Japanese Primer

If you’re confused by the huge amount of resources and options available to you and just want to learn Japanese, here’s what I recommend.

As always, this is just my personal opinion. There’s no best way: what works for me might not work for you. Don’t stress it, if something is not working out then use something else.

If you disagree with what I’ve written here, that’s okay too. I’m not the ultimate authority on Japanese learning.

READ THIS FIRST:

FIRST:

Learn Hiragana and Katakana.

THEN:

Learn Grammar + Vocab + Kanji

Do NOT skip ahead, do kana first. Japanese will still be there after you’re done with them don’t worry.

Grammar

• Read Sakubi if you value independence and just want to read native material as soon as possible.

• Read Genki if you want a textbook.

Vocab

• Install and learn how to use Anki (Also read this page)

• Grab a core deck and start learning core vocab. My recommendation is to get the N5 and N4 ankidrone starter pack decks (first do the N5, and then the N4 one).

• Once you’re finished with those, start sentence mining.

NOTE: Don’t burn out on anki, stick to ~10 new words a day for a few weeks to see how it goes. Also read Better Anki Settings.

Kanji

You don’t need to worry about kanji, they can wait for later. Focus on learning vocab (words) and you will learn to recognize kanji as you go. You’ll figure out what to do about it later, trust me.

It is much easier to learn kanji if you already know a lot of words, so just learn those words. No need to rush it. Read stuff with Furigana at first so you won’t have to worry about it. Use yomichan to read on the web. See also: Practical Tips to Facilitate Early Reading#

Extra

• Bookmark Japanese - Frequently Asked Questions and Unlocking Japanese: Tricks and read them every time you are confused about something.
• Read Japanese Learning Loop# if you want a more general overview.
• Read Japanese Learning Resources if you want alternative options to the resources mentioned above. I also go in more details about each of them.
• Read Beginner Japanese Immersion Material if you’re looking for something to read that might suit a beginner.
• Join EJLX and ask questions in #japanese_questions if you need help. Tell them Morg sent you.

You’re done! Good luck and have fun.

NOTE

If you disagree with anything I’ve written here or think you can do better, then come fight me in #japanese_study on EJLX, I’m not afraid.