Basic Hiragana (46 Characters)
| 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 (the only standalone consonant) |
Dakuten & Handakuten
| Base | With Dakuten (〃) |
|---|
| k → g | が ga | ぎ gi | ぐ gu | げ ge | ご go |
| s → z | ざ za | じ ji | ず zu | ぜ ze | ぞ zo |
| t → d | だ da | ぢ ji | づ zu | で de | ど do |
| h → b (dakuten) | ば ba | び bi | ぶ bu | べ be | ぼ bo |
| h → p (handakuten °) | ぱ pa | ぴ pi | ぷ pu | ぺ pe | ぽ po |
Yōon (Contracted Sounds)
| Base | +ya | +yu | +yo |
|---|
| ki | きゃ kya | きゅ kyu | きょ kyo |
| shi | しゃ sha | しゅ shu | しょ sho |
| chi | ちゃ cha | ちゅ chu | ちょ cho |
| ni | にゃ nya | にゅ nyu | にょ nyo |
Memorization Tips
| Tip | Details |
|---|
| Learn by rows | Master あいうえお first, then add one consonant row per day |
| Write by hand | Stroke order matters — use grid paper, follow proper direction |
| Use mnemonics | あ looks like "A"pple with a stem, い looks like two "i"s |
| Practice daily | 10 minutes/day for 2 weeks = full hiragana mastery |
Pro Tip: Learn hiragana in rows (a-i-u-e-o), not columns. Start with the vowels あいうえお, then add one consonant row per day. Writing by hand with proper stroke order is far more effective than app-only learning.