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[shanshan310]

I don't want to be too rude in saying this, and I wish you the best in trying to reach your goals using this method, however, I don't think you are in any position to make this determination.

Let's look at 頂. You without a doubt read this as "place on head", right? So why is it people say ”頂きます"　before eating a meal? That seems like a strange thing to say. I could go on, but I think I've illustrated the point. Kanji, and their associated meanings (which can often be opposites) are virtually useless unless you understand the language.

注意して下さい. Or for Heisig speakers readers: Pour-idea-down.

That line of thinking only works if you assume the person studying is using Heisig -and only Heisig- as a learning tool for Japanese and has no prior knowledge of the language. I maintain that its a great intermediate learning tool, and I think only people who have tried both avenues of learning can truly appreciate its value. Everyone has different styles of learning, but for me Heisig has been working out great, and in my lack of understanding I had poo-poo'd it as well. But rote learning doesn't work for me at all, and Heisig has been a godsend.

I went into heisig having studied all of the JLPT2 kanji the traditional way (write and rewrite). My problem was that in having to learn simultaneously the writing, meanings, readings, compounds and often the meanings of new compound words, I'd usually only remember two or three (ie. the meaning and the writing, or the reading). While I could read fairly well, my written abilities were appalling. Heisig splits this into two sections. Learning the writing, and linking it via memory to a single meaning first. Then from there learn the readings. People seem to forget that there are three books, and only the first covers learning writing through stories and radicals. Of course that in itself isn't an appropriate way to learn.

Since starting Heisig kanji have been sticking in my head with insane ease. It's an incredible relief. My handwriting has improved a lot. Looking up words I don't know is easy - if I see a compound I don't know all I need to learn is the meaning, and double check the pronunciation. I was never taught about radicals in any of the learning institutions I went to, but noticing the patterns of radicals has made it a lot easier to guess meanings and pronunciation of kanji I've never seen.

There's a free sample of the first book on the rtk website here. I suggest you have a read of the first chapter where he explains everything, and even give the exercises a go.

 

[Zoe]

Furigana isn't that common and ultimately just a crutch.

I thought we were discussing learning methods.

Textbooks will use furigana until you're at a level where you should recognize the kanji. For anyone who is actually serious about learning the language, that shouldn't take that long. How is that any more of a crutch than learning abstract meanings kanji by kanji?

 

[Fugu]

I thought we were discussing learning methods.

Textbooks will use furigana until you're at a level where you should recognize the kanji. For anyone who is actually serious about learning the language, that shouldn't take that long. How is that any more of a crutch than learning abstract meanings kanji by kanji?

It's more of a crutch than a comprehensive learning method for memorizing kanji because furigana is pretty much only used for names outside of textbooks so you can't rely on it being there, nor do you benefit much from its use. I would go further and say that furigana, while aiding in reading superficially, actually hinders memorization with repeated use because it's essentially cheating you into being able to read the word.


EDIT: People who are serious about the language won't be hindered by kanji for long? Seriously? Kanji is probably the biggest element of foreign instruction in Japanese.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

EDIT: People who are serious about the language won't be hindered by kanji for long? Seriously? Kanji is probably the biggest element of foreign instruction in Japanese.

If you're dedicated enough and have the resources, you can go from zero to passing JLPT1, for example, in about two years. Faster if you're some kind of prodigy or go live in Japan and can be fully immersed.

While you're never done learning and studying, I don't see what's stopping someone dedicated from learning enough Kanji to read a newspaper without too many issues in a couple of years.

I'm still having trouble understanding what Heisig does. The sample PDF link on the site Shanshan linked seems to be broken, so I couldn't look at it.

Does it just tell you stories for every Kanji and how to write them? Memorizing these stories helps you remember how to write them and understand what their original meaning is?

 

[Zoe]

EDIT: People who are serious about the language won't be hindered by kanji for long? Seriously? Kanji is probably the biggest element of foreign instruction in Japanese.

To use the example from the previous page: 冷蔵庫

We never learned how to write that in class. The word itself was on a vocab list, but I don't remember the compound even being on the reading-only list. However, if you see that compound written enough times with furigana in the text, you remember what it is.

 

[KtSlime]

I don't have enough time to address all points risen about Heisig at the moment, but I'll draw a broad brush over it for the sake of brevity.

Things I know about language:
Languages are spoken
Words do not map to other words
Words have appropriate uses and contexts
The more you can associate a word with the meaning (not a translation, but actual meaning), the better you know the word
Words are composed of morphemes

Things I know about Japanese:
Kanji are rarely used on their own, but are usually in 熟語 or in some declinable form which have 送り仮名
Kanji have abstract meanings
Kanji have multiple readings
Kanji often map directly to Sino-Japanese language morphemes

I am familiar with Heisig, and do not 'poo-poo' the idea out of lack experience with it. It offers a collection of characters with inaccurate, poorly bound "meaning" and implores its users to invent stories as a mnemonic device. However, this conversation is about efficiency, and methods on starting to learn the language. Heisig is a TERRIBLE way to learn Japanese because it doesn't teach Japanese. Period, end of discussion. It's a one trick pony, to get the learning of kanji out of the way. But what does that even mean, Japanese are constantly learning their language, both spoken and written, so the entire idea of getting the written part finished and done with is asinine. By learning the language, you commit your lifetime to it, or at least, however long you want to keep using the language. So I take issue with the entire premiss, and beyond the fact that it doesn't teach any Japanese, it is also inefficient at teaching kanji. The MORE things you remember about a character, the more you remember it plus the easier it is to look up if you forget part of it, it's that simple. Reducing a character to a single English word to learn Japanese is stupid, it is a waste of time. Can people do it? Sure, can they remember characters and feel proud of being able to do such, yep. But I'd rather spend my time remembering vocabulary and grammar, and I'd hope people interested in learning Japanese do the same.

The technique for helping remembering characters offered by the method is helpful as is the grouping of kanji by like sounding 音 in the later book, but that is the extent of it. The rest is just a wrapper so that books can be sold. None are new ideas, none require the book, and none require the method. It is good to feel accomplished, and perhaps that is what the method offers people when they have little control over/knowledge of other elements of the language, it is easy to follow. It gives the appearance of working towards an 'end', however I'd be willing to guess people don't make it to that end, and that is just as much a fault of the method as any.

Can I get a quick show of hands of people who tried the Heisig method, and didn't make it much further than book 1?

I just see it as a giant waste of time, it's your guys' time to waste, so no need to take my advice, and certainly doing something is better than nothing, but I think the best way to learn the language, the vocabulary, and the kanji is all within its context, so learn your grammar, start reading some compound vocabulary words, grab your dictionary, and start reading a book, manga, video game.

Zefah: Heisig is lots of people raving about lots of people learning lots of false kanji etymologies in English in a nut shell.

 

[Cranzor]

I'm still having trouble understanding what Heisig does. The sample PDF link on the site Shanshan linked seems to be broken, so I couldn't look at it.

Does it just tell you stories for every Kanji and how to write them? Memorizing these stories helps you remember how to write them and understand what their original meaning is?

New primitives (which are mostly the same thing as radicals, but also encompass other kanji learned and even additional elements I think) are introduced and the kanji you learn after that primitive build upon the primitive. So instead of learning kanji by frequency, you learn them by the primitive that is being emphasized.

Early on in the book, the stories are given to you. The stories are built by imagining the primitives of the kanji in a way where they interact with each other while being an example of or relating to the word associated with it. If I am reviewing and see a word given, I think of the story and know all of the elements included in the kanji. The writing of the character isn't helped much by the story, but you can adjust stories in order to make remembering the writing easier. Usually the writing is just something I remember though.

Later, only minor things are given to you in order to give you somewhat of an idea of a story. You can add to it to make remembering it easier. Just like giving full stories eventually stops, this also eventually stops. For the majority of the book, the primitives are listed and you are to think of the story entirely by yourself, with the exception of some harder ones.

I'm not sure some of you in the thread are understanding the method. Learning the word associated with the kanji is not the point. Before I started the book, I would look at kanji and have absolutely no idea what it was. Now, I can look at kanji, and no, I do not automatically assume it translates exactly to an English word, but I know one of the possible meanings associated with it and have a very beneficial context that makes remembering other things about the kanji easier. RTK is not a substitute for fully learning kanji, it's an aid.

A lot of the points brought up seem to be saying how useless the words associated with the kanji are when I see the benefit of the book as providing a context.

If the way I described the method seems confusing, just tell me and I'll try to explain it differently.

 

[Mandoric]

If you're dedicated enough and have the resources, you can go from zero to passing JLPT1, for example, in about two years. Faster if you're some kind of prodigy or go live in Japan and can be fully immersed.

Immersion of some sort, with constant fail/succeed feedback, is absolutely, totally, key. That's around how long it took me to go from "can pick out RPG dialog with a dictionary" to "career path".

 

[PKrockin]

If you're dedicated enough and have the resources, you can go from zero to passing JLPT1, for example, in about two years. Faster if you're some kind of prodigy or go live in Japan and can be fully immersed.

While you're never done learning and studying, I don't see what's stopping someone dedicated from learning enough Kanji to read a newspaper without too many issues in a couple of years.

Uh... am I missing something here? "it only takes a few years of dedicated study with good resources for it not to be a problem anymore". Are you agreeing with him?

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Uh... am I missing something here? "it only takes a few years of dedicated study with good resources for it not to be a problem anymore". Are you agreeing with him?

He asserted that serious studiers will be hindered for a long time by Kanji. I don't view "a few years" as a very long time when it comes to learning a language. It's not like you're incompetent during those few years, either. You don't just go from 0 to 100 over night after putting in the required time.

To go from zero to reading newspapers without too much trouble in another language in a few years doesn't seem bad at all to me.

 

[Cranzor]

This whole discussion has made me think a lot about studying and I've decided to change what I'm doing. I've mentioned before that I am solely doing Remembering the Kanji right now. Yeah, I know. I have been learning 10 new kanji a day, but what I'm thinking of doing is learning just 5 a day and using the leftover time to learn vocabulary. Grammar is probably something that I'll do sporadically with no real schedule, at least for now. But overall, I think focusing on learning the actual language is important as my study method right now is so divorced from the actual language. Plus doing only RTK can become tedious, even if I still think it's enjoyable.

But anyway, the thought of learning vocabulary is kind of confusing to me. I'm not sure what my approach will be. On average, how many words did/do you guys learn a day? I am able to learn very many words for my Spanish class in a short period of time, but a lot of those words are cognates which makes it way easier. I've tried learning Japanese vocabulary before and I had a lot of trouble because the words were just so unfamiliar.

I'm rambling a bit here. Sorry if this is somewhat vague, but general advice would be appreciated! I'm excited to begin changing up my study method.

 

[KidA Seven]

This whole discussion has made me think a lot about studying and I've decided to change what I'm doing. I've mentioned before that I am solely doing Remembering the Kanji right now. Yeah, I know. I have been learning 10 new kanji a day, but what I'm thinking of doing is learning just 5 a day and using the leftover time to learn vocabulary. Grammar is probably something that I'll do sporadically with no real schedule, at least for now. But overall, I think focusing on learning the actual language is important as my study method right now is so divorced from the actual language. Plus doing only RTK can become tedious, even if I still think it's enjoyable.

But anyway, the thought of learning vocabulary is kind of confusing to me. I'm not sure what my approach will be. On average, how many words did/do you guys learn a day? I am able to learn very many words for my Spanish class in a short period of time, but a lot of those words are cognates which makes it way easier. I've tried learning Japanese vocabulary before and I had a lot of trouble because the words were just so unfamiliar.

I'm rambling a bit here. Sorry if this is somewhat vague, but general advice would be appreciated! I'm excited to begin changing up my study method.

Use Tae Kim's grammar guide. He introduces new vocab every lesson.

 

[Susurrus]

I found this at costco for 680円. Not sure how useful/good it is, but I figured for that price, might as well give it a shot.

 

[Ledsen]

If you're dedicated enough and have the resources, you can go from zero to passing JLPT1, for example, in about two years. Faster if you're some kind of prodigy or go live in Japan and can be fully immersed.

While you're never done learning and studying, I don't see what's stopping someone dedicated from learning enough Kanji to read a newspaper without too many issues in a couple of years.

I'm still having trouble understanding what Heisig does. The sample PDF link on the site Shanshan linked seems to be broken, so I couldn't look at it.

Does it just tell you stories for every Kanji and how to write them? Memorizing these stories helps you remember how to write them and understand what their original meaning is?

Yep. It does what I (and probably most others) already do, but in a more systematic and organized manner. There are so many kanji that it's almost impossible to memorize all of them without full immersion or by trying to view them in part like pictures, and using those pictures as mnemonic aids while reading. For example "oh, there's "Two Guys Next To A Table Under A Roof"... oh, they're sitting, Suwaru!"

I don't use Heisig but I'm 100% sure that it would help me greatly if I did, since it's just taking what I do naturally and expanding on it.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Hey, going to get a dictionary.

Which one is good to get? The ones in the OP?

 

[Fugu]

Yep. It does what I (and probably most others) already do, but in a more systematic and organized manner. There are so many kanji that it's almost impossible to memorize all of them without full immersion or by trying to view them in part like pictures, and using those pictures as mnemonic aids while reading. For example "oh, there's "Two Guys Next To A Table Under A Roof"... oh, they're sitting, Suwaru!"

I don't use Heisig but I'm 100% sure that it would help me greatly if I did, since it's just taking what I do naturally and expanding on it.

It surprises me that people think that they're not essentially using the most significant part of the Heisig method when they learn kanji normally.

 

[Mandoric]

It surprises me that people think that they're not essentially using the most significant part of the Heisig method when they learn kanji normally.

Because some of us don't? Writing over and over is good for brute memorization, and memorizing your radicals and the sounds they make helps a lot with the rest.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

I've heard that Kodensha's Furigana J->E is better for learning after learning kana. Something about romanji causing poor learning of Traditional Japanese.

Anyone have advice? Tried looking for it in the bookstores but all there were are garbage dics.

 

[Zoe]

I've heard that Kodensha's Furigana J->E is better for learning after learning kana. Something about romanji causing poor learning of Traditional Japanese.

Anyone have advice? Tried looking for it in the bookstores but all there were are garbage dics.

You can learn kana in the time it would take for it to ship online. Don't sweat it.

 

[shanshan310]

Heisig is a TERRIBLE way to learn Japanese because it doesn't teach Japanese. Period, end of discussion. It's a one trick pony, to get the learning of kanji out of the way.

Its not supposed to teach Japanese, its supposed to teach you how to write kanji. The book isn't designed to be a Japanese language resource on its own.

It doesn't "get kanji out of the way" per se, but it certainly helps in making new kanji easier to learn. If lack of continual study is what offends you I don't know what to say. Revision is ongoing, and though there are always new things to learn people generally tend to build up knowledge. Would a book that teaches the general use kanji the traditional way also offend you?

But I'd rather spend my time remembering vocabulary and grammar, and I'd hope people interested in learning Japanese do the same.

Why not do all of them?

I just see it as a giant waste of time, it's your guys' time to waste, so no need to take my advice, and certainly doing something is better than nothing, but I think the best way to learn the language, the vocabulary, and the kanji is all within its context, so learn your grammar, start reading some compound vocabulary words, grab your dictionary, and start reading a book, manga, video game.

Again, there is nothing stopping people for using heisig while also building their knowledge of kanji the traditional way.

If you don't like the system, that's fine. But denying that it has benefited other people is ridiculous. Its not a waste of time for people Heisig has worked for.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

You can learn kana in the time it would take for it to ship online. Don't sweat it.

Oh yeah, not worried about that.

Just wondering if I should take a dictionary with romaji or furigana.

Again, there is nothing stopping people for using heisig while also building their knowledge of kanji the traditional way.

If you don't like the system, that's fine. But denying that it has benefited other people is ridiculous. Its not a waste of time for people Heisig has worked for.

I was just using a heisig book I borrowed... this page flipping is pissing me off. I went to the wrong page twice and did my lesson wrong. >_<

 

[Adamm]

Oh yeah, not worried about that.

Just wondering if I should take a dictionary with romaji or furigana.

You should stop using romaji as soon as you learn the kana. So avoid anything that uses romaji, there is no need for it & will probably hamper your learning.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

You should stop using romaji as soon as you learn the kana. So avoid anything that uses romaji, there is no need for it & will probably hamper your learning.

I guess I'll order the furigana dictionary.

 

[Jarmel]

I have a small note in Japanese I want translated. Is there some service I can pay either online or in person to have it translated?

 

[Susurrus]

I have a small note in Japanese I want translated. Is there some service I can pay either online or in person to have it translated?

Post it here. I am sure someone can, esp if it is small. If not, I have Japanese contacts.

 

[Cranzor]

Use Tae Kim's grammar guide. He introduces new vocab every lesson.

I'm going to go through some of the lessons so I'll focus on the vocabulary a little bit. I don't think I'll go out of my way to memorize the vocabulary, but maybe something will stick! Good idea though, thanks.

I've started learning 5 words a day just to see how it goes. I'll probably move it to 10 in a little bit just to see if I am able to do well with that amount. If not, I'll lower it again. But if I continue at my current rate of 5 a day, I'll be at somewhere around 1800 in a year. Can anyone put that into some kind of perspective? Just of what I'd be able to read and things like that. I'm not exactly sure so I thought I'd ask. 1800 is an impressive amount either way! I'm glad I've started balancing out my studying more.

 

[Zoe]

I'm going to go through some of the lessons so I'll focus on the vocabulary a little bit. I don't think I'll go out of my way to memorize the vocabulary, but maybe something will stick! Good idea though, thanks.

I've started learning 5 words a day just to see how it goes. I'll probably move it to 10 in a little bit just to see if I am able to do well with that amount. If not, I'll lower it again. But if I continue at my current rate of 5 a day, I'll be at somewhere around 1800 in a year. Can anyone put that into some kind of perspective? Just of what I'd be able to read and things like that. I'm not exactly sure so I thought I'd ask. 1800 is an impressive amount either way! I'm glad I've started balancing out my studying more.

How are you choosing which words to learn? You can't accomplish much if there's no sense to the order you're learning it in.

 

[Cranzor]

How are you choosing which words to learn? You can't accomplish much if there's no sense to the order you're learning it in.

I am using this Anki deck. The deck is apparently sorted so each new card introduces the smallest amount of new kanji possible. I'm not exactly sure what that means but I think I understand it. I thought I'd try it out to see if I liked it though. Here is a spreadsheet that has some of the words in the order they are in.

I'm open to suggestions if there is something wrong with learning vocabulary this way.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Is there an app that's like, "guess this kanji/kana?" or something?

So many useless Japanese apps in the top searches.

 

[Gromph]

Is there an app that's like, "guess this kanji/kana?" or something?

So many useless Japanese apps in the top searches.

Anki?

 

[Jarmel]

Post it here. I am sure someone can, esp if it is small. If not, I have Japanese contacts.

Alright, thanks. I was able to translate parts of it but I kept getting bogged down. This is a note that came with a shikishi I got and I'm trying to determine if the sketch is an original or pre-printed. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Zoe]

Congrats!

I don't see anything indicating that the sketch is original (and I'm pretty sure they usually aren't since there tend to be multiple winners). You would have to go back to the terms of the contest to be 100% positive.

 

[Mandoric]

Alright, thanks. I was able to translate parts of it but I kept getting bogged down. This is a note that came with a shikishi I got and I'm trying to determine if the sketch is an original or pre-printed. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks for being an Animedia reader!
Congratulations, you've been selected as a winner in the July issue's 25th anniversary "Popular Creator Autographed Shikishi" drawing. Your prize is included.
The shikishi's reverse is printed with your name in order to prevent resale.
Of course, we're going to keep working as hard as we can to make sure you enjoy Animedia, so don't miss any of the future issues!
-- Gakken Animedia Editorial Staff

It's probably preprinted, often promo shikishi will explicitly say "hand-drawn" if they are. You can check the contest details, or just take a magnifying glass to it if it's in color.

 

[Jarmel]

Congrats!

I don't see anything indicating that the sketch is original (and I'm pretty sure they usually aren't since there tend to be multiple winners). You would have to go back to the terms of the contest to be 100% positive.

Thanks, that's how far I got as well.

Anki?

The Flashcard app that is $25?

Thanks for being an Animedia reader!
Congratulations, you've been selected as a winner in the July issue's 25th anniversary "Popular Creator Autographed Shikishi" drawing. Your prize is included.
The shikishi's reverse is printed with your name in order to prevent resale.
Of course, we're going to keep working as hard as we can to make sure you enjoy Animedia, so don't miss any of the future issues!
-- Gakken Animedia Editorial Staff

It's probably preprinted, often promo shikishi will explicitly say "hand-drawn" if they are. You can check the contest details, or just take a magnifying glass to it if it's in color.

Thank you very much. The problem is that it doesn't look pre-printed at all.

 

[Gromph]

T

The Flashcard app that is $25?

Oh, sorry!

I use Anki on Mac and Windows. I'm not willing to pay $25 for a bugged iphone version.

For everyday i have a notebook with kanjis.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Oh, sorry!

I use Anki on Mac and Windows. I'm not willing to pay $25 for a bugged iphone version.

For everyday i have a notebook with kanjis.

Whoa $25!

Yeah, I guess I am looking for something like that on Android. I'll check out the PC version. Thanks.

Edit: Eh? Anki is free on Android. Has some import function as well...

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ichi2.anki&hl=en

 

[Adamm]

Whoa $25!

Yeah, I guess I am looking for something like that on Android. I'll check out the PC version. Thanks.

Edit: Eh? Anki is free on Android. Has some import function as well...

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ichi2.anki&hl=en

Yeah Anki is free on android. I used it on PC & Android and they sync together.

I create the decks on my PC & then they will sync automatically with the android version for learning on the go. You can also download pre-made 'shared' decks that have been made based around some book/learning method, although i think most people would recommend you make your own.

 

[Moral Panic]

But making your own decks takes SOOOO long.

 

[Adamm]

But making your own decks takes SOOOO long.

Well if you're only starting to learn then all you have to do if add a few new cards as you learn them

 

[CHusson91]

Hi everyone! I'm not sure if this is an appropriate place to post this, but does anyone here have experience with Temple University in Tokyo?I met with admissions last week and got a tour of the campus; it really seems like a fantastic school.

I'm in the middle of my application process and I'm very anxious to hear back from them.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Wut, Anki on Android... there's nothing on it. I guess it really depends on the PC version for decks?

 

[Adamm]

Wut, Anki on Android... there's nothing on it. I guess it really depends on the PC version for decks?

Yeah Anki is just a generic flash card programme, so it can be used to study anything.
You will need to create a deck or download a shared deck
Go to https://ankiweb.net/shared/decks/ & you can download a kanji or Kana deck.

There is a brief description of how to use it in the OP or http://ankisrs.net/docs/manual.html has some videos & instructions if you're still confused

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Yeah Anki is just a generic flash card programme, so it can be used to study anything.
You will need to create a deck or download a shared deck
Go to https://ankiweb.net/shared/decks/ & you can download a kanji or Kana deck.

There is a brief description of how to use it in the OP or http://ankisrs.net/docs/manual.html has some videos & instructions if you're still confused

Oh thanks. I guess Anki wasn't Japanese specific like I thought it was.

 

[Ledsen]

Oh thanks. I guess Anki wasn't Japanese specific like I thought it was.

It doesn't come with anything, yeah. You create all your study material yourself or download what others have created.

 

[bigmit3737]

Does anyone know where I can find an extensive list of adverbs?
I'm mainly interested in the types like &#12377;&#12387;&#12363;&#12426;&#12539;&#12399;&#12387;&#12365;&#12426; which have a &#12387;&#12288;included.

Thanks.

 

[shanshan310]

Does anyone know where I can find an extensive list of adverbs?
I'm mainly interested in the types like &#12377;&#12387;&#12363;&#12426;&#12539;&#12399;&#12387;&#12365;&#12426; which have a &#12387;&#12288;included.

Thanks.

The android app JED is a dictionary that also lists words by category (verbs, adverbs etc), and Nihongo So-matome N2 has a whole chapter on memorizing adverbs.

 

[Cranzor]

Can anyone help me out? I can't figure out what this song title means. The title is written in katakana and says &#12300;&#12488;&#12461;&#12489;&#12461;&#12475;&#12459;&#12452;&#12301;which, as far as I can tell, means "sometimes world." I think I am translating it too literally.

One other question that I just thought of. Is my usage of the Japanese version of quotation marks above correct? Or are they only used for actual quotations? I tried finding the answer online but I didn't come across one. Help would be appreciated!

 

[KtSlime]

Can anyone help me out? I can't figure out what this song title means. The title is written in katakana and says &#12300;&#12488;&#12461;&#12489;&#12461;&#12475;&#12459;&#12452;&#12301;which, as far as I can tell, means "sometimes world." I think I am translating it too literally.

One other question that I just thought of. Is my usage of the Japanese version of quotation marks above correct? Or are they only used for actual quotations? I tried finding the answer online but I didn't come across one. Help would be appreciated!

Titles don't have to make sense to start with, let alone after translation. "Sometimes World" is how it should be translated.

At university I learned a bit about the conventions that the Japanese use for different things. I know how to write essays using manuscript paper, fill out delivery forms, write addresses, etc, however the program I went through was outdated and written prior to the advent of the Internet and widespread use of the PC. The convention I use for song titles, book names, etc, may be inappropriate on the Internet or outmoded , but I believe it to be accurate, and the style I see the most. (wikipedia, etc). &#12300;&#12301;works great for quotes and titles. &#12302;&#12303;for nested quotes.

There is probably an article for it on wikipedia. If I was going to guess what it would be listed under it would be &#25324;&#24359;.

 

[Cranzor]

Titles don't have to make sense to start with, let alone after translation. "Sometimes World" is how it should be translated.

At university I learned a bit about the conventions that the Japanese use for different things. I know how to write essays using manuscript paper, fill out delivery forms, write addresses, etc, however the program I went through was outdated and written prior to the advent of the Internet and widespread use of the PC. The convention I use for song titles, book names, etc, may be inappropriate on the Internet or outmoded , but I believe it to be accurate, and the style I see the most. (wikipedia, etc). &#12300;&#12301;works great for quotes and titles. &#12302;&#12303;for nested quotes.

There is probably an article for it on wikipedia. If I was going to guess what it would be listed under it would be &#25324;&#24359;.

Yeah, I guess you're right about titles not having to make much sense to begin with. I didn't think about that.

Okay, well it looks like I used them properly then. Thanks!

 

[JWong]

Ugh, it's too hard trying to retain characters.

I need something more interactive. I wish there were better Japanese learning apps, programs, or something.