This is a condensed version of resources and ideas that can be found on https://morg.systems/58465ab9 . You should check out that website for a more detailed idea of what learning the language is going to look like, especially after some time going through these beginner resources. You can think of this as a rough roadmap for Japanese learning, with resources attached.
The core belief of this guide is that language learning happens when you spend time in the language, with content made for native speakers. However, it is quite daunting to jump straight into such content and thus this guide serves to help build a foundation so you can start reading or watching Japanese content.
(For a more in-depth explanation on the language learning process, do visit the link above)
The first thing you should do is learn kana. This is the “alphabet” of Japanese so to speak and consists of Hiragana and Katakana. You will need to learn both.
Guide to Hiragana: https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/learn-hiragana/
Guide to Katakana: https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/learn-katakana/
Practice quiz: https://realkana.com/
You do not need to attain 100% accuracy or be able to instantly recognize them. You just need to know most of them, to a reasonable degree, to move on to the next step.
As a beginner you need
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A way to learn words and build a foundation in vocabulary
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A way to learn grammar and acquire awareness of the language structure
Your objective is to build enough of a foundation in these two aspects so that you can start immersing in content meant for native speakers. Even if you forget words or grammar points, you will at least have enough knowledge to be able to identify what you don't know and and be able to look it up or ask about it. Ideally, you should be doing these two steps in parallel.
You are also free to have a go at immersion at any point in time while building your foundation. When to take the leap is up to you.
Below are a few options you can use to learn words with.
Remember, language learning is a marathon not a race, and these are tools to help you learn the language, not actual language learning itself. This is to say that you only really "know" the words when you see them in context multiple times, memorizing them through Anki is just a supplement. Doing 100 new words does not mean you're learning the language. Also if you feel that jumping straight into vocabulary is too daunting, consider spending some time with one of the grammar resources below to first familiarize yourself with the language.
Anki is a flashcard software which utilizes a Spaced-Repetition System (SRS). In essence, it will show you cards just before you forget them, in continuously longer intervals. It is also highly-customizable:
https://apps.ankiweb.net/
Kaishi, an Anki core deck that covers important vocabulary you are likely to see in media:
https://github.com/donkuri/Kaishi/releases
Recommended Anki Settings:
- 5-10 new cards a day (up to how much you personally want to do)
- 9999 maximum reviews/day (this is so you have no review cap and can clear all reviews scheduled for the day)
- New/Review order: Show after reviews
- Turn on FSRS
- Click the optimize button every month or so
A paid service meant to teach you vocabulary with a focus on kanji. Comes with it’s own in-built SRS system. The scheduling and lessons are all set in stone so you cannot customize anything.
A website that acts as both a dictionary and an Anki-like SRS flashcard app. It has vocabulary deck made from various Japanese media, focusing on helping you learn what you want to read or watch. There is some customizability but the developer has been steadily updating less and less. Also no real core decks to start out with for beginners (unless you want to port from Anki).
Below are some options to learn grammar with. They all cover pretty much the same thing so it's ok to choose one. You can cross-reference articles or lessons if you feel like the explanations are lacking.
A very standard guide which doesn't overstay its welcome. Explains concepts with examples and reads like several articles put together.
https://guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar
A reimagining of Sakubi (see below). Clears the mistakes and confusion from the original version while maintaining the core philosophy
A guide which doesn't believe that mastery of grammar comes from reading long winded textbook explanations. The goal of this guide is to speedrun through all the core grammar points to familiarise yourself with them.
Classic classroom textbook. While geared towards classroom learning, it is perfectly fine for independent learners too. Personally I recommended to skip the exercises and just go through the grammar lessons and explanations
https://www.amazon.com/genki-1/s?k=genki+1
Similar to Genki but entirely in Japanese. Personally don't recommend it due to the higher barrier to entry, how classroom-orientated it is, the big focus on business Japanese, and some unconvential approaches to explaining grammar.
https://www.amazon.com/minna-no-nihongo-Books/s?k=minna+no+nihongo&rh=n%3A283155
Despite what people say, pitch is absolutely a core part of the language and while it's possible to get by without good pitch, it will make conversing with you significantly more difficult and unpleasant.
As a beginner, doing about 10 hours of ear training for pitch accent early on in your learning process can help you save hundreds of hours of pain later on.
Start by doing the minimal pairs test on https://kotu.io/, this is to see if you are able to correctly perceive the pitch of words. The test has no actual end but a good benchmark is 100 questions, of which you should aim to get all of them correct.
These are books or stories deliberately made to be accessible for beginners. The aim of these books are to introduce you more vocabulary and more complicated grammar structures with each level, slowly easing you into reading.
While some people may find graded readers boring, they are a good stepping stone towards reading actual native content and also good practice for a beginner.
https://tadoku.org/japanese/free-books/
https://www.nhk.or.jp/school/kokugo/ohanashi/
https://www.nhk.or.jp/school/kokugo/classic/
If you have any questions or feedback, please do post them in the #japanese_study channel of this Discord server: https://www.discord.gg/japanese
You will have to state your native language first to access all channels
I might consider making a list of media I recommend for beginners in the future so stay tuned