Japanese or English? Which one to learn? Which one is more difficult?

In this article I will explain which of the two languages is better for you to study. Let's see which is more difficult, Japanese or English? Let's also see what their differences are and the advantages of studying both languages.

Japanese? Why Japanese? Why such a useless language? Why not English, Spanish, French…”. This is one of the responses you get from people when you say “i am learning japanese".

For people, English is an irreplaceable language, which is considered more important than any other language. See how learning Japanese can be good for you, and even easier than learning the English language.

Japanese is easier than English

I personally find Japanese easier than English. Some may frighten and contradict my opinion, but this is the reality. In my opinion Japanese is easier than English, which is easier than Portuguese.

The only difficulty with the Japanese language is in writing, but this becomes satisfying when you master most of it. Otherwise, Japanese is a simple and straightforward language, without a lot of grammatical frills, just a little formality.

I personally find English more difficult for one main reason: Pronunciation. Portuguese is much more similar to Japanese in pronunciation, so I find it much easier to learn to speak Japanese than English.

Of course, a person will probably learn English faster, but I don't think it's easier. So much so that most Japanese and Brazilians do not speak English properly or even try to learn it.

Japanese or English? What to learn? What's the hardest?

English is much easier than Portuguese because of its simplified grammar. Japanese is even easier, no plural, no complex conjugations and even writing can make it easier for you to understand a text reading.

The Japanese way of thinking is much more simplified, specific and direct than other languages. Have you ever tried to learn sign language? The Japanese language is similar to the Brazilian sign language.

The benefits of studying Japanese and English

How do you feel about studying both languages together? There are many advantages, some mentioned in the article about English, Japanese and Portuguese, be a perfect match. Shall we review some of these points?

Japan has been westernized recently, so the English language has heavily influenced the Japanese language. Several words that the Japanese did not know were created from the English language, this makes it easier to learn both languages.

It is believed that over a thousand words of English origin written with the Katakana alphabet are present in the Japanese language. Even other languages such as Portuguese, French and Spanish had a strong influence on some words.

Japanese or English? What to learn? What's the hardest?

If you know Portuguese and want to learn new languages, Japanese and English go well together. By doing this, you will end up realizing that Japanese is much easier than English and see how they go together.

Don't learn a language out of obligation

Ask someone learning English why they are studying the language. She will say things like:

  • because i want to have a good work;
  • Because I need to get into college;
  • Because my parents make me;
  • Because this is a useful language;
  • Because it is the most spoken language in the world;
  • Others;

If you pay attention, you will see that these reasons are totally connected to something external to you. The motivation of these people to learn English does not come from within them.

they just learn by obligation. That's why many try to learn English and fail. Lack of motivation, desire and effort. Those who study Japanese often want to learn for the following reasons:

  • Because I like anime;
  • Because I like the culture;
  • Because I find it interesting;
  • Because Japanese women are beautiful;
  • Because I want to understand Japanese RPGs and novels;
  • because i have one japanese girlfriend;
  • Because I like J-pop (or vocaloid);

All these reasons are linked to a strong feeling within the person, a motivation inside, you! It may seem ridiculous reasons, but they are things that we have a strong feeling for, that motivate us a lot to move forward in learning.

Japanese or English? What to learn? What's the hardest?

The word "like" has a much deeper meaning than you might think. I believe liking can be synonymous with "loving", but the word "like" doesn't convey as strong an intensity as the word "amar".

These people are more successful in studying the language. So learn what you want and not what others say. I also really liked the words of the Korean teacher 바보 (AiLeen), which says:

“If the incentive to do something was genuine and came from the inside out, the chances of the endeavor being a success increase exponentially!”

The article is still halfway through, but we recommend also reading:

There is no useless language

People say Japanese is useless, it won't help you at all. However, they are completely wrong! There is no useless language, this idea is absurd.

Every language has some use. The Catalan language for example:

The Catalan language is very little spoken (just over 11 million speakers). Derived from Spanish, Latin and French, it is spoken in Barcelona and parts of Spain and elsewhere in Europe.

What can you do by speaking Catalan? Many things. You can travel to Barcelona, study the origins of Catalan, in addition to studying an ancient language. Catalan was a language that dominated many regions in Europe.

Japanese or English? What to learn? What's the hardest?

So, remember that to learn a language, we have to have a strong, deep motive. It is not enough to see the language as a simple obligation. Knowing Japanese, you can even apply for scholarships in japan! That would be a unique opportunity.

Of course, English is also indispensable. Knowing English will open many doors, as well as helping to learn other languages. We also recommend reading our article about online english courses.

The problem is that most people learn this language just out of obligation, and not because they like English. If you don't like English, you will rarely get results!

Anyway, no matter what language you are studying, regardless of the number of speakers of the language, if you have a strong motivation, it will be enough to generate motivation to learn and study it. Good studies ;)

Where to Start?

If you're still unsure about learning Japanese, or don't know where to start, below we'll recommend some books and beginner courses. Remembering that you always have the articles on our site as a wide range of free content.

You can take a look at our article on online japanese courses. There are complete courses that resemble a university, while others are cheap and basic, but help you to have a better understanding of the language.

We have the course Kenji Sensei which costs less than 110 USD and teaches using Anime and Mangas. We also have one with Monica Velozo, the Nihongo Kakumei Japanese Club that costs less than 10 USD a month, with unlimited content for all levels.

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