8. A horizontal stroke which pierces the center is written last.
9. Write a short left sweeping stroke before a horizontal stroke.
10. Write a long left sweeping stroke after a horizontal stroke.
Please note that there are some exceptions to these rules. For example:
Learning to write a Chinese character with the correct stroke order, giving attention to the appropriate size and balance of the character, will assist you in memorization and when looking up the kanji in a kanji dictionary or index. Of course, knowing either the kun or on reading of the character is a great benefit as well. I encourage you to write kanji using the correct stroke order and to practice counting the number of strokes in any new character being studied.
Origin of Kanji
There are a number of classifications of Chinese characters that describe the way they were formed.
1. Kanji which derive from pictures, or pictographs. These characters were originally pictures of concrete objects which were simplified over time.
2. Kanji which derive from signs. These characters are made up of points and lines and are used to express abstract concepts, such as ‘above’, ‘below’ and ‘in’.
3. Kanji which are made up of a combination of meanings (ideographic characters). These characters are made by combining other simple characters to create a new meaning.
4. Kanji which are a combination of ideographic and phonetic elements. The majority of kanji fall into this category. The important characteristic of these kanji is that one component of the new character represents the meaning of the entire character (often the right-hand or upper part), while the other represents the pronunciation.
Examples
Kanji Radicals
Most kanji are made up of two or more elements and these elements can be combined in different ways. These common components are called radicals, or bushu in Japanese, and are useful in that they are used to classify kanji in dictionaries. Any given kanji will have one radical with a basic meaning. There are over 200 radicals and they are positioned within kanji in the following ways:
1. HEN (on the left) This category is the most common.
2. TSUKURI (one the right)
3. KANMURI / KASHIRA (on the top)
4. ASHI (at the bottom)
5. TARE (at the upper left)
6. NYŌ ( at the bottom left)
7. KAMAE (an enclosure)
1
一
one; first
イチ ICHI イツ ITSU ひと hito ひと • つ hito(tsu)
The character 一, a single line, indicates the number one.
GR1 N5 AP
Example Sentences
1. コピーを一枚とって。
Kopii o ichimai totte.
Make one copy of this!
2. 彼はいつも電車の一番前に乗る。
Kare wa itsumo densha no ichiban mae ni noru.
He always rides in the very front of the train.
3. 私は一週間に二回外食する。
Watashi wa isshūkan ni nikai gaishoku suru.
I eat out twice a week.
4. 一休みしましよう。
Hitoyasumi shimashō.
Let's take a break.
5. みかんを一つもらいました。
Mikan o hitotsu moraimashita.
I was given a (one) mandarin.
| Common Compounds and Phrases | ||
| 一枚 | ichimai | one (sheet, slice) |
| 一番 | ichiban | the first; the most |
| 一週間 | isshūkan | one week |
| 一休み | hitoyasumi | a rest, a break |
| *一日 | tsuitachi; ichinichi | the first day of the month; one day |
| *一人 | hitori | one person |
2
九
nine
キュウ KYŪ ク KU ここの • つ kokono(tsu) ここの kokono
The character 九 depicted a bent elbow, an ancient way of indicating the number nine.
GR1 N5 AP
Example Sentences
1. 鉛筆が九本そこにあります。
Enpitsu ga kyūhon soko ni arimasu.
There are nine pencils there.
2. 彼は九死に一生をえた。
Kare wa kyūshi ni isshō o eta.
He narrowly escaped death.
3. 東京まで九時間かかった。
Tōkyō made kujikan kakatta.
It took me nine hours to get to Tokyo.
4. 袋にあめが九つ入っていた。
Fukuro ni ame ga kokonotsu haitte ita.
There were nine pieces of candy in the paper bag.
5. 九日から授業が始まる。
Kokonoka kara jugyō ga hajimaru.