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From: mathias@Hawaii.Edu (Gerald B Mathias)
Subject: Re: Japanese (was Re: easiest lang for beginner)
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Date: Sat, 11 May 1996 19:19:54 GMT
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Xref: glinda.oz.cs.cmu.edu sci.lang.translation:6601 sci.lang:53571

Thomas Chan (thomas@fandora.resnet.cornell.edu) wrote:
: On 10 May 1996 18:35:29 GMT, Terence T. Lung (lungtt@gus.ecn.purdue.edu) wrote:
: :> In article <holman-0805961246140001@atkk-varamac1.pc.helsinki.fi> holman@katk.helsinki.fi (Eugene Holman) writes:
: :> >JAPANESE

: :> >In addition to having to learn the two *kana* syllabaries, you will also
: :> >have to learn several hundred *kanji* - Chinese-derived ideograms. This
: :> >requires true commitment and a considerable amount of pure memorization.

: :> For a functional Korean reading/writing skill, you will need to
: :> learn at least a couple *thousand* "kanji" [ie Chinese characters].
: :> This is an addition to learning a vocabulary in Korean "alphabet."

: Actually, Japanese does require "thousands" of hanzi/kanji/hanja, not 
: "hundreds", as the original poster implied.  I don't know what the case is 
: in Korean, but characters in Japanese also have at least 2-3 possible
: readings, which are pretty much lexical and have to be learned case-by-case.


Absolutely right.  There is almost never more than one reading for a hanja,
and they are always Chinese readings, so one can more often than not see
hints of the pronunciation in unfamiliar hanja.

In Japanese, there are often two or three Chinese readings for a kanji,
and then there may be as many more Japanese ones.  Things were much
worse before "language reform" about 1950, but there are still old books
around, and old-fashioned people.

Korean is a relative snap.

Bart Mathias
