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So I noticed that when reviewing with anki, I learn/remember the kanji vocab much quicker than the readings. I cannot remember kanji readings from one day to the next but if it’s part of vocab I have no problem and after a day or two it sticks. Perhaps I just didn’t pick up on it in the lessons but what exactly is the function of the kanji readings. Since it’s not vocab is it like the equivalent of the name of the kanji? And honestly I still get pretty confused on’yomi and kun’yomi although when I encounter a kanji in the context of a vocabulary word I can usually remember which one it is after one or two reviews. Anyone have suggestions for keeping all these things straight or is it just something that you get a feel for as you go along? I just finished season 2 but I went through everything up to this point fairly quickly (a couple weeks) because I already had a familiarity with hiragana and some japanese words/grammar but this is my first exposure to kanji so that aspect is completely new and honestly I don’t feel like I’m retaining all of it as well as I should.
Just an example of what I mean about vocab v. reading
The kanji for child has the reading shi but the vocab is ko. I don’t understand why I’m learning the reading shi if japanese equivalent of child is ko. But then the reading shi is used in the vocab word girl–> joshi. So why is the reading only shi and not both ko and shi. Or are they both correct but only one reading is quizzed in the anki decks? Sorry if this is confusing or I’m just completely missing something obvious. I’m still trying to wrap my brain around the whole kanji concept.
Kanji have two readings – the on’yomi, which is the original Chinese reading imported along with the kanji, and the kun’yomi, which is the native Japanese reading that already existed before the kanji was applied to it. When Koichi asks for “the reading”, he’s usually after the on’yomi (no idea why).
Typically you’ll use the kun’yomi when a kanji’s sitting on its own or has okurigana on the back (tacked on hiragana used to indicate verb and adjective conjugations) and the on’yomi when it’s in a compound word with other kanji, but that’s only a very rough rule of thumb – there’s about a thousand and one exceptions. You’ll get a feel for it after a while.
Unlike English letters, kanji don’t have names which are distinct from their pronunciation (though the radicals do, however).
My advice? Don’t bother learning the readings in a vacuum – learn them as part of vocabulary, especially since that seems to be working for you. Always go with what works best for you, even if that involves ignoring Koichi’s suggestions. You will get a feel for it after a while, though.
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