Which kanji should you learn first

This method comes straight from the "repetition" method above, actually. Traditionally, if you wanted to learn kanji you wrote the kanji out a lot of times. Then, you used your flashcards later on to study them some more.

The trouble is, in my opinion, this isn't so much a method as it is a helper. In addition to just about any other method, flashcards are a big help.

Combine that with spaced repetition and you will begin to see your efficiency increase. Even physical flashcard users can do this by taking advantage of the Leitner System. Even more effective than only using an SRS is learning with mnemonics in combination with flashcards. As I mentioned before, flashcards are just a helper, not a complete "method," at least not on their own.

I used to share a tent with these guys, but have since moved on. The more words you learn the easier this gets, and the more you will be able to read and understand. I think I liked this method because it feels most like you're "getting somewhere. Let's think about it this way… What are the things you learn in the order in which you learn them? You can see the logic there, and why this actually does end up working.

But, I'd like to argue that it's better to go the other direction. You end up with the same knowledge, but I think the opposite direction allows you to make more educated guesses, which is going to get you reading and understanding more quickly.

If you are very serious about this method, though, you can learn to read most kanji, especially the more common ones. This method becomes more weak when it comes to the less common kanji, I think since vocab will naturally use more common kanji , but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Combined with flashcards, this method can work quite well for a lot of people. Allies with the previous camp, the "reading reading reading" camp just reads… a lot. Not a lot of people do this until the later part of their kanji learning careers.

I'd say without somewhere between kanji under your belt, this is going to be a difficult method to swallow. In terms of solidifying and practicing kanji you already know, I really like this method. In terms of learning knew kanji? Sure, you're going to learn some things, but I think it's generally better to learn the kanji and readings separate and then apply that knowledge to all your reading practice.

From there, as people discovered more efficient and effective ways to learn kanji using mnemonics, this camp became divided. For the most part unless you're looking beyond the first book in the series… which you shouldn't, because they're not worth looking at you are able to use radicals basically littler kanji or parts of kanji that can be combined into bigger kanji to learn the meaning of the Joyo kanji.

By being able to identify the radicals in a kanji, you can then recall the story that was made up using those radicals, which will trigger the memory of the kanji's meaning in your mind. If there's one thing our brain is good at, it's storing memories.

If there's one thing it's not so good at, it's recalling them. This mnemonic method allows you to recall those hidden memories from your head. The problem with this method, though, is you end up learning the meanings of around 2, kanji really, really quickly… but that's about it.

You don't know how to read anything. Sure, you can kind of guess what the meaning of a word is by looking at the kanji that made it up, but you still can't read it. A lot of people think Heisig's is a good way to get started, though, and I see their point. You can then read newspapers and most books. So, I recommend setting a future goal and breaking it down. Do the math and figure out how many new ones you should learn per day.

Learning kanji is all about getting into a daily study habit. Stick with it and take note when you start to see results, because your successes will keep you motivated to reach further successes. Learn Radicals Complex characters are made up of smaller parts called radicals.

You can also guess at pronunciation sometimes. Often, characters with a certain radical in common will be pronounced similarly. Associate Images Some people find it easy to remember characters when you make image associations.

The most famous book about this is Remember the Kanji by James Heisig. Use a Great Dictionary, Book, or Online Resource Whenever you learn a new character, consult your dictionary and find words that use it. Most kanji learning materials offer a few common vocabulary items for each entry as well. Another great resource is Kanji Damage : A very practical and context oriented online kanji book.

Contains around Kanji. The irreverent style check out the Eazy-E mnemonic with the focus on examples might be exactly what you need. Forget the Order Japanese students learn kanji in an established order. There is a set of characters for each grade to learn from first through the end of high school. Some books or classes use this order and some use another order. The keyword will be indispensable however in making a mnemonic story to stick the Kanji to memory.

There is literally a book, plus a community website Kanji Koohii , plus ready made Anki decks for the purpose of learning the Kanji this way, so the path is laid out. Once you have learned the Kanji, and even as you are progressing through the list, written media will become infinitely less intimidating to look upon, and as you read you can pick up vocabulary and then learn the practical use and readings of Kanji.

Surprisingly, this is the much easier step as for reasons beyond my understanding the readings associated with Kanji just seem to stick to memory without great effort. Of course, it follows that once you know which Kanji make up vocabulary, that vocabulary in turn becomes much easier to remember. While writing the Kanji may not have too much practical use these days, reading it certainly does. I understand that the author has good intentions in saving people time, but having walked the path myself I would recommend going against their advice.

Have you even read the article past the headline? Seriously, actually read the article next time before going on a whole rant like this. You will save yourself some time.

Nope, not gonna happen. I will never learn Kanji. To hell with that crap. The kanji are a writing system, not a fundamental part of the Japanese language and it should be treated as such. Learning a writing system and learning how to write is a difference, at least to me.

Now since the kanji are a logography, it makes most sense to think of the symbols as carriers of meaning, not of sound.

Hence, I consider a kanji as learned, when I can connect it to a concept. At the time of writing, I have learned about kanji. Because I want to be able to look it up on the dictionary. I classified words into 3 categories.

One should learn the onyomi readings at least. It depends, unfortunately. The second is well, even harder. From what I understand so far after a couple of years is that kanji normally takes on the onyomi form when paired with other kanji, and kunyomi when attached to hiragana.

I suggest that when you learn a kanji you take some time to learn vocabulary that uses it to get a handle on how both pronunciations are used. That depends entirely on the word being spoken.