Japanese Learning Resources¶
This is a list of resources for learning Japanese that I have used (or at least heard of) to some extent. There are of course many more, but this is just about everything I've come across since I started my foray into learning Japanese.
So far, I have completely avoided paying for anything except books and a video game. That's not to say other things aren't worth purchasing, just that these are the only things I have found worth purchasing so far.
Flat list¶
For the lazy, here is just a straight-up list of everything with links (in no particular order).
| Resource | Short |
|---|---|
| Takoboto | Web dictionary (and mobile app) |
| Jisho | Web dictionary |
| Kiten | Desktop app (a KDE app) |
| Renshuu | Learning community (website + app) |
| Anki | Flashcards/spaced repetition app |
| Tofugu | Website dedicated to Japanese learning |
| WaniKani | Website for learning kanji/vocabulary |
| Tofugu hiragana | Tofugu's page for learning hiragana |
| Tofugu katakana | Tofugu's page for learning katakana |
| Learn Japanese Pod | Podcast |
| Kana Invaders | Game for learning kana |
| Shashingo | Game where you take pictures of things |
| NHK News Web Easy | Japanese news website with furigana |
Dictionaries¶
The main dictionary I use is Takoboto. It has mobile apps and a good web interface, it lets you input whole sentences and will break them apart, and it shows the stroke order for every kanji in a word (if you're trying to learn to write, that's extremely helpful). Do note that, while Takoboto has drawing support, it's locked behind a paywall.
Another great dictionary option is Jisho.org. Unfortunately, it only has a web interface and no mobile app, but it's still worth checking out. It's interface isn't as good as Takoboto is in my opinion, but it does have a nice feature where it breaks sentences down and shows what function each word serves in the sentence (along with furigana). Jisho also comes with drawing support and radical searching.
There's also a case to be made for mentioning Renshuu here. It's way more than just a dictionary (see below), but it does have an interface for looking up words and sentences. Rebshuu's dictionary also has drawing support, and from my experience it does the best job of all the dictionaries I've tried at recognizing my very rough drawings of kanji.
Offline dictionaries¶
I have Kiten installed on my PC, but it's not quite as useful as Takoboto in my opinion—mostly because it doesn't allow entering whole sentences and breaking it up for you. It also doesn't perform as well for searching English words.
Spaced Repetition and Quizzing¶
There is a really awesome website (and app) called Renshuu. It has grammar lessons, custom vocabulary lists, games, a community, among other things. Thus far, I have only really used it for grammar lessons and vocabulary lists, but there is a pretty vibrant community around for all of the other stuff. It will handle scheduling quizzes for you using spaced repetition and how well you know words.
There's a website called WaniKani (run by the same people behind Tofugu) which helps with learning to read kanji and words. Just like with hiragana and katakana, they provide mnemonics to help visually remember things.
There are a lot of people out there that swear by Anki. Personally, I tried it for a little bit but didn't find it as helpful as Renshuu or just making my own flashcards.
Hiragana and Katakana¶
For learning hiragana and katakana, I used the awesome website Tofugu. For both sets of characters, it provides really useful mnemonics to help with remembering kana visually, and there are quizzes.
News¶
One of the most helpful things I've found to do is read news. There are a lot of common words used in news articles, so I typically use them as a way to both learn and review words and phrases, and it's a good way to get exposure to different grammar structures.
I would recommend NHK News Web Easy. It's a real Japanese news company, and the website is fairly simple and doesn't spam you with advertizements. It has a furigana toggle so you can practice reading kanji alone.
Books¶
There are a few books I've been reading. Mostly, I have gotten books that are "parallel texts", meaning they provide both a Japanese version and an English version.
Parallel Texts¶
| Title | Author | ISBN-13 |
|---|---|---|
| Great Japanese Stories | Jay Rubin | 9780241634479 |
| Japanese Folktales for Language Learners | 佐藤恵理子 | 9784805316627 |
Podcasts and Videos/Channels¶
I have tried a few podcasts, and the one that stuck most with me is Learn Japanese Pod. Unfortunately, they don't make new podcasts very often (and it seems like they're slowing down), but there's a backlog that's worth listening to. Plus, on their website they have a really cool game called Kana Invaders.
YouTube Channels¶
There are a few youtube channels I watch occasionally. Not all of them exclusively cover language, but most of them have at least a few videos on language.
NhongoDekita with Sayaka has a few language videos, and importantly some listening-practice videos. There are some other fun videos as well about Japanese culture and scenarios.
Emiri's Tokyo Life has a little bit of a mix with what topics are covered, from Japanese culture and life to some language-focused videos.
Mochi real Japanese has quite a few listening practice videos, and a few about random language topics.
Speak Japanese Naturally mostly seems to be focused on listening practice, but also has some other random language topic coverage.
For something a little more goofy, there's Real Real Japan. It's not focused much on the actual language learning aspect as much as the goofy language quirks of Japanese.
Games¶
There is a game called Shashingo that I really like. The whole point of the game is to run around a small city block and take pictures of things (hence the "Shashin" in "Shashingo"), and collect words. There's also a mode where you get quizzed: a word is given to you and you have to go find it and take a picture of it in the world.