Japanese Resources
From HyogoAJET
There are numerous resources on the Internet that you can use to effectively study Japanese. Make sure you also consult the Living Guide for tips on learning Japanese.
Contents |
Learning, Language Acquisition
- Good Learner, Bad Learner: Says it all in a nutshell; for JETs who want to learn Japanese watch this.
- Katz on Language Acquisition: Many pertinent, useful points made in this "interview".
Dictionaries
- Space ALC: perhaps the most complete J-E and E-J dictionary available, with many example sentences.
- Jim Breen Dictionary: Very popular dictionary for learners of Japanese. Lots of example sentences and verb conjugation tables are just a few of the many, many features provided by this long running site.
- Goo Dictonary: Another very complete J-E/E-J dictionary.
- Sanseido: A J-J dictionary. It's very tough at first, but eventually you should start using a Japanese-Japanese dictionary to learn new words.
- Jisho.org: uses the Breen dictionaries and provides a very nice, clean, functional interface. There is also a keitai optimized version at: http://k.jisho.org.
- Yahoo.co.jp Dictionary: J-J, J-E, and J-thesaurus.
- Offline Dictionaries: JLookup, Wakan
General
- Rikaichan: A nice plugin for Firefox that lets you hover your mouse over Japanese text and get a definition in English, the pronunciation of the kanji, etc. Very, very useful, but if you are trying to learn to read kanji it is best not to rely entirely on it.
- Tae Kim's Guide to Japanese: An excellent guide to basic Japanese grammar. You can read it like a textbook, in progression, or refer to it simply when you forget a grammar point or what a better explanation. The forum on the site is also fairly active.
- Reading Japanese: A nice article with many helpful tips on learning to read Japanese.
Forums
- Reviewing the Kanji Forum: well trafficed and many good posts outside of the realm of kanji and the Heisig books.
- Tae Kim's Forum: very well trafficed with lots of good, general discussion of studying Japanese and the langauge.
- Gaijinpot Japanese Forum: I have not personally visited this one often, but the GP forums are probably some of the most heavily trafficed by foreigners in Japan so it is worth a look.
Kanji
- Reviewing the Kanji: If you are using the Heisig book, Remember the Kanji to study kanji, then this site is perfect for getting mnemonic suggestions, drilling yourself at a paced interval, and tracking your progress.
- Kanji Stroke Order Dictionary: Covers all the basic elementary school Japanese. Gives you both animated AND stroke-by-stroke guides. All in Japanese. If you have trouble getting all the Japanese to display properly on your English-language version of Windows then see this.
- Speed Anki: An interactive flashcard system designed to aid in the memorization of Japanese kanji and kanji compounds for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, separated into levels 1-4. With multiple options for front and back: kanji or hiragana,the English meaning and/or an example sentence. Cards can be sorted to separate the kanji by your familiarity with them. Register for a free account and the status of your cards will be saved.
- Kantango: Looks up words in romaji. When signed in, audio clips are included. Creating an account lets you create your own wordlists with flashcard option, share them, mark words for review, make quizzes and more.
- Search for kanji by radical: Many sites let you search for kanji by radical, but this one has a very nice, clean and modular interface.
- Kanji radical list (JE): At last! A nice listing of all the traditional Chinese radicals with the Japanese pronunciation & English meaning!!!
Blogs
- Nihongo Jouzu: A former JET who learned Japanese while on JET shares his tips and advice.
- All Japanese, All The Time: Good discussions about the process of learning Japanese itself.
Games
What better way to learn Japanese and kill time than play games in Japanese?
- Shougakkou Games & Lee Obaasan: Flash games for Japanese elementary school students, as well
Music
- Lyrics to Japanese Songs
- The Cherryblossom Garden: Lyrics to select Japanese songs, in both romanji and Japanese.
Learn in Context
- Yahoo Kids (Japan): They have a lot of content aimed at young kids. The "yomigana tsuru" is a nice, built-in rikaichan (without the English, of course).
- Yomiuri Letters Page: The concept is simple. People write short letters on various topics (life, love, child rearing, etc.) asking for people's advice and responses can be posted to the letters online. The letters are generally pretty short but you should probably have at least a 2kyuu level to really be able to read these even semi-comfortably with minimal dictionary help. It's fun to read about people's lives so this resource is a good one to remember to use when your Japanese gets to a certain level.
- Japanese Signs: Photos of Japanese signs. Practice reading them!
- Nihongo Juku: This blog provides casual reading material with audio by a native speaker for intermediate and advanced students of Japanese. Each entry includes a vocab list at the end.
- Google News Japan: Read the news in Japanese.
JLPT Studying
- ASK Books: a very nice series for prepping for the JLPT. They have books for level 3, 2, and 1.
- Level 2: Kanji, Grammar, Vocabulary, Reading
- Kanzen Master Series: I have only used the level-3 grammar reference but I found it VERY useful. The higher level books also come highly recommended.
- Level 2 Kanji List: A list of all level 2 kanji for the JLPT.
- Level 2 Grammar List: With English explanations and examples.
- Level 1 & 2 Study Guide: Tips for preparing for the higher levels of the JLPT.
- Practice Test: N-Lab
