Questions on how to learn Nihongo

Hey,
I know this kind of question has been asked before but I'm looking for more personalised answers to my questions. I'm planning on visiting Japan in the next 1-2 years and would like to learn as much of the language as possible before I go (as well as just a general interest). I would also like to learn kanji but what I'm wondering is; should I start learning Kanji along with learning the language or should I start with just learning the language. Also, when learning the language, I read that it is best to work out sentence structure and grammar before vocabulary, any english/japanese speakers can vouch for that knowing both languages? Also, I was wondering what katakana and hiragana is? Do I need to know that before moving on to kanji? I would also love if anyone could recommend certain books they might find can help me with either language kanji or both. Again, I'm sorry if this has been asked before and thank you to anyone who answers =)

WHen you say you will be visiting, how long of a stay are you looking at? If for a sightseeing trip, I think a phrase book with travelers' phrases and kanji signs would come in handy. If you are looking for a longer-term stay, some basic grammar/sentence structure in addition would come in handy.

Please note that the grammar is quite different from that of English (or other European languages for that matter) that you will want to learn that - then of course as you learn to build sentences, vocabulary will come with it - I do recommend taking a course (if available) or at least following a structured coursebook. Maybe as an introduction (with explanation in English), "Japanese for Busy People" series might be a starting point.

"Hiragana" and "katakana" are two sets of phonetic writing systems in Japanese. For example, "Mt. Fuji," can be written as:
Fujisan (in romaji - romanized Japanese writing)
ふじさん (in hiragana. THere are four letters used here, each representing a syllable, like fu-ji-sa-n.)
富士山 (iin kanji).

"katakana" is a writing system for writing non-Japanese names and imported words. For example, your name "Aisha" would be written アイシャ in katakana, a-i-sha.

Kanji is the language. Learn it as you go, or you will be lost.

Thank you for the quick reply! I'll hopefully be staying for around 4 weeks but would like to know more than your average tourist, if I can manage. I think I will start by buying some beginners books, I got a CD but that didn't help at all since it explained set phrases instead of the language structure. Unfortunately, due to the area I live there will not be anywhere I can take lessons.

I was wondering whether kanji would make a difference to the spoken language but I think, once I get the basics down I'll try that as well.

Thank you again, much appreciated!

Sorry to bring this topic up again but I've been looking for books and a couple of more questions came up.

Firstly, does anyone have any books they know of books they've used that are good? Reason being, I bought a CD online before that didn't really teach japanese for anyone wanting to be fluent but rather people wanting to go around as tourists. I know books will be more detailed but I don't want to end up buying one that teaches me phrases and such as I want to learn to be fluent (hopefully). I found one recommended through search but it only had 3 out of 5 stars on amazon, reading one of the reviews, I'd rather try and find something better if I can.

Also, I'm a little confused about whether to learn hiragana first and then move on to Kanji. Personally, I would prefer to learn it the way they learn it at schools there, if I'm not wrong they learn hiragana at a younger age and move on to kanji? Is it recommended to know both? Also, should I initially learn katanka or is it not as relevant, if it isn't I think it can be something I'll leave for later on.

Sorry for the questions but I want to make sure I do this properly, I'm currently going to look if there is a chance of learning the language near where I live but I'm not going to count on it.

Thank you to anyone who reads/replies =)

Japanese children learn Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji all at the same time. They also learn Romaji (our Latin alphabet). Kanji are harder to learn if only because there are several thousands of them. The 3 scripts are often used at the same time, especially in newspapers, on TV(graphics, subtitles etc.). You must absolutely learn both Kanji and Hiragana in order to read Japanese. Katakana is used for foreign words so it is also necessary. As for learning how to speak, it is the same as any language: children first learn words then learn basic sentences. This is where immersion is very useful for s foreigners: listening to a language all day long, without using one's mother tongue, is the best way and, to some extent, the fastest.

Thank you so much!
You've really helped out, I have a better idea of how I'm going to go about learning now.
I'm afraid immersion is hard for me at the moment as I'm still in school so I'll have to stick to Jdramas for now!
Again, thank you for your reply, this is really appreciated =)

Aisha, This maybe something you may not have thought of. This week the city I live in here in Japan had visitors from our "Sister city" in the U.S. I got to meet the visitors and learned alot about the program. The visitors informed me that thier city has lots of programs that deal with Japanese culture and learning about Japan. Here's my towns "Sister city"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culver_City,_California

If you scroll to the bottom you'll see my twon next to the Japanese flag.
You can find out more about Sister cities here: Just click on the map it's easy. I was suprised how many Japanese cities there are in the directory. Good luck,

http://www.sister-cities.org/icrc/directory/index

Wow, thank you for that, I never thought of something like this, I'll definitely check it out =)

Is there a way to learn it via Internet? ie any good forums or discussion groups specifically designed for Japanese learning/practicing?

Thanks

I would suggest a tutor if there is one in your area, someone who knows Japanese and can teach you. :) Also if your learning by yourself, I would reccomend this site, www.thejapanesepage.com there are many things to learn there.

Also, when learning, I suggest to learn hiragana, katakana then kanji because its the hardest. In that order, thats how I learned and I am getting through fine because lotsa kanji comes with hiragana with it to make its meaning, whether a different meaning or the same. Like this:
話す (hanasu) - to talk
話そう (hanasou) - Lets talk

す (su) and そう (sou) are hiragana.

Learning katakana is useful as its used quite a bit for foreign words like コンピュタ (konpyuta) or computer. Learn this after you learn hiragana. So yeah. I also plan to go to Japan but I plan to live there not to be just a tourist.　

I recommend "50 Keys to Opening the New World of Japanese".

http://www.az-js.com/

http://www.amazon.co.jp/Keys-Opening-New-World-Japanese/dp/4...

The amazon.co.jp has the textbook. The site is written in Japanese but you can read some comments about it in English.

Learn hiragana first. Honestly, you're going to need to learn all three. But if you want to learn like the Japanese kids do, Hiragana is what they learn first, followed by Katakana. They don't begin to be learn Kanji until the 1st grade. As far as what books to use, most beginner books are about the same, and will teach you the basics of the grammar and basic vocabulary. After that, that's where things get tricky. There's a lot of advanced verb patterns that while helpful to know you don't need to for survival, but help to smooth out your Japanese. As far as Kanji goes, I think it helps alot to build up your vocabulary before you tackle Kanji.

The kanji sticks much better if you already know the words(imho). Look at it like this, kids don't learn the Kanji for "eat" until 2nd grade, and "drink" until 4th grade. But they've been using that word since they were like 4 or 5.

Don't forget though to get some audio tapes to go with it. Being able to read/write the language is one thing, being able to understand it and speak it properly is another. Good Luck.

Gosh, thank you for the response and links! I was thinking of learning Hiragana and Katakana and then begin on learning the language before moving on to Kanji. Thanks for the tips though, this has been really helpful =)

Hi, I just thought I would give you my insights since I'm in almost in the same position as you. I started leaning Japanese with the "Japanese for Dummies" book, however, once I started seeing a tutor, she had me buy a book called "Genki" it's actually endorsed by the "Japan Times" org. It's useful cause u learn Hiragana and Katakana right off the bat, chapter one. There's many illustrations and useful phrases. And it doesn't stop there, as soon as chapter 3, there's no more romaji(romanized japanese) and they start introducing Kanji. So, give it a shot. It's like 40 bucks for the textbook, and like about 20 for the workbook (definitely get it!!). As far as the tutor goes, it's the most useful investment of my money thus far. So, that's my 2 cents.