the Japanese Gojūon (50 Sounds)
The Gojūon consists of five basic vowels (あ、い、う、え、お) combined with different consonants to create syllables. The Gojūon chart is arranged starting from the "a" row, following the vowel sequence with consonant combinations such as the "ka" row, "sa" row, and so on. The chart contains 50 basic syllables, each represented in both hiragana and katakana. Below is the Gojūon chart:
| あ-row | い-row | う-row | え-row | お-row | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| あ行 | あ (a) | い (i) | う (u) | え (e) | お (o) |
| か行 | か (ka) | き (ki) | く (ku) | け (ke) | こ (ko) |
| さ行 | さ (sa) | し (shi) | す (su) | せ (se) | そ (so) |
| た行 | た (ta) | ち (chi) | つ (tsu) | て (te) | と (to) |
| な行 | な (na) | に (ni) | ぬ (nu) | ね (ne) | の (no) |
| は行 | は (ha) | ひ (hi) | ふ (fu) | へ (he) | ほ (ho) |
| ま行 | ま (ma) | み (mi) | む (mu) | め (me) | も (mo) |
| や行 | や (ya) | - | ゆ (yu) | - | よ (yo) |
| ら行 | ら (ra) | り (ri) | る (ru) | れ (re) | ろ (ro) |
| わ行 | わ (wa) | - | - | - | を (wo) |
| ん行 | ん (n) | - | - | - | - |
Japanese has five basic vowels, arranged as follows:
Each row combines one consonant with the vowels. For example:
Yōon is a combination of a consonant plus a small "ya," "yu," or "yo," producing a contracted sound.
| Yōon | や (ya) | ゆ (yu) | よ (yo) |
|---|---|---|---|
| き行 | きゃ (kya) | きゅ (kyu) | きょ (kyo) |
| し行 | しゃ (sha) | しゅ (shu) | しょ (sho) |
| ち行 | ちゃ (cha) | ちゅ (chu) | ちょ (cho) |
| に行 | にゃ (nya) | にゅ (nyu) | にょ (nyo) |
| ひ行 | ひゃ (hya) | ひゅ (hyu) | ひょ (hyo) |
| Yōon | ヤ (ya) | ユ (yu) | ヨ (yo) |
|---|---|---|---|
| キ行 | キャ (kya) | キュ (kyu) | キョ (kyo) |
| シ行 | シャ (sha) | シュ (shu) | ショ (sho) |
| チ行 | チャ (cha) | チュ (chu) | チョ (cho) |
| ニ行 | ニャ (nya) | ニュ (nyu) | ニョ (nyo) |
| ヒ行 | ヒャ (hya) | ヒュ (hyu) | ヒョ (hyo) |
Dakuten involves adding a small mark "゛" to certain consonants to make the sound voiced.
| が行 | ざ行 | だ行 | ば行 | ぱ行 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| あ-row | が (ga) | ざ (za) | だ (da) | ば (ba) | ぱ (pa) |
| い-row | ぎ (gi) | じ (ji) | ぢ (ji) | び (bi) | ぴ (pi) |
| う-row | ぐ (gu) | ず (zu) | づ (zu) | ぶ (bu) | ぷ (pu) |
| え-row | げ (ge) | ぜ (ze) | で (de) | べ (be) | ぺ (pe) |
| お-row | ご (go) | ぞ (zo) | ど (do) | ぼ (bo) | ぽ (po) |
| ガ行 | ザ行 | ダ行 | バ行 | パ行 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ア-row | ガ (ga) | ザ (za) | ダ (da) | バ (ba) | パ (pa) |
| イ-row | ギ (gi) | ジ (ji) | ヂ (ji) | ビ (bi) | ピ (pi) |
| ウ-row | グ (gu) | ズ (zu) | ヅ (zu) | ブ (bu) | プ (pu) |
| エ-row | ゲ (ge) | ゼ (ze) | デ (de) | ベ (be) | ペ (pe) |
| オ-row | ゴ (go) | ゾ (zo) | ド (do) | ボ (bo) | ポ (po) |
Sokuon, represented by a small "つ" (っ), indicates a slight pause between syllables, making the sound longer or doubled. Examples:
Hatsuon (ん) is the only nasal sound in Japanese and can appear after any syllable. Examples:
Long vowels are extended vowel sounds. Here are some common patterns:
Mastering the Gojūon is the first step in learning Japanese. Whether it's reading, writing, or daily communication, the Gojūon forms the foundation. Without a solid understanding of it, learning vocabulary and grammar will be much more difficult.
The Japanese Gojūon is the core of the Japanese pronunciation and writing system. By learning the hiragana and katakana symbols and their pronunciation, learners can build a strong foundation for further Japanese studies.