curious-georgia 0 Posted May 25, 2002 Share Posted May 25, 2002 Hi. I am interested in Japan and I hear the language is really difficult. Is it really or is that just a myth? Link to post Share on other sites
Wizz 11 Posted May 25, 2002 Share Posted May 25, 2002 It certainly is from where I stand! But I have never really tried to learn any other language, so I can't compare. Link to post Share on other sites
curious-georgia 0 Posted May 29, 2002 Author Share Posted May 29, 2002 Thanks Wizz. All you other guys on here not learn Japanese then? Link to post Share on other sites
danz 0 Posted May 29, 2002 Share Posted May 29, 2002 i am learning japanese... i speak english and hebrew fluently and studied spanish in high school... japanese is hands down the hardest language I have encountered...but i hear german and chinese are right up there as well danz Link to post Share on other sites
sophoMORE 0 Posted May 30, 2002 Share Posted May 30, 2002 It was when I was trying! Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 30, 2002 Share Posted May 30, 2002 Japanese shouldn't be difficult if it's taught right, but there are a lot of very bad, very ignorant Japanese teachers of Japanese with no theories of teaching or of language at all. Also many of the textbooks separate spoken and written Japanese (tempting but disastrous). Of course there's a lot of brute force effort required to learn kanji. In languages with alphabets, you can pick up vocabulary just by walking around town and reading signs. In France, if you see a 'Boulanger', you have effectively learnt a new word. In Japan, unless you've learned the word already, what you see just looks like impenetrable gibberish. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted May 30, 2002 Share Posted May 30, 2002 Ocean 11, you seem to be an expert in many things...now even in learning Japanese! I have been trying to learn Japanese for a few months now on my own in my spare time. I am reading a few "learn Japanese" books and I also have a CD-Rom - Learn Japanese package. I admit it is very difficult and my progress is slow. What is the best way to learn? Can you recommend any books or programs? Link to post Share on other sites
danz 0 Posted May 30, 2002 Share Posted May 30, 2002 the japanese courses i took in college were excellent... you need a sensei that is constantly drilling you...not just reading drills from a book, but creating impromptu scenarios where you have to think up sentences yourself, and not just memorize patterns (which suprisingly can get you pretty far in japanese)...as with any language, practice with native speakers is the best way to go about it...but you also need to spend the grunge time memorizing words to build vocab... I think it is hard to find stricht japanese teachers (if they are native...) because it just is not in their nature to be critical...all other senseis I have had after college do not challenge me, and even when i make mistakes they still say "daijyoubu....jyozu desu nee" my .02 danz Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted June 5, 2002 Share Posted June 5, 2002 Thanks for your 2c Danz. I guess the best way to get lots of practice is to get a Japanese girlfriend (boyfriend). However, for me, that's a "chicken and egg" story. The reason I want to learn Japanese is to get a Japanese girlfriend...I need a Japanese girlfriend to help me learn Japanese so I can get a Japanese girlfriend...etc. Ha Ha Link to post Share on other sites
rach 1 Posted June 5, 2002 Share Posted June 5, 2002 Quote: The reason I want to learn Japanese is to get a Japanese girlfriend Us non-Japanese babes not good enought for you, hey?????? Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted June 5, 2002 Share Posted June 5, 2002 Girlfriends aren't usually a very good way to learn a language. They're generally critical of your failings and inability, but have no practical value at all as teachers or mentors. Plus they have other things on their mind. If you're a complete beginner, going to any Japanese bookshop and picking up some textbooks meant for Japanese children can be helpful. Also, getting past papers of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test and associated study materials is a tried and true method of raising your general level. Take one test a year for three years and you're waratteiru. Link to post Share on other sites
curious-georgia 0 Posted June 6, 2002 Author Share Posted June 6, 2002 Thanks peeps. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted June 7, 2002 Share Posted June 7, 2002 I don't dare say anyone is "not good enought" for me, rach. It's just that there is something about Japanese girls which drives me crazy! I don't know why. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted June 7, 2002 Share Posted June 7, 2002 And Markie, the longer you knows 'em, the more crazy they drives you. Oh yes. Ain't that right H-ne-ko? Link to post Share on other sites
animal 0 Posted June 9, 2002 Share Posted June 9, 2002 Too goddam difficult. I have now given up. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted June 11, 2002 Share Posted June 11, 2002 Thanks, Ocean. I think you are right (again!) I do feel I am getting more and more crazy as time go bye. Link to post Share on other sites
blinkin'ek 0 Posted June 11, 2002 Share Posted June 11, 2002 I go through periods of feeling I am making progress, than then just the opposite. I'm in one of those opposite times right now Link to post Share on other sites
echineko 1 Posted June 11, 2002 Share Posted June 11, 2002 Keep up good work trying to learn everyone. Ganbare! I also try to make my english much better than now, but it is very slow to learn. Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted June 17, 2002 Share Posted June 17, 2002 For yesterday afternoons game at the World Cup, I listened to the Japanese commentary. Well, tried to anyway. It's worth if just to try it out. I dread to think what they're like when Japan are playing. But enough of that - back to the much calmer English. Link to post Share on other sites
sachiko 0 Posted June 17, 2002 Share Posted June 17, 2002 I think it must be very difficult. Link to post Share on other sites
jellybabe 0 Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 It is, but I just passed a test! Yipee! Link to post Share on other sites
Yuki's Passion 1 Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 I think most of the replies in this thread are right on. Japanese is a hard language. Basically, if you dont put in a lot of effort, you wont get anywhere with it. Ive seen gaijin living here for years and cant hold a simple conversation, read a menu, or ask for assistance when shopping or buying something. Once you get a base after learning the kana and some general kanji its pretty easy. Grammar isnt that difficult, its just backwards from English. I think once you get past level 2, it gets really hard as all you do is study Kanji. Level 2 and 1 grammar is pretty similar; but the Kanji that you have to know for level 1 is crazy!!! Link to post Share on other sites
danny 0 Posted August 1, 2002 Share Posted August 1, 2002 Rock hard! Frustratingly hard! I give up. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted August 1, 2002 Share Posted August 1, 2002 Yuki's passion. The tests have a distinct core to them, so that while Level 1 is supposedly all 1900 of the standard use (jouyou) kanji, you can get a fantastic score without knowing anything like as many. Do a few past papers and the pattern will emerge. Since the Level 1 test is far from perfect, many Japanese universities set their entrance qualification at a score that is well above Level 1 pass mark. As for kanji themselves, the Japanese kanji kentei exams are a far more thorough test of kanji knowledge. Well hard they are. For gaijin learners, I think it's worth doing a test called the Jitsuryoku Nihongo Kentei. It's like TOEIC so everyone takes the same test regardless of level. The advanced reading passages are far closer to real Japanese than the simplistic "school textbook" type passages you get in the December test. Link to post Share on other sites
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