Are you curious about Romaji and its role in the Japanese language? In Japan, writing and reading can be challenging for beginners due to three types of alphabets: hiragana, katakana, and kanji—unlike English or other languages.
Writing Japanese and reading Japanese could be challenging for beginners. So, this lesson will guide you on how Romaji systems can support your learning journey or bring delightful experiences to you in Japan.
Let’s get started!
Contents
Introduction to Japanese Characters and Romaji Systems
The modern Japanese language consists of three types of alphabet and combines them to make words and sentences.
- ひらがな (hiragana | 平仮名 | Japanese syllabary) → e.g. あいうえお
- カタカナ (katakana | 片仮名 | Japanese syllabary) → e.g. アイウエオ
- かんじ (kanji | 漢字 | Chinese characters) → e.g. 愛 美 道 空 寿
Hiragana and katakana each have 46 characters, and the number of Chinese characters is much higher, with 2,136 current regular-use and 1,022 non-regular-use. Here’s what they’re called in Japanese.
- じょうようかんじ (Jouyou Kanji | 常用漢字 | Regular-use Kanji)
- じょうようがいかんじ (Jouyougai Kanji | 常用外漢字 | Non Regular-use Kanji)
It may be hard to imagine for English speakers, but Japanese students spend quite some time learning the Japanese writing systems.
Elementary school children start learning hiragana and katakana first, then learn Kanji, Romaji, and English alphabets. By the age of 18, Japanese students comprehend about 2,100 regular-use Kanji in total.
ローマじ (roomaji | ローマ字 ) refers to the Romanization of Japanese, where the Japanese characters are transcribed using the Latin alphabet. Additionally, the term アルファベット (arufabetto) is used to denote the Romaji transcription of the English alphabet.
Use of Hiragana and Katakana + Romaji in Japan
The Japanese language has more than 10,000 Kanji characters, and each character holds several ways of reading. Irregular readings or phonetic equivalents aren’t uncommon in the wide variety of Kanji.
- じゅくじくん (jukujikun | 熟字訓 | Kanji with special readings)
- あてじ (ateji | 当て字 | Phonetic Kanji)
As a result, some Japanese words could be difficult to read, even for a native speaker.
Therefore, it’s common for Japanese people to use reading aids written in small hiragana and katakana. You can usually find these aids called りがな (furigana | 振り仮名) above or next to words.
What is Romaji? Who Needs It?
Romaji is the Romanization of the Japanese writing system using the Latin alphabet, and you can see words written in romaji throughout Japan. If you have difficulty reading hiragana and katakana, or kanji, then learning Japanese letters using the Romaji system would be the first step you should take.
Funnily, it often happens to Japanese people that they can’t read the names of the stations and places without Romaji signs when they travel within Japan.
Together with kana characters and kanji, romaji is on the street signs, station names, and restaurant menus. Romaji can help both native speakers and non-native speakers to read written Japanese. Also, learning romaji is practical when typing Japanese on your smartphone or PC.
One of the main systems for typing uses romaji, and the other uses hiragana. It’s said that more than 90% of people prefer ローマじにゅうりょく (roomaji nyuuryoku) or romaji input for PCs, and about 65% prefer かなにゅうりょく (kana nyuuryoku) or the katakana input on mobile phones in Japan.
Advantages of Learning Romaji
Learning Romaji is suitable for beginners but also very practical for intermediate learners and tourists.
Just like the furigana to read kanji for a native Japanese speaker, Romaji can clarify how to read Japanese and guide Japanese pronunciation for Japanese language learners.
- Effortlessly read and learn Japanese characters and new words
- Get an idea of how to pronounce Japanese words
- Type Japanese words using your mobile phones, tablets, and PCs
- Write down Japanese addresses and names correctly
- Travel around Japan with confidence
In short, your language-learning journey is going to be easy and fun.
Disadvantages of Learning Romaji
Without a doubt, it’s essential to learn Romaji at the beginning, but Romaji isn’t sufficient in language learning.
As you advance in learning, learning Japanese writing systems and Japanese characters will be necessary to improve your vocabulary.
Please be aware of the following points if you want to learn Japanese and communicate with Japanese people.
- Romanization isn’t always flawless
- Don’t get confused by Japanese homophones
- Don’t skip to learning the correct pronunciation
- Romaji is not practical to write Japanese texts for communication
- Romaji may mislead for word and phrase boundaries
Japanese has many words pronounced in the same way, and Japanese sentences don’t have a space like in the English language.
We suggest you learn hiragana and katakana, and Kanji together with Romaji to read Japanese.
Learning the Japanese Romaji Systems
Today, there are three writing systems using Latin script in Japan.
- ヘボンしき (Hebon shiki | ヘボン式 | Hepburn-style Romanization System)
- にほんしき (Nihon shiki | 日本式 | Japanese-style Romanization System)
- くんれいしき (Kunrei shiki | 訓令式 | Cabinet-order style Romanization System)
Hepburn Style Romaji
The Hepburn system is one of the most widely used Romaji systems outside of Japan. It was developed by James Curtis Hepburn in the late 19th century. This style provides a more accurate representation of Japanese pronunciation for English speakers. For example, in Hepburn-style Romaji, the city “Kyoto” is written as “Kyōto,” reflecting the elongated “o” sound.
あ a い i う u え e お o
か ka き ki く ku け ke こ ko きゃ kya きゅ kyu きょ kyo
さ sa し shi す su せ se そ so しゃ sha しゅ shu しょ sho
た ta ち chi つ tsu て te と to ちゃ cha ちゅ chu ちょ cho
な na に ni ぬ nu ね ne の no にゃ nya にゅ nyu にょ nyo
は ha ひ hi ふ fu へ he ほ ho ひゃ hya ひゅ hyu ひょ hyo
ま ma み mi む mu め me も mo みゃ mya みゅ myu みょ myo
や ya い i ゆ yu え e よ yo
ら ra り ri る ru れ re ろ ro りゃ rya りゅ ryu りょ ryo
わ wa ゐ wi ゑ e を o /wo
ん n/m
が ga ぎ gi ぐ gu げ ge ご go ぎゃ gya ぎゅ gyu ぎょ gyo
ざ za じ ji ず zu ぜ ze ぞ zo じゃ ja じゅ ju じょ jo
だ da ぢ ji づ zu で de ど do ぢゃ ja ぢゅ ju ぢょ jo
ば ba び bi ぶ bu べ be ぼ bo びゃ bya びゅ byu びょ byo
ぱ pa ぴ pi ぷ pu ぺ pe ぽ po ぴゃ pya ぴゅ pyu ぴょ pyo
Japanese Style Romaji
This style of Romaji is typically used in Japan and is the closest to how Japanese people would naturally transcribe their language into the Latin alphabet. It follows a set of Japanese government guidelines for Romaji representation. One example of Japanese style Romaji is “Toukyou” for Tokyo.
あ a い i う u え e お o
か ka き ki く ku け ke こ ko きゃ kya きゅ kyu きょ kyo
さ sa し si す su せ se そ so しゃ sya しゅ syu しょ syo
た ta ち ti つ tu て te と to ちゃ tya ちゅ tyu ちょ tyo
な na に ni ぬ nu ね ne の no にゃ nya にゅ nyu にょ nyo
は ha ひ hi ふ hu へ he ほ ho ひゃ hya ひゅ hyu ひょ hyo
ま ma み mi む mu め me も mo みゃ mya みゅ myu みょ myo
や ya い yi ゆ yu え ye よ yo
ら ra り ri る ru れ re ろ ro りゃ rya りゅ ryu りょ ryo
わ wa ゐ wi う wu ゑ we を wo
が ga ぎ gi ぐ gu げ ge ご go ぎゃ gya ぎゅ gyu ぎょ gyo
ざ za じ zi ず zu ぜ ze ぞ zo じゃ zya じゅ zyu じょ zyo
だ da ぢ di づ du で de ど do ぢゃ dya ぢゅ dyu ぢょ dyo
ば ba び bi ぶ bu べ be ぼ bo びゃ bya びゅ byu びょ byo
ぱ pa ぴ pi ぷ pu ぺ pe ぽ po ぴゃ pya ぴゅ pyu ぴょ pyo
くゎ kwa
ぐゎ gwa
Cabinet-order Style Romaji
This style is also known as the Nihon-shiki or Nippon-shiki Romaji. It was developed during the Meiji era as an alternative to the Hepburn system. Cabinet-Order style Romaji is based on the traditional Japanese syllabary order and pronunciation rules. For example, the word “ramen” is written as “rāmen” in Cabinet-Order style to represent the long “a” sound.
あ a い i う u え e お o
か ka き ki く ku け ke こ ko きゃ kya きゅ kyu きょ kyo
さ sa し si/shiす su せ se そ so しゃ sha しゅ shu しょ sho
た ta ち ti/chiつ tu/tsuて te と to ちゃ tya/cha ちゅ tyu/chuちょ tyo/cho
な na に ni ぬ nu ね ne の no にゃ nya にゅ nyu にょ nyo
は ha ひ hi ふ hu/fuへ he ほ ho ひゃ hya ひゅ hyu ひょ hyo
ま ma み mi む mu め me も mo みゃ mya みゅ myu みょ myo
や ya い i ゆ yu え e よ yo
ら ra り ri る ru れ re ろ ro りゃ rya りゅ ryu りょ ryo
わ wa ゐ wi う wu ゑ we を wo
が ga ぎ gi ぐ gu げ ge ご go ぎゃ gya ぎゅ gyu ぎょ gyo
ざ za じ zi ず zu ぜ ze ぞ zo じゃ zya/ja じゅ zyu/ju じょ zyo/jo
だ da ぢ di/zi づ du/zuで de ど do ぢゃ zya/dyaぢゅ zyu/dyuぢょ zyo/dyo
ば ba び bi ぶ bu べ be ぼ bo びゃ bya びゅ byu びょ byo
ぱ pa ぴ pi ぷ pu ぺ pe ぽ po ぴゃ pya ぴゅ pyu ぴょ pyo
くゎ kwa
ぐゎ gwa
ん n
Note:
The characters ゐ (i) and ゑ (e) in hiragana, ヰ (i) and ヱ (e) in Katakana are no longer in use in Japan.
Differences in Romaji Writing Systems
The first use of Romaji in Japan dates back to the late 16th century when Japanese Catholic has its historical roots. Since then, Japan has worked to establish the current Romaji systems.
- ヘボンしき (Hebon shiki | Hepburn-style Romajo) originates in 1867.
- にほんしき (Nihon shiki | Japanese-style Romaji) originates in 1885.
- くんれいしき (Kunrei shiki | Cabinet-order style Romaji) originates in 1937.
Japanese system and Cabinet-order system were designed for native Japanese speakers, while the Hepburn style was for foreigners.
Japanese people first learn the cabinet-order system and then the Hepburn system as a supplement.
Nowadays, as internationalization progresses, the Hepburn system is becoming more favored.
Examples
Probably many Japanese learners are already familiar with the Hepburn system, the most widely used Romaji in Japan.
See how it’s written in different systems.
しんじゅく (新宿 | Shinjuku, one of the 23 city wards of Tokyo) can be:
- Hepburn system: Shinjuku
- Japanese system: Sinzyuku
- Cabinet-order system: Sinjuku
ふじさん (富士山 | Mt. Fuji) can be:
- Hepburn system: Fujisan
- Japanese system: Huzisan
- Cabinet-order system: Huzisan
おおさか (大阪 | Osaka, the second largest metropolitan area in Japan) can be:
- Hepburn system: Ōsaka
- Japanese system: Ōsaka or Oosaka
- Cabinet-order system: Ôsaka
Differences in Hepburn Variants
The Hepburn Romanization is undoubtedly the most practical Romaji for someone learning Japanese. Since it focuses on Japanese pronunciation from English speakers’ perspectives, people can easily imagine how it should sound even if they haven’t heard actual Japanese sounds with the help of Romaji.
Although, the Hepburn Romanization has variants.
See their significant differences for long vowels, particles, and syllabic nasals in the following list.
Major Difference
- Long vowels → ー ああ, いい, うう, ええ, おお, おう
- Particles → は, を, へ
- Syllabic nasals → ん, ン
- Double consonants* → っ, ッ
*Usually written by doubling the consonant letters, except certain combinations
Traditional Hepburn System
- Use of macron (¯) for uu, oo, and ou sounds
- Particles are wa, wo, and ye (e)
- The following consonant letter determines n or m for syllabic nasals
おばあちゃんをとうきょうへつれていく (Obaachan wo Tōkyō e/ye tsureteiku | おばあちゃんを東京へ連れて行く)
I’ll take my grandmother to Tokyo.
こんやはてんぷらにしよう (Kon-ya wa Tempura ni shiyō | 今夜は天麩羅にしよう)
Let’s eat tempura tonight.
ゆっくりしゃべってください (Yukkuri shabette kudasai | ゆっくり喋ってください)
Please speak slowly.
まっちゃアイスがすきです (Matcha aisu ga suki desu | 抹茶アイスが好きです)
I like Matcha ice cream.
Modified Hepburn/Revised Hepburn Examples
- Use of macron (¯) for aa, uu, ee, oo, and ou sounds
- Particles are wa, o, and e
- Syllabic nasals are always n
おばあちゃんをとうきょうへつれていく (Obāchan o Tōkyō e tsureteiku | おばあちゃんを東京へ連れて行く)
I’ll take my grandmother to Tokyo.
こんやはてんぷらにしよう (Kon’ya wa Tenpura ni shiyō | 今夜は天麩羅にしよう)
Let’s eat tempura tonight.
ゆっくりしゃべってください (Yukkuri shabette kudasai | ゆっくり喋ってください)
Please speak slowly.
まっちゃアイスがすきです (Matcha aisu ga suki desu | 抹茶アイスが好きです
I like Matcha ice cream.
Interpretations of Romaji Systems in Japan
Japan uses standardized forms based on the Hepburn-style Roman alphabet in various fields.
However, there are some exceptions to Japanese Romanization and English adaptations as the followings are typically in use, as below.
Railway Standard and Road Sign Standard
Japanese railway companies and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism use Hepburn-style Roman letters. However, it may differ depending on the railway company.
- Roman letters for proper nouns and English for common nouns
- Omission of macrons, apostrophes, and “m” for syllables
- Use of hyphens
- Adaptations of foreign words are typical
Japanese Yen
The actual Japanese word for the official currency of Japan is えん (En | 円).
Passport Standard
Japanese passport names must be in Hepburn-style Roman letters without macrons and circumflexes.
Baseball Player Standard
In the Japanese professional baseball league, it’s a custom to write the long vowels ou and oo as “Oh” by dismissing the Hepburn-styles rules.
- おおたにしょうへい (Ootani Shouhei | 大谷 翔平 | Shohei Ohtani, Japanese baseball player)
The lack of long vowel marks can commonly apply to Japanese celebrities and athletes known worldwide.
- はにゅうゆずる (Hanyuu Yuzuru | 羽生結弦 | Yuzuru Hanyu, Japanese figure skater)
- おおさかなおみ (Oosaka Naomi | 大坂なおみ | Naomi Osaka, Japanese tennis player)
Wrap Up
In conclusion, Romaji serves as a crucial stepping stone in the journey of learning Japanese. It helps beginners understand pronunciation and structure. However, it’s important to remember that relying solely on Romaji can hinder your progress.
It’s just the beginning of an exciting adventure towards mastering Japanese writing. Are you ready to take the next step and dive into the world of Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
がんばってください (ganbatte kudasai)! ^^