Lesson 0: Introduction

Dai 0 ka: Tehodoki

A. The Kana - writing and phonetics
B. a, i, u, e, o - ka, ki, ku, ke, ko
C. Common Greetings and Useful Expressions
D. Review

ひらがな - Hiragana
カタカナ - Katakana
漢字 - Kanji
ローマ字 - Romaji

Hiragana is the "cursive" form of sound script in Japanese, while Katakana is the "block" form of sound script. Kanji are adapted from Chinese characters which make them more complex, while Romaji is the English sound script of the Japanese language.

We will focus on Hiragana and Katakana, and we will start with the Hiragana characters.

There are 46 characters in Hiragana, and each character is made up of 1-2 consonants and a vowel. There are 5 vowels used and they are usually ordered "a, i, u, e, o". Most tables follow that certain order, so unless you don't want to be confused with our own "a, e, i, o, u" then you can make your own table/s. The order doesn't really matter, but it can help you in remembering them.

All characters only have 1 pronunciation, unlike in the English alphabet where certain letters are pronounced differently in various cases. For example, あ is only pronounced like the "a" in "pak u"; unlike in the English alphabet where it can sound like "ei" as in "Advil". However, some words in Japanese can mean different things altogether, depending on the "intonation" of the characters. We'll have examples of these words as we go along the lesson.

Vowels are pronounced similarly to our Tagalog language. あ as in "amp", い as in "bits", う as in "ungas", え as in "epal", and お as in "olats". All syllables in Japanese have a single duration and are equally long, however there are some cases where vowels are prolonged. This characteristic is referred to as the "mora" or "tempo". A long pronunciation can be distinguished in the written form:

- A long あ sound is written as an あ syllable, followed by an extra あ (-ああ)
- A long い sound is also written with an extra い (-いい)
- A long う sound is written, again, with an extra う (-うう)
- A long え sound can be written in two different ways:
　　1) with an added え (-ええ)
　　2) with an added い (-えい) < more common
- A long お sound can also come about in two different ways:
　　1) with an added お (-おお)
　　2) with an added う (-おう) < also more common

For this week, we shall learn how to write the "a, i, u, e, o - ka, ki, ku, ke, ko" syllables.

*Characters are read from left to right
A, I, U, E, O

KA, KI, KU, KE, KO


USEFUL DAILY EXPRESSIONS
(written in romaji-hiragana-english translation)

Ohayō gozaimasu! おはようございます Good morning!
- This is the formal way of greeting. You can also use "Ohayō", but it is used in a casual manner.
- the " ō " is the prolonged "-oo" (-おう)
Konnichiwa! こんにちは Good afternoon! or Hello!
- は or "ha" is pronounced as "wa"
Konbanwa! こんばんは Good evening.
- は or "ha" is pronounced as "wa"
- can be pronounced "Kombawa"
Oyasumi nasai おやすみなさい Good night.
- can also use just "Oyasumi", casual.
Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu! どうもありがとうございます Thank you very much.
- This is the most formal way. "Arigatō gozaimasu" is slightly formal. "Arigatō" is the "borderline" formal and casual.
- "Dōmo" can also be used, and is comparable to "Thanks" Of course this is the casual form.
> Dō itashimashite どういたしまして You’re welcome.
- Some reply with "Iie" which can mean "No problem". Others use "Daijōbu" meaning "It's fine/ok."
Itadakimasu! いただきます I will partake of the meal. [I am receiving]
- This is traditional, and is said before meals. "I am receiving" is the literal meaning, and "Itadakimasu" can also be used in other situations other than meals.
> Gochisō sama deshita! ごちそうさまでした Thanks for the meal!

MINI REVIEW

Transcribe the written words in romaji into hiragana:

Ai – love

Ue – above, top

Oka – hill

Kiku – hear, ask; chrysanthemum

Koke – moss

Ike – pond

Kau – buy

Eki – station

Iku – go

Koko – here

Au – meet

Koe – voice

Kaku – write

Oke – wooden bucket

Kao – face, honor

Ie – house, extended family

Aki – autumn

Iu – say

Akai – red

Aoi – blue

Kioku – memory

Ekaki – painter