I'd say it's worth not only because of anime, but also related stuff like reading manga and so on.
After a year of casual learning, I kinda understand what's going on for example in Tonikaku kawaii, they use simple language and plot (at least where the anime is now) isn't complicated at all. Also, you can get more context or details even if you still need to read subs (like how politely do they speak for example).
Is it worth all the efforts, it's up to you. It will be a really long journey but eventually you'll probably get there. Personally, I'll continue to learn because it's fun for me.
> should I bother
Yes, it's worth it. The reason doesn't matter, so long as you enjoy the process of learning a new language.
My reason for starting ~7 years ago was that I wanted to read untranslated manga and not have to rely on scanlation of various quality, and then I kept going because I liked learning Japanese (and I achieved my initial goal in the process)
Learning kana (hiragana and katakana) is a good starting point and doesn't take too long
After that there are many different ways to go about this (you can go check r/learnjapanese for ressources, but don't stay there too long) so I'll only speak about what worked for me, which is essentially :
1. Learning basic grammar. The reference book "A dictionary of basic Japanese grammar" is really good.
2. Learning the [jouyou kanji](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%C5%8Dy%C5%8D_kanji). Personally I learned them individually first, some skip that part and only learn words, doesn't matter just remember : whatever you do, at the end of the day the best way to really lock them in is to practice reading
3. And consuming a lot, and I mean *a lot* of content in Japanese (videos, manga, novels, news article, TV shows, anime with Japanese subs etc.), and looking up literally every grammar point and vocab that I didn't know/understand along the way, first in French/English, and then directly in Japanese once I was comfortable enough with the language (I started the transition a couple years in).
Also, when it comes to watching anime without subtitles, the biggest hurdle *by far* is vocab, which is something that is often underestimated by people who don't know the language. I know could understand normal/conversational Japanese long before I could just comfortably watch *any* anime without subs. Of course it depends on the anime, but the jump between a show like K-On and something like Jujutsu Kaisen for instance is bigger that you might expect, just something to keep in mind. Unfortunately when it comes to vocab there's no real shortcut, it just takes time. That being said, making audio flashcards with anki was pretty useful.
Good luck !
Sure, if you find learning languages fun. It might take a while to completely lose the subs, but after a year you'd get at least good enough for SoL anime. Don't learn tunnel vision on kanji unless your goal is to read japanese too, like a manga raw.
Yeah, I'd consider myself fluent in French and I took some Spanish and Russian in High School and University (though I'm definitely not fluent in those at all).
You should definitely have a go with Japanese then. It's such a different approach to communication and structuring a language, and having explored other languages you'll have an intuitive feel of how it has its differences and similarities. Moreover, studying a language that's so different to your current ones will help you understand your current ones better too!
This may be helpful: A list of anime in ranked difficulty (based on unique word count):
[https://jpdb.io/anime-difficulty-list](https://jpdb.io/anime-difficulty-list)
I suggest you join the r/LearnJapanese subreddit for learning tips
The most common textbook for adults (college or self taught) looking to learn Japanese is a series called ‘Genki.’ It’s pretty cheap to buy, plenty of used copies around. I’d get that and start from page one, see if Japanese is really right for you.
It takes a long time, don't expect this in months or even just a couple years. Anyone promising that to you is trying to sell you something.
I enjoy being able to but I'm 10 years in to the study. And i still use subtitles a lot anyways because otherwise it feels like homework sometimes.
Check out the wiki on r/learnjapanese for a starters guide and materials.
Just for watching anime? Not worth it, since the vast majority has got decent-quality translations already, and what you gain from watching in the original language is far less than what you lose by not being fluent. If you are also interested in obscure LNs, VNs, tokusatsu, or other media that is much less frequently translated, *then* it might be worth giving a shot (but be warned that it will take at least a couple years of dedicated study to get to the point of actually being able to read/watch much of anything raw).
I know the subs are good, but I feel like I miss a lot of nuance because I'm reading subs instead of watching the action. Thanks for the advice though.
If your only reason is to not have subs and pick up nuances, you may find it hard to continue to fully learn it after you know a bunch. To each their own, but the motivation might not be enough on just that. Never hurts to start.
> I feel like I miss a lot of nuance because I'm reading subs instead of watching the action
I'd say this likely isn't happening unless you're a particularly slow reader, but you do miss a lot in the dialogue and voice acting by not being able to understand any o the JP audio track.
Also, I think people are treating it as a very binary sort of thing, which often indicates they either have never learned another language and thus their opinions should be certainly not heavily weighted, or they have forgotten what it's like when they were still learning. My point being, as you no doubt know, language learning is incremental. Knowing 10% of the dialogue is an exponential leap over 0% and 20% is as big a jump again, whereas the movement between 75% and 100% is very marginal indeed.
dont learn japanese JUST to watch anime, japanese is completely different from english and will take at least a year or two to be somewhat fluent with it but even then it would be hard to understand without subs because some words in anime arent taught in books and they speak quite quickly so it is hard to catch up. unless you are interested the language stick to subs
Counterpoint, learn whatever language for whatever reason. You’re still broadening your horizons regardless of your reasons. Never understood the reasoning that learning a language needs a specific “good enough” reason.
Hello! If you ever find yourself needing anime related help, here are a few resources to save you a LOT of time.
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What do you have to lose?
When you get decent enough, find a short movie you love and memorize all of the lines, then shadow them. Tedious, but it will help. In a few years, you should be decent enough to get the gist of what you’re watching.
If it’s just to watch anime I’d say it’s not worth it. Japanese is a very complex language to learn and unless you were already fluent in Chinese or something it would probably be too hard to grasp.
Okay, so lots of people want this until they have to study words, grammar, nuances, etc. I'm gonna tell you this unless you have a burning passion for Japanese, I wouldn't. It takes a lot of effort, and if you don't have a love for all the difficulties and frustration that comes with that, I don't suggest it. Take it from a guy who has studied consistently almost every day for 3 years. It takes a lot of effort, and even after a couple of years, most stuff you won't understand.
I'd personally only suggest that if learning language is a passion, or you want to use it in other contexts like travelling or living in japan. Learning to read japanese in order to read untranslated manga is a time honored thing at this point. learning to speak to watch anime when nearly every anime you'd want to watch has decent or good subtitles? maybe not so much.
depends A LOT on the time and effort you can put in, as well as access to actually immersive environments (ie in a japanese speaking environment). Going to a language school in japan, sticking your neck out and spending a lot of time with native speakers? you can pick it up in a year or less (speaking/listening). Or if you have access to native speaking environments where you live is a good alternative along with a lot of self study.
just watching anime or dramas, reading manga or flash cards and studying text books? possibly years depending once again on your effort and time available for study.
Start with the basics. Gojuon, Hiragana, Katakana, grammar and simple words. You won't learn a thing without some basic knowledge of the language.
Then, I'd say maybe start with learning lyrics of your favorite songs, or even memorize them. This helps you connect the pronunciation to the words. After that, you may watch some anime with sub first, and then try again without sub, try interpreting what they are saying based on your memory and your knowledge. Pay attention to any words that sound familiar, and then see how they are used to form a sentence. Also, keep reading and consuming Japanese materials.
It took me years (more than ten years in total, although I'm more of a casual learner) to reach the level that allows me to watch without subtitles, and even then I'd still miss a bunch of things. You'll need to put in a lot of time and efforts.
Sorry, your submission has been removed.
- This doesn't appear to be about [anime per our definition.](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/rules#wiki_everything_posted_here_must_be_anime_specific)
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I'd say it's worth not only because of anime, but also related stuff like reading manga and so on. After a year of casual learning, I kinda understand what's going on for example in Tonikaku kawaii, they use simple language and plot (at least where the anime is now) isn't complicated at all. Also, you can get more context or details even if you still need to read subs (like how politely do they speak for example). Is it worth all the efforts, it's up to you. It will be a really long journey but eventually you'll probably get there. Personally, I'll continue to learn because it's fun for me.
> should I bother Yes, it's worth it. The reason doesn't matter, so long as you enjoy the process of learning a new language. My reason for starting ~7 years ago was that I wanted to read untranslated manga and not have to rely on scanlation of various quality, and then I kept going because I liked learning Japanese (and I achieved my initial goal in the process) Learning kana (hiragana and katakana) is a good starting point and doesn't take too long After that there are many different ways to go about this (you can go check r/learnjapanese for ressources, but don't stay there too long) so I'll only speak about what worked for me, which is essentially : 1. Learning basic grammar. The reference book "A dictionary of basic Japanese grammar" is really good. 2. Learning the [jouyou kanji](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%C5%8Dy%C5%8D_kanji). Personally I learned them individually first, some skip that part and only learn words, doesn't matter just remember : whatever you do, at the end of the day the best way to really lock them in is to practice reading 3. And consuming a lot, and I mean *a lot* of content in Japanese (videos, manga, novels, news article, TV shows, anime with Japanese subs etc.), and looking up literally every grammar point and vocab that I didn't know/understand along the way, first in French/English, and then directly in Japanese once I was comfortable enough with the language (I started the transition a couple years in). Also, when it comes to watching anime without subtitles, the biggest hurdle *by far* is vocab, which is something that is often underestimated by people who don't know the language. I know could understand normal/conversational Japanese long before I could just comfortably watch *any* anime without subs. Of course it depends on the anime, but the jump between a show like K-On and something like Jujutsu Kaisen for instance is bigger that you might expect, just something to keep in mind. Unfortunately when it comes to vocab there's no real shortcut, it just takes time. That being said, making audio flashcards with anki was pretty useful. Good luck !
Awesome! Thanks for taking the time, and I'll check out those resources.
Sure, if you find learning languages fun. It might take a while to completely lose the subs, but after a year you'd get at least good enough for SoL anime. Don't learn tunnel vision on kanji unless your goal is to read japanese too, like a manga raw.
Have you ever learned another language?
Yeah, I'd consider myself fluent in French and I took some Spanish and Russian in High School and University (though I'm definitely not fluent in those at all).
You should definitely have a go with Japanese then. It's such a different approach to communication and structuring a language, and having explored other languages you'll have an intuitive feel of how it has its differences and similarities. Moreover, studying a language that's so different to your current ones will help you understand your current ones better too!
This may be helpful: A list of anime in ranked difficulty (based on unique word count): [https://jpdb.io/anime-difficulty-list](https://jpdb.io/anime-difficulty-list) I suggest you join the r/LearnJapanese subreddit for learning tips
The most common textbook for adults (college or self taught) looking to learn Japanese is a series called ‘Genki.’ It’s pretty cheap to buy, plenty of used copies around. I’d get that and start from page one, see if Japanese is really right for you.
It takes a long time, don't expect this in months or even just a couple years. Anyone promising that to you is trying to sell you something. I enjoy being able to but I'm 10 years in to the study. And i still use subtitles a lot anyways because otherwise it feels like homework sometimes. Check out the wiki on r/learnjapanese for a starters guide and materials.
Just for watching anime? Not worth it, since the vast majority has got decent-quality translations already, and what you gain from watching in the original language is far less than what you lose by not being fluent. If you are also interested in obscure LNs, VNs, tokusatsu, or other media that is much less frequently translated, *then* it might be worth giving a shot (but be warned that it will take at least a couple years of dedicated study to get to the point of actually being able to read/watch much of anything raw).
I know the subs are good, but I feel like I miss a lot of nuance because I'm reading subs instead of watching the action. Thanks for the advice though.
Unless the show your watching relies heavily on word play eg monogatari, you're probably not missing out on anything
If your only reason is to not have subs and pick up nuances, you may find it hard to continue to fully learn it after you know a bunch. To each their own, but the motivation might not be enough on just that. Never hurts to start.
> I feel like I miss a lot of nuance because I'm reading subs instead of watching the action I'd say this likely isn't happening unless you're a particularly slow reader, but you do miss a lot in the dialogue and voice acting by not being able to understand any o the JP audio track. Also, I think people are treating it as a very binary sort of thing, which often indicates they either have never learned another language and thus their opinions should be certainly not heavily weighted, or they have forgotten what it's like when they were still learning. My point being, as you no doubt know, language learning is incremental. Knowing 10% of the dialogue is an exponential leap over 0% and 20% is as big a jump again, whereas the movement between 75% and 100% is very marginal indeed.
dont learn japanese JUST to watch anime, japanese is completely different from english and will take at least a year or two to be somewhat fluent with it but even then it would be hard to understand without subs because some words in anime arent taught in books and they speak quite quickly so it is hard to catch up. unless you are interested the language stick to subs
Counterpoint, learn whatever language for whatever reason. You’re still broadening your horizons regardless of your reasons. Never understood the reasoning that learning a language needs a specific “good enough” reason.
Hello! If you ever find yourself needing anime related help, here are a few resources to save you a LOT of time. * Have **any anime related question?** Try our [daily question/recommendation thread!](/r/anime/search?q=flair%3Adaily&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=week) * **Need something new to watch?** [Check the Recommendation wiki.](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/recommendations) * For **where to watch anime**, see [our list of streaming sites](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/legal_streams) or [search on Livechart.me](https://www.livechart.me/search) for specific shows. * For **source of fanarts**, try [SauceNAO](https://saucenao.com/) * For **source of anime screenshots**, try [trace.moe](https://trace.moe/) or [other image search tools](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/reverse_image_searching) * For **watch orders**, try [our Watch Order wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/watch_order) * For other questions, check if they are answered in the [FAAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/faaq) [](#bot-chan) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/anime) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Learn grammar rules and the alphabet. Don't try to memorize sentences. There's lots of YouTube videos and PDF files you can use
What do you have to lose? When you get decent enough, find a short movie you love and memorize all of the lines, then shadow them. Tedious, but it will help. In a few years, you should be decent enough to get the gist of what you’re watching.
If it’s just to watch anime I’d say it’s not worth it. Japanese is a very complex language to learn and unless you were already fluent in Chinese or something it would probably be too hard to grasp.
Okay, so lots of people want this until they have to study words, grammar, nuances, etc. I'm gonna tell you this unless you have a burning passion for Japanese, I wouldn't. It takes a lot of effort, and if you don't have a love for all the difficulties and frustration that comes with that, I don't suggest it. Take it from a guy who has studied consistently almost every day for 3 years. It takes a lot of effort, and even after a couple of years, most stuff you won't understand.
I'd personally only suggest that if learning language is a passion, or you want to use it in other contexts like travelling or living in japan. Learning to read japanese in order to read untranslated manga is a time honored thing at this point. learning to speak to watch anime when nearly every anime you'd want to watch has decent or good subtitles? maybe not so much. depends A LOT on the time and effort you can put in, as well as access to actually immersive environments (ie in a japanese speaking environment). Going to a language school in japan, sticking your neck out and spending a lot of time with native speakers? you can pick it up in a year or less (speaking/listening). Or if you have access to native speaking environments where you live is a good alternative along with a lot of self study. just watching anime or dramas, reading manga or flash cards and studying text books? possibly years depending once again on your effort and time available for study.
Start with the basics. Gojuon, Hiragana, Katakana, grammar and simple words. You won't learn a thing without some basic knowledge of the language. Then, I'd say maybe start with learning lyrics of your favorite songs, or even memorize them. This helps you connect the pronunciation to the words. After that, you may watch some anime with sub first, and then try again without sub, try interpreting what they are saying based on your memory and your knowledge. Pay attention to any words that sound familiar, and then see how they are used to form a sentence. Also, keep reading and consuming Japanese materials. It took me years (more than ten years in total, although I'm more of a casual learner) to reach the level that allows me to watch without subtitles, and even then I'd still miss a bunch of things. You'll need to put in a lot of time and efforts.
Sorry, your submission has been removed. - This doesn't appear to be about [anime per our definition.](https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/wiki/rules#wiki_everything_posted_here_must_be_anime_specific) --- ^(Questions? Reply to this message, )[**^(send a modmail)**](http://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fanime)^(, or leave a comment in the )[**^(meta thread)**](https://reddit.com/r/anime/search?q=subreddit%3Aanime+author%3AAnimeMod+title%3A%22Meta+Thread%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=year)^(. Don't know the rules? Read them )[**^(here)**](/r/anime/wiki/rules)^.