Chinese Vs Japanese Vs Korean: Learning Experience

Learning Chinese, Japanese, and Korean: A Comparison

In this video, Steve Kaufmann talks about his experience learning Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. He compares the three languages in terms of their language families and vocabulary.

Language Families

• Chinese is a Sino-Tibetan language related to languages in Tibet and Burma.

• Japanese is said to be related to Ural-Altaic languages like Korean, Turkish, and Mongolian.

• The underpinning of Japanese and Chinese vocabulary is Chinese.

Vocabulary

• More than half of all words used in Chinese and Japanese come from Chinese.

• Academic vocabulary in Japanese and Korean comes from Chinese.

Learning Experience

• Learning these languages has become easier with the availability of online resources like LingQ.

• Steve learned these languages before the internet era when he had to rely on books and teachers.

• Living where the language was spoken helped Steve improve his language skills.

Conclusion

Steve Kaufmann's experience shows that while Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Korean are all East Asian languages geographically located in East Asia, they are not part of the same language family. However, there are similarities between them such as the influence of China on their vocabulary. With modern technology making it easier to learn new languages than ever before, anyone can start learning any one of these fascinating East Asian languages today.

Human Movements and Writing Systems

In this section, the speaker talks about human movements 50,000 years ago and how people moved through China. The speaker also discusses the writing systems of different countries.

Human Movements

• Many humans mixed with Neanderthals.

• People moved through China from North to South.

• Ainu indigenous to Japan came over from the mainland.

• Japanese people did not spring out of the ground like mushrooms; they came from somewhere.

• There are theories that people went to Japan via Shanghai and originated in Southern China or across their Korean peninsula.

Writing Systems

• Chinese writing system is exclusively pictograms, each character represents meaning.

• Most ideograms have a phonetic component, which is used in Japanese kanna script.

• Korea created Hangul, a phonetic writing system that started from scratch and has no influence from Chinese characters.

Phonetic Writing Systems

In this section, the speaker talks about Romanization or phonetic writing systems used in different countries.

Phonetic Writing Systems

• Chinese use Pinyin developed after 1949 to represent sounds in English language.

• Yale Romanization system was better than Pinyin because it uses letters like Q and X in ways that we are used to.

• Q has a "ch" sound in Pinyin.

The transcript is relatively short and does not have many sections, so I have combined the topics into two main sections.

Writing Systems and Pronunciation

In this section, the speaker discusses the writing systems and pronunciation of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.

Chinese Writing System

• The Chinese writing system uses characters that represent words or concepts.

• There are over 50,000 characters in existence, but only about 20,000 are commonly used.

• Each character has a specific meaning and pronunciation.

• The pronunciation is represented by pinyin, which uses the Roman alphabet to spell out the sounds of each character.

Japanese Writing System

• The Japanese writing system uses two syllabic scripts: Hiragana and Katakana.

• These scripts represent sounds rather than meanings.

• Kanji is another script used in Japanese that represents meanings like Chinese characters.

• The Romanization system used in Japan can be confusing for non-Japanese speakers.

Korean Writing System

• The Korean writing system uses Hangul, a phonetic script that represents sounds rather than meanings.

• The Romanization system used in Korea can be difficult to understand for non-Korean speakers.

Pronunciation

Chinese Pronunciation

• Mandarin Chinese has four tones that change the meaning of words.

• It can be difficult for non-native speakers to distinguish between these tones.

Japanese Pronunciation

• Japanese does not have tones like Mandarin Chinese.

• Instead, it has pitch accent where certain syllables are pronounced with higher or lower pitch.

Korean Pronunciation

• Korean does not have tones like Mandarin Chinese or pitch accent like Japanese.

Tonal Languages vs Non-Tonal Languages

In this section, the speaker explains tonal languages and how they differ from non-tonal languages such as Japanese and Korean.

Tonal Languages

Examples of Tonal Languages

• Thai

• Vietnamese

• Tibetan

• Sino-Tibetan languages

Tones in Mandarin Chinese

• Mandarin Chinese has four tones that change the meaning of words.

Non-Tonal Languages

Examples of Non-Tonal Languages

• Japanese

• Korean

Pitch Accent in Japanese

• Japanese uses pitch accent where certain syllables are pronounced with higher or lower pitch.

Learning Pronunciation

In this section, the speaker gives advice on how to learn pronunciation for Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.

Chinese Pronunciation

• It is important to listen carefully to native speakers and practice speaking regularly.

• Pay attention to the tones and try to mimic them as closely as possible.

Japanese Pronunciation

• Reading texts with furigana (small hiragana characters above kanji) can help with pronunciation.

• Listening to native speakers and practicing speaking regularly is also important.

Korean Pronunciation

• Ignore Romanization systems and focus on learning Hangul.

• Listen carefully to native speakers and practice speaking regularly.

Language Learning Tips

In this section, the speaker shares tips on learning a new language. He talks about the importance of focusing on natural phrases and intonation, rather than pitch tone. He also discusses grammar and politeness levels in Asian languages.

Focusing on Natural Phrases and Intonation

• Focus on natural phrases and intonation to improve accuracy.

• Pitch tone is not an important issue unless you want to be 100% like a native.

• Pick up on the natural intonation and rhythm of the language.

• Avoid introducing English intonation into Japanese or Korean.

Grammar and Politeness Levels

• Asian languages are more forgiving when it comes to grammar.

• Different levels of politeness are more differentiated in Asian languages than in European languages.

• Stay neutral until you get very good at it, then have a sense of what form of a word is appropriate.

Availability of Content

• Availability of content can be an issue when learning a new language.

Learning Japanese, Korean and Chinese

In this video, the speaker discusses his experience learning Japanese, Korean and Chinese. He talks about the availability of learning materials, the difficulty of finding interesting content, and the importance of connecting with native speakers.

Availability of Learning Materials

• There is a range of reading material available for all three languages.

• Finding reading material with glossaries is easier for Chinese than for Japanese or Korean.

• It has become easier to find content today because of automatic transcription sites.

Difficulty Finding Interesting Content

• There is an abundance of beginner to intermediate material in Korean that is uninteresting and uninspired.

• There is a lot of emphasis on festivals and traditional foods in all three languages which are less familiar to non-native speakers.

• The speaker prefers natural conversations about everyday life.

Connecting with Native Speakers

• The voice is important when listening to content in these languages.

• Netflix and YouTube provide access to dramas in these languages that can be used as learning materials.

Conclusion

• All three languages are worth learning for their own reasons.

• The speaker recommends watching suggested videos in Japanese, Korean, and Chinese to get a sense of each language.