Is there any benefit to learning to write Kanji?

Japanese Language
#74

I am glad you asked this question as it was also in my mind.

I spent 3 hours doing the first set of exercise from Chapter 1 of the Minna no Nihongo Honsatsu. I was copying every Kanji/Kana, without stroke order or anything.

I could have done the same in 30 min or less in the computer. While I did learn to write 公社員 (company employee), I could have spend 2,5 hours learning more grammar…

Given my conditions: not a lot of time available, learning for fun/understand when visiting Japan on holidays. I think writing Kanji will take a back seat.

After reading the different points of views. I think it is a useful skill to have. However, very costly time wise and with limited use outside of Japan

Thank you for your question, it helped with my decision.
ありがとうざいます！

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#75

Thanks for that tip, I might try it. While learning to write kanji might be a little too much for me now, it would indeed be nice to get better with katakana, as I still struggle to read some katakana words.

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#76

I think it’s important to also try to write the kanji. There are general rules in which order the strokes have to be drawn. I also like to draw and test them with an app while i’m travelling and no reviews or lessons have to be done.

Side note: It’s really funny when you handwrite some simple sentences at work or home for study and everbody just looks at you like “omg wth is this?? :open_mouth:”

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#77

From someone living in Japan at the moment - the main benefit is avoiding embarrassment. As much as you think you don’t handwrite, it comes up surprisingly frequently.

And when it does come up, it’s frustrating to only be able to write about 10-20% of the kanji you can read!

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#78

I definitely enjoy the fun of writing Kanji. Make sure you get a brush pen rather than using a ballpoint and then you can make all the little flourishes. I got my pens posted from Japan.

I can see the benefits of using an app for learning stroke order, but for me it’s much more enjoyable writing them out repeatedly on genkouyoushi paper. I use the kanji pages on jisho.org to copy from.

#79

This is what I could find about the iOS version:

Screenshot_20181024-072329~2
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Also I am in the US in case that makes a difference.

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#80

Learning Hiragana opened your mind and the world to start learning Japanese. Learning Katakana gave you the ability to read and turn non Japanese words into Japanese. Learning Kanji opened up a whole new world of being able to watch, listen, see and understand a world you never knew… Now just imagine if you can also write the complete language, what possibilities will it open up for you…

#81

Most of the time when I feel the need to write kanji, it’s on the blackboard, and muscle memory fails me, because I’m used to writing with a pencil and I can’t visually recall the entire kanji. And I do study. OTL m\o_o_//m …OK…

It’s nice to learn how to write kanji via stroke order, but as others have said, not strictly necessary when you can get away with hiragana, katakana, and a bit of copying.

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#82

Yep, you are right. Apologies for my oversight.

The point remains, however, that your anecdotal experience does not support blanket statements. Some people have actually needed to write in Kanji, so telling newbies that it is never needed is as misleading as telling them it always is. Such absolutes really don’t help anyone.

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#83

One thing a lot of people over look is that by learning to write kanji you will be able to visualize them in your mind. In English this is key to being able to read faster than speaking pace, and I don’t see any reason why it should be different for Japanese. Being able to read at a fast pace in any language is extremely useful.

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#84

You could say the same thing about any English writers ability, especially with kids these days. Granted, English has less letters than Japanese has kanji, but forgetting how to write a kanji is a little like forgetting how to spell a word, and I can tell you, vocabulary and grammar have plummeted in English in the younger generations.

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#85

Yes, this was a little shock. For a long time I have used a computer to take notes, even in English and suddenly being asked to turn in handwritten homework for the first time in 20 years was a little bit of a shock.

My handwriting is shocking in English and I compromised by writing my homework out in the computer first and doing a fair copy into my homework book.

I think one reason for learning to write kanji is is that the romaji keyboard and how kanji just pop up is a little bit of a crutch that hinders learning in the long run.

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#86

You’re just wrong, and that’s not even something we have to discuss.
Offices such as ハローワーク have translators and interpreters to help foreigners, and in most other places, there’s not even a need to write your address in kanji. Official documents “work” as well with roman letters.

What’s definitely needed is the ability to draw your name in katakana. There’s no exception to that.

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#87

Doesn’t always give you correct answers. Just saying.

#88

Yes there is a huge benefit to learning how to write kanji.

If you ever actually lived in Japan, you would know that this place has so much paperwork for almost every single transaction. Reading Kanji is one thing, but writing it is another. I had to redo paperwork (after three weeks of waiting) because my kanji was illegible.

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#89

I’m actually living in Japan, right now. Having been for a couple years now in fact.
The same is true for Leebo.

#90

Agree with you. This is true even in prefecture where foreigners are not so common (I live in Toyama prefecture).
Also, even if I must write in kanji I can always get my smartphone and look up the kanji I need to write. Of course knowing how to write them from blank would be better and faster, but still is not mandatory.

I am now practising writing the most used/common kanji just because I use them in my Japanese class and I cannot look them up.

One question I have: is writing kanji required for the JLPT?

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#91

There’s no writing section on the JLPT, but there are more advanced tests (can’t remember the name of them off the top of my head) that include writing kanji.

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#92

Judging from the practice exams, they don’t make you write them in a blank or anything, but they do attempt to see if you know how by showing you some subtly wrong ones and asking you to pick the correct one. I’m not sure I’d get all of those without having learned to write them myself.

#93

I’m not sure which you’re thinking of, but here are other tests with writing.

Kanji Kentei: a test dedicated to kanji. About 50% of the points come from writing kanji. Intended for natives.

J-Test: general Japanese knowledge, intended for non-natives, the kanji section is 30 questions, but only 15 require writing and those only require you to write the reading in hiragana. A short grammar section also requires writing but hiragana is okay.

Bunshouken: a test of written Japanese, including essay length responses. Intended for natives.

I’m sure others have writing too.