Learning Hiragana and Katakana: Workbook and Practice Sheets - Softcover

Takahashi, Ted

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0804838151 ISBN 13: 9780804838153

Publisher: Tuttle Publishing, 2006

Synopsis

With expanded writing and preparation space, this revised edition offers ample provisions for practice, review and self-testing at several levels. It also includes a detailed reference section explaining the origin and function of kana and the various kana combinations. Complete with a detailed pronunciation guide, this volume will prove invaluable for beginning students or those accustomed to romanised Japanese.

About this title

About the Author

Kenneth G. Henshall has written many books on Japanese literature, history, culture, and language. A graduate of the universities of London (B.A. Hons), Sydney (Ph.D.), and Adelaide (Dip. Ed.), he is now Associate Professor of Japanese at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. He has also taught at the universities of Auckland, Western Australia, California, and Waikato. He is the author of A Guide to Remembering Japanese Characters, and the lead author of the revised edition of A Guide to Reading and Writing Japanese.

Tetsuo Takagaki is a graduate of the universities of Wakayama (B.A.) and San Francisco State (M.A.), and was senior lecturer in Japanese at the University of Auckland. He also taught at the universities of Hawaii and Maryland, and at Tsuda College in Tokyo. He is the author of a number of publications on Japanese language and linguistics.

From the Back Cover

"Even long-time students of Japan will find the book illuminating and thought- provoking." Sam Jameson, former Tokyo Bureau Chief of the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times
"Among the numerous books by foreigners on the intricate Japanese mindscapes and businessscapes, this is undoubtedly the most informative and eyeopening; it is rich in exploratory insight and provocative wisdom." Dr Tae-Chang Kim, President, Institute for the Integrated Study of Future Generations, Kyoto
"KATA explains the rationale for Japanese behavior and fills in the blanks for everyone, including long-term foreign residents." James Fink, General Manager, Colliers Halifax, Tokyo

In this first book ever to explain why the Japanese think and behave the way they do, veteran Japanologist Boye Lafayette De Mente, author of more than 30 books on Japan, unlocks the mystery of kata the cultural molds that have traditionally shaped and defined the attitudes, behavior, and character of the Japanese and are primarily responsible for the traits and talents that make them different from other people to explain what makes the Japanese Japanese, and how it effects all their personal, professional, and political affairs!
In some 70 brief essays, ranging from "The Art of Bowing" and "Importance of the Apology" to "The Compulsion for Quality" and "Exchanging NameCards", the author looks at the origin, nature, use, and influence of kata (literally the form and order of doing things) in Japanese life and how this cultural conditioning causes the Japanese to think and react in the way they do. Because all relations with the Japanese are influenced by kata, the key to dealing with the Japanese in personal or business matters requires knowing how and when to induce or compel them to break the kata and behave in a non-Japanese way.

From the Inside Flap

Edition details

• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0804838151
• ISBN 13: 9780804838153
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 144