LEARNING YOUR KANJI RADICALS
(1-2 STROKES)
“To be truly radical is to make hope possible rather than despair convincing” – Raymond Williams quotes
This chapter consists of radicals with one to two strokes in them, and the great thing is that they build on each other, which means it’ll be a lot easier for you to learn them (as long as you keep going in the right order). Although there are kanji radicals with up to 17 strokes (!!!) in them, it won’t be as difficult as you think. The radical with 17 strokes is made up of other radicals, which means if we go from simple radicals to more difficult radicals (as we will), it’ll be like putting together a puzzle with the location of each piece already written down.
Let’s answer your first question, first. What is a radical?
To be honest, the way radicals are used in Japanese is pretty useless. There are a couple types of radicals. One type is the “official” kind, which are used to help people look up kanji in dictionaries. Nowadays, people can just type in words and they’ll show up (so kanji dictionaries are a bit out-of-date), but back in the day people would look at a kanji they didn’t know, find the “official” radical, and then look up the kanji based off that radical. You would go to that radical’s section in the dictionary, figure out how many strokes are in the kanji, and then skip to that section, where you’d just look for the kanji and definition. The bad news is that these “official” radicals make up a very small portion of any kanji, and aren’t really useful. The good news is that there are a ton of “unofficial” radicals out there that we will be using (and these are the second type of radical I was referring to).
All kanji are just made up of a group of radicals, put together like a puzzle, which we’ll be taking full advantage of. Here’s an example.
This is the kanji for “walk.” To the untrained eye (we will be training your eyes!), this just looks like 8 strokes of kanji madness. Really, though, this kanji consists of three pieces, and here are the three radicals that make it happen.
Do you see how they piece together? The first radical makes up the top part of the kanji, the second the bottom, and the third is the swipe at the bottom. Looking at these three radicals you may feel that it’s a lot to remember, but lucky for you these radicals are also made up of smaller radicals, which means they’re pretty easy to learn as long as you start simple and work your way up (exactly what we’ll be doing).
How We’ll Learn Kanji Radicals
Kanji radicals won’t be “easy” to learn, but they won’t be all that hard either. One thing we’ll do to make things easier is associate each radical with a mnemonic device based either on either the original meaning of the radical (some of the “official” radicals have meanings already associated with them) or just something TextFugu has come up with based on the shape of the radical. For example, the following radical is called “unicorn with horns.”
See how there’s a unicorn horn in the middle straddled by two normal horns? If we used this particular radical to build a kanji, there’s a good chance we’d use that “story” to help us remember the completed kanji. We’ll also make it so the story helps us remember / learn the actual pronunciation of the kanji, both in terms of on-yomi and kun-yomi (Chinese and Japanese readings).
We’ll start by learning one-stroke radicals, then move up to two, three, four, etc., until we’ve gone through everything. For the most part, two stroke radicals are made up of one stroke radicals, three stroke radicals are made up of one and two stroke radicals, and so on, which means we’ll just build foundation upon foundation. Just make sure each layer of your foundation is solid before moving on to the next set, and you’ll do great. Try not to rush things, otherwise your kanji building will come tumbling down.
Mnemonic Devices
We’ll be using a number of “mnemonic devices” (i.e. memory tricks) to help get these kanji into your long term memory so you never forget them. Another part of this is helping you learn kanji more quickly – sure, you could write the same kanji over and over again a hundred times and memorize it that way, or you could do it my way and actually learn kanji more effectively. Here are some things we’ll be doing.
- Take advantage of “flashbulb” memory: Flashbulb memories are essentially this - Think back to a very traumatic or shocking moment. Maybe it’s a disaster, maybe it’s the death of someone close to you, maybe it’s something completely different. For some reason, our brain remembers these things a lot more vividly than other memories. For example, I have a very clear memory of my first big earthquake. I had just put my shoes on, and opened the door to go to a violin sectional practice. A family friend was standing right outside, because he was going to drive me there. All of a sudden, everything started to shake, and I laughed while the family friend said “c’mon, c’mon, don’t just stand there, c’mon!” I can remember the trees, the sunlight, the sounds of the earth rumbling, and the expression on his face. In fact, I think I can almost remember the smell. This is what is called a “flashbulb memory,” because it’s just like taking picture. Cheese!
- Make things ridiculous: The more ridiculous / scary / crazy something is, the better you will remember it. How often do you remember the ordinary? I know I don’t. We’ll come up with little stories that are absolutely wild, and you’ll find that you are remembering these kanji a lot better.
- Use Multiple Senses: You’ll have to use your imagination on this one – pretend that a particular kanji has a smell, or perhaps a feel. The more senses you use, the better and longer term your memory will be. They say that smell is one of the best ways to trigger a lost memory! Strangely enough, we’ll be using this to our advantage!
- Put together memorable stories: Using flashbulb memories, we’ll make up stories that are associated with each kanji. The stories will be ridiculous, use key words that will help you retrieve memories that will help you remember the pronunciation of the kanji, and more. The little stories will be very important, and utilize points 1-3 to help you remember them more easily.
- Practice: Kanji learning will be integrated into the Japanese grammar / lessons section of TextFugu as well, which means you’ll have the opportunity to practice what you’re learning and make these kanji second nature (rather than using the mnemonic devices for everything, which in the end will slow you down a bit if you rely on them completely).
At this point, we’re going to get started and you’re going to learn radicals that contain one or two strokes in them. By learning the radicals along with their association, it will be so much easier to put together kanji a little bit down the road (and use the mnemonic devices above). I’ve also created lists on Smart.fm to help you learn the radicals. First, though, go through the information provided on TextFugu. Then, follow the directions and use Smart.fm afterwards to solidify your memory of these radicals.
1-STROKE RADICALS
In this section, just follow along and go with the flow. You don’t need to write anything down (at least right now). Just be sure to read everything carefully and take your time. Go for a high percentage reading retention rate, so slow things down cowboy. Each radical has something associated with it (like the horned unicorn), so the goal here is to associate the radical with the association, that way when we start learning real kanji it’ll just be a matter of putting the unicorn + horns on top of the moon (this guy: 肖) instead of 7 strokes of madness. The most important thing to melt into your memory is the first word after the image (in bold). The moment you see one of these radicals, you want to immediately think “one” or “stick” etc., so it’s easy to put them together into real-life kanji.
Color Key:
Green: Refers to something you could use with one of your senses. Could be an emotion, smell, sight, or even something you hear.
Purple: Refers to a keyword or set of keywords that will help you remember the radical more effectively.
One: This radical consists of a single stroke. Pretend an English #1 got shot, and fell over on its side. You rush over but it’s too late. It’s rigid and laying flat. You can smell the gun powder on #1’s body. Forever will the image of #1, on it’s side, be burned into your memory. This is murder!
Stick: This is a stick, standing upright. That should be pretty easy for you to remember. Stick.
Drop Of Liquid: Sure, it’s a little rigid looking, but when you see this, think of it as a drop of liquid. The drop is heavy and falling at a high speed from West to East, because of all the wind blowing in from the Pacific Ocean (you’re in Seattle, where it rains a lot!).
Slide: Like, one of those things you sit on and slide down. Remember you are sliding from right to left, because you want to slide into the Pacific Ocean (which is to the West). Whee!
Z-Hook: The reason you remember this hook is because of how terrifying it looks. The infamous “Z-hook” will catch any fish, from A-Z, which is why it’s a hook shaped like a “Z.”
Barb: This radical is shaped like a barb (like in barbed wire). Just think about how much it would hurt to pull this one out if you got stabbed by something like this, due to the barb on the end.
2-STROKE RADICALS
Congrats, you’ve gone through all the 1-stroke radicals. Not so hard, right? 2-Stroke radicals get a tiny bit more complicated, but they’re still pretty easy like the 1-strokers. We’ll go through these the same way.
Two: Remember what happened to one? Looks like it’s happened again. Double homicide, uh oh. Looks like there’s a radical murderer on the loose.
Kettle Lid: This one actually looks like the lid of a kettle, which means it should be pretty easy for you to remember.
Person: Think of this one in the following way: You have a zombie. The zombie comes at you and you push it (and you can smell it’s putrid smell), and the zombie breaks in half, the top part of its body falling to the ground and the legs staying standing up (looking like the radical above). The top-half of the zombie looks up and says: “Hey, I’m a person too, you know!”
Influential Person: This one also means person in a “this is actually an official particle with a meaning” sort of way, but we’re going to make it into an “influential person.” It kind of looks like the radical for “person” above, and it also kind of looks like the letter “i” – all that being said, it doesn’t really look like anything at all, so you’re kind of on your own with this one. It’s only two strokes, though, so it shouldn’t be too hard to remember. “i” for “influential person!”
Rice Paddy Hat: You know those rice paddy hats that you see people (and ninjas) wearing? They’re pointed at the top and totally awesome. This is one of those hats, and it looks just like them, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to remember.
Legs: Looks like a pair of legs, right?
Enter: This is another one of those official ones that we’re going to keep the meaning for (because it’s useful if we do). If you look at this radical, it looks like a tee-pee. Tee-pees have a nice entrance to let you inside of them. When you enter the tee-pee, you’re overwhelmed by the smell of strawberries. Fabulous.
Fish Legs: I know this one doesn’t make sense right now, but this falls under the category of “flashbulb memory.” It’s just too weird to forget. Two little legs used by a fish to run around. You’ll be seeing these a lot. Can you imagine a fish with two legs that look just like this, running across the beach?
Horns: These look just like two horns, right?
Upside Down Box: This box is upside down, but empty. I wonder what will be in it in the future?
Top Of The Head: It’s a bit square, but since there are no round shapes in kanji, a square shape will do fine! If it helps, imagine this as the top of Frankenstein’s head, which actually is a square / flat shape!
Ice, Water: Do you remember the drop of liquid from the 1-stroke category? When you have more than one drop, you have water (or ice, sometimes, if you freeze the water!).
Table: Do you remember “legs” from before? If you add a top to a set of legs, you have yourself a table!
Open Box: This looks just like an open box, right? Kind of like the upside down one, except this one is right side up (but also empty).
Variety Stick Rack: There is more than one kind of stick available here. A barb stick and a normal stick. Which one do you want to buy?
Power: This one means power, and looks very similar (i.e. the same as) katakana カ (which you’ll be learning soon). Imagine this radical to be a guy flexing his arm downward to show off all his power.
Enclosure: This is an enclosure – there’s nothing in it now, but eventually there will be something in here.
Knife / Sword: If you look at this radical, it kind of looks like the bottom part of a knife / sword, along with a hand-protector. The blade part is missing, but at least you have the handle! This is almost the same as “power” (力), except it is missing the nubbin on the top. Just remember: 90% of having power is having a sword to cut down your enemies!
Spoon: Sorry, this one looks nothing like a spoon, but this is another official radical that we’ll be using. This radical looks just like katakana ヒ (hi). This radical looks like a “decapitated baby (you won’t forget that!) sitting down, reaching out for a spoon.”
Box On it’s side: Uh oh, looks like the box fell over (but it didn’t break). Unbroken (but fallen) boxes always fall to the right, so this is just a box on its side.
Ten: This radical is “ten.” How many crosses do you need to make ten Catholic giraffes happy? Ten.
Shaman’s Stick: This is a stick with a feather attached to it. Be careful, if a Shaman uses this stick, he could turn you into a bird (and add your feather to his collection!).
Seal: No, not the animal. I’m talking about the “sealing up a hole” kind of seal. If you look at this radical, you’ll see that it almost seals the hole, but not quite. It’s a bad seal.
Cliff: This one totally looks like a cliff. Just remember, this cliff is facing the Pacific Ocean, and you are in the Western part of the United States, looking out at the waves (that means the cliff is facing West), feeling the sea breeze on your face.
Me/I: This one doesn’t make much sense right now, but it will later on. This just means “me” – there will be an upside down version of this which is also “me” but we’ll learn that in a moment. “I can’t finish drawing this triangle.” So sad.
Stool: This looks just like a stool, right?
Me Me Me! (Selfish Me): Notice how this one looks almost like the “me/I” from earlier? It’s just a little flipped around. This one will be associated with selfish (me) acts.
Nine: This one actually means “nine,” and if you look at it (especially with the little flippy stroke on the right side), it looks like the letter “n” and “i” next to each other, written in cursive, which are the letters you need to start to write the word “nine.”
Broken Box: Remember how unbroken boxes always fall to the right? Well, broken boxes fall to the left. See how this one almost looks like the fallen box, except there’s a stroke that goes out farther on the bottom? That’s a broken box piece right there, which is why we’re calling this one the broken box.
Stairs: Do you see the stairs in there? It might take some imagination, but they’re there (or at least a couple steps are there). Once you get to the top of the stairs there’s a slide (like the slide from the 1-stroke section) that you can go down. Sweet!
Nail: See the barb + nail head? That makes a nail. There is also an “alternate” version of this radical, coming next:
Crooked Nail: This nail is lopsided towards the left. Imagine your frustration of having to work with a crooked nail like this.
Volcano: This radical is very similar to the enter and person radicals. It is, however, distinctly volcano-ish, with the blown top.
Before You Move On:
- Make sure you know all the 1-stroke radicals. Use the 1-stroke kanji radicals list to help you solidify this. *In Smart.fm, apparently image based flash cards don’t work too well in the “iKnow” version of their flashcards. Use the “Drill” program instead, and it should work just fine.
- Make sure you know all the 2-stroke radicals. This list will (of course) be a bit harder, but you can use the Smart.fm 2-stroke kanji list to learn them more effectively, especially for the radicals that don’t really have a good association (and you just have to memorize them).
Learning Your Kanji Radicals (3-strokes) →