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Pine's Ridiculously Long List of Free Japanese Study Materials
First Month Edition
All my current study materials, because sharing found resources is caring. These are not JLPT-specific and are for pre-beginners to beginners like me. I can't believe I have been studying for a month. Comparison is truly the thief of joy. I am a slow learner, but that's okay. Find a community because it truly does make a difference. Shoutout to Seitokai's Nihongo Discord, and to @tokidokitokyo whose post let me know about it and is just overall a great person too.
Main study material: Marugoto Online A1 Self-Study Kastudoo and Rikai with downloaded PDF and Wordbook (my original post about it)
Supplemental references:
A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar (The only NOT free resource in this list, sorry! The e-book sold on Amazon does not have good reviews as it's a scanned copy of the book, rather than a properly formatted e-book. A free alternative to this is JapBase which also contains Intermediate and Advanced content.)
Marugoto Plus which accompanies the Marugoto courses and includes videos, audio files, etc.
Apps: Anki, Renshuu
Anki decks:
Tatsumoto's Kana (Recognizing and Writing)
Tatsumoto's AnkiDrone Sentence Pack V7
Official KanjiDamage Deck (from the creator of KanjiDamage, crude language warning for both the deck and the site)
Marugoto A1 Rikai Katsudoo 2021
Dictionaries:
Rikaitan browser extension (installed JMDict English V4, JMExtra, 日本語文法辞典(全集), and Kanjium)
Takoboto app (with offline access)
Other resources:
Sukiruma for practice writing sheets
Reader Ttsu for reading Japanese materials on a browser (used in conjunction with Rikaitan, since I couldn't find an e-book reader that I can install a Japanese dictionary in)
Sousakuba for downloadable genkouyoushi without watermarks
Youtube:
Favorites marked with a ⭐️.
Comprehensible Input for what it says on the tin, in bite-size formats
Daily Japanese with Naoko for vlogs with Japanese subtitles
Dogen for the funny videos that you can learn from and/or relate to
Game Gengo because Japanese learning through games, and has JLPT geared content if you're looking for it
Gino Kei who has shorts teaching Japanese in a not so serious way
Hiro - Food in Japan for cooking videos, not in Japanese, but these make me crave for Japanese food anyway so that counts
⭐️ Japan Eat for Japanese food commentary in English and also makes me hungry. So, yeah, not in 日本語 but it's delicious so that also counts
Japanese Koro mostly for kana reading practice which actually helps you get short serotonin boosts for when you do actually get to read the words correctly
Japanese Quest which plays games in Japanese
⭐️ Japarrot! for fun, animated comprehensible input videos
Let's ask Shogo for culture content
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Matcha Samurai for delightfully unhinged culture content, debunking Japanese misconceptions one video at a time
Namba Tsuyoshi for no narration Japanese walk with me style vlogs, very chill and relaxing
⭐️ NihongoDekita with Sayaka for fun, short grammar content
ShekMatz Japan has videos/playlists where she teaches Japanese in Tagalog, so if you can't understand Tagalog, you'd better skip it
Sora The Troll because why not
⭐️ Takashii from Japan is honestly one of my favorites, even before I started learning Japanese. His interviews are just really good!
Taro's Sewing because my toxic trait is thinking I can sew the cool things they post. Also comes with short Japanese commentary on screen
Tokyo Lens counts as uh, immersion even if it's not in Japanese, but it's in Japan so that counts? Yeah, let's go with that
もしもしようすけ for Japan vlogs/walk with me with Japanese and English subtitles
Yomii Japan Piano if you like piano and the occasional trolling
Japanese Calligrapher Takumi because my other toxic trait is thinking I can write this beautifully
hello! i'm only starting to learn japanese and i'm finding it hard to know where i should start with the kanji. do you really have to learn kanji separately and memorize both their pronunciations or can you just learn the kanji in the vocabulary?
omg no! don’t stress yourself out like that anon!!
okay, i’m going to be real with the japanese language learning community: you all are doing waaaaaaaay too much when it comes to kanji.
there. i said it.
learning kanji does not have to be a headache!
i spent the first 6 months of my japanese learning “career” (for lack of a better word) trying to figure out the best way to learn kanji because every website and book was like “here’s the kunyomi, here’s the onyomi, now learn them both” but the fine print of that learning method says “you’re going to f*cking struggle”
but then i started realizing that kanji i read all of the time, i didn’t even “properly” study like those articles said. i didn’t know the kunyomi and onyomi for 行 for ages, but i knew it was read いく in 行く and こう in words like 旅行 and 直行. because i learned those words in context and on their own.
a few months after i came to japan, i started asking japanese people how they learned kanji and every single one of them answered the same way: they learn through vocabulary. i once asked my boyfriend how he learned kanji in grade school, and he said that they were basically given a kanji, and then they were given a list of vocabulary that included that kanji. they then memorized the vocabulary and grew to know the kunyomi and onyomi readings.
which, spoiler: kunyomi and onyomi is not always an accurate measure. lots of compounds use the kunyomi, some of them add dakuten (as in ちゅうごく instead of ちゅうこく in 中国), and others add っ (as in ちょっこう instead of ちょこう in 直行). this really isn’t something you can just magically guess.
but it’s important to remember that everyone learns differently. i don’t learn individual kanji – i learn kanji within various vocabulary words. i make sure to get as much exposure to the various ways a single kanji can appear within a larger compound, so 高 is not just a single kanji, but it is 高い and 高校生 and 高価.
i do, however, think it’s important to understand the meaning of a kanji. this can help you decipher the meaning of a word you don’t know yet. for example, 高価 (こうか) means “high price.” 高 means high and 価 means price. knowing their meaning individually can help decipher the meaning.
in this way you can argue that yes, knowing the individual readings of these two kanji makes guessing the reading of this word easier, but 価 can also be read “ke"! you can’t guarantee an accurate reading all of the time, but with more and more exposure to individual kanji, you will be able to tell.
which brings me to my main point: learning kanji is an individual experience. i, personally, think that learning onyomi and kunyomi readings for 2,000+ jouyou kanji is a HUGE WASTE OF TIME, but there are a lot of people out there that do this methodically and know lots and lots of kanji and vocabulary. i, personally, need kanji in a larger vocabulary word in order for it to stick, and my brain just catalogues the various readings away. that’s how my brain works and learns, but it’s not how everyone else works and learns.
it’s important to find what works for you.
that being said, if you’re just starting out i highly recommend Jakka. it’s a website meant for japanese grade school teachers and has tons of grade school kanji material broken up into their appropriate grades. japanese school children are expected to learn and master a certain amount of kanji + vocabulary each grade level, so if you’d really like to learn like a child, learn like the school children do! (the website is in japanese but fairly simple to navigate.)
i hope this helps a little anon! and remember that learning kanji isn’t a race. if it takes you awhile to learn them, don’t worry. everyone learns languages differently.
I think non-Germans might not be aware of this because there's rarely a way to naturally stumble upon it but
GERMAN IS INSANELY REPRESENTED ON WIKIPEDIA
I rarely see wiki entries (that aren't hyperspecific to a country or culture) that don't have a German page! In fact:
["Number of German articles on Wikipedia by 2023 (... in) June there were 2.8 Million German articles on Wikipedia. This places the German wikipedia on the third place of the ranking, whcih is lead by the English version with around 6.7 Million articles."]
41% of the English Wikipedia exists in German! This is a literal goldmine of content!!
Read about your interests! Look up your favorite celebrities! Read summaries of books, movies, mythologies, whatever your heart desires!!!!
Want to read but don't know what to search for? The homepage of the German Wikipedia (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Hauptseite) is updated everyday with - an article of the day - on this day in the past - in the news - recently deceased - did you know? for you to peruse. And of course, the German version has a "random article" function too! It's called "Zufälliger Artikel" or "Zufällige Seite" and can be found on the left side of the screen (laptop) and in the popup menu on the left side (mobile)!
Resource List for Learning Malayalam
Hello! Do you want to learn Malayalam but don't know where to start? Then I've got the perfect resource list for you and you can find its link below! Let me know if you have any suggestions to improve it. Here is what the resource list contains;
"Handmade" resources on certain grammar concepts for easy understanding.
Resources on learning the script.
Websites to practice reading the script.
Documents to enhance your vocabulary.
Notes on Colloquial.
Music playlists
List of podcasts/audiobooks And a compiled + organized list of websites you can use to get hold of grammar!
The 然's
突然，虽然，忽然. and the other 然's can often get mixed up, so here's a quick explanation of some of the most common ones!
突然 (Túrán): This means suddenly or unexpectedly
居然 (Jūrán): This kind of means suddenly, but more in the sense of "surprisingly" or to suggest disbelief at something that happened.
忽然 (Hūrán): This also means suddenly or unexpectedly, but it has a more stronger connotation.
既然 (Jìrán): This is a conjunction meaning "since" or "now that"
既然the weather is great, let's go out!
既然 you aren't busy, let's go watch a movie.
不然 (Bùrán): This means "otherwise" or "or else";
You should study, 不然 you won't do well on the exam.
虽然 (Suīrán): This means although or even though.
虽然 I'm not good at singing, I still like to go to the karaoke.
当然 (Dāngrán): 当然 means certainly or definitely and can be used as a reply:
Can you help me with A? 当然!
自然 (Zìrán): This can mean nature or naturally.
China's 自然 is very beautiful.
She speaks Chinese 得很自然.
仍然 (Réngrán): This can mean "still" or "yet".
I仍然 haven't read that book.
依然 (Yīrán): Similar to 仍然, this also means still" or "yet" but it's usually used in more formal and literary works, whereas 仍然 is more often used in spoken language.
果然 (Guǒrán): 果然 can be used to mean "indeed" or "as expected"
This movie is 果然 interesting.
竟然 (Jìngrán): This is an adverb used to suggest surprise or something unexpected.
He竟然forgot her birthday.
显然 (Xiǎnrán): This means "clearly" or "obviously".
This soup 显然 hot.
偶然 (Ǒurán): This means "accidentally" or "by chance".
We 偶然 met at the same cafe.
How many other 然's do you know about? Drop a comment!
Yangs (扬) vs Changs (场) vs Tangs (汤)
These can get confusing, so here are some of the most common words that use this radical 昜 explained.
场 (chǎng)
A measure word for sports or leisure activities e.g. 一场足球比赛
A large place such as an open space, a field or a venue e.g. 会场 (a conference hall)
畅 (chàng)
An adjective meaning smooth or at ease or free from worry
A surname
玚 (cháng)
An old word (rarely used nowadays) meaning jade used in sacrificial ceremonies.
肠 (cháng)
Intestines or sausages
汤 (tāng)
Soup
Hot or boiling water
A surname
杨 (yáng)
A willow but it's more close to it's scientific name poplar in meaning
A surname
扬 (yáng)
To raise something e.g. 扬手
To toss or throw something up
A surname
炀 (yáng)
A literary term for smelting or melting something
旸 (yáng)
Sunshine or a rising sun
飏 (yáng)
To soar, fly or float
疡 (yáng)
A medical term for sores or an ulcer
钖 (yáng)
An ornament on a horse's head stall (oddly specific)
The 青 characters
Here's another post explaining the difference between characters with similar radicals, so here's a quick guide to 青!
请 (qǐng) 1. To ask, request 2. To treat (someone to a meal etc.)
清 (qīng) 1. To clean,clear
青 (qīng) 1. Green/blue color 2. An abbreviation for young people 年青人
情 (qíng) 1. A feeling, emotion
晴 (qíng) 1. Fine, clear e.g. Clear weather
静 (jìng) 1. Quiet, peacegul
睛 (jīng) 1. Eye, eyeball
猜 (cāi) 1. To guess, suspect, speculate
精 (jīng) 1. Energy, spirit, essence
靖 (jìng) 1. This also means quiet, peaceful but it's a more older form. 2. A surname
腈 (jīng) 1. Nitrile, acrylic
The 佥 Characters
A quick guide to the different characters using 佥!
脸 (liǎn) 1. Face 2. The front part of something e.g. a shop 3. Self-respect
险 (xiǎn) 1. Insurance e.g. Health insurance, car insurance 2. A place difficult to access
验 (yàn) 1. To check, test or inspect something e.g. a blood test, to check a passport
剑 (jiàn) 1. A sword, dagger or sabre
检 (jiǎn) 1. To check, inspect or examine something
签 (qiān) 1. To sign something e.g. a contract, a document
捡 (jiǎn) 1. To gather or collect something
俭 (jiǎn) 1. This is an adjective meaning frugal
睑 (jiǎn) 1. An eyelid: Upper eyelid - 上睑 Lower eyelid - 下睑
佥 (qiān) 1. This character isn't really used that often, but in classical Chinese it's used to mean together
Just discovered the 盗墓笔记 Graverobbers Chronicles (Dàomù bǐjì) and now I'm obsessed, both with the tv series (accidentally skipped around 2 prequels and now I'm figuring it out as I watch Ultimate Note) and now the books.
At the time of writing this, I am on episode 15/37 and dear God. The amount of craziness and plot twists is just the perfect amount to keep me entertained.
The books are in Chinese so it'll be a good reading practise as reading news articles and graded readers can get repetitive sometimes. Literary Chinese is quite different from the usual textbook or daily Chinese, so this is definitely an interesting challenge.
Here's the link to the site, it's one of the best sites for Chinese novels that I've seen to date and I highly recommend it.