How can I learn basic Japanese?

Learn basic Japanese by signing up for a Japanese course. There are online Japanese courses and courses in Japan, or you may be able to find a beginner Japanese course in a language school near you. Japanese is a complicated language, so taking a course is the easiest way to get started as a beginner.

Here are some of the skills covered by basic Japanese courses:

• Introducing yourself and your family
• Asking and giving directions
• Talking about the weather
• Discussing hobbies and tastes
• Ordering food in a restaurant
• Checking into a hotel

You can expect it to take a couple of years to learn basic Japanese if you take a language course in a school near you (meeting once a week for an hour), or about a 6 weeks if you take a Japanese course in Japan. Online Japanese courses are self-study, so you can go faster or slower depending on your needs. In general, learning basic Japanese should take about 100 hours of class time.