Learning Japanese

[TheyCallMeTheSwede]

Recently I have been on and off with Japanese and I really want to get back to it. I was at Barns and Nobel thinking maybe I'll try buying myself some Japanese handbooks, little did I know, I felt overwhelmed with the selection of books and programs that where out there, I generally don't know which one I should go with, I am aware of stuff like Rosseta Stone, but I herd that it does not teach you everything, and I am aware of Pimsleur but its too expensive (oh and I pirated it), IMO I enjoyed Pimsleur, so I was hoping for something along the lines of that.

What do you guys recommend.

[BoringSupreez]

I've been using Rosetta Stone, so I can't recommend any specific books. But I'd check your library before I payed for anything if I were you.

And I have a question about the language for myself: is it really true that there are no cuss words in Japanese?

[brunoafh]

Rosetta Stone isn't bad per se, but it seems to be designed for teaching you phrases and terms quickly (mainly for people that have to take a trip to Japan for business and have no desire to learn the language in-depth, I would assume) rather than trying to actually give you a footing in the language. Relying on it heavily will probably hurt more than help in the long run.

Learning it independently will be very difficult. A tutor or classes would help tremendously. If you don't have access to either of those, I'd suggest first and foremost learning kana. Reading very basic books written in Japanese (like children's books and stuff) will be a lot of help once you get going. Manga and video games are very helpful too, actually, albeit on a basic level (or at least I found this to be true).

Once you're familiar with some basic sentence structure and have kana memorized, buy a kanji dictionary and start memorizing a few symbols a day (or whatever suits your pace). I can personally recommend this one. It teaches you kanji based on grade level, explains how each character came to be (historically), teaches stroke order, and provides some useful mnemonics.

I believe it's also important to try to not relate it to English, as this will only confuse you. Try to see it as learning something entirely new.

I'm sure some other members here will be able to give you a better answer.

[Para]

Rosetta Stone is really expensive last time I looked into it. I think your best bet would be to find a local school or class that is teaching it.

[Limewater]

I think I'm learning Japanese.


I really think so.




Also, +1 on checking the library. They might have a license for Pimsleur so you can check out the lessons.

[Bradtemple87]

Japanese is tough. I studied two years in high school but fell out of practice quickly. Having the culture active around you will speed up the process!

[NeverGoBak]

Japanese is tough. I studied two years in high school but fell out of practice quickly. Having the culture active around you will speed up the process!

My high school only offers Spanish and French, so lame!

[(-_-)]

I've been using Rosetta stone as well along with another program I found called Human Japanese. It's similar to a textbook but not nearly as boring or dense and it's enjoyable to read. It's got different memorization activities scattered throughout it as well and will throw in interesting facts of information to keep things from getting dry.

[Bradtemple87]

Japanese is tough. I studied two years in high school but fell out of practice quickly. Having the culture active around you will speed up the process!

My high school only offers Spanish and French, so lame!

Its not very easy to find in the school system

[Inazuma]

I became fluent in Japanese after only 2 years. 2 years may not sound like much, but I spent most of my time being immersed in the language. I played the Japanese version of Phantasy Star Online Blue Burst as much as possible, along with watching anime while I ate. I also listened to Japanese music in the car.

I learned it the same way I learned English as a baby. Immersion. You put yourself in an environment that is all Japanese, and you have to learn it to survive in that world.