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Japanese Language is One of the Toughest in the WorldBut don't get too scared!;-) If I can learn it, you can too. About Japanese The Japanese language is spoken by over 140 million people worldwide. Most of them, of course, in Japan. For those who want to begin, know that it will be a long and difficult, but rewarding journey. Japanese is ranked by the CIA as one of the most difficult languages to learn. But just think about how cool it will be that after a while YOU, were able to learn such a difficult language. Studying JapaneseI've been studying Japanese for about a year now. I know that doesn't sound like a long time, but when you consider that my language class at my university is 5 hours-a-day, Monday-Friday you can see that I have a pretty good amount of experience with the language. That means I've tried dozens of different ways to study. From buying flash cards for Kanji to singing songs to remember the first ten numbers to getting daily Kanji in my mailbox, for me studying Japanese isn't just about learning the language, it's a process on learning the best way to learn the language. And seeing that over half of my classmates dropped out of the intensive course sometime during the year, I must have been doing something right. If you've read the home page, you know that I am currently a college student at a Japanese university. If you're dying to learn Japanese, then I encourage you to choose the same way. However, for the rest of you sane people out there that perhaps aren't looking towards a full university education, there are a lot of other options to learn the language. If you're already in Japan, or area planning to go for a while, I'd recommend enrolling in one of the Japanese language schools that cater towards the gaijin (foreign) population. There are dozens of these but it's definitely smart to do some research before you pay them your hard-earned (or even parent's) money. The nice thing about the schools as opposed to self study is that they will help to keep you disciplined and motivated with your goals (even with the best intentions, it's hard to keep motivated forever). Outside of Japan, the second best thing is of course to take a course in your school or university. Even the local community college is worth checking out. If none of this is available, my recommendation is buying a textbook like Genki or Yookoso as well as a speaking program (Pimsleur has good quality ones), and buckling down to study. If you're this disciplined to learn then I'm sure you're planning to go to Japan sometime at which point I would still recommend going to a language school that will fit your level. For Beginners of Japanese
Beyond the BasicsReturn from Japanese Language to Japan-San Home
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