What Is Hiragana Anyway?

     When people think of written Japanese, they think of a bunch of squiggles.  What they don't know is how to pronounce those squiggles.  That's where hiragana comes in.

     Hiragana kana by themselves don't hold significant meaning (except for when several are used for grammatical reasons).  They are a collection of sounds.  Japanese children learn hiragana before katakana and kanji.  It is with hiragana that we obtain the building blocks to the language.  

     Shown in the picture above is how text for younger readers is arranged.  Children may not know the kanji when they start reading so hiragana is placed next to it so they can at least sound it out.  The placement of hiragana next to kanji is what is called furigana.

     When you look for Japanese material to study it's always a good idea to find books for younger readers.  You will be catered to for a awhile if you can read hiragana.  Even though you may not understand what the words are for a while, you will at least be able to sound it out.  Picking up a newspaper however, will not cater to you.