The Kanji Code Read online

  THE KANJI CODE

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  NATALIE HAMILTON is a writer, translator and lecturer in Translation Technology. She turned her focus to Japanese study while living and working in Japan’s rural Oita Prefecture on the JET Programme. She was awarded a Master of Japanese Translation in 2014, which included a linguistics dissertation entitled Cracking the ON Yomi Code. She is NAATI-Certified in Australia for professional translation from Japanese to English and has translated academic papers in social science, and technical and corporate content for companies including Fujitsu, MUJI and Sony. She formerly wrote online content and elearning materials for global corporations. Natalie has taught English in Japan and Japanese at the Japan Foundation. Her Japanese was largely self-taught over four years living in Japan.

  THE KANJI CODE

  See the Sounds

  with Phonetic Components

  and Visual Patterns

  Natalie Hamilton

  OCHA PRESS

  To my grandmother Leila Cumming, and my parents,

  Helen Cumming and Lachlan Cumming

  First published in 2019 by Ocha Press

  PO Box 3220

  St Pauls Sydney NSW 2031

  ochapress.com

  Copyright © text and visual diagrams Natalie Hamilton 2019

  All rights reserved. This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  For permission to reproduce, store or transmit any part of this book, please contact ochapress.com

  The publisher and author thank Wikipedia author Pmx for providing reference images for some of the ‘kanji kana’ images.

  Image names: Katakana origin.svg, Hiragana origin.svg; Description: Table of hiragana and katakana characters, and the kanji from which they derive. Appearing in: Wikipedia article entitled Man'yōgana.

  Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man’yōgana.

  Source: Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository.

  National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication Data: Hamilton, Natalie, 1975 –

  The Kanji Code: See the Sounds with Phonetic Components and Visual Patterns

  1st ed.

  Includes index

  ISBN: 978-0-6484886-0-6

  ISBN: 978-0-6484886-1-3

  1. Language and languages: study and teaching – Japanese –

  Textbook, reference.

  2. Language arts – Japanese – calligraphy.

  Cover design by Virginia Buckingham

  Text layout by Virginia Buckingham

  Printed in Australia by Ingram Spark

  CONTENTS

  INTRODUCTION

  9

  ABOUT THIS BOOK

  1 5

  CHAPTER 1 – THE SCRIPTS AND THEIR SOUNDS

  2 7

  CHAPTER 2 – THE KANA CODE

  3 9

  CHAPTER 3 – THE PHONETIC CODE

  5 9

  Standard Phonetics

  7 4

  Rhyming Phonetics

  1 2 6

  CHAPTER 4 – THE VISUAL CODE

  1 3 7

  APPENDICES

  191

  References

  1 9 3

  Acknowledgements

  1 9 8

  Glossary

  1 9 9

  1: Creative Component Stories

  2 0 1

  2: Radicals List

  2 0 4

  INDEXES

  2 0 7

  Components List/Index

  2 0 8

  Kanji Index

  2 1 4

  English Index

  2 5 6

  Radicals Index

  2 6 4

  INTRODUCTION

  The Kanji Code teaches a systematic method for studying the readings or pronunciation of Japanese kanji characters – specifical y, the Chinese or ON

  readings. A self-confessed kanji addict, I have been immersed in kanji for the past 14 years, either while living in Japan, studying Japanese translation or working as a translator. I have spent inordinate hours analysing the components of kanji and trying to break the ‘kanji code’ for the readings or pronunciations of hundreds of different kanji characters in relation to their visual appearance. I’ll share with you some valuable tips and tricks to speed up your kanji reading, and make kanji learning less intimidating and a lot more fun.

  This book is based on a Linguistics Dissertation I undertook at Macquarie University, Sydney, in 2011. I felt sure that the kanji ON readings could be learnt by more than rote memorisation, so I looked closely at the components and visual aspects such as shape, line and pattern for clues to help learn the readings.

  I catalogued the 1,945 (at the time) daily-use kanji, or Joyo Kanji, and the relationship between their reading and visual look. The result is a list of phonetic components and a number of visual groups. In this text, I have also added a section which explains the historical link between hiragana, katakana and kanji, so you can use it as a way to learn their readings.

  FOCUSED ON THE SOUNDS OR READINGS

  While many kanji textbooks focus primarily on the meaning of kanji, this book focuses almost purely on how to read the sounds or pronunciation –

  in particular, the Chinese or ON readings. There are already many good books that explain kanji meaning using attractive il ustrations, and I will touch on the radicals or meaning components, but that is not the main focus of this book. Clues to these Chinese readings can be found in the components and visual patterns of the characters, and can be traced back to their origins in the Chinese language where phonetics play a large role in indicating the readings of kanji characters – known in China as ‘hanzi’.

  REDUCE KANJI OVERWHELM

  Memorising the long lists of kanji characters and their readings is one of the biggest challenges in learning the Japanese language. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when faced with hundreds upon hundreds of characters that look similar and have so many different readings to memorise.

  Unfortunately, while kanji is one of the most interesting aspects of the Japanese language, it is all too often the reason people quit learning it.

  INTRODUCTION

  9

  A SYSTEMATIC APPROACH

  This book introduces systematic ways to learn common ON readings, and covers 585 useful kanji characters. It will help to reduce your reliance on rote learning by showing you how to identify the phonetic hints within kanji.

  By cutting the time needed to memorise the readings, you’ll free up time for other important aspects of Japanese study, such as memorising kanji meanings and reading authentic texts.

  UNDERSTAND THE PHONETIC ASPECTS OF KANJI

  There is a common misconception that kanji are not phonetic; however, I will show that they do have phonetic aspects, they can be learnt and many can indeed be read for sound. The three aspects of the Kanji Code are outlined below.

  THE KANA CODE

  LEARN THE LINK BETWEEN KANJI AND KANA

  A key piece of knowledge that every Japanese student should know is that each kana symbol is based on a kanji character. You can therefore leverage your existing knowledge of hiragana and katakana to learn the ON reading of 34 kanji characters that use the same readings today. I have also chosen 23 kanji characters that look like kana symbols to extend this idea.

  THE PHONETIC CODE

  LEARN THE PHONETIC COMPONENTS

  This book provides a clear, easy-to-follow list of 150 phonetic components (also referred to as phonetics). These components each represent a particular ON reading. When you see one of these components within a kanji character, you will be able to make
an educated guess about its likely ON reading. Just by learning the phonetics listed here, you will unlock the readings of 435

  kanji characters and 737 compound words! Learning the phonetics allows you to ‘read’ kanji more like it was a phonetic alphabet.

  THE VISUAL CODE

  GROUP KANJI BY VISUAL FEATURES

  Learn how visual features like shape and stripes can give a clue to the ON

  readings of 173 kanji characters. I have analysed a large number of kanji characters as if they were artistic works. Whether by design or coincidence, knowing that several kanji characters that feature thin horizontal stripes have the ON reading ‘KEN’ is useful to know. This novel approach will make your kanji learning more fun and seem less random. It should also appeal to people with an interest in art and design.

  10

  INTRODUCTION

  GAIN PHONEMIC AWARENESS

  A welcome bonus from studying ON readings in this way is that you will become more familiar with the types of sounds that appear as kanji ON

  readings. You will notice sounds that are long, short, end in an inflection and end in the letter ‘N’. You may start to notice which sounds tend to express certain ideas: positive, negative or neutral. You’ll learn which kanji characters have rhyming ON readings and which have onomatopoeic readings. All of this information will feed into your overall understanding of the Japanese language and will improve your listening skil s.

  I wish you luck on your kanji-learning journey! I would love to hear any insights you have into the look and reading of kanji in your own experience of studying kanji.

  INTRODUCTION

  11

  THE CHAPTERS IN THIS BOOK

  ABOUT THIS BOOK

  An extract from a Linguistics Dissertation I undertook at Macquarie University as part of a Master of Translation and Interpreting, this chapter introduces some recent research that supports the idea of teaching the phonetics and applying a visual approach to learning the ON readings.

  CHAPTER 1 – THE SCRIPTS AND THEIR SOUNDS

  An introduction to the Japanese scripts, and the common sounds of kanji ON readings.

  CHAPTER 2 – THE KANA CODE

  In this chapter, il ustrations show the link between hiragana, katakana and the kanji characters that inspired them. Associating kanji readings with kana serves to reinforce your Japanese reading skil s and phonetic awareness. It is also a great way to repurpose your existing knowledge of the kana symbols and will help you draw connections across the language as a whole.

  CHAPTER 3 – THE PHONETIC CODE

  Key phonetic components that appear in common kanji characters and Japanese vocabulary will be introduced in this chapter. Some of the phonetics are no more complex than a hiragana or katakana symbol, so you will be able to learn them just as quickly. A number of phonetics that indicate rhyming readings will also be presented, along with the idea of using onomatopoeia to group characters.

  CHAPTER 4 – THE VISUAL CODE

  In this chapter, I introduce 45 kanji groups, in which kanji characters share a visual feature and have the same or a similar ON reading. This section should be particularly inspiring to students who use visual clues when learning. You are invited to relax your eyes, activate your imagination and see a connection between the kanji in these groups that goes beyond their components. This original method for memorising kanji character readings has been very effective for myself; hopeful y you’ll find it so too.

  12

  INTRODUCTION

  WHICH KANJI FEATURE IN THIS BOOK

  The Joyo Kanji or ‘daily-use kanji’ is a list of characters used in government documents and the media that the Japanese Ministry of Education expects Japanese school students to know by the time they graduate high school.

  In 2010, it was increased from 1,945 to 2,136 characters.

  The first few hundred kanji characters you learn when you start studying roughly corresponds to Grades 1 and 2 of the Joyo Kanji. These characters tend to cover fundamental concepts like numbers, directions and elements, and are the building blocks for more advanced kanji. In fact, many lower grade characters also function as radicals, the components that indicate the meaning of kanji characters.

  For example, the days of the week characters, which are usual y taught at the beginner level are all common radicals that appear in a large number of characters. When 曜日 youbi is added to the ON reading of these characters, we get the days of the week. On their own, they represent a radical, as shown in the fourth column below.

  Kanji + 曜日 English

  Japanese

  Radical

  月

  Monday getsuyoubi moon

  火

  Tuesday kayoubi fire

  水

  Wednesday suiyoubi

  water

  木

  Thursday mokuyoubi tree

  金

  Friday kinyoubi metal

  土

  Saturday doyoubi earth

  日

  Sunday nichiyoubi sun

  It makes sense that these fundamental kanji characters are taught at the beginner level. However, for these radicals or characters with fewer strokes that don’t contain a phonetic component, the system taught in this book is not at play yet. The Kanji Code therefore starts about halfway through Grade 2, when kanji become more complex and tend to have a phonetic component as well as a radical, and goes up to the secondary school level.

  The Kanji Code doesn’t follow the same order as the grades, because it is looking at patterns that occur across grades. If you’ve started this book with around 300 kanji, you will know 885 by the time you finish. This will put you well on the way to reading. Some estimates suggest that because many common kanji repeat a lot, you only need 800–1,000 kanji to be able to ‘begin to make sense out of newspapers’ (Pye, 1971).

  INTRODUCTION

  13

  Of course, while quantity is important, the quality of your understanding of the kanji system is what will set you apart from students trying to rote learn the ON readings. Once you are able to recognise which part of a kanji indicates its meaning, and which part indicates its sound, you will have a more sophisticated command of the written language that will continue to be useful as you move up the grades.

  I believe that in order to learn to read Japanese efficiently, you should learn the following five elements in this order:

  1. Hiragana

  2. Katakana

  3. Radicals

  4. Phonetics

  5. Kanji.

  THE VALUE OF LEARNING IN ON READING ORDER

  Kanji characters are usual y listed in dictionary indexes in stroke order.

  The kanji below would appear in this order

  Character

  Meaning

  Number of strokes

  一

  one

  1

  月

  moon

  4

  緊

  firm

  15

  Kanji characters tend to be taught along these lines too, starting with the simplest then moving up to the most complicated. However, Pye makes the good point that learning kanji in this order is a bit like a medical student lining up all the bones in the human body according to length and learning them in that order. It doesn’t make sense, because there are more meaningful ways to group the bones.

  Grouping kanji characters by sound connections and listing them in ON

  reading order, as in The Phonetic Code chapter, gives you a better chance of seeing patterns in the readings, which you can use to memorise key kanji information. As you become more familiar with the ON reading order, it makes it easier to look words up later.

  14

  INTRODUCTION

  ABOUT THIS BOOK

  The idea for this book came about when I was studying kanji independently while living in Japan in 2006. At the time, a list of phonetic components was tantalisingly inaccessible and I was told ‘You just have to learn them’ o
ne too many times. This is what prompted my own attempt to catalogue them, using coloured highlighter pens on a two-page printout of the Joyo Kanji listed in ON reading order. I later made this exercise formal by undertaking a linguistics dissertation at Macquarie University in 2011.

  Although I first studied Japanese at high school in Sydney, it had been six years since I had picked up a Japanese textbook when I moved to Japan in 2004. From that point my study was done outside mainstream university channels, and my Japanese learning trajectory has therefore been unconventional. Stationed in a rural town, I relied on textbooks found on the shelves of bookshops in Osaka and Fukuoka and written in English.

  I had no knowledge of the two books written in English that listed the kanji in ON order: The Study of Kanji ( Pye, 1971) and Remembering the Kanji 2

  (Heisig, 1987). These books were probably in university libraries but they weren’t in the shops I went to. This meant that my research was conducted somewhat in a bubble, and the result is that I relied almost purely on my eyes; on the links I could see between the look of kanji and their ON readings.

  Now that I have seen Pye and Heisig’s books, I know I would have found them useful when I was struggling to learn those kanji. What I hope The Kanji Code does is take the same approach, of listing kanji in ON

  reading order, and take it another step further by explicitly stating which components are the phonetic and what sound they represent. I’ve tried to bring some of my technical writing and teaching background to the task to make it as user-friendly as possible. By using romaji for the readings, it should be accessible to students of all levels. And by using il ustrations and tracing elements, I’ve tried to make it as visual y engaging as possible.

  Over the years I have continued to intermittently search online for a list of the phonetic components, mostly to no avail. In 2017, I stumbled upon a linguistics dissertation online, which included a list of the most useful phonetics (Townshend, 2011). Coincidental y, we had been working on our dissertations concurrently in Sydney and San Francisco, without knowledge of one another’s work. There was some overlap in the phonetics we’d both identified. Some that I listed were not in Townshend’s list, and some she had listed were not in mine. I have indicated in the References the ones that I obtained from Townshend’s list. The discovery of her list was encouraging, and convinced me that my preoccupation with the phonetics and other visual clues wasn’t a dead end, but was something in the zeitgeist and gaining momentum. This, teamed with other personal factors, gave me the impetus to push on with The Kanji Code.