In this blog, we will be giving our views on why learning Japanese is helpful and we will describe briefly the 10 best books to learn Japanese.
Nowadays many people are learning Japanese. Since many popular video games and consumer goods such as television, and electronics are made by Japanese companies, some people are curious to know more about Japan, and learning Japanese is a good way to get to know more about the country, its culture, and so on.
As per reports in 2004, United States exports to Japan reached up to $ 54 billion of US gross domestic product (GDP). As 1000s of US companies are doing business in Japan so to interact with the locals, a common language can help, and a person who knows Japanese will be handy in such a case.
It takes nearly a year or 12 months to learn a language, to reach conversational skills, and to interact with one another in the desired language.
Why Learn Japanese?
As Japan is a developed nation and is quite advanced in technology, so learning the Japanese language can be helpful to know more about the country, and its culture and open new career opportunities. Japan has the third largest economy in the world by GDP and its language is in demand, so learning the language helps in one way or the other.
Being proficient in Japanese will allow you to access the Japanese media, such as newspapers, online content, and industry-specific publications.
For example, you are working in an advisory firm and have to do research on the client’s competitors in the Japanese market. You may get some information in Japanese and English but much information you will only get in Japanese. Reading and knowing Japanese it will make your task more easy, much efficient, and more accurate.
The 10 Best Books To Learn Japanese
1) GENKI I: An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese
First published in 1999, this book is widely used by teachers and students of Japanese and has gone through many reprinting. This textbook is meant for learning the Japanese language and starts at the basic level. The book is used in many higher institutes of learning, i.e., universities, and can also be used as a self-study guide.
The book comes in 2 volumes, has 23 lessons, and focuses on grammar, vocabulary, and kanji. Genki I is meant for learners of beginner-level Japanese, and Genki II focuses on intermediate-level topics. Both books are divided into a Conversation and Grammar section, and a Reading and Writing section, each having 23 lessons.
2) Nihongo Fun & Easy: Survival Japanese Conversation for Beginners
A book that deals with concise, fast-learning Japanese conversation skills that let you learn Japanese you need in everyday life and in the way you want without gaining or building up the knowledge of Japanese vocabulary. This book is meant for students who are new to Japanese, and who have no previous knowledge of the language.
This book is especially for students who have started learning the language where full English translations and simplification are given. A list of verbs, adjectives, and conjugations is also provided in the book.
3) Kanji in Context
This is a series of 3 books-one reference books, and two workbooks–originally created in 1994 by the Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies
The book is jointly published by the Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies and the Japan Times. The Inter-University Center is one of the most famous Japanese language schools in Japan and is a partnership between Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, Yale, the University of Chicago, and other famous US universities.
This book is based on content and is used for intermediate and advanced Japanese learners to learn all 2,136 characters on the revised Joyo Kanji Hyo. This list standardizes the use of kanji in modern written Japanese, along with about 9,500 vocabulary terms.
4) Modern Japanese Vocabulary: A Guide for 21st Century Students, by Edward Trimnell
This book is a vocabulary guide containing word categories and assumes some basic knowledge of the Japanese language. The book covers many topics such as Japanese homonyms, Sino-Japanese verbs, prefixes, and suffixes.
5) Japanese For Dummies (3rd Edition) by Hiroko M. Chiba
This book includes grammar, usage, and vocabulary. Basic grammar, pronunciation guide, and common and daily use phrases are covered here. Mistakes to be avoided for beginners and tips for quick learning are also provided in the book. It has useful exercises and various practice topics. It helps you to learn to speak the language with ease.
It contains 392 pages, and a Kindle edition is also available meaning it can be read in digital form also.
6) Common Japanese Collocations: A Learner’s Guide to Frequent Word Pairings Paperback–by Kakuko Shoji
The book is divided into six thematic chapters centering on daily life.
The book has six thematic chapters. Each chapter has more than a hundred key entries, which in turn consist of a noun and a pair of words matching the noun. Besides this, all over the book, there are notes where you are likely to make common errors.
7) Japanese From Zero! 1 by George Trombley
Professional Japanese translator George Trombley and co-writer Yukari Takenaka have authored the book. The lessons are explained in a simple manner and this book has been in use for over fifteen years in classrooms throughout the world.
Features of the book are as follows:
- The workbook is integrated with the Answer Key
- More than 800 new words and expressions
- Easy-to-understand examples with dialogues
- Bilingual glossaries with Kana and Romaji
8) How to Sound Intelligent in Japanese (paperback edition) by Charles De Wolf
This book is for students who know the basic Japanese language and want to improve their vocabulary with rhyming words. It has 7 chapters containing various words with explanations for topics like politics, technology, fine arts, and law.
This book is handy for students who want to go to Japan for higher education and who are at the intermediate level now.
9) Making Out in Japanese (third edition)
The book contains an introduction and 15 lessons, organized by different types of situations, like saying yes and no, eating and drinking, telling about the way ones feel, curses and insults, or love and sex.
This book is suitable for:
- You have never studied Japanese, but you are going to travel to Japan for some higher studies or on a business
- You want to explore bars and clubs in Japan
- You want to connect with ordinary Japanese people
10) Japanese Sentence Patterns for Effective Communication: A Self-Study Course and Reference by Taeko Kamiya
This book deals with basic sentence patterns from simple sentences to complex types. Having 12 chapters, each focuses on specific tasks, such as ‘Identifying and Describing People and Things’ (chapter 1), ‘Describing the Existence of Animate and Inanimate Things’ (chapter 2), and ‘Making Relative Clauses’ (chapter 2).
Each sentence is first written in English, and later the Japanese sentence is written in kana and kanji and also in romanization. The keywords of the Japanese sentences are in bold, highlighting what is to be learned.
Conclusion
By learning a new language like Japanese you can build multitasking skills and get a job in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector, knowledge process organization (KPO), and other related fields.
Although learning the Japanese language is tough for American speakers a determined mind and a positive attitude to learning if acquired by any person can help him or her overcome the hurdles and very soon will make the person adept or skilled in the language.
