漢字 (Kanji) Part 1
Learning Objectives
- Understand the difference between On'yomi and Kun'yomi.
- Learn the Kanji for numbers 1-10 and large numbers.
- Learn the Kanji for the days of the week (elements).
- Learn foundational nature Kanji (Mountain, River, Field).
Welcome to Kanji (漢字), the third and final Japanese writing system. Unlike Hiragana and Katakana which only represent sounds, Kanji represent meanings. Most Kanji have two ways to be read: On’yomi (Chinese reading, usually used when Kanji are combined) and Kun’yomi (Japanese reading, usually used when a Kanji is by itself). In this chapter, we will learn our first 23 essential Kanji!
1. Numbers 1–10 (一〜十)
Let’s start with the most basic building blocks: numbers. The first three are just horizontal lines!
イチ (ichi)
ひと (hito)
- 一【いち】One
- 一つ【ひとつ】One thing
ニ (ni)
ふた (futa)
- 二【に】Two
- 二つ【ふたつ】Two things
サン (san)
みっ (mit)
- 三【さん】Three
- 三つ【みっつ】Three things
シ (shi)
よん / よっ (yon / yot)
- 四【よん / し】Four
- 四つ【よっつ】Four things
ゴ (go)
いつ (itsu)
- 五【ご】Five
- 五つ【いつつ】Five things
ロク (roku)
むっ (mut)
- 六【ろく】Six
- 六つ【むっつ】Six things
シチ (shichi)
なな (nana)
- 七【なな / しち】Seven
- 七つ【ななつ】Seven things
ハチ (hachi)
やっ (yat)
- 八【はち】Eight
- 八つ【やっつ】Eight things
キュウ / ク (kyuu / ku)
ここの (kokono)
- 九【きゅう】Nine
- 九つ【ここのつ】Nine things
ジュウ (juu)
とお (too)
- 十【じゅう】Ten
- 十一【じゅういち】Eleven
2. Large Numbers (百, 千, 万)
Japanese counts large numbers in units of 10,000 (万) rather than 1,000 like in English.
ヒャク (hyaku)
—
- 百【ひゃく】One hundred
- 三百【さんびゃく】Three hundred
セン (sen)
ち (chi)
- 千【せん】One thousand
- 三千【さんぜん】Three thousand
マン (man)
—
- 一万【いちまん】Ten thousand
- 十万【じゅうまん】One hundred thousand (10 ten-thousands)
3. Elements & Days of the Week
In Japanese, the days of the week are named after the Sun, Moon, and the five visible planets (which are in turn named after the five Chinese elements: Fire, Water, Wood, Gold/Metal, Earth).
ニチ / ジツ (nichi / jitsu)
ひ / び / か (hi / bi / ka)
- 日曜日【にちようび】Sunday
- 日本【にほん】Japan (Sun Origin)
ゲツ / ガツ (getsu / gatsu)
つき (tsuki)
- 月曜日【げつようび】Monday
- 一月【いちがつ】January
カ (ka)
ひ (hi)
- 火曜日【かようび】Tuesday
- 火山【かざん】Volcano (Fire Mountain)
スイ (sui)
みず (mizu)
- 水曜日【すいようび】Wednesday
- 水【みず】Water
モク (moku)
き (ki)
- 木曜日【もくようび】Thursday
- 木【き】Tree
キン (kin)
かね (kane)
- 金曜日【きんようび】Friday
- お金【おかね】Money
ド / ト (do / to)
つち (tsuchi)
- 土曜日【どようび】Saturday
- 土【つち】Soil/Earth
4. Nature (Mountain, River, Rice Field)
These characters are pictographs—they look exactly like the things they represent!
サン (san)
やま (yama)
- 山【やま】Mountain
- ふじ山【ふじさん】Mt. Fuji
セン (sen)
かわ / がわ (kawa / gawa)
- 川【かわ】River
- 小川【おがわ】Stream (Small River)
デン (den)
た / だ (ta / da)
- 田んぼ【たんぼ】Rice field
- 本田【ほんだ】Honda (name: Origin Field)
Chapter Summary
- 1Kanji carry meaning, completely unlike Hiragana or Katakana.
- 2On'yomi (Chinese reading) is typically used for compound words.
- 3Kun'yomi (Japanese reading) is typically used when the Kanji stands alone.
- 4Japanese days of the week are based on Sun, Moon, Fire, Water, Wood, Gold, Earth.
- 5Many basic Kanji like 山 (Mountain) and 川 (River) are simple pictures of nature.
Knowledge Check
Test your memory of these first 23 Kanji!
Quiz
Which of the following Kanji means 'Three'?