JET Program Vlog #5 - Learning katakana カタカナ

[pyius]

I know this video is fairly old, but how important would you say stroke order is in both kana and kanji in both writing in private and public.

[myargonauts]

@pyius to be honest, 85% of the "writing" you'll probably will be doing will be on computers and cell phones, so kanji/kana recognition is way more important than being able to write them, but there are many that say to truly learn the kanji, you need to write them over and over, just like Japanese schoolkids. Stroke order is important, but I'm not the one to ask about it's level of importance. I'm terrible at writing kanji.

[oddba11]

I literally could not believe it when you spoke about the name Ben (my name!). Can you think of any possible alternatives? Be? Bene? In fact, what is Mr Awesome in Japanese, I may as well give myself a new name :D

[mjkj194]

Great video thanks, i know im abit late, but was wondering what should i go with mike, or michael?

[myargonauts]

@mjkj194 Mike is easier - "my-coo" but Michael is fine too - "my-coo-roo" - whichever one you like.

[Spazzosity]

you know where i could go ot translate my name?

my name is " Garrett Huffman"

I dunno how to shorten it ,haha.

[myargonauts]

@Spazzosity link in the description box

[ArcherLigion]

Travis ... and just giving myself Shinpachi as japanese name lol, easy and i like it :P...

btw best website 200% -- timwerx.net/home/index.htm

[Erivah]

"An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese" was the exact book that my university uses to teach us. =O

[rareitemhunter1]

Oh jeeze, that kanji page you opened there for a second looked very familiar. Now I know where Sensei's been getting those sheets. > . >

Thanks for all the info~

[Kitsukaru]

レーヨン is the Katakana for my name which is 'Rayon' in English :)

[coldblood274]

Is katakana in video games and tv shows from japan? If not what letters does japan use in their games?

[RelVleDy]

Katakana is in both video games and TV shows. They're for loan words, onomatopoeias, or simply to add emphasis. As you can imagine, they're used often.

Typically, foreign game BOX ART uses English letters, but may add Katakana as a subheader underneath. Try visiting PlayAsia . com for examples.

Sometimes, Japanese prefer English for even their own titles! There's Biohazard (Resident Evil) and End of Eternity (Resonance of Fate). Ironically, the U.S. has to change the name for copyright.

[RelVleDy]

Inside Japanese games, Japanese will, of course, use their standard language, including Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji. Sometimes you may see English letters for names of buildings, quotes, etc. but it's rare. Typically, the game will substitute them for Katakana.

[N3cris]

@Kitsukaru

レーヨン = Reeyon

Am I right?

[NextNate03]

I have Talkman (Imported) for my PSP. It does not help me very much. It also does not help that I have a speech problem! I try to say a word in Talkman (in Japanese), if gives me a D or F for the test.

It also does not help that I have bad hand writing!

[LuwBren]

I have no problem with hiragana, but katakanas are giving me hard times :D You're part of JET program? My relatives live in Japan and told me bout this. This would be like my dream job. I'm just a bit worried since English ain't my native language. Is that necessary?

[myargonauts]

Actually, my prefecture - Shimane - has a sister city relationship with Finland and every year Izumo hires one CIR from Finland, so you can come over that way.

I'll send you a PM with a link.

[LuwBren]

Sounds good. I'll definiately apply after few years when they're searching for CIR. Right now I'm still a bit too young. I actually know the link you gave me. The embassy arranged writing competition which I participated. They also searched for an exchange student. I didn't succeed with either of them, but perhaps I have better luck with JET.

[diphyodont]

Usually it's: Hiragana - Katakana - Kanji

That's how they teach it in JP schools :)

[drunkenclam8588]

I'm a second year にほんご (Japanese) student and I'm looking for a good kangi book. It has to be easy to use but also have the hiragana translations as opposed to just the english meanings 日本　isnt that useful to me unles I know it means にほん, ya know?

[BlanFan2O]

I'm starting to learn kanji and hiragana. I'll probably start katakana. I wonder, because my name is josef should I just put joe or does the "F" kinda work? also my computer can't display japanese text, any help? oh yeah I noticed the star wars poster. awesome!

[myargonauts]

Joe would certainly be easier than Josef - but they can handle Josef as well - it'll sound a little like joe-sah-foo.

Not sure how to cure your computer, other than to buy a Mac. :)

Star Wars rules!! :D

[BlanFan2O]

thanks I went to the sight and it displayed it as a picture so I was ok. I heard if you use internet exporer you can download the font but I'm not sure how. I agree about star wars man!

[DAIGORO14]

@BlanFan2O I would say ジョセフ　for Josef

[Maeikatk]

I was worried about my name also, its Alicia(A Lee See Uh) I put my name into a 'your name in japanese' (thinggy) and it was writen like this Arishia... do you think it/know if it will be hard to get use to being called a different name, of shorts?

[myargonauts]

Actually, your name will sound pretty close when Japanese people say it - all your vowel sounds are found in Japanese. You probably are used to people saying it Aleeshuh by now, so it won't be that much of an adjustment.

[Maeikatk]

Ah, that's true people quite often butcher my name, haha. the "R" kinda therw me off though, I'm not going to hear the R <- like the letter? Then I guess I will be fine. Thankies! =)

[sileath]

Wonderful videos. I still have 2 years before I'm able to apply but I am already learning katakana.

My name's Jacquie , maybe for simplicity shake i'll ponder some of my nicknames.

[mrh307]

I just graduated with a bachelors and I will be visiting chiba for a month for vacation purposes....is there a place I can go visit and give like a heads up of my interest to work for JET??

[myargonauts]

not really. JET is a multi-tier application process, so your best bet is to just work hard on the initial app, and having been to Japan for a short time will look good on your app.

[mrh307]

Thanks you for the response;)..(^^)

[imdaman765]

Nice textbook, I use that in college, quite good, I think, what have you used since then? Since there isn't a volume 3 out yet.

[myargonauts]

I've been studying privately with a tutor here in Japan. Not sure what I'll use when I go home, but I might even enroll in another college course just to keep my language skills up.

[nwdrrn]

Hey thanks for the vids :). Do you know how to say Aromatherapy/ Aromatherapist, Reflexology/reflexologist in Japanese? Otherwise I am not sure how I would explain to people what I did at University. Thank you

[myargonauts]

I don't - but I'm sure you could find it online - they must have something like that here.

[OhMySavy]

What about Savannah Wingo?

There's no 'V' sound in japanese, is there?

[myargonauts]

Savannah would end up sounding a bit like "sah-ba-nah."

check out the link in the descrip box at the bottom for the katakana

[Tnikes]

Got any idea on how to translate the name Tegan Naicker? Because I can't think of any way to write this name in katakana at all. :(

[myargonauts]

If the first name is pronounced "teh-ghan" then the katakana would be:

テーガン

[Tnikes]

Thank you :)

[kastmaster101]

Thank you very informative Video. I have suscribed and hope you make many more videos.

One question- What is Tyler Konishi in katakana?

Thank you

[myargonauts]

Tyler would be TAIRAA

in katakana: タイラー

[SonnyInTokyo]

I'm applying for the JET program after I get my Bachelors degree in about a year - all of this info is really good to know ahead of time! I was wondering, can you apply for the JET program without having a Bachelors at the time of application? I've heard that you can apply for the program as long as you will have a Bachelors degree before being hired.

Also, could you please tell me what my name would be in Katakana? My name is Sonny.

Thank you!

[myargonauts]

yes - you can apply in your final year of college before you have your degree, as long as you'll have it before you leave in July.

Sonny in katakana = サニー

SANII

[SonnyInTokyo]

Thats great news! Thank you

[dewintour]

Hi, I was wondering if there are any negative connotations that you're aware of for the sound of the name Dawn. I had lots of trouble when I was in Europe, and if would be nice to know in advance if I should be changing my name. ^_^

[myargonauts]

no - no negative aspects that I know of.

It won't sound very close to "dawn", but it will be somewhat close - "doon" most likely, with the pronunciation being close to "dohn."

[mostawesomestjes]

Genki! I love that book! I still have my very first Genki book ^_^ I agree that katakana is harder. I find it so hard trying to figure out the words, but I always sucked at that madgab game ^_^

[EzKitty]

I hate to bug but what is the katakana for Dana, pronounced Day-nah. Please and thank you very much

[myargonauts]

sure - it would be DAANA

in katakana: ダーナ

[Kazangsta]

hi, just thought id ask in here while im at it. :D

my names christopher, so in katakana chris would be クリス right? dont know how to sound up the rest though haha.

thx in advance.

[myargonauts]

sure - it would be KURISUTOFAA

in katakana: クリストファー

[Kazangsta]

cool thx a lot man. been teaching myself some basic japanese at the moment, since i wanna at least be able to communicate, when i visit japan some day.

wish you the best with your work.

[HoneyBaby778]

uh oh

my name is Zhana

how the hell do write that!? O.O

[myargonauts]

is it pronounced "Zah-Nah"? if so, that won't be hard to write in katakana - probably ザーナー

[HoneyBaby778]

actually its pronounced more like sha-but replace the s with the z; idk its really hard to explain in words... >.>

i think there's someone famous with the name zha-zha-gabor or something like that. but idk if u know her so it probably wouldn't help xD

o well..if someone it doesn't exist in japanese i'll just use ザーナー

[HoneyBaby778]

o wait. o.o

isn't there chinese name zhang?

i'm sure there's characters for that

[chickenseechickenpoo]

Sorry, but there is no way to be even close to your name - the best way to do it would be

shaa-na (シャーナ),

or you could change your name to

Sian! (シャーン)

I know this is a bit late! By the way, beautiful name.

[JohnMathers69]

Do you ever see Romanji or use it?

[myargonauts]

oh sure - I see it all the time - and I use it almost everyday with my students.

[ichiban109]

what if u have a japanese last name, do you have to write the kanji for it?

[myargonauts]

Japanese people would write the kanji for it perhaps, but you could just write the easier hiragana for it until you learned the kanji.

[Aramis9088]

How would you write Alicia?

[coolsteven2]

How would u write Steven?

[myargonauts]

a couple of ways...

SUTIIVEN

ステイーヴェン

or

SUTIBEN

ステイベン

[koritsimou]

I think going over with limited knowledge is worse than going over there with limited funds. Anyone going over there, and learning Japanese on the plane is a complete idiot in my opinion. I'm not going until I'm confident that I can communicate in Japanese. I took a year of Japanese in high school, and they taught hiragana first, with various words and phrases accompanying, and then in the second semester, we started katakana.

[joker1251]

Poor Ben and Deb...lol

Please can you tell me how would i write my name Jason-sama: Nesta Parchment

[myargonauts]

My best guess for "Nesta" is "ne-su-ta", which in Katakana looks like this:

ネスタ

Pretty easy to remember. :)

[JapanPlz]

My name is Brian. How would i put that into Katakana? I'm really unsure of which ones to use. Thanks

[myargonauts]

this is my best guess:

ブライアン

buraian

[JapanPlz]

Thanks a lot. It'll work... i'm not going to Japan for a good while. Love the series :]

[winDragon79]

i didn't think either were very hard. Besides ンとソ，シ、ツ I haven't had any issues.

[Auron710]

I can speak / write a fair bit of japanese and am starting uni in september. I know its 3 years off but i am looking into the Jet programme for the future so thanks very much for these videos, theyre amazingly helpfull! Also i couldnt agree with you more that KATAKANA is much harder than HIRAGANA to learn, unfortunately i learnt HIRAGANA 1st because thats the way i was taught at college but i seriously think it is much easier if you get KATAKANA out of the way first!

[Nixlplix]

I agree that katakana is harder to learn than hiragana. At least it seems to be for me. I think it's because it's more angular and less distinct than hiragana (which I learned first) in some ways. I dunno..maybe I just need to write it more. It only took me a few weeks to solidly remember hiragana and be able to write it.

[pixelminx]

Since memorizing hiragana and katakana only takes a few days (or weeks for slower learners or learners who are not skilled with languages) I see no reason why a new student of Japanese wouldn't simply just learn them at the same time. I think learning them separately might even complicate things. When you first learn something your brain is making memories it will store and recall. Memorizing the two alphabets together will help link the katakana and hiragana symbols together right away.

[myargonauts]

I agree that learning both is essential and optimal, but in my college course, I was taight the hiragana first and then the katakana a few weeks after. And this vid is aimed at people coming to Japan within a few weeks or months who have zero Japanese. The practical uses of katakana once you're living here will bring immediate benefits. But I agree that some of the symbols for the same sound look alike and linking them in your brain is a good way to learn.

[loczster]

Hey great vids. Question about the name. My name is Angel. (male..lol). How would they pronouce it?.

thanks

[myargonauts]

Thanks. :)

This is what the name "Angel" looks like in Japanese:

エインジェル

It is pronounced "EINJERU". (Consonants are pronounced more or less the same way as in English. "I" sounds like ee in meet, but shorter. "U" sounds like oo in hook, but with less rounding of the lips. "E" sounds like e in met.)

[loczster]

great thx. Im starting to learn Hiragana but after watching this vid i might have to go Katakana.

[Nixlplix]

Wouldn't they just say "tenshi"?

[Sacchari]

I think if you are going to Japan with limited Japanese knowledge it is better to learn katakana first. But if you are taking classes in your home country and don't need the knowledge immediately just to get by, I'd learn hiragana first. I feel that it keeps you based in Japanese rather then English.

[myargonauts]

yep - I agree. In my college Japanese course, I learned Hiragana first, and it's stuck with me pretty well. But I still have the occasional problem with Katakana. Both are essential of course if you really want to excel at Japanese.

[o0HoneyBee0o]

I've almost memorized hiragana, and I know some katakana. But what surprises me is that I actually find kanji a lot more fun to learn, and a bit easier also. I think it's because you don't have to spell things out or anything xP. Oh, and here's my name in katakana：

メリサ　カファユン

Melissa Kalfayan, My last name was pretty hard to try and spell out XD;.

[myargonauts]

good job on the katakana :)

[3sstudent]

Dude, i just had to log in to thank u for such wonderful links.

I am learning Japanese, and am in the process of learning Katakana, but i already learned hiragana.

Do you have any links for learning kanji?(usefull ones?)

[myargonauts]

If you go to the Nihongojouzu site that I link in the sidebar description, Will has a bunch of good links for learning kanji at that site, including a fun application that you can add to your facebook page. I'll do a vlog about learning kanji at some point in the next 6 weeks.

[250mxrider]

the only way to learn hiragana, katakana, kanji...words... make flashcards using stickers and put the stickers on playing cards. that way, as you study, you start by learning the japanese side, then flip the card over in the deck and go from english to japanese. words or characters that you get wrong, put them back in the middle of the deck...trust me.

[WhiteMatrix2006]

Good video. Good links on the side. I personally learned Hiragana before I learned Katakana. I learned Hiragana first and it made it a lot easier to learn Katakana. I personally would learn Hiragana first because aren't a lot of the signs there in Hiragana and Kanji?

[myargonauts]

true - but if any sign is a mixture of kanji and hiragana, then you can only read it if you know the kanji. Knowing katakana helped me today at the grocery store - i was gonna buy what I thought was lettuce （レタス）but I noticed the writing didn't say "lettuce" - it was in the next bin over. (what I almost bought turned out to be spinach)

Katakana is just more practically useful on a day-to-day basis here - but you should learn both.

[WhiteMatrix2006]

Like I stated, I learned both and since I don't live there and I've never been there yet, I currently don't know which is more practical. Thank you for clearing it up. :)

[Yuli4592]

Haha I use the same book in my japanese class. genki lol. heh just had to mention it.. but My teacher showed us hiragana first.. then katakana.. and i thought it was just fine really..

[myargonauts]

yeah - I learned hiragana first too, but my point was that if you have limited time before you come to Japan and think you'll only be able to learn one or the other, then try to get katakana first, since it's of more practical use to you right away after you arrive.

[marvelmoviemaker]

I think your right as far as katakana being harder than hiragana...because i have memorized the entire hiragana alphabet...it took me a while but i did it. I can now easily read and right hiragana. but katakana is just extremely difficult to like get the mental romaji image in my head for them...its just crazy hard to remember. But i have a class for it....oh yeah i also know how to spell my name....watashi no namae wa nikorasu koron desu..hajimemashite..

[majormicro]

Keep those vlogs coming.

ありがとうございます

レオ。

[AjGuitarist]

I might go to Japan when I get into engineering. How is living in Japan? I think you should post a video about a normal day for you in Japan. Keep up thegood work!

~AJ~

[myargonauts]

A day in the life vlog?  Hmm... ok - i'll consider it. Thanks for watching.

[hexhatexmexnot]

Hey, don't worry about how long the vlogs are because for anyone who is interested in JET will be endlessly fascinated by them :) I am one of those people. I dont actually remember how i first found out about JET but the closer I get to graduating college the more interested I'm becoming. So any information that you could give about the program and japan in general would be great! Keep up the great work lol :)!

[myargonauts]

Thanks - glad you're enjoying the vlogs.

[vethraxi]

Lol. My brother's name is Ben...He'll be pleased to hear that. ^^

[fisge]

It depends on what you want to accomplish. If you don't plan to grow roots or dedicate yourself to learning Japanese, just learn katakana, and it'll help you out a lot. If you aren't going to be in Japan soon (thus no emergency need), hiragana is more useful for learning actual Japanese.

In any case, it only takes a couple weeks to learn both sets of kana, so just learn them all. ;) They'll be cemented in your mind after enough use. Kanji is the real beast you need to worry about!

- アレックス

[myargonauts]

good points. For some reason, hiragana came easy for me and I have no problems writing/reading it now, but katakana still gives me problems, especially in fancy fonts for signs and such. Don't get me started on kanji... LOL

[shrgnatlas]

I always had a problem with "Shi" and "Tsu". I was always told to write "Shi" from bottom to top, and "Tsu" from top to bottom. Unfortunately I tend to write fast, and while my handwriting isn't poor, the symbols tend to mix themselves up if someone is trying to read what I wrote.

It doesn't really help when reading from electronic text either:

シ = Shi

ツ = Tsu

I've gotten used to it over the years, but you'd think something so simple would have come to me easier.

[shrgnatlas]

Also, each time I have started to take Japanese, Hiragana was taught first each time. It was easier to explain to the students, and the classes went over both written languages in about a month.

The largest concern for learning Hiragana first however, was because while the classes were learning how to write, they also needed words to write with. Learning words written specifically in Katakana, like "Miriku", or "Supagetti", disables the students from even learning simple sentence structure.

[myargonauts]

I agree with this, but we're talking about a specific circumstance here - people coming to Japan to live and want to learn at least a little Japanese before they come. Of course, people should learn the hiragana too, but if they start with katakana, maybe it will stick in their brains better. maybe... :)

[Dominilucy]

I agree Katakana is better to learn first. I'm screwed when it comes to my name. It's a lot like rusia burea../ I don't know how to get the Katakana on the computer. However, I find that hiragana is harder than Katakana because of its similar characters... HAVE FUN IN YOUR CAMP THING! Arigatou!

[myargonauts]

on my Mac you can choose different languages - but if you can type hiragana on your computer, try holding down the shift key - maybe that will give you katakana.

[Graehaus]

cool vlog, Jason. Love the Star wars poster btw.

[myargonauts]

yeah - it's my favorite SW poster except for the "Gone with the Wind" style one sheet from The Empire Strikes Back before they added Lando.

[Graehaus]

That was sweet one, sans Lando.. never like Lando. LOL

[tytodalba]

These vlogs on JET are really interesting even to those unfamiliar with JET. So don't try to make these videos too short(you've mentioned it previously, i think). They are fun.

[myargonauts]

Thanks! 8 or 9 mins seems so long for a vlog -asking you to watch for that long, but making them - that 8 or 9 minutes goes by so fast.

[kulisutal]

I agree, learn Katakana first.

[pedoro4477]

awesome video!! ^_^ how do you spell gomez?

[myargonauts]

Gomez in katakana = ゴメズ

[pedoro4477]

thank you very much! domo ! gracias ! ^_^