Hiragana

[Aoi Kurenai]

Knowing we've got a few people that are pretty fluent in Japanese and I've just barely started formal learning, I've been trying to understand just what exactly Hiragana is. I can't really understand how or when to use it either, can anyone help?

 

[Impulse87]

though i may be wrong

katakana is for the western stuff

hiragana and kanji is everything else

 

[Bolt]

I'm pretty sure you use Hiragana when there's not a kanji form, or just not a kanji form for specifically what you're trying to say.

 

[JFC]

The way I've heard it, Hiragana is the "everyday, general-use alphabet". Katakana uses the same spoken syllables as Hiragana, but the characters are written differently because it (Katakana) is used exclusively for foreign (non-Japanese) words. Kanji is used for specific words, particularly proper nouns (specifically names of people and places) and is based on Chinese calligraphy, which was what the Japanese were using before they developed/came up with Hiragana.

 

[Black Ranger RX]

^ Correct!!

And here's a great game to help you practice your Hirigana!!

http://www.urbanjapanese.com/games/index.html