What is Hiragana? | Complete Guide for Beginners

Introduction to Hiragana

Hiragana (ひらがな) is one of the three main writing systems in Japanese, alongside katakana and kanji. It's a phonetic script, which means each character represents a specific sound rather than a concept or meaning. For anyone beginning to learn Japanese, hiragana is the essential first step, serving as the foundation for reading and writing the language.

Unlike the more complex kanji, which are logographic characters borrowed from Chinese, hiragana is a simpler, cursive script developed in Japan. It consists of 46 basic characters, each representing a syllable (a combination of a consonant and a vowel, or just a vowel).

Key Point

Hiragana is often the first writing system taught to Japanese children and is essential for writing grammatical elements, native Japanese words, and as a reading aid for kanji (called furigana).

History and Origin

Hiragana emerged during the Heian period (794-1185 CE) as a simplified form of kanji. It was initially known as onnade (women's hand) because it was primarily used by women, who were often excluded from learning kanji, which was considered the formal writing system used by men, particularly in government and scholarly contexts.

The characters were created by taking parts of more complex kanji and writing them in a cursive, flowing style. For example, the hiragana character 'あ' (a) derives from the kanji '安' (pronounced 'an' in Japanese, meaning 'peaceful').

Over time, hiragana gained wider acceptance and eventually became an integral part of the Japanese writing system used by everyone. Today, it's one of the first things Japanese children learn when they start school.

The 46 Hiragana Characters

Hiragana consists of 46 basic characters, representing 5 vowel sounds, 40 consonant-vowel combinations, and 1 standalone consonant. Here's the complete hiragana chart:

Basic Hiragana Chart

	a	i	u	e	o
-	あ a	い i	う u	え e	お o
k	か ka	き ki	く ku	け ke	こ ko
s	さ sa	し shi	す su	せ se	そ so
t	た ta	ち chi	つ tsu	て te	と to
n	な na	に ni	ぬ nu	ね ne	の no
h	は ha	ひ hi	ふ fu	へ he	ほ ho
m	ま ma	み mi	む mu	め me	も mo
y	や ya		ゆ yu		よ yo
r	ら ra	り ri	る ru	れ re	ろ ro
w	わ wa				を wo
n	ん n

Important to Know

Additionally, hiragana can be modified with diacritical marks (dakuten and handakuten) to create new sounds.

Modified Hiragana (with Dakuten "゛" and Handakuten "゜")

	a	i	u	e	o
g	が ga	ぎ gi	ぐ gu	げ ge	ご go
z	ざ za	じ ji	ず zu	ぜ ze	ぞ zo
d	だ da	ぢ ji	づ zu	で de	ど do
b	ば ba	び bi	ぶ bu	べ be	ぼ bo
p	ぱ pa	ぴ pi	ぷ pu	ぺ pe	ぽ po

Hiragana also includes combinations of characters to form additional sounds. These are called contracted sounds or yōon and are formed by combining a character from the i-column with a smaller version of や(ya), ゆ(yu), or よ(yo).

Contracted Sounds (Yōon)

	ya	yu	yo
k	きゃ kya	きゅ kyu	きょ kyo
s	しゃ sha	しゅ shu	しょ sho
ch	ちゃ cha	ちゅ chu	ちょ cho
n	にゃ nya	にゅ nyu	にょ nyo
h	ひゃ hya	ひゅ hyu	ひょ hyo
m	みゃ mya	みゅ myu	みょ myo
r	りゃ rya	りゅ ryu	りょ ryo
g	ぎゃ gya	ぎゅ gyu	ぎょ gyo
j	じゃ ja	じゅ ju	じょ jo
b	びゃ bya	びゅ byu	びょ byo
p	ぴゃ pya	ぴゅ pyu	ぴょ pyo

How Hiragana is Used in Japanese

Hiragana plays several essential roles in Japanese writing:

Grammatical Elements: Particles, verb endings, adjective inflections, and other grammatical components are typically written in hiragana.
Native Japanese Words: Words that have Japanese origins, especially when there's no corresponding kanji or when the kanji is too complex or rarely used.
Furigana: Small hiragana characters written above or beside kanji to indicate pronunciation, often used in children's books, educational materials, or for rare kanji.
Function Words: Common words like pronouns, conjunctions, and auxiliary verbs are frequently written in hiragana.
Children's Literature: Books for young Japanese children are often written entirely in hiragana before they learn kanji.

While kanji is used for most content words (nouns, verb stems, adjective stems), hiragana fills in the grammatical framework and provides the glue that holds Japanese sentences together.

Hiragana vs. Katakana

While hiragana and katakana represent the same sounds, they serve different purposes in Japanese writing:

Hiragana

Cursive, flowing appearance
Used for native Japanese words
Used for grammatical elements
The first script Japanese children learn
Used for words where the kanji is uncommon

Katakana

Angular, sharp appearance
Used for foreign loanwords
Used for emphasis (like italics in English)
Used for technical and scientific terms
Used for animal and plant names

To learn more about katakana and its specific uses, check out our detailed guide:What is Katakana? Understanding Japan's Second Writing System

For a deeper comparison between hiragana and katakana, including when to use each, visit:Hiragana vs Katakana: Key Differences Explained

Learning Hiragana: Where to Start

Learning hiragana is the foundational first step in your Japanese language journey. Here's a suggested approach:

Learning Strategy

Start with the vowels: あ (a), い (i), う (u), え (e), お (o). These are the simplest characters and form the building blocks of the hiragana system.
Learn in columns: The K-column (か ka, き ki, く ku, け ke, こ ko) is a good next step. Learning in columns helps you see the pattern of consonant + vowel.
Practice writing: Writing helps reinforce memory. Pay attention to the stroke order, which is important in Japanese writing.
Use mnemonics: Many learners find it helpful to associate each character with an image or story that reminds them of the character's shape and sound.
Read simple texts: Once you've learned some characters, try reading simple sentences written in hiragana.
Learn through interactive tools: Use apps, games, and quizzes to make learning more engaging.

KanaMastery Resources

At KanaMastery, we offer interactive lessons and games designed specifically to help you learn hiragana effectively.

Start Learning Hiragana

Practice Resources

To help you master hiragana, here are some valuable resources:

Interactive Practice on KanaMastery
Our platform offers engaging games and quizzes to help you learn and practice hiragana.
Try Our Hiragana Quiz
Printable Hiragana Charts and Worksheets
Download and print hiragana charts and practice worksheets to assist with your studies.
Tofugu Hiragana Chart
Reputable References
These resources provide additional information and learning materials:

Conclusion

Hiragana is the foundational writing system for anyone learning Japanese. Its 46 basic characters represent all the sounds of the Japanese language and provide the framework for grammar and pronunciation.

While it may seem intimidating at first, most learners can master hiragana within a few weeks of consistent practice. Once you've learned hiragana, you'll be able to read simple Japanese text, pronounce Japanese words correctly, and take your first big step on your Japanese language learning journey.

Ready to start learning? Try our interactive hiragana lessons, designed to help you master these characters through engaging, game-based learning.

Start Practicing Hiragana

What is Hiragana? A Complete Guide for Beginners

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