How do you Git Gud at reading Hiragana?
So I learned all the hiragana characters and been trying to read them at any chance I get but It takes a while to read them. Are there good techniques to read them like I would with romaji characters. When I read ありがとう I read like this "あ" "り" "が" "とう" sounding out each character individually which takes time. But if I saw the Romaji Arigatou I would read it in an instant, is there a way to get used to reading these characters quickly? Or will I just have to keep practicing for a long time before it becomes like reading Romaji?

Question

How do you Git Gud at reading Hiragana?
So I learned all the hiragana characters and been trying to read them at any chance I get but It takes a while to read them.  Are there good techniques to read them like I would with romaji characters.  When I read ありがとう I read like this "あ" "り" "が" "とう" sounding out each character individually which takes time.  But if I saw the Romaji Arigatou I would read it in an instant, is there a way to get used to reading these characters quickly?  Or will I just have to keep practicing for a long time before it becomes like reading Romaji?

Answer

The answer is, unfortunately, literally just to read them over and over again. 
A fun way to practise is to listen to songs and read the lyrics as you listen. It will help your brain associate the sound with the character more easily. For better practice, sing along with it.

Answer

This is funny to read back on, I've mastered Hiragana and maybe Katakana since then and am now working through Kanji (I currently know about 300 as I'm studying for the JLPT N4), If anyone else is worried because they read very slowly just keep reading, I can now read Hiragana about as fast as I can read English words, only really slowing down if it's a word I don't know.  My Katakana isn't anywhere near as good as my Hiragana though mainly because it's used so much less.

Answer

I don't know?? Using a Japanese keyboard helped me because all of the same sounds are grouped together (all of the ko, ku, ka, ke ki sounds in one column, etc.) I also never really used romaji, it helps with pronounciation at the start but is not useful in the long run.

Answer

I think there's nothing more ethereal for the brain to grasp, than Japanese letters. It takes one year to memorize and one week to forget.

1) Pronunciation: this is not a problem of yours. This is how each word is pronunced. Just keep on and study the very language.
2) Sounds: I learnt very well the Russian alphabet by writing my own language using those letters ("my secret alphabet"), but some sounds may not appear.

SUGGESTION: Learn some Name of States in Japanese language, and use an atlas to practice https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Japanese/Vocabulary/Countries,_languages_and_nationalities

good luck

Answer

It happens to me also ..but I think by practicing we will improve. 
We must try to reading without Romaji,  it's just a tool at the beginning.

Answers · 5

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