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p/nihongoA modern Japanese dictionary and study tool
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Chris Vasselli

Nihongo: The Kanji Update - Understand the elements that make up every kanji

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It's a common misconception that each element of a kanji contributes a meaning to the overall character. Not true! In truth, elements each contribute in different ways. This update uses the true history of kanji to help users learn and remember them.

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Chris Vasselli
Maker
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I've been working on this update for over 8 months, and I'm super proud of how it turned out. Most Japanese dictionaries present kanji as a compilation of individual elements with their own specific meanings. This is actually a common misunderstanding of how kanji work. The truth is, each element can contribute a different thing to the kanji — a specific meaning, a broad category, or a pronunciation. Understanding the true contribution of each element can unlock a richer understanding of every character, helping learners to remember them easier, learn new characters faster, and even guess at rough meaning and pronunciations for characters they’ve never seen before. This information has always been available, but until now it required the use of an etymological dictionary and knowledge of a verbose and esoteric set of terminology like “ideogram” and “phonosemantic compound”. As far as I know, Nihongo is the first Japanese dictionary to compile this information into a user-friendly, learner-focused presentation that unlocks the learning potential of this content (without requiring a degree in linguistics). The data for this release mostly comes from Wiktionary, but I used other sources as well when Wiktionary was lacking, and used a good amount of my own judgment to choose between multiple etymologies when there were multiple possibilities out there. The truth is, nobody knows the true history of these characters for sure, so I chose to err on the side of etymologies that provide the most useful and memorable story for learners. Happy to answer any questions!
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@jo_jo26 Thanks! Yeah, I've spent the last 9 months deep into learning the history of the Chinese characters, since that's the origin of all the Japanese characters. Different dynasties, writing mediums, forks in the language (there was one path that the language started but didn't go down!). Different periods of transfer from Chinese to Japanese. I tried to take all that knowledge, boil it down to the things that I think will be most helpful for learners, and reorganize it in a way that made more sense to my brain (category, sound, and meaning elements). I ripped out unnecessary information, slimmed down the character histories, and organized them chronologically. The data itself comes from Wiktionary, but I don't think I've seen it presented like this before. Thanks for checking it out!
Kehui Guo
Congrats on the launch! The story and meaning behind the elements, and combined meanings are what make Chinese characters so fascinating. Love how you incorporate that into the dictionary, thanks!
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@kehui_guo Thanks, and agreed! Theirs a fascinating history behind so many of these characters, and I think that's actually underutilized as a tool for remembering them by learners!
Congrats on the launch! It is an amazing app for learning Chinese and Japanese, similar to the method of learning English roots. I think this will be very helpful for language learners! BTW, does the app have a testing feature?
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@josie_oy thanks!! It has built in flashcards with a spaced repetition system for learning. This is mostly for vocabulary learning and learning to write the kanji. The app automatically creates flashcards for you from the words you look up (through search or with your camera), so you can study words you have real context for, rather than premade flashcard decks. 🙂
Abhra Chakraborty
Hi @chrisvasselli, this update to Nihongo sounds absolutely groundbreaking! 🌟 Understanding the true elements of kanji will be a game-changer for many learners. Thanks for putting in such hard work over the past 8 months to make this happen. Can't wait to dive in and enhance my kanji skills! 😄📚
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@abhra_ch thanks! If you have any feedback as you start to use it, don’t hesitate to let me know!
Lucas Benjamin Foster
@chrisvasselli what a fantastic update! This is an incredible tool for learning kanji. So much thought put into it. Kudos to you and the team for this amazing product.
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@lucasbenjaminfoster Thanks, appreciate the kind words!
Huge
The product interface is designed for learning Chinese characters, so why is your logo in "Japanese"？
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@hugec The app is a Japanese dictionary and study app, not Chinese. But the Japanese language uses Chinese characters as one of its alphabets, and studying those characters is an important part of learning Japanese!
Naomi | Beeyond AI
日本語学び始めた頃（およそ10年前）に Remembering the kanji by James Heisig を使っていたんです。それと少し似ている部分がありまして、懐かしいです！ 少しでも皆様の日本語勉強に役立てるといいですね！ 応援しています！
Chris Vasselli
Maker
@naomigarcia ありがとうございます！似ている部分ありますね！
Toshit Garg
Congratulations on launch of Nihongo: The Kanji Update.....
Zaheer Khan
This update's approach to it learning could make a significant difference in how I perceive and remember these intricate characters.
Sophia Gartner
The concept of using true history to aid memory retention is intriguing. I'm curious to see if it improves my ability to recall characters.
Sharon Workman
This update seems like it could be a game-changer for learners seeking a more meaningful approach to it comprehension.
Tim David
The idea of debunking misconceptions about it while offering a more accurate learning method is refreshing. Excited to see the results.
Zubair Collier
The prospect of learning kanji in a more structured and historically accurate way is exciting. Can't wait to dive into this update's content.