Japanese Sounds and Pronunciation
あえい
う おGenki Textbook page 24
Three types of writing
私 は カナダ に 行きます。Watashi wa kanada ni ikimasu.
1. Kanji2. Hiragana3. Katakana
*Romaji
Kanji 漢字
• Chinese or native-Japanese origin• used for whole words • used for parts of words such as verbs
中国 行きます勉強します
日本練習
Hiragana ひらがな• 48 characters• phonetic syllabary• used for Japanese words with no kanji• used for grammar such as prepositions,
verb conjugations
こんにちは話しますから
Katakana カタカナ• 48 characters• phonetic syllabary• used for foreign words • used to show emphasis ie onomatopoeia
ジュースオーストラリア
ピカピカ
Romaji ローマ字
• roman alphabet used to show the pronunciation of Japanese words• used for learners of Japanese only
benkyō go-shujin
Igirisu-jin
Pronunciation はつおん
• 5 main vowels (short and long)
• Similar to: Ah, we soon get old.
SHORT SOUNDS LONG SOUNDS
a あ ā ああ
i い ii or ī いい
u う ū うう
e え ē or ei ええ えい
o お ō おう おお
Hiragana Chart
Genki Textbook front cover
Hiragana – basic sounds
Mnemonics from: http://www.canyouchopstick.com/2011/01/katakana-mnemonic/Animations from: http://japaneselanguageculturefood.com/japanese-language-katakana.htm
Genki workbook pg 117-121
• Genki workbook pg 117 – Practice writing as we go!
A あAn antenna is up on the
roof. あ as in ‘up on the
roof’.
I いThere are two eels.
い as in ‘eels’.
U うOoo! This is heavy!
う as in ‘Ooo!’
E えI have to exercise.
え as in ‘exercise’.
O おA golf ball is on the
green. お as in ‘on the
green’.
* NOTE: Handwritten Print
KA かA kite is flying in the
sky. か as in ‘kite’.
KI きI have a key.
き as in ‘key’.
KU くHere comes a cuckoo
bird.く as in ‘cuckoo’.
KE けA keg of beer. け as in ‘keg’.
KOこAn apple core. こ as in ‘core’.
• Genki workbook pg 117II and III - Can you write the words?
* NOTE: Handwritten Print
• Genki workbook pg 118 – Practice writing as we go!
SA さI love sake!
さ as in ‘sake’.
SHI しShe has a ponytail.
し as in ‘she’.
SU すThe pigs tail will soon
fall off. す as in ‘soon’.
SE せSensei’s hat.
せ as in ‘sensei’.
SO そZig-zag sewing.
そ as in ‘sewing’.
TA たA letter ‘t’ and ‘a’ make
ta. た as in ‘ta’.
CHI ちShe’s a cheerleader.
ち as in ‘cheerleader’.
TSU つTsunami is a tidal wave.
つ as in ‘tsunami’.
TE てThe dog is wagging his
tail.て as in ‘tail’.
TO と Ouch! A nail is in my
toe. と as in ‘toe’.
• Genki workbook pg 118II and III - Can you write the words?
• Genki workbook pg 119 – Practice writing as we go!
NA なA nun is kneeling in front of the cross.
な as in ‘nun’.
NI にA needle and thread.
に as in ‘needle’.
NU ぬThe egg fell out of the bowl with noodles and
chopsticks. ぬ as in ‘noodles’.
NEねI caught a big fish in
my net. ね as in ‘net’.
NO のDo not enter!
の as in ‘not’.
HA はI live in a house.
は as in ‘house’.
HI ひHe is on the wall.
ひ as in ‘he’.
FU ふI climbed Mt Fuji. ふ as in ‘Fuji’.
HE へThere is a haystack. へ as in ‘haystack’.
HO ほA house becomes a
home with a satellite. ほ as in ‘home’.
• Genki workbook pg 119II and III - Can you write the words?
• Genki workbook pg 120 – Practice writing as we go!
MA まMum loves music. ま as in ‘mum’.
MI みWho’s 21? Me! み as in ‘me’.
MU むMoo-moo cow.
む as in ‘moo’.
ME めChopsticks and noodles
without any mess.め as in ‘mess’.
MO もThe more worms, the more
fish.
も as in ‘more’.
YA やYay, I’m on a yacht.
や as in ‘yay’.
YU ゆMake a U-turn.
ゆ as in ‘U-turn’.
YO よYoga is hard.
よ as in ‘yoga’.
• Genki workbook pg 120II and III - Can you write the words?
* NOTE: Handwritten Print
• Genki workbook pg 121 – Practice writing as we go!
RA らI love steamy ramen
noodles. ら as in ‘ramen’.
RI りA pretty ribbon.
り as in ‘ribbon’.
RU るCatch a kangaroo with
a loop in the rope.る as in ‘kangaroo’.
RE れReady, set, go. Let’s
race!
れ as in ‘Ready’.
RO ろNo loop in the rope. The kangaroo got
away! ろ as in ‘rope’.
WA わWow! A magic wand.
わ as in ‘Wow’.
O をOh! A cheerleader is
on my toe. を as in ‘oh!’.
N んThe letter ‘n’ in end.
ん as in ‘end’.
• Genki workbook pg 121II and III - Can you write the words?
• ん ‘ n’ is the only independent sound• nasal sound• When ‘n’ is followed by b, m, p the ‘n’
sound is more like ‘m’
nan-ban なんばん
べんきょうbenkyō
Dropping soundsThe ‘u’ sound at the end of verbs is often dropped:
です desu = des _ ございます gozaimasu = gozaimas _
When pronouncing ‘shite’ the ‘i’ sound is often dropped:
はじめまして hajimemashite = hajimemash _ te
しつれい shitsurei = sh _ tsurei
Particles – Hiragana changes
wa
o
e
は ( not わ )
を ( not お)
へ ( not え)
Particles are grammatical markers and are put before or after Japanese words to make a sentence. Eg. In romaji particles are written on their own separate from other words.
Ie. Watashi wa kōen e ikimasu.
Hiragana – other soundsTen ten and maru
Combined sounds
Tenten and Maru
* NOTE じ ず mostly used
ぢ づ rarely used
Combined soundsThe hiragana line ending in ‘i’ sound can be combined with small :• ‘ya’ や• ‘yu’ ゆ• ‘yo’ よ
These create combined soundsand represent 1 syllable.
Compare these sounds:
きや vs きゃしゆ vs しゅちよ vs ちょ
big smallbig big
ひや
bigsmall
• Genki textbook pg 290 A-D (Basic sounds revision)• Genki textbook pg 291 E-F(Listening)
• Workbook pg 122
Hiragana – other soundsSmall ‘tsu’ and Long sounds
Long soundsā
ii or ī
ū
ei or ē
ō
kyā, kyū, kyō
ああ
いい
うう
ええ OR えい
おう OR おお (less common)
きゃあ、きゅう、きょう etc
• four double consonants - kk, pp, ss, and tt • in hiragana they are represented by a small tsu
っ • double consonants indicate a small pause so the
mouth can prepare for the pronunciation of the next syllablekekkon
massugu
kippu
まっすぐ
けっこんきっぷ
Pause sound (small tsu つ )
kk
pp
ss
tt
けっこん kekkon (marriage)
きっぷ kippu (tickets)
まっすぐ massugu (go straight)
きって kitte (ticket)
• Genki textbook pg 292 G-H
• Workbook pg 123