヤ (ya) | ユ (yu) | ヨ (yo) | ||
| ラ (ra) | リ (ri) | ル (ru) | レ (re) | ロ (ro) |
| ワ (wa) | ヲ (wo) | |||
| ン (n) |
Dakutens and Handakutens
The katakana system also has dakuten (濁点) and handakuten (半濁点) to indicate the voiced and semi-voiced consonants.
| ガ (ga) | ギ (gi) | グ (gu) | ゲ (ge) | ゴ (go) |
| ザ (za) | ジ (ji) | ズ (zu) | ゼ (ze) | ゾ (zo) |
| ダ (da) | ヂ (ji) | ヅ (zu) | デ (de) | ド (do) |
| バ (ba) | ビ (bi) | ブ (bu) | ベ (be) | ボ (bo) |
| パ (pa) | ピ (pi) | プ (pu) | ペ (pe) | ポ (po) |
Yoons (拗音)
The katakana system also has yoon (拗音) to indicate the contracted sounds.
| キャ (kya) | キュ (kyu) | キョ (kyo) |
| シャ (sha) | シュ (shu) | ショ (sho) |
| チャ (cha) | チュ (chu) | チョ (cho) |
| ニャ (nya) | ニュ (nyu) | ニョ (nyo) |
| ヒャ (hya) | ヒュ (hyu) | ヒョ (hyo) |
| ミャ (mya) | ミュ (myu) | ミョ (myo) |
| リャ (rya) | リュ (ryu) | リョ (ryo) |
Hiraganas + Katakanas
The Japanese hiragana and katakana systems are used together to write Japanese words, foreign words, and technical terms. The hiragana system is used to write native Japanese words, grammatical elements, and particles. The katakana system is used to write foreign words, onomatopoeic words, scientific names, and technical terms.
| あ (a) | ア (a) | い (i) | イ (i) | う (u) | ウ (u) | え (e) | エ (e) | お (o) | オ (o) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| か (ka) | カ (ka) | き (ki) | キ (ki) | く (ku) | ク (ku) | け (ke) | ケ (ke) | こ (ko) | コ (ko) |
| さ (sa) | サ (sa) | し (shi) | シ (shi) | す (su) | ス (su) | せ (se) | セ (se) | そ (so) | ソ (so) |
| た (ta) | タ (ta) | ち (chi) | チ (chi) | つ (tsu) | ツ (tsu) | て (te) | テ (te) | と (to) | ト (to) |
| な (na) | ナ (na) | に (ni) | ニ (ni) | ぬ (nu) | ヌ (nu) | ね (ne) | ネ (ne) | の (no) | ノ (no) |
| は (ha) | ハ (ha) | ひ (hi) | ヒ (hi) | ふ (fu) | フ (fu) | へ (he) | ヘ (he) | ほ (ho) | ホ (ho) |
| ま (ma) | マ (ma) | み (mi) | ミ (mi) | む (mu) | ム (mu) | め (me) | メ (me) | も (mo) | モ (mo) |
| や (ya) | ヤ (ya) | ゆ (yu) | ユ (yu) | よ (yo) | ヨ (yo) | ||||
| ら (ra) | ラ (ra) | り (ri) | リ (ri) | る (ru) | ル (ru) | れ (re) | レ (re) | ろ (ro) | ロ (ro) |
| わ (wa) | ワ (wa) | ゑ (we) | ヱ (we) | を (wo) | ヲ (wo) | ||||
| ん (n) | ン (n) |
Numbers (数/san-su)
The Japanese number system (数 san-su) is quite different from the English number system. The Japanese number system is based on the Chinese number system, and the grouping of large numbers is done in units of four zeros, not three zeros as is done in the English number system.
The first ten numbers in Japanese are as follows:
| Arabic | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 零 | ゼロ | zero |
| 1 | 一 | いち | ichi |
| 2 | 二 | に | ni |
| 3 | 三 | さん | san |
| 4 | 四 | よん | yon |
| 5 | 五 | ご | go |
| 6 | 六 | ろく | roku |
| 7 | 七 | しち/なな | shichi/nana |
| 8 | 八 | はち | hachi |
| 9 | 九 | きゅう | kyuu |
| 10 | 十 | じゅう | juu |
The numbers 1 to 10 are the building blocks of the Japanese number system. The numbers 11 to 19 are formed by adding the numbers 1 to 9 to the end of the number 10.
| Arabic | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 十一 | じゅういち | juuichi |
| 12 | 十二 | じゅうに | juuni |
| 13 | 十三 | じゅうさん | juusan |
| 14 | 十四 | じゅうよん | juuyon |
| 15 | 十五 | じゅうご | juugo |
| 16 | 十六 | じゅうろく | juuroku |
| 17 | 十七 | じゅうしち | juushichi |
| 18 | 十八 | じゅうはち | juuhachi |
| 19 | 十九 | じゅうきゅう | juukyuu |
The numbers 20 to 90 are formed by adding the numbers 2 to 9 to the end of the number 10. The numbers 21 to 99 are formed by adding the numbers 1 to 9 to the end of the number 20 to 90.
| Arabic | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 二十 | にじゅう | nijuu |
| 21 | 二十一 | にじゅういち | nijuuichi |
| 30 | 三十 | さんじゅう | sanjuu |
| 40 | 四十 | よんじゅう | yonjuu |
| 50 | 五十 | ごじゅう | gojuu |
| 60 | 六十 | ろくじゅう | rokujuu |
| 70 | 七十 | しちじゅう | shichijuu |
| 80 | 八十 | はちじゅう | hachijuu |
| 90 | 九十 | きゅうじゅう | kyuujuu |
| 99 | 九十九 | きゅうじゅうきゅう | kyuujuukyuu |
The numbers 100 to 900 are formed by adding the numbers 1 to 9 to the end of the number 100. The numbers 101 to 999 are formed by adding the numbers 1 to 99 to the end of the number 100 to 900.
| Arabic | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 百 | ひゃく | hyaku |
| 101 | 百一 | ひゃくいち | hyakuichi |
| 420 | 四百二十 | よんひゃくにじゅう | yonhyakunijuu |
| 1000 | 千 | せん | sen |
Time (時間/ji-kan)
The Japanese time system (時間 ji-kan) is 12-hour based, just like the English time system. If you want to specify the time in the afternoon (PM), you can add 午後 (ごご gogo) after the time. If you want to specify the time in the morning (AM), you can add 午前 (ごぜん gozen) after the time. For example, 3:00 PM is 三時 (さんじ sanji) 午後 (ごご gogo).
Hours (時/ji)
You can specify the time in hours by adding 時 (じ ji) after the number.
| Time | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:00 | 一時 | いちじ | ichiji |
| 2:00 | 二時 | にじ | niji |
| 3:00 | 三時 | さんじ | sanji |
| 4:00 | 四時 | よじ | yoji |
| 5:00 | 五時 | ごじ | goji |
| 6:00 | 六時 | ろくじ | rokuji |
| 7:00 | 七時 | しちじ | shichiji |
| 8:00 | 八時 | はちじ | hachiji |
| 9:00 | 九時 | くじ | kuji |
| 10:00 | 十時 | じゅうじ | juuji |
| 11:00 | 十一時 | じゅういちじ | juuichiji |
| 12:00 | 十二時 | じゅうにじ | juuniji |
Minutes (分/fun)
If you want to specify the minutes, you can add 分 (ふん fun) after the time.
| Time | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| :01 | 一分 | いっぷん | ippun |
| :02 | 二分 | にふん | nifun |
| :03 | 三分 | さんぷん | sanpun |
| :04 | 四分 | よんぷん | yonpun |
| :05 | 五分 | ごふん | gofun |
| :06 | 六分 | ろっぷん | roppun |
| :07 | 七分 | しちふん/ななふん | shichifun/nanafun |
| :08 | 八分 | はっぷん | happun |
| :09 | 九分 | きゅうふん | kyuufun |
| :10 | 十分 | じゅっぷん | juppun |
| :11 | 十一分 | じゅういっぷん | juuippun |
| :12 | 十二分 | じゅうにふん | juunifun |
| :30 | 三十 | さんじゅっぷん | sanjuppun |
| :45 | 四十五 | よんじゅうごふん | yonjuugofun |
Seconds (秒/byou)
What about seconds? You can add 秒 (びょう byou) after the minutes.
| Time | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| :01 | 一秒 | いちびょう | ichibyou |
| :02 | 二秒 | にびょう | nibyou |
| :03 | 三秒 | さんびょう | sanbyou |
| :04 | 四秒 | よんびょう | yonbyou |
| :05 | 五秒 | ごびょう | gobyou |
| :06 | 六秒 | ろくびょう | rokubyou |
| :07 | 七秒 | しちびょう/ななびょう | shichibyou/nanabyou |
| :08 | 八秒 | はちびょう | hachibyou |
| :09 | 九秒 | きゅうびょう | kyuubyou |
| :10 | 十秒 | じゅうびょう | juubyou |
| :11 | 十一秒 | じゅういちびょう | juuichibyou |
| :12 | 十二秒 | じゅうにびょう | juunibyou |
| :30 | 三十 | さんじゅっびょう | sanjubbyou |
| :45 | 四十五 | よんじゅうごびょう | yonjuugobyou |
Examples (例/rei)
You can combine the hours, minutes, and seconds to specify the time.
| Time | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:00 | 一時 | いちじ | ichiji |
| 2:30 | 二時半 | にじはん | nijihan |
| 3:45 | 三時四十五分 | さんじよんじゅうごふん | sanjiyonjuugofun |
| 6:12 | 六時十二分 | ろくじじゅうにふん | rokuji juunifun |
| 9:28 | 九時二十八分 | くじにじゅうはっぷん | kuji nijuu happun |
Days (日/nichi)
The Japanese day system (日 nichi) is based on the Chinese day system. The days of the week are named after the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water) and the two luminaries (sun and moon). They all end with 曜日 (ようび youbi) which means “day of the week”. The days of the week are as follows:
| Day | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | Element |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 日曜日 | にちようび | nichiyoubi | 日 (sun) |
| Monday | 月曜日 | げつようび | getsuyoubi | 月 (moon) |
| Tuesday | 火曜日 | かようび | kayoubi | 火 (fire) |
| Wednesday | 水曜日 | すいようび | suiyoubi | 水 (water) |
| Thursday | 木曜日 | もくようび | mokuyoubi | 木 (wood) |
| Friday | 金曜日 | きんようび | kinyoubi | 金 (metal) |
| Saturday | 土曜日 | どようび | doyoubi | 土 (earth) |
Relative Days (相対日/soutai-nichi)
You can also specify the days relative to today. The relative days are as follows:
| Relative Day | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 今日 | きょう | kyou |
| Tomorrow | 明日 | あした | ashita |
| Yesterday | 昨日 | きのう | kinou |
| Day After Tomorrow | 明後日 | あさって | asatte |
| Day Before Yesterday | 一昨日 | おととい | ototoi |
| Every Day | 毎日 | まいにち | mainichi |
| Weekday | 平日 | へいじつ | heijitsu |
| Weekend | 週末 | しゅうまつ | shuumatsu |
Relative Weeks (相対週/soutai-shuu)
You can also specify the week relative to the current week. The relative weeks are as follows:
| Relative Week | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| This Week | 今週 | こんしゅう | konshuu |
| Next Week | 来週 | らいしゅう | raishuu |
| Last Week | 先週 | せんしゅう | senshuu |
| Every Week | 毎週 | まいしゅう | maishuu |
Months (月/gatsu)
The Japanese month system (月 gatsu) is based on the Chinese month system. The months of the year are named after the twelve zodiac animals. The months of the year are as follows:
| # | Month | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | Zodiac Animal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | January | 一月 | いちがつ | ichigatsu | Rat (子 ne) |
| 2 | February | 二月 | にがつ | nigatsu | Ox (丑 ushi) |
| 3 | March | 三月 | さんがつ | sangatsu | Tiger (寅 tora) |
| 4 | April | 四月 | よんがつ | shigatsu | Rabbit (卯 u) |
| 5 | May | 五月 | ごがつ | gogatsu | Dragon (辰 tatsu) |
| 6 | June | 六月 | ろくがつ | rokugatsu | Snake (巳 mi) |
| 7 | July | 七月 | しちがつ | shichigatsu | Horse (午 uma) |
| 8 | August | 八月 | はちがつ | hachigatsu | Goat (未 hitsuji) |
| 9 | September | 九月 | くがつ | kugatsu | Monkey (申 saru) |
| 10 | October | 十月 | じゅうがつ | juugatsu | Rooster (酉 tori) |
| 11 | November | 十一月 | じゅういちがつ | juuichigatsu | Dog (戌 inu) |
| 12 | December | 十二月 | じゅうにがつ | juunigatsu | Pig (亥 i) |
Relative Months (相対月/soutai-gatsu)
You can also specify the months relative to the current month. The relative months are as follows:
| Relative Month | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| This Month | 今月 | こんげつ | kongetsu |
| Next Month | 来月 | らいげつ | raigetsu |
| Last Month | 先月 | せんげつ | sengetsu |
| Every Month | 毎月 | まいつき | maitsuki |
Years (年/nen)
The Japanese year system (年 nen) is based on the Chinese year system. The years of the year are named after the twelve zodiac animals, so it’s will repeat every 12 years. The sample years are as follows:
| # | Example Year | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | Zodiac Animal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2020 | 二千二十年 | にせんにじゅうねん | nisen nijuu nen | Rat (子 ne) |
| 2 | 2021 | 二千二十一年 | にせんにじゅういちねん | nisen nijuu ichi nen | Ox (丑 ushi) |
| 3 | 2022 | 二千二十二年 | にせんにじゅうにねん | nisen nijuu ni nen | Tiger (寅 tora) |
| 4 | 2023 | 二千二十三年 | にせんにじゅうさんねん | nisen nijuu san nen | Rabbit (卯 u) |
| 5 | 2024 | 二千二十四年 | にせんにじゅうよんねん | nisen nijuu yon nen | Dragon (辰 tatsu) |
| 6 | 2025 | 二千二十五年 | にせんにじゅうごねん | nisen nijuu go nen | Snake (巳 mi) |
| 7 | 2026 | 二千二十六年 | にせんにじゅうろくねん | nisen nijuu roku nen | Horse (午 uma) |
| 8 | 2027 | 二千二十七年 | にせんにじゅうしちねん | nisen nijuu shichi nen | Goat (未 hitsuji) |
| 9 | 2028 | 二千二十八年 | にせんにじゅうはちねん | nisen nijuu hachi nen | Monkey (申 saru) |
| 10 | 2029 | 二千二十九年 | にせんにじゅうきゅうねん | nisen nijuu kyuu nen | Rooster (酉 tori) |
| 11 | 2030 | 二千三十年 | にせんさんじゅうねん | nisen sanjuu nen | Dog (戌 inu) |
| 12 | 2031 | 二千三十一年 | にせんさんじゅういちねん | nisen sanjuu ichi nen | Pig (亥 i) |
| 2000 | 二千年 | にせんねん | nisen nen | Dragon (辰 tatsu) |
Relative Years (相対年/soutai-nen)
You can also specify the years relative to the current year. The relative years are as follows:
| Relative Year | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| This Year | 今年 | ことし | kotoshi |
| Next Year | 来年 | らいねん | rainen |
| Last Year | 去年 | きょねん | kyonen |
| Every Year | 毎年 | まいとし | maitoshi |
| Leap Year | 閏年 | うるうどし | uruudoshi |
Seasons (季節/ki-setu)
The Japanese season system (季節 ki-setu) is based on the Chinese season system. The seasons of the year are named after the four seasons. The seasons of the year are as follows:
| Season | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 春 | はる | haru |
| Summer | 夏 | なつ | natsu |
| Autumn | 秋 | あき | aki |
| Winter | 冬 | ふゆ | fuyu |
Color (色/iro)
The Japanese color system (色 iro) is based on the Chinese color system. The common colors in Japanese are as follows:
| Color | Kanji | Hiragana | Katakana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 赤 | あか | アカ | aka |
| Orange | 橙 | だいだい | オレンジ | daidai/orenji |
| Yellow | 黄 | きいろ | キイロ | kiiro |
| Green | 緑 | みどり | ミドリ | midori |
| Blue | 青 | あお | アオ | ao |
| Purple | 紫 | むらさき | ムラサキ | murasaki |
| Pink | 桃 | もも | ピンク | momo/pinku |
| Brown | 茶 | ちゃいろ | チャイロ | chairo |
| Black | 黒 | くろ | クロ | kuro |
| White | 白 | しろ | シロ | shiro |
| Gray | 灰 | はい | グレー | hai/gurei |
| Gold | 金 | きん | キン | kin |
| Silver | 銀 | ぎん | ギン | gin |
| Bronze | 銅 | どう | ドウ | dou |
| Light Blue | 水色 | みずいろ | ミズイロ | mizuiro |
| Greenish Yellow | 黄緑 | きみどり | キミドリ | kimidori |
Vocabulary (単語/tango)
Here are some useful Japanese vocabulary:
| English | Kanji | Hiragana | Katakana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I’m Didi | わたしはディディです | ワタシハディディデス | watashi wa didi desu | |
| Hello | こんにちは | コンニチワ | konnichiwa | |
| Goodbye | さよなら | サヨナラ | sayounara | |
| Yes | はい | ハイ | hai | |
| No | いいえ | イイエ | iie |