|
Lesson 1: Pronunciation - I |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
Page 1 of 4
Japanese consists of three different character sets. Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana. Japanese can also be written using English (or Roman) alphabetic characters. This is called Romaji and is naturally much easier for us to read because it is what we have grown up with and been taught from the time we were children.
Here is an example of Romaji, with Hiragana on the lower left and Katakana on the lower right...
| a | |
|---|---|
 |
 |
This first lesson will focus on learning the correct pronunciation which I believe is easiest by getting familiar with Romaji. The Kana characters will be introduced in Level II. Kanji charaters will be introduced in Level III lessons.
As you become more familiar with the pronunciation, you will learn where to put a slight increase in pitch when asking a question.
As you will see illustrated in a phonetic chart later in this lesson, the Japanese language has the same 5 vowels as in English. However, the pronunciation is a little different. Despite its difference to the English pronunciation it is easy to remember because the sounds are consistent.
A
In English, an "a" has different pronunciations depending on the word it is used in.
For example:
Hat
Father
Late
Say the three words above, taking note of the difference.
The Japanese pronunciation is closest to that of the word "father."
Practice saying the following:
a
ka
sa
I
In Japanese, this is pronounced more like the "e" in the English word, "he" or "neon."
Keeping this in mind, practice saying the following:
hi
mi
ni
U
In Japanese, this sounds like a shortened "oo" as in "boot". It is not as long as in
"boo."
Practice saying the word "boot" without the "t." Another way to think of it is to
stop half way through the second "o."
Keeping this in mind, practice saying the following:
bu
su
mu
E
In Japanese, this is pronounced more like the "e" in the English word, "ten."
Take a moment to practice saying "ten" to get the feeling of the proper sound, be sure
not to pronounce it like the word "tin." Now try saying the following:
se
te
ne
O
In Japanese, this is pronounced like the "o" in "hope."
Practice saying the following:
to
ho
no
Concentrate on the proper pronunciation of each character. Say it over and over, A I U E O. Later lessons will be less dependent on Romaji by phasing out its use and having the student rely more on reading Japanese.
Now go to Page 2 for additional notes on pronunciation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|