Kanji help requested.

The White Wizard of Fynn · 11-15-2009, 01:29 PM

I've recently started attending a Japanese course. While the teacher said we'd cover all of hiragana and katakana quite quickly, she noted that we will not be able to cover all kanji this year. So I was wondering, EoFF, if any of you know where I can buy a good book - an exercise book, or dictionary - that will help me learn my kanji? Links to any online shops are very welcome.

Rye · 11-15-2009, 01:50 PM

Amazon is great for this stuff.

Though I might hold off on it. You don't want to touch any kanji until you get a good hold on hiragana. That's not too bad to learn, it took me about a month until I had it done perfectly (I wish I still knew it!), but katakana is tricky and takes longer, though I never learned it more since I stopped taking Japanese after the semester ended.

The White Wizard of Fynn · 11-15-2009, 01:54 PM

But I'll basically master hiragana in a day or two, 'cause I've been learning it for a while now and am getting beter and better by the day. I want a book that will let me check some kanji when I need them and learn them later on, when I'll be using hiragana and katakana freely.

Plus, I already know the kanji for watashi. I'm awesome.

ShlupQuack · 11-15-2009, 02:07 PM

The Summoner of Leviathan · 11-17-2009, 07:09 AM

There's a lot of online sources you can use.

Stroke order is something you'll want to consider it if you are learning to write it.

I find this to be a very good book. It has all the kanji you will need, their readings, meanings and examples of compounds. It will also have numbers beside each stroke indicating order as well as a picture showing what the written form (versus printed) looks like. A great preface that covers hiragana, katakana, punctuation and radicals too.

Flying Mullet · 11-17-2009, 01:46 PM

To keep her Japanese fresh, my wife bought a one-a-day kanji calendar. You could also look into one of these.

*Laurelindo* · 02:37 AM

Originally Posted by The White Wizard of Fynn ^

I've recently started attending a Japanese course. While the teacher said we'd cover all of hiragana and katakana quite quickly, she noted that we will not be able to cover all kanji this year. So I was wondering, EoFF, if any of you know where I can buy a good book - an exercise book, or dictionary - that will help me learn my kanji? Links to any online shops are very welcome.

The comics "Kanji de Manga" are pretty good at teaching Kanji, and show short comic strips where the Kanji are given context.

You really should not expect to learn all necessary Kanji the first year, as there are almost 2000 of them (and yet this is only about 4% of all the existing Kanji!).
Instead, start with learning the basic grammar and pick up Kanji compounds and words as you encounter them in sentences.
If you have Japanese font support on your computer then this is a wonderful translating tool:

http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/cgi-bin/wwwjdic.cgi?1C

Learning Kanji will take a long time, but you will eventually get acquainted with the small parts (radicals) they are made of, and start remembering two-three of them rather than tons of strokes.

Rye Cid's Knight &the land of make-believe Location: You go, Glen CoCo!	#2 (permalink) Amazon is great for this stuff. Though I might hold off on it. You don't want to touch any kanji until you get a good hold on hiragana. That's not too bad to learn, it took me about a month until I had it done perfectly (I wish I still knew it!), but katakana is tricky and takes longer, though I never learned it more since I stopped taking Japanese after the semester ended.
11-15-2009, 01:50 PM

The White Wizard of Fynn It is our fate. Location: Suwałki, that's in Poland, y'know?	#3 (permalink) But I'll basically master hiragana in a day or two, 'cause I've been learning it for a while now and am getting beter and better by the day. I want a book that will let me check some kanji when I need them and learn them later on, when I'll be using hiragana and katakana freely. Plus, I already know the kanji for watashi. I'm awesome.
11-15-2009, 01:54 PM

ShlupQuack Administrator It is My Density Location: California	#4 (permalink) ??
11-15-2009, 02:07 PM

Flying Mullet Former Site Staff Former Staff Old school, like an old fool. Location: Napping in a peach tree.	#6 (permalink) To keep her Japanese fresh, my wife bought a one-a-day kanji calendar. You could also look into one of these.
11-17-2009, 01:46 PM