a2n language lessons

[a2ng0d]

hey everybody. well, ive been browsing the forums, and i realize that there is no thread for japanese language lessons (i realize this isnt a fansubbing forum like the last anime forum thingy i was at). well, here's my first contribution to anime fuel community! if anybody has questions concerning asian languages (most of which would be japanese since this is anime) , chances are i could prolly help you out.

Language is a hobby of mine, so ill try my best to help out (that is, of course, unless somebody here is already doing so and i missed the thread - boy would that be embarrassing -_-;;).

My Language Inventory: Vietnamese (life)
Cantonese (ok)
Mandarin Chinese (2 Years)
Japanese (4 years)
Korean (minimal)
French (4 years)

I hope to be of assistance to anybody who needs help ^_^

[illuma]

so your vietnamese?

[Ariya]

I'm fluent in Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese, French, Spanish, and German.

And English, of course. I'm still learning Korean, Latin, Russian, and Italian, but I can translate stuff with what I know.

I'm willing to translate things for people, or teach a few words and phrases. :3

//so your vietnamese?//
Tôi đoán chúng tôi ở một mình không phải :/

[archangle]

hey i know some japanese since i like there for like three years but not much i can only say the bare minimun and only things like thank you and count from 1 -10 and small stuff like that btw i don't know how to write japanese

[Jsj222]

i am fluent in Japanese in fact my japanese is greater than my english

[a2ng0d]

@ Illuma: yes
@ Ariya: Bravo!...im very impressed c(^_^)b .
@ archangel: i guess its not too late to learn more =).

wow looks like my assistance is not needed. in fact, i probably need to be learning from YOU guys ^^;;.

[illuma]

cool cause i'm vietnamese too i can talk pretty good, but i forget some stuff since i only use it when my grand parents come by.

[Gabrieth]

If somebody would like to help me learn to understand and speak a little bit Japanese I would be happy ^^
Just like maybe 5 words a day I don't really have the time to learn a lot. That would make a nice topic "The Word of the day" :)
I would like to know a few words so I can understand animes better I already know quite a few words but not the basic ones.
And I can help out if anybody wants to learn French if not I can speak but not write Chinese.

[BlueSano]

thank you for the offer i do have a question...^^;;
i want to learn japanese ...but i noticed that they write in kana and kanji if i'm correct
and then there is the romaji and there is the formal japanese and unformal like sometimes i hear haraheta (i don't know about the spelling ^^;) and pekopeko are the same word for being hungry right ... so y are they so different if you could help me out with this i'd be thankful .....and what is the best way to start to learn ajpanese ..
thank you ... and sorry for all of these Q's

[a2ng0d]

To Gabrieth: a word of the day would sound like a good idea. btw, which chinese do you speak : lei5 gon1 gon2 dUng1 wa2 / ni3 shuo1 pu3 tong1 hua4 .

To BlueSano: There are a lot of words in japanese that are different but mean the same thing. for example (somebody correct me if im wrong) seppuku and harakiri both mean suicide by disembowelment - stabbing yourself basically. so yes pekopeko and haraheta both mean hungry. why? well, a teacher of mine once told me that "language is a living thing. constantly changing with time, it is not set like mathematics. there will always be something to question because it is not a systematic function. it is just the way things are."

The best way to learn japanese, as with any language, is to start small. spend a little bit of time each day studying and let it sink into your mind. if you do not have a language to refer to then this will be a little more tedious, but nothing is impossible. a korean friend of mine who started learning japanese two years after i started decided to perfect his reading and writing first. personally, i think reading and writing should come after basic vocabulary, but learning it is nonetheless very important. because i decided to learn vocal japanese + romaji before i learned to read/write, my korean friend exceeds me in the field of kanji, however i have better vocabulary/grammar. it all depends on how you wish to approach it =).

[archangle]

i like gaberith idea....make a thread where u post "the word of the day"....it will be really cool to understand the animes

[illuma]

would it just be Japanese only word of the day or would there be more languages is the question i have. If so then it would be a good idea and if not if would still be good.

[archangle]

i would say japanese words only but hey if u want some other languages word of the day then that's fine too they can be done on the same thread

[Gabrieth]

To Gabrieth: a word of the day would sound like a good idea. btw, which chinese do you speak : lei5 gon1 gon2 dUng1 wa2 / ni3 shuo1 pu3 tong1 hua4 .


I can't understand all your saying I see numbers for some reason ^^

I only understood the end Pu tong hua.

If not I speak mandarine.

[a2ng0d]

for now i think if a thread was opened for word of the day it would be in japanese (since the key is to understand animes), that way it would be easier to focus on one thing. if everybody wants a word of the day in other languages, then it should be done in a different thread for the sake of organization. it would be a little confusing to see so many languages posted in one spot.

[Koopaking]

I have this widget for my iGoogle with a Japanese word of the day, it's pretty neat because it has the word in romaji and kanji, and it gives you the definition and pronounces it. I've learned a good bit of words from it like mattaku, kaigou, mitomeru, nerai, kataru, and more, today's word is na - name, reputation.

[BlueSano]

thank you soooo much a2n0g thta was very helpful....i guess i'll start your way then ;)
and by the way i actualy know these words from watching a lot of anime ;P
i guess it helps then ^^

[Gabrieth]

But what would be nice is starting by knowing the basics not just random words.

[Ariya]

Like basic greetings, farewells, common phrases?

One of my friends in my French Class is using that Rosetta Stone stuff to learn English (He's Vietnamese, so I can communicate easily with him) and he's told me that it's really good, so if there's a language you wanna learn fully, then get that. :3

[Gabrieth]

This web site looks neat for a word a day :)

http://www.hitsalive.com/wordoftheday/

Got it in a few languages.

Today I learned Kabe = Wall and Na = name/reputation
So I learned two words today hehe.

Getting myself Pimslers learning cours for Japanese :)

[Crymson]

One of my friends in my French Class is using that Rosetta Stone stuff to learn English (He's Vietnamese, so I can communicate easily with him) and he's told me that it's really good, so if there's a language you wanna learn fully, then get that. :3

I've heard both ways about that stuff. it's really expensive, and you cant sell it. and it's supposed to be kinda boring. so make sure you have the determination to sit down and do it before you pay any money for stuff.

[a2ng0d]

true! my goal is to assist in all aspects of the language including random vocabulary so yes: questions pertaining to greetings, farewells, common phrases, and even writing are greatly encouraged. (and of course if i get something wrong, make no mistake that ariya can definitely set things straight ^^;;. also remember that this is not limited to japanese*)

To Ariya: Rosetta stone? that sounds interesting, how does it work? is it english text then vietnamese? sounds like it would take a while to decipher ^^.

[Ariya]

@a2n: I'm not entirely sure. I'll have to ask him tomorrow and find out for you. :3

I can help out with Kanji, since it's my specialty~ <3

[a2ng0d]

thats great, since kanji is my weakest area. i read chinese, which helps for meaning a little bit but hinders japanese pronounciation.

[athrun0017]

Man that is soo cool that everyone is so spoken here.. I happen to know just english and spanish 100% am trying to learn german and japanese..so if anyone is giving lesson please i ask you to let me in... am a fast learner.

[archangle]

how do u say "i am on the computer right now" in japanese

[a2ng0d]

ima konpyuutaa tsukaimasu = I am on the computer right now.

im pretty sure its that ^_^.

athrun: feel free to ask questions. and if it helps anyone, i can give you a link to a website online that i used 4 years ago. i found it really helpful when i first started learning:

http://japanese.about.com/library/mmore.htm

[supersaiyu]

Is japanese writing almost same as chinese? because I'm good in chinese and I can read some japanese.

How do u say 1 to 10, and how do you say I'm sorry

[a2ng0d]

kanji= hanzi.

so whenever there is a kanji, it is a chinese character.

1: ichi
2: ni
3: san
4: yon/shi
5: go
6: roku
7: nana/shichi
8: hachi
9: kyuu
10: juu

if you speak cantonese, you see they are very similar.

im sorry: goumennasai; goumen; sumannai; suman; warui; warukatta; sumimasen. any of them work.

[scott11]

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee......



i Like Japanese...
i Like to Learn that Language... haha::D:

[supersaiyu]

ima konpyuutaa tsukaimasu = I am on the computer right now.

im pretty sure its that ^_^.

athrun: feel free to ask questions. and if it helps anyone, i can give you a link to a website online that i used 4 years ago. i found it really helpful when i first started learning:

http://japanese.about.com/library/mmore.htm

Wow, where do you learn these?

[a2ng0d]

hehe thats kind of a hard question to answer. i learned from many places on and off the net.

[Kit]

Uwaa, I'm jealous of you people that know so many languages! I really want to learn more languages, but I must have a short attention span and no drive to learn. And bad memory =b

I know English fluently, French partially (which I take a class for), and fragments of Japanese. Oh and I know a little bit of Esperanto..

I should ask you a question, nnnn.. which language that you know was the most difficult for you to learn?

Oh, and, is it true that the way people in anime talk is way off from the way people in Japan actually talk? XD

[Ryuuzaki]

Hey A2n I wanna run a few phrases by you and see if i got them right since just today I started taking my class for Japanese =/

Nanika atta = What's up
Kekkou desu = No thank you
Kitekurinai = Will you come
Shiawase da = I'm so happy

So yeah...heh thats all I truly feel like putting up. So if anythings wrong with that in translation let me know through P.M or a reply on here! ^^ Thanks

[scott11]

did someone put up de thread bout de suggestion of gabrieth,
de Word of the day thing...

hope there is, i'm more than wiLLing to expand my knowLedge on other Language...

hope you couLd heLp...

*smiLes*

[a2ng0d]

hahahaha wow questions ^_^ its been dead here for awhile.

@Kit: The most difficult language for me to learn? i would say that each language was difficult in its own way. though vietnamese is my first language, i still think that it is most difficult to perfect pronunciation. mandarin chinese also is a little awkward sometimes. and korean (i heard its the second hardest language to speak in the world, 1st being czech). english is the most complicated in grammar. Chinese is the most complicated in writing (so many characters to memorize -_-). Japanese is quite easy to pick up, with only Kanji giving me trouble.

and yes. just like people in america do not talk like they do in cartoons, anime voices are dramatized.

@Ryuuzaki: yea those are right. PM for details if you want.

@scott: idk should we open a word of the day thread? we havent got one yet. and yea if you have questions, feel free to ask ^_^

[scott11]

hey a2n....

am confused with these...







genki desu ka
or
denki gesu ka
????



which is right????

[a2ng0d]

"genki desu ka?" is correct. almost anything 'desu ka' is right.

[analogZero]

I think a word of the day is an amazing idea. I've only really picked up minor bits of japanese due to watching so many subbed animes, so I doubt I could make a coherent sentence. Apart from english I only know french. I live in canada, so it was close to mandatory in school. quick tip on learning french grammar! talk english in french class. I had to write out and conjugate 20 verbs in 6 tenses everytime I spoke english in one of my french classes. let's just say I didn't talk in french enough.

[shiv]

I'm fluent in Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese, French, Spanish, and German.

And English, of course. I'm still learning Korean, Latin, Russian, and Italian, but I can translate stuff with what I know.

I'm willing to translate things for people, or teach a few words and phrases. :3

//so your vietnamese?//
Tôi đoán chúng tôi ở một mình không phải :/ Is this a joke? wow..fuck it, no...its imposible!

[a2ng0d]

@ analog: hahaha yea if you got questions on any of the languages in my inventory, i could try to help.

@shiv: better believe it. Ariya is a genius.


Oh yea and ironically i need help with something ^^. If somebody can help me with Arabic, German, or Korean(id like to brush up on it) i would appreciate it VERY MUCH.

[Ariya]

Is this a joke? wow..fuck it, no...its imposible!


@shiv: better believe it. Ariya is a genius.


Heh. ^^;; I'm not a genius, just a master linguist.

Shiv, it is possible. Languages is just one of those things that cam easy for me, and didn't take long to learn. I had loads of help, but still.

[a2ng0d]

actually, she's right. learning languages is easier than other things, since all languages in the world are connected in some way or another. for example, this may be random, but today i learned that bread in spanish is 'pan'. this is cool because 'pan' is bread in korean, which would translate to 'banh' in vietnamese and 'ban' in japanese.

[Haseo69]

actually, she's right. learning languages is easier than other things, since all languages in the world are connected in some way or another. for example, this may be random, but today i learned that bread in spanish is 'pan'. this is cool because 'pan' is bread in korean, which would translate to 'banh' in vietnamese and 'ban' in japanese.

I think it's awsome that they are all conected but for some reason it makes my head hurt and I get board but I still want to learn japaness. In my opinion math is easier.

[scott11]

a2n
am confused on saying
thank you very much
and
you're weLcome
in japanese...

some heLp here...

[a2ng0d]

You're welcome = Dou itashimashite
or you can say "iie" (no) for 'no problem' or 'it was nothing'.

As for thank you, I would say there are seven ways of saying it, depending on how much gratitude you wish to show:

Level 1 - Domo (thanks)
Level 2 - Arigato (thank you)
Level 3 - Domo Arigato (many thanks)
Level 4 - Arigato Gozaimasu (thank you very much)
Level 5 - Arigato Gozaimashita (same thing with a little more)
Level 6 - Domo Arigato Gozaimasu (THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH)
Level 7 - Domo Arigato Gozaimashita (basically they saved your life)

[scott11]

oooh, i see,...



domo arigato gozaimasu, a2n...
it heLp me a Lot....


hahaha.....



i wiLL be asking more sometime...
if that's okae...
hehe

[a2ng0d]

whoa i just fixed my typos sorry. lol i had level 5,6,5,6

[analogZero]

actually, she's right. learning languages is easier than other things, since all languages in the world are connected in some way or another. for example, this may be random, but today i learned that bread in spanish is 'pan'. this is cool because 'pan' is bread in korean, which would translate to 'banh' in vietnamese and 'ban' in japanese.

'pain' is the french translation. spanish actually makes sense sometimes cuz it's so close to french most of the time.

quick question about 'desu', I've just been pissin' at learning japanese, and they throw little phrases around and such with the translation. They explain most everything else but what this word actually means. The best expalination that's been given so far is you just put it in, but that's retarded. Is it just filler? Or is it a verb? or what? all the small bits and particles are disorienting.

[a2ng0d]

tru dat, i forgot that bread was 'pain' in french.


anyways, about desu. it is a topic marker, and can be translated as "is" or "are". However, it is not a linking verb. it is the speaker's choice whether or not 'desu' is used in a sentence. usually it would just be more polite.

Example:

Watashi wa Chuugoku-jin da. I am Chinese (casual)
Watashi wa Chuugoku-jin desu. (more polite)

Kyou wa ii tenki da naa. The weather is nice today (casual)
Kyou wa ii tenki desu ne (polite)

Namae wa nanda? what is your name? (casual)
O Namae wa nan desu ka? (polite)

Desu may be confusing to grasp, and is not extremely necessary to get your point across, but if you're still confused just ask and i will try my best to answer.

[analogZero]

k, cool. I thought it had some relation to the 'is' 'are' and such, but couldn't quite piece it together. makes sense now. tanks!

[scott11]

tru dat, i forgot that bread was 'pain' in french.


anyways, about desu. it is a topic marker, and can be translated as "is" or "are". However, it is not a linking verb. it is the speaker's choice whether or not 'desu' is used in a sentence. usually it would just be more polite.

Example:

Watashi wa Chuugoku-jin da. I am Chinese (casual)
Watashi wa Chuugoku-jin desu. (more polite)

Kyou wa ii tenki da naa. The weather is nice today (casual)
Kyou wa ii tenki desu ne (polite)

Namae wa nanda? what is your name? (casual)
O Namae wa nan desu ka? (polite)

Desu may be confusing to grasp, and is not extremely necessary to get your point across, but if you're still confused just ask and i will try my best to answer.



so here it goes, ahhh, [my own understanding ha]
using that 'desu' is optionaL, did i said it right???

[strike7785]

I Know the basics of Japanese such as the greetings of first meeting someone and good morning noon and night but I want to become fluent with Japanese. Not because of the anime and manga but I want to learn the culture and history of Japan and there ways of life. Next year I will be attending another university because the school I currently attend has no language class. If anyone has any information about learning Japanese besides taking classes then please say so.

[a2ng0d]

@scott: it is generally optional, but you might want to use it when talking to people, since japanese is sort of a respectful language.

@strike: well, besides taking classes (which is the most helpful way i think), you can always post questions here. and another thing that would help is visiting this website that i used when i first started learning: http://japanese.about.com/library/mmore.htm

[Thoza]

I Know the basics of Japanese such as the greetings of first meeting someone and good morning noon and night but I want to become fluent with Japanese. Not because of the anime and manga but I want to learn the culture and history of Japan and there ways of life. Next year I will be attending another university because the school I currently attend has no language class. If anyone has any information about learning Japanese besides taking classes then please say so.

you are the same like me..... anyway any website for teaching you Japanese language for free ???

[a2ng0d]

yea read my reply ^^^^^^^

[strike7785]

I've been to about.com before. To be honest I learned the basic skills from a kids web site I found a couple of months ago, its called http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/language/lesson1/index.html. It breaks down the work and if you have windows media player which Im sure most if not all have it, it will say the word aloud so you can say it correctly. What I want to know is where is a good starting point. You have your Hiragana, Katakana, Kanji languages to learn. I just want someone to be there to guid me in the right direction and to be able to speak learn from that person. You know what I mean

[a2ng0d]

well if you're looking for help in learning japanese, you've definitely found it. there are no other websites that i can recommend, but i can tell you where to start. after learning basic vocabulary, the suggested writing system is hiragana. this is the japanese syllabary and primary writing system taught in elementary schools. at the same time you are memorizing hiragana, katakana should be studied and memorized as well. it is a secondary writing system mostly used for foreign words. Kanji on the other hand is a multitude of chinese characters used in the japanese language (at least 1600) and definitely takes time to learn. Kanji is taught starting in middle school all the way into college. there are so many, you simply have to just memorize them one at a time.

if you are looking for a source online or otherwise, i know that about.com also teaches japanese writing and basic vocabulary/grammar etc. i learned my japanese through people as well as text and online sources, so i cant really help much with individual study. but if you have questions on vocabulary,grammar, or phrases i would be mor than willing to help.

[Ino]

Spanish (2 years)
English (Many years) xD >.>
Japanese (I know a little bit)
Chinese (Only two words: Nihao-Hello and Dijen-Goodbye)

[a2ng0d]

thats good... one thing though; good bye in chinese is 'zai jian' ^^;.

[Break001]

Aren't there 2 types of chinese langauges though? and I want to learn Japanese and Spanish :happy:hehe

[a2ng0d]

The two main dialects are Mandarin and Cantonese which are so different that someone from Beijing and someone from Hong Kong would not be able to verbally understand each other. There are over 150 sub dialects though.

[scott11]

mandarin huh.....



i've once a cLassmate, he's chinese...

he teaches us some mandarin words...

he even transLate my name into mandarin [coz i ask him to, nyaha]

here it is:

ma-ke yue-se

and good thing i know how to write it too in mandarin..
[the confusing Lines somethiin Like that, not Letters actuaLLy, i dunno what its caLLed]

and some word too Like:

thank you - xie-xie
happy birthday - sheng re kuai Le

and some sort of that...


hahaha

[scott11]

am Learning a Li'L, japanese now.....



and aLL i can say is
watashi wa scott11 desu....


nyaha.....

[a2ng0d]

thats good. dont forget the japanese you learned from here ^^. and if you need help with chinese, i can help with that a little bit too

[YoItzJho]

im fluent in cantonese and i can speak a little bit of spanish

[xantok]

im fluent in french and english... and know enough spanish to get my point across

[a2ng0d]

@ YoItzJho: good ur cantonese is probably better than mine.

@xantok: i took four years of french but have realized lately that i am starting for forget due to lack of use.

[scott11]

thats good. dont forget the japanese you learned from here ^^. and if you need help with chinese, i can help with that a little bit too

sure thing.......
thanks a2n....


.




how about nice to meet you?
or
nice meeting you?

in japanese
something Like that...

[a2ng0d]

nice to meet you - Dozo Yoroshiku (literally Please)

you can also say 'dozo' , 'yoroshiku', or 'yoroshiku onegaishimasu (formal)'.

[scott11]

eeeeeeeeeeeehhhhh



thanks........




come back Later................
hehe

[a2ng0d]

so theres no one out there that can help me with my german/korean? sano already is tutoring me with arabic *THANKS A LOT* ^^.

[spirit]

I'm fluent in Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese, French, Spanish, and German.

And English, of course. I'm still learning Korean, Latin, Russian, and Italian, but I can translate stuff with what I know.

I'm willing to translate things for people, or teach a few words and phrases. :3

//so your vietnamese?//
Tôi đoán chúng tôi ở một mình không phải :/

LOL, that was a TOTAL SHOW OFF!!!!
Ok. Ariya, please, tell me how will you write in all of those languages you know fluently, this fragment:
"The deity has implanted powerful instincts (passions), which lead us behave in ways that are ultimately beneficial for all. Self-interest coupled with the predisposition to 'trade', 'barter', and 'exchange' provides a basis for the division of labor and economic development".

PS. a2ng0d or just anyone, could you teach me some Japanese? ^^

PS2. Those who know more than 1 language, what language you think is the most difficult to learn?
In my opinion - the ONE that you HAVEN'T learned yet!!! haha ^^

[a2ng0d]

um sure thing spirit, ill try my best. i think its in a previous post, but i said that each language has its own difficulties. pronunciation wise, i think vietnamese has the most complicated sounds. korean is also pretty crazy. however, i might adjust my judgement to arabic being the hardest to pronounce since i started learning it, i still cant make some of the sounds ><. if you want to learn japanese, rest assured that it is probably one of the easiest languages to speak in my opinion.

[spirit]

um sure thing spirit, ill try my best. i think its in a previous post, but i said that each language has its own difficulties. pronunciation wise, i think vietnamese has the most complicated sounds. korean is also pretty crazy. however, i might adjust my judgement to arabic being the hardest to pronounce since i started learning it, i still cant make some of the sounds ><. if you want to learn japanese, rest assured that it is probably one of the easiest languages to speak in my opinion.
Mhmm, I must agree that Arabic languages are the most difficult! I know it from my own experience when I was visiting Marocco and then Egypt. A couple of Egyptians tried to teach me some Arabian, but it was a nightmare. Why do you want to learn such a language??
As well as I agree with you that Japanese isn't that hard when it comes to pronunciation. It's not that I've never tried to learn it... it's just that I've never had enough time to focus on fully and precisely learning it. Therefore, I'd like to take some Japanese course during this summer, so it will motivate myself :) There are tones of materials online, even free lessons, but still... I will try to apply for some "professional" classes in my area ;) hehe
Learning languages is great. It's a shame that so many of us speak only "American" English, and when we go abroad we expect everyone to speak English. pfff lol ^^

[a2ng0d]

i want to learn arabic because i believe that every language in the world is connected by 3 major centers, based upon the 3 great civilizations: China, Rome, and Arabia. Latin is the language center of the west, Chinese is the center of the East, and Arabia is what connects the two. Arabic might be the answer to why 'Pan' in spanish and 'Pan' in Korean both mean bread.

and yes i do believe many americans are ignorant, but thats a different topic for a different thread ^^.

[a2ng0d]

.............is there no one out there that can teach me german/korean/arabic?

[Raven]

I took 2 years of German, so I know the basics, and I am still in proud possession of my worterbuch which I can consult as I brush away the cobwebs.

[a2ng0d]

I know 2 years of German and am still in proud possession of my worterbuch which I can consult as I brush away the cobwebs. Where to start?

i know some basics...

Gutentag
ich/wir
du/ihr
er,sie,es/ sie
Sie
danke
bitte
bitte/danke schon

Ich bin 16 jahrs alt.

[Raven]

guten Tag is actually two words "Good Day". Tag can be used by itself as a casual greeting. Some other greetings are:
guten morgen "good morning"
guten mittag "good mid day" (literally)
guten abend "good afternoon"

The irregular verb sein: "to be"
ich bin "I am"
du bist "you are"
er/sie/est ist "he/she/it is"
wir sind "we are"
ihr seid "you all are"
sie sind "they are"
Sie sind "you are" (formal)

Ich bin drei jare alter sie!

[a2ng0d]

thanks but i didnt quite catch the last sentence

[Raven]

"I am 3 years older than you"

eins 1
zwei 2
drei 3
vier 4
funf 5
sechs 6
sieben 7
acht 8
neun 9
zehn 10
elf 11
zwolf 12
dreizhen 13
veirzhen 14
funfzhen 15
sechszhen 16
siebenzhen 17
achtzhen 18
neunzhen 19
zwanzig 20

*note: "v" is pronounced as an "f", "z" makes a "ts" sound and "w" is "v".

after that you just combine numbers. German 21 would be "eins und zwanzig" or "one and twenty" (much like old English, "four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie"?). Then for the tens places you just add "zig" on the end (dreizig (30) vierzig (40) so on). Hundred is "hundert" (e.g. 127 would be "eins hundert sieben und zwanzig)

[a2ng0d]

danke schon for that =). how do you pronounce zh? oh, and btw if you need help with a language feel free to ask as well. i just asked for help since everyone stopped posting questions ^_^.

[Raven]

The "h" is almost silent. zhen in pronounced "tsain" where the "ts" is combined into a single sound. Did that help... at all?

I'm really quite curious about all languages, though the next on my list right now would be Russian. Do you know any? I can say "dog", "spoon", "vodka", "yes", and "no" ^_^

[a2ng0d]

argh...no i dont speak russian. but yea i think i understand where ur coming at with the zh thing.

[strike7785]

Ok you said to learn Hiragana first and then to learn katakana, but what is the best way to learn and memorize. Should I write them out over and over again or spend a week learing the first 4-5. How did you go about doing so

[a2ng0d]

well do you have the chart in front of you? i will tell you step by step if you are looking at the charts.

[strike7785]

well I did but your not on right now ill be on later tongiht a little after seven eastern time

[Raven]

So the two German irregular verbs that must be pounded into your brain are "haben" and "sine". I already gave you sine (to be), here is haben (to have)
ich habe "I have"
du hast "you have"
er/sie/est hat "he/she/it has"
wir haben "we have"
ihr habt "you all have"
sie haben "they have"
sie haben "you have" (formal)

[a2ng0d]

thats cool. i see that german 'sie' can compare to french 'vous'.

[a2ng0d]

Okay...Let's get this thread running again! come forth with your language learning needs; class is back in session =).

btw: i dont care that this is a double post; the last post was too old to count anyways....

[amerikajin]

first time posting here. i speak a little japanese, so can help with general questions. might have some of my own questions at some point a2n, but I'm mostly working on increasing my vocabulary and kanji. I also speak some spanish...but I've recently had some problems with it because I'll try to say something in spanish but when it comes out of my mouth it's in japanese...:pissed:. this is what i get for not reviewing it then learning a new language...confusion...

Ok you said to learn Hiragana first and then to learn katakana, but what is the best way to learn and memorize. Should I write them out over and over again or spend a week learing the first 4-5. How did you go about doing so

strike, I don't know if you're continuing to check this thread, but I noticed your question was left unanswered. When I started learning written, I started learning sets at a time (a i u e o, ha hi fu he ho, ta chi tsu te to, etc). I usually did about 2-4 a week. The next week I would pick up the next 2-4 AND review what I already knew. It also helps if you practice writing words/sentences when you know enough. this can help memorization and increase vocabulary (I practice my reading/writing with song lyrics now...when I started I would write words (ue = house, ai = love, etc.). just continue to work your way down the chart each week and continue to review what you already know and you should be good. Don't forget, continue to review and practice after you've learned them all...I stopped for a while and had to relearn some of the kana.

[a2ng0d]

yeah hope this helps.


and btw amerikajin thanks for the help and your welcome to any questions.

[saprintha]

hey everybody. well, ive been browsing the forums, and i realize that there is no thread for japanese language lessons (i realize this isnt a fansubbing forum like the last anime forum thingy i was at). well, here's my first contribution to anime fuel community! if anybody has questions concerning asian languages (most of which would be japanese since this is anime) , chances are i could prolly help you out.

Language is a hobby of mine, so ill try my best to help out (that is, of course, unless somebody here is already doing so and i missed the thread - boy would that be embarrassing -_-;;).

My Language Inventory: Vietnamese (life)
Cantonese (ok)
Mandarin Chinese (2 Years)
Japanese (4 years)
Korean (minimal)
French (4 years)

I hope to be of assistance to anybody who needs help ^_^

wow, you know alot. i always wanted to learn japanese, korean and french. but sadly as of right now, i'm also learning another language that i need in order to graduate which is spanish. and that's a third language for me already. but i don't mind learning more languages. the only language i can probably speak besides english, is my native language which is hmong, and that's hard enough to learn.

[a2ng0d]

hmong? thats awesome. i can only say 'kuv hlub koj' and thats it ^_^.

[analogZero]

wow, you know alot. i always wanted to learn japanese, korean and french. but sadly as of right now, i'm also learning another language that i need in order to graduate which is spanish. and that's a third language for me already. but i don't mind learning more languages. the only language i can probably speak besides english, is my native language which is hmong, and that's hard enough to learn.

if you get a good handle on spanish you shouldn't have much trouble with french. I never studied spanish but I can make sense of a lot of it due to my franco-skills.

[Unknown]

yeah hope this helps.


and btw amerikajin thanks for the help and your welcome to any questions.

I heard the stroke order is important.
Not very useful. :l

[amerikajin]

http://66.110.202.42/peachstar/irasshai/notebook/lessons/charts/hirstcht.shtml

it has movies that show stroke order...for hiragana at least.

Unknown is right, stroke order is important, and it definitely makes it easier to learn that way. Once you get the general idea of how stroke order works, however, I find it is pretty easy to guess at the stroke order.

also: anytime a2n. If someone wants to learn, I'll definitely help out...as much as I can anyway.

[strike7785]

How do you say "My name is Jeff" and how do you ask "whats your name"

[amerikajin]

well, the formal, proper way to say your name would be:
watashi wa Jeff desu.

if it's more casual:
boku wa Jeff desu. (for anyone else reading: GUYS only - girls stick to watashi)

as for asking a person's name:
onamae wa nandesu ka?
the o can be dropped and you can just say namae, though. the o adds an extra tone of respect.

[a2ng0d]

yes.

or you can simply introduce yourself by saying

"Jeff desu....Anta wa?"

The basic components of the phrase "Watashi no namae wa Jeff desu" and "Anta no namae wa nandesu ka?":

Watashi - I, me (polite, somewhat formal)
namae- name
Anta- You (polite, somewhat formal. for the starting lessons we can use 'watashi' and 'anta' as a standard, since there are so many ways to express 'you' and 'I')
wa- particle word (marks a subject)
no- particle word similar to "of", or french 'de', but its usage is a little different. for chinese speakers, its the equivalent of 'de'.

Example: Watashi no namae. Lit: Name of me. Translated to: My name.
or a less confusing thing to compare it to would be " 's. "
Example: Jeff's name. Jeff no namae.

Nan- means what? example 'nanda?' literally means 'what?'
Desu- verb meaning 'is' or 'are'. Japanese sentences follow the structure of Subject Object Verb; as opposed to english Subject Verb Object.

namae wa nandesu ka? to answer this question; simply replace the 'nan' with an answer.

"Namae wa Jeff desu."

Finally, Ka= a question marker. anything ending with 'ka' indicates a question has been asked.

Ask questions if confused; i tried my best to make it as less confusing as possible ^^;.


@ amerikajin: yes stroke order is VERY important (i forgot to mention). generally you stroke from left to right, top to bottom, outside to inside.; its the same for Kanji, which means that this rule follows throughout not only japanese writing, but chinese writing as well. btw all kana uses characters from chinese writings, the most noticeable in katakana.

note: it is very hard to teach writing via forum posts. one, my computer cannot read or write in asian languages -_- ( i hacked my OS so i cant install language packs). but writing is generally something taught on a more personal basis. you need someone to watch your progress to see if its wrong or messy. videos can help; but its not the same.

[Dolly]

Thanks for this information.

[a2ng0d]

you're welcome dolly.

yyyyup...you all just study that. ill be standing by for additional questions X]....

[saprintha]

hmong? thats awesome. i can only say 'kuv hlub koj' and thats it ^_^.

LOL thanks! yeah a lot of people i know can say that too. but wow, i didn't know anyone here was familiar with hmong. you're the first one i've known so far here on animefuel.

[Maydraie]

you do realize teaching japanese through a forum would not work.

[Ryuuzaki]

you do realize teaching japanese through a forum would not work.

Actually it does. You may not get the sound, but if you have the basic gist of how to pronounce the language, you'll be pretty much on your way.

[soulten]

I'm learning, so that's all that matters.

[a2ng0d]

you do realize teaching japanese through a forum would not work.

you have a point in that the writing is hard to teach. however speaking wise and romanized japanese? sure; its just like learning from a website.

if i told you that japanese has only 5 vowel sounds: a,i,u,e,o

then gave you an example of how to pronounce each: a: africa
i: sweet
u: you
e: bet
o: oh

now tell me you wouldnt be able to pronounce: Nihon-go wa yasashii desu ^_^ (Japanese is easy).

[blackfob]

i listen to k and j-pop music
which is not often in english
if i gave you a couple songs would you be able to translate them for me
please

[a2ng0d]

i could most definitely try.. the K-pop? ur on ur own with that; id prolly get in maybe 3-5 words.

[strike7785]

Thank you!!!!! I appreciate the info

[a2ng0d]

Dou itashimashite ^_^ (your welcome)

[ichigogirl]

a2g I really want to speak Japanese, can you help with that

[a2ng0d]

Of course! are you completely new to the language? tell me what you do and don't know and we'll build off of that =).

[Bee_Chan]

Hey a2ng0d. Haha I'm wanting to learn the Japanese language. But I'd much rather prefer to learn Romaji first before learning Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji. If you have any time, think you could possibly help me out with that?

Thanks ^__^

[a2ng0d]

Yeah, you should definitely learn Romaji first. That way you know how to speak the language.

Ok! So for all the people that want to learn japanese, you can scroll back to previous questions posted by other people. those may help a bit. but anyways:

IF YOU WERE DROPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF TOKYO RIGHT NOW, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SURVIVE (for a brief period) WITH THESE KEY PHRASES.

Konnichiwa - Greetings. (use anytime after morning and before evening, which is the majority of the day anyways)

Haraheta =/ - I'm Hungry.

(Kore/Sore) wa nan desu ka? - What is (This/that) ?

Watashi wa [your name] - I am ___ .

Anta wa? - You are?

Dozo - Please

Arigato ^_^ - Thank you

[Dozo] Yoroshiku - Pleased to meet you (after introductions. otherwise, it will indicate you want a favor done for you)

Tasukete! - Help! (we will go over emergency phrases in another lesson)

[mszjay14]

i wanna learn japanese!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i'm currently learning french and spanish....*sigh*

[stanmarsh]

i wanna learn japaniease

[lemonek]

cool cool cool, its like speaking spanish on japanese. its awesome, thanks for taking ur time. pretty much appreciated by me.

[a2ng0d]

you're very welcome.

[Tsukiko]

Hello... new to the forums. I'm really interested in learning japanese. I have a question. How do you say, "I'm really glad that we are friends"? I have a japanese e-pal, and she always writes to me in english... I want to surprise her with saying something in her native language.... without asking her how to say it first lol.

So far all I really know are...
Good Morning - Ohayo Goizamasu
Good Afternoon- Konnichiwa
Good Evening - Konbanwa
1- Ichi
2- Ni
3- San
My name is Tsukiko - Watashi wa Tsukiko desu.

Any help you can give me on my road to Japanese Fluentcy would be greatly appricated ^_^ It's a long road tho... lol

[xXWENWENXx]

im still a newbie in jp--"
(hoping to learn more)
but since im a chinese can speak fluent mandarine also read and write

[a2ng0d]

Hello... new to the forums. I'm really interested in learning japanese. I have a question. How do you say, "I'm really glad that we are friends"? I have a japanese e-pal, and she always writes to me in english... I want to surprise her with saying something in her native language.... without asking her how to say it first lol.

So far all I really know are...
Good Morning - Ohayo Goizamasu
Good Afternoon- Konnichiwa
Good Evening - Konbanwa
1- Ichi
2- Ni
3- San
My name is Tsukiko - Watashi wa Tsukiko desu.

Any help you can give me on my road to Japanese Fluentcy would be greatly appricated ^_^ It's a long road tho... lol

"Watashi-tachi ga tomodachi de yokatta ." That should work.

4- Yon / Shi
5 - Go
6 - Roku
7 - Nana/ Shichi
8 - Hachi
9 - Kyuu
10 - Juu

And sorry for the late reply everyone.
umm @ Wenwen : Even though japanese uses chinese characters, sometimes one character can mean different things, which leads to confusion.

[xXWENWENXx]

umm @ Wenwen : Even though japanese uses chinese characters, sometimes one character can mean different things, which leads to confusion.

yea, i noe
i'm really looking forward to learn jp

[kuristar]

oh.... i do envy people hu knows how 2 speak different language...
i only know english, tagalog and a little of japanese & korean...
wish i hav some tym to learn different languages...

[aezgaga]

I want to speak japaness X3 ! lol I found many many many many.... website to learn but I was lost T_T I only know few word and count up to 8 because of my martial art class ... But where can I learn execpt on internet ???

[a2ng0d]

Um i dont quite understand your question. Yes, there are several websites teaching different languages, and if you have any specific questions for me, I will do my best to answer them. Other than that, you can look for a Japanese language school.

[aezgaga]

Other than that, you can look for a Japanese language school.



...... O.o just the name seem expensive lol and I don't think that I can find one here ....

[a2ng0d]

I agree. But don't worry, I will help you out with your Japanese to the best of my ability.

[momji_2]

im already starting to get taught how to speak jap.....ahaha XD

and also wenwen u can speak mando but u cant read nor write...u just think u can...=]

[xXWENWENXx]

im already starting to get taught how to speak jap.....ahaha XD

and also wenwen u can speak mando but u cant read nor write...u just think u can...=]

i can...
i was born in china and came to sydney in yr 4
i can still remember how to read and write
i can understand canto too

[a2ng0d]

Well i think its great that you all have started posting here again...although i was disappointed that you're just chatting....For a second i thought someone was going to bring up a question...*sigh* there goes my joy for today...

[tennis]

I have a question for you, a2ng0d! How do I say "Llamas will take over the world" in japanese? Kind of random I know, but I want to know how to say it. xD

[xXWENWENXx]

I have a question for you, a2ng0d! How do I say "Llamas will take over the world" in japanese? Kind of random I know, but I want to know how to say it. xD

wow..such a great question..

well i was thinking of asking of a good jp name for girls

[a2ng0d]

I have a question for you, a2ng0d! How do I say "Llamas will take over the world" in japanese? Kind of random I know, but I want to know how to say it. xD

There are two words that I know of that mean "to conquer". They are "uchikatsu" and "nobikatsu"

Since I do not know which is better to use, i will give you two sentences that basically mean the same thing.

1. Raama ga sekai wo uchikatsu.
2. Raama ga sekai wo nobikatsu.

As for wen wen's question on japanese girl names. There are tons.

[conigwolf]

I tried a second language but it was hard

[jyuukai]

Languages are fun to learn. And then insult people in a language that they can't speak ::D:
I'm fluent in English (no duh) and I speak Spanish, French and Jap a bit. French and Jap classes are on-going but I dropped Spanish Xp

[BuBBl3s]

i was wondering about japenese,,,i dont know any except for "konichiwa""arigato""dou itashimata?"i think i spelled dat last word wrong :'_

[shirafune]

yeah. listen to jpop and jrock songs and watch tons of anime. that'll teach you good japanese. i learned with those but i'm still not so fluent with it. i think i need to live in japan for a year to learn nihonggo.

[xXWENWENXx]

how to say siccors paper rock in japnaese