Japanese Culture

To write a word in Japanese, you will use one or more of the three Japanese scripts, or character sets. The base set is kanji, a set of complex characters derived from the Chinese writing system....

Japanese is a difficult language - but, then, so is English. The best way to approach learning a new language is to use a variety of different study methods, and to remember one very important...

The Japanese language consists of a combination of three different character, or symbol, sets: Kanji (Chinese characters) are often considered a simplified version of Chinese characters, and...

Learning Kanji is probably the most difficult task in learning Japanese. The Japanese regularly use about 2,000 of these characters, which are borrowed from Chinese. They range from simple to...

Rosetta Stone is a world-wide leader in language-learning software. They offer language learning software programs in over 30 different languages including Japanese. To learn Japanese with Rosetta...

In Japanese, the word "manga" is generally written in either kanji (漫") or katana (マンガ). The kanji characters for "manga" literally mean "cartoon pictures" and can be...

For non-native speakers, Japanese can be a challenging language to learn, and an even more challenging language to write. The written language uses a combination of three sets of characters. The...

This article introduces simple instructions for building a set of kanji flashcards to study Japanese and offers tips for materials, character lists, and study methods.

In order to write the word "konnichiwa" in Japanese, it is important to know hiragana. Hiragana is just one part of the Japanese writing system in which each character represents a sound. The...

If you're studying Japanese, you know that it is among the hardest languages to learn - in part because it has one of the most complex writing systems. Unless you already know traditional Chinese...

Learning Japanese ("nihongo") requires a titanic effort. The Foreign Service Institute rates Japanese as a Category III language, meaning it requires 2,200 classroom hours to learn. If you do...

If you have ever been interested in learning how to speak Japanese in its true form, consider committing to self-study. By obtaining the proper learning tools and staying patient, you can learn...

One of the more difficult aspects of learning the Japanese language involves mastering the use of Kanji characters. However, by identifying the study methods most effective for you and allocating...

Understanding the meaning, spelling and pronunciation of some Japanese names can be difficult for many Westerners. Both beautiful and complex, there's often a discrepancy between how Japanese...

Have plans to travel to the Land of the Rising Sun? If you do, it's in your best interest to learn at least a little Japanese. Follow these tips to get started before your trip--or just for fun!

Japanese characters, also known as kanji, are often classified by their stroke count, which is the number of individual lines required to write the character. Since single strokes can at times...

When writing Japanese characters (kanji), there's a proper stroke order to be observed for each character. Although some deviate from the standard rules, there are still basics to follow to make...

Kanji is the oldest of three writing systems used in Japan today and utilizing Kanji in tattoo designs remains one of the more popular things individuals choose when getting inked. Like any...

Known as irezumi or horimono in its native tongue, the beautiful art of traditional Japanese tattooing has been alluring people for centuries. Almost as old as the culture itself, this art infuses...