Learning a new language is always a challenge, but the level of difficulty can vary greatly depending on the learner’s native language. Have you ever wondered if learning Japanese is more complicated for an Italian or a Chineseconsidering aspects such as grammar, phonetics, writing systems and cultural similarities? We will analyze the structural differences between languages and how these influence the learning of Japanese, trying to answer the question: who faces more obstacles, an Italian or Chinese native speaker?
Who finds it most difficult to learn Japanese?
Writing system
The first major obstacle in learning Japanese is the writing system. Japanese uses three systems different: Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji, each with specific functions and a long evolutionary history.
– Hiragana: The Hiragana system is a phonetic syllabary composed of 46 characters basic, which represent individual sounds (morae). Hiragana is used for writing words of Japanese origin, verb conjugations and grammar (as particles). It is the first writing system that Japanese children learn and is essential for understanding basic grammar.
– Katakana: Katakana is also a phonetic syllabary, but is mainly used for words of foreign origin, proper names, onomatopoeias and technical terms. Katakana characters have a more angular appearance than Hiragana characters.
– Kanji: Kanji is a logographic system derivative directly from Chinese characters (Hanzi)but the reading and meaning of Japanese characters may differ from Chinese ones. Modern Japanese uses approximately 2,000 commonly used Kanji, known as Jōyō kanji. Each Kanji can have several readings: reading on’yomi (of Chinese derivation) and reading kun’yomi (of Japanese origin). An example is the character 木, which can be read as moku (on’yomi) or ki (kun’yomi), both mean “tree“.
– For an Italian: the main challenge for a native Italian speaker is to complexity of Kanji, a system completely alien to the Latin alphabet. An Italian must not only memorize thousands of characters, but also learn their different readings and contextual uses, an aspect that requires years of constant study.
– For a Chinese: For native Chinese speakers, Kanji is easier to learn, as many Japanese characters are derived from or similar to Chinese characters (Hanzi). For example, the font 山 (mountain) has the same meaning in both Japanese and Chinese, although the pronunciations differ. However, the differences in readings and contexts of use of the Kanji can however create confusion. Furthermore, the syllabic system (Hiragana and Katakana) is an additional challenge for a Chinese person, as the Chinese language does not use syllabaries.
Phonetics
Japanese phonetics is relatively simple compared to other Asian languages, as it does not use tones.
– For an Italian the sounds of Japanese are generally easy to learn, since both phonetic systems have similar sounds (a, i, u, e, o), clear and distinct, and Japanese also does not have tones, as happens in Chinese.
– For the Chinese the absence of tones can be disorienting at first, accustomed as they are to the tones of Mandarin Chinese.
Grammar
There grammatical structure Japanese is significantly different from both the Italian and Chinese ones. Japanese follows the strict “subject-object-verb” word order (SOV) and uses particles to indicate grammatical functions within the sentence.
– For an Italian Japanese grammar is radically different from the Italian one, which has a subject-verb-object structure (SVO), making learning difficult initially. Furthermore, part of the difficulty lies in the use of grammatical particles and the limited flexibility in word order. For example, the particle を (wow) indicates the direct object, while the particle は (wa) is used for the subject of the sentence. Furthermore, Japanese verbs do not change based on the subject, a concept that may be foreign to an Italian, who is used to conjugating verbs based on person and number.
– For a Chinese: Chinese grammar is also more similar to Italian grammar (SVO) and does not use particles like Japanese. Therefore, Japanese grammar is also a challenge for Chinese people.
Cultural influence and historical similarities
Japan and China share a long history of mutual influence, which is reflected in cultural and linguistic similarities. About the 60% of Japanese vocabulary has Chinese origins, as words related to formal or intellectual concepts, which can help a Chinese speaker recognize the vocabulary. However, these words may have different pronunciations and slightly changed meanings, still complicating learning. On the contrary, an Italian does not have this cultural advantage. Many Japanese concepts, especially those related to tradition and honorific language (Keigo), to oriental philosophy or to the Japanese social structure are completely new for an Italian.
Therefore, learning Japanese is generally more difficult for an Italian than for a Chinese. Chinese’s familiarity with Kanji and some cultural similarities are an advantage for native Chinese speakers. However, phonetics and the absence of tones make learning Japanese accessible for both. The greatest difficulty for Italians lies in the structural and cultural distance between the two languages.