Anybody here learning japanese?

[Nami]

I know some folks say if you can learn one language, the rest are easy to learn. The only thing about Japanese is there's so many different styles, I grew up with shows teaching the Kanji versions but Japanese was not the one languages our school system offered - my school only offered Spanish and if we wanted French, we had to travel to another school for classes. I'm still a novice in German but some of the words in Japanese were actually quite easy written in English, it got to the Kanji, etc when things got confusing since most of the symbols looked the same.

I am not sure how it would work in College or Uni level, I know the Uni advertise about studying aboard but again, might of been targeted at younger students and possible only certain areas may be eligible. I'm in the computer courses so possible could of transferred to another country for my studies but the thing would be funding, I am getting funding in the UK and not sure how that would work outside the country.

The same with our school system, back in the days it would be also latin but only in higher classes. My school only offered English, Spanish and French so we were quite limited. We do have community colleges that offer basic japanese lessons though, but they are also a bit pricey. I'm also still confused about a few characters, but I try to remember them one by one.

Since I never went to College/Uni I really can't say how it is with the funding, but you can try to talk with your teachers about it, maybe they know a solution. In my opinion it shouldn't be an issue to still get the fundings, even when you study abroad. But I'm no expert in that.

However, if you're learning German and may have any questions feel free to PM me for help!

[Khloe]

The same with our school system, back in the days it would be also latin but only in higher classes. My school only offered English, Spanish and French so we were quite limited. We do have community colleges that offer basic japanese lessons though, but they are also a bit pricey. I'm also still confused about a few characters, but I try to remember them one by one.

Since I never went to College/Uni I really can't say how it is with the funding, but you can try to talk with your teachers about it, maybe they know a solution. In my opinion it shouldn't be an issue to still get the fundings, even when you study abroad. But I'm no expert in that.

However, if you're learning German and may have any questions feel free to PM me for help!

I am hoping to learn the German over the Summer but since my current Uni doesn't offer Masters, I may have to relocate farther afield which means either finding roommates or spending the days I will be up at Uni at a B&B then travelling quite a bit back home. But if I run into issues, I shall let you know.

The only time we even learned Latin was chorus, lol.. But yea, I think most schools feel only those two languages are the most important. Basically my native language should be Gaelic but even trying to find somewhere to learn that is hard, most call it a dying language, lol. Then again, most Japanese seem to know English, so I am wondering if Japan is going like the UK - coming more Americanized or if they will continue to keep things as is.

[Reeses]

Hi! I actually have Japanese as a goal for me to learn this year. I have some background in Chinese - I took 2 years of it in college, and my undergraduate degree was in Chinese history - but unfortunately I have no one to speak with, so I lost a lot of the language.

I picked up Genki: An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese, both the workbook and the textbook, because it was highly recommended by some kind folks on the language learning subreddit I look at. Have you heard of these books? You'd think with my 2 weeks off, I would have cracked it open, but they're just sitting here next to my computer.

[Nami]

I am hoping to learn the German over the Summer but since my current Uni doesn't offer Masters, I may have to relocate farther afield which means either finding roommates or spending the days I will be up at Uni at a B&B then travelling quite a bit back home. But if I run into issues, I shall let you know.

The only time we even learned Latin was chorus, lol.. But yea, I think most schools feel only those two languages are the most important. Basically my native language should be Gaelic but even trying to find somewhere to learn that is hard, most call it a dying language, lol. Then again, most Japanese seem to know English, so I am wondering if Japan is going like the UK - coming more Americanized or if they will continue to keep things as is.

We actually had an English lesson where our teacher thaught us some words in Gaelic because she thought it was important for us to know, unfortunately I can't remember any because it's too far int the past, but I remember that I liked the sounds of the words.
I heard there aren't many japanese who can actually speak good English, but I never visited Japan so idk if that really applies.

Hi! I actually have Japanese as a goal for me to learn this year. I have some background in Chinese - I took 2 years of it in college, and my undergraduate degree was in Chinese history - but unfortunately I have no one to speak with, so I lost a lot of the language.

I picked up Genki: An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese, both the workbook and the textbook, because it was highly recommended by some kind folks on the language learning subreddit I look at. Have you heard of these books? You'd think with my 2 weeks off, I would have cracked it open, but they're just sitting here next to my computer.

Damn, that's unfortunate! Chinese is also a lovely language! I'm afraid that'll happen with my japanese too, so I'm trying to look for a sort of penpal (rather email pal lol) as soon as I'm quite confident in japanese.

Yes! I actually got those books too and I already started the second lesson, I'm working my way slowly since I know all the Hiragana/Katakana but have to use them often so I can read more fluently. I like it so far, it's quite easy to understand! You should also start with it, the tasks are evenly split in listening, reading and writing and they are quite short so you don't have to work at a task for very long, I really like it!

[hiddenblink]

I, too, self-learn from anime! I learned hiragana by looking at the lyrics of opening and ending songs and matching it up with what I hear. Picked up a bit of kanji from that, too, courtesy of animelyrics.com. I read a bunch of manga, so I often read the raws alongside the translated versions. I also read multiple translations if I can find any, since I find it interesting to see how different people choose to translate certain phrases differently.

But TBH I probably know more Korean than I do Japanese at the moment. Kpop, y'know. And Kdramas.

[khazhak]

I've been using duolingo as well as official classes, and I still feel like I'm never going to be literate. the language makes sense, it's just a lot of memorization. integrating into japanese society from the ground up is incredibly rough

[Raylu]

i speak japanese and live in japan so if anybody wants to practice hmu!
i don't have any real tips that you won't find everywhere else beyond Study A LOT, because that's what it takes with japanese ultimately, in my experience

[Seame]

I wish I could learn a third language. I might start looking for classes online or something XD

[l0st1d0l]

As my last post was deleted, I just wanted to share it again in case anyone would like to use the same resources as I am
I've been using Duolingo like most people here, but I'm looking at some great stuff at r/learnjapanese on Reddit. Also, if you look at Google Play, there are several games that teaches japanese while playing (gamification), most of them are free, only with some ads!

[Nami]

I finally got out of quarantine so I had a stressful week, so sorry for replying so late!
@(you need an account to see links) I had a kpop phase when I was younger, so I totally understand lol I also read manga, but never bothered with the RAW Scans, maybe I should start - thank you!!
@(you need an account to see links) Yes! I actually learned the most by repeating it everyday, but now that I haven't got time anymore to learn daily I find myself mixing up some Kanas again, so I really need to learn it more frequently! I've read some things about the social standarts etc. in japan but I never imagined it that bad.
@(you need an account to see links) thats awesome!! how long do you live there already? that'd be my ultimate dream! x)
@(you need an account to see links) just do it! once you start and make a small routine it really isn't that hard! Maybe you should start with duolingo as they have a lot of languages, and the exercises are very short and good to remember! That way you can see if there is a language that you're interested in!
@(you need an account to see links) thank you!! I found the r/learnjapanese reddit and I am stunned, thats heaven lol I'll also look out for those games, haven't thought of that!