How required is Kanji?

[Curtis]

Hi, I have a question. I currently know Hiragana, and am starting on Katakana. I am also planning on studying Kanji, but as for now, I don't know it. So I have a question; which is used more, Kana or Kanji? Or are they used together? I guess my question might sound a bit confusing, sorry.

[Nyororin]

I really find it curious that you have learned Hiragana without knowing this...
They are all used together. Katakana is used the least, but Hiragana and Kanji are pretty much shoulder to shoulder in terms of frequency. However, even if it is 50% Hiragana, you`re not going to come close to being able to understand 50% of the information.
To give an example, imagine reading English only understanding those two, three, and four letter words that are used between the more meaningful words. The, is, he, she, that, is, as, this, an, are, etc etc... Those are the type of words that will be written in Hiragana.

So... To put it simply, Kanji is 100% required if you actually plan to read anything written in Japanese.

[dime100]

Dude, totally like do Kanji first, just google AJATT. ;D

[KyleGoetz]

Originally Posted by dime100

Dude, totally like do Kanji first, just google AJATT. ;D

I've been curious: Does anyone know anybody who has learnt Japanese using AJATT other than the guy who invented it?

[yuriyuri]

Originally Posted by KyleGoetz

I've been curious: Does anyone know anybody who has learnt Japanese using AJATT other than the guy who invented it?

I'm quite obviously not fluent but, if it means anything I learned using the ajjat method.
(Or at least, I used it as best as I could)

Basically instead of reading grammar explanations etc I just read translations of example sentences for a while and dived straight into native materials at the same time.

The sentences I used were Tae Kims and those in the All about particles book (I pretty much skipped any real explanations and just looked at the verb conjugation tables)
This was to make sure I was exposed to all the the essential grammar at least.

Since I can use most grammar that you would see on any ordinary day to a decent standard (not saying it's perfect at all) I decided recently to read more about it all and get proper grammar dictionaries etc.

The trouble is it's hard to do nothing but Japanese the whole time, but I can say with a lot of confidence that if I had been using only Japanese (After the initial week or 2 of using translations for looking at grammar) and never taken a break (Sometimes I took breaks for weeks at a time) I would be far more proficient in the language than I am now.

I have been learning for roughly 15 months in total.

So based on my experience, it's completely possible.

But then again, my experience may not mean anything to you

[manganimefan227]

All Katakana is used for is foreign words and names, but don't alot of Kanji have it's Hiragana beside it? I think it's oyomi or something like that.

[Sangetsu]

If you are studying Japanese, kanji are essential. You can't even read the simplest signs without knowing kanji. It takes years to learn them all, but once you understand the basic characters (radicals), the process becomes easier.

Learning kanji is one thing, remembering them is another. You have to practice regularly so you don't forget the ones you have learned. I've been studying for some time now, live in Japan, and practice somewhat regularly, but I still have trouble with remembering the less-used characters.

[JayT]

Kanji is definitely required. Like stated before, pretty much every sign here has kanji in it. It's quite intimidating. I actually don't know any Kanji but I manage to get around fine.

[KyleGoetz]

Originally Posted by yuriyuri

I'm quite obviously not fluent but, if it means anything I learned using the ajjat method.
(Or at least, I used it as best as I could)

Basically instead of reading grammar explanations etc I just read translations of example sentences for a while and dived straight into native materials at the same time.

The sentences I used were Tae Kims and those in the All about particles book (I pretty much skipped any real explanations and just looked at the verb conjugation tables)
This was to make sure I was exposed to all the the essential grammar at least.

Since I can use most grammar that you would see on any ordinary day to a decent standard (not saying it's perfect at all) I decided recently to read more about it all and get proper grammar dictionaries etc.

The trouble is it's hard to do nothing but Japanese the whole time, but I can say with a lot of confidence that if I had been using only Japanese (After the initial week or 2 of using translations for looking at grammar) and never taken a break (Sometimes I took breaks for weeks at a time) I would be far more proficient in the language than I am now.

I have been learning for roughly 15 months in total.

So based on my experience, it's completely possible.

But then again, my experience may not mean anything to you

Gotcha. But in this case, I think it's weird to refer to this as a specific "AJATT" method. It's just language immersion. It's basically what you do when you move to a foreign country, except the "poorman's version."

It's actually what Japanese classes at my alma mater do from day 1.

But if it works, more power to you. I think I was just misinterpreting the constant reference to AJATT as some sort of reverential "this is the best method ever invented, praise this dude"-type emotions. But I misunderstood.