HIRAGANA
This alphabet will be the first you learn and also will be the one you use most often. Each symbol will be displayed with the Roomaji below it. The other alphabets will be added in the far later lessons. If I make a mark next to a Roomaji, be sure to read the footnotes.
| あ a |
い i |
う u |
え e |
お o |
| か ka |
き ki |
く ku |
け ke |
こ ko |
が ga* |
ぎ gi* |
ぐ gu* |
げ ge* |
ご go* |
さ sa |
し shi |
す su |
せ se |
そ so |
ざ za** |
じ ji** |
ず zu** |
ぜ ze** |
ぞ zo** |
| た ta |
ち chi |
つ tsu |
て te |
と to |
| だ da+ |
ぢ di+ |
づ du+ |
で de+ |
ど do+ |
| な na |
に ni |
ぬ nu |
ね ne |
の no |
| は ha |
ひ hi |
ふ fu++ |
へ he |
ほ ho |
| ば ba^ |
び bi^ |
ぶ bu^ |
べ be^ |
ぼ bo^ |
| ぱ paż |
ぴ piż |
ぷ puż |
ぺ peż |
ぽ poż |
| ま ma |
み mi |
む mu |
め me |
も mo |
| ゃ ya |
ゅ yu |
ょ yo |
||
| ら ra? |
り ri? |
る ru? |
れ re? |
ろ ro? |
| わ wa |
を o= |
|||
| ん n |
*Ka, ki, ku, ke, ko is the same as ga, gi, gu, ge, go; you only add extra brush strokes to the end to differentiate between the two.
**Sa, shi, su, se, so is the same as za, ji, zu, ze, zo, except for the extra brush strokies, similar to the ka/ga issue.
+Just like ka/ga and sa/za, the ta, chi, tsu, te, to is the same as da, di, du, de, do except for the extra brush strokes.
++The fu sound is more like a puff of air with the sound of a hu/fu combined.
^Just like the others, ba, bi, bu, be, bo is the same as ha, hi, fu, he, ho except with the extra brush strokes.
żPa, pi, pu, pe, po is similar to the others, except the brush stroke is now a small circle that is added to the ha, hi, fu, he, ho.
?Roll your r's, like you would in Spanish.
=O was originally wo, but in modern Japan they drop the w in front.