Who here learned Japanese from scratch?

[TheImmigrantSong]

As the title suggests, who here started learning Japanese from scratch as a second language, and has achieved the level of fluency? Did you learn it in Japan or overseas? How long did it take you to become fluent? I am just curious because I only know one "gaijin" that speaks perfect Japanese, and he started Japanese school in kindergarden. I know it is much more common for Japanese to speak english, than westerners speaking Japanese, so how about you guys here a jref?

:p

[FrustratedDave]

As the title suggests, who here started learning Japanese from scratch as a second language, and has achieved the level of fluency? Did you learn it in Japan or overseas? How long did it take you to become fluent? I am just curious because I only know one "gaijin" that speaks perfect Japanese, and he started Japanese school in kindergarden. I know it is much more common for Japanese to speak english, than westerners speaking Japanese, so how about you guys here a jref?
:p
I learnt it from scratch from the tender age of about 20 years old. I started to learn it from the day I got here which was when I was 20. I have been in a Japanese company from the word go which has helped incredibly.

It took me about 3 years to obtain JLPT level one, but I do not consider this level high enough to be called fluent. From there I continued to study and learn , mainly at getting rid of my accent which I have now done(that took me about 10 years) and also to obtain a few credentials in my profession.

It is possible to get to a native speaker level if you work hard, but it requires you to live here in my oppinion.

[Amenat]

I started learning from scratch!
I live in the US and I've been to Japan once for about two weeks a year ago. I'm not sure why, but when I spoke with someone in Japanese last, they told me a had a Kyoto accent, not sure where that came from. I went to a place near Osaka and visited Kyoto for a day during that visit. It really helped my Japanese studies after I went there. I love that country to much!
I got in a Japanese class and learned all that I could from that class. Now I found it a whole lot easier to learn Japanese because of those classes. I still have a long ways to go but I figure if I practice a lot and get a study buddy then I should be fluent by the time I am 20~21 or so. I love learning it and I study a lot. ^-^ I know, I'm weird and a bit hyper at the moment.

[FrustratedDave]

I started learning from scratch!
I live in the US and I've been to Japan once for about two weeks a year ago. I'm not sure why, but when I spoke with someone in Japanese last, they told me a had a Kyoto accent, not sure where that came from. I went to a place near Osaka and visited Kyoto for a day during that visit. It really helped my Japanese studies after I went there. I love that country to much!
I got in a Japanese class and learned all that I could from that class. Now I found it a whole lot easier to learn Japanese because of those classes. I still have a long ways to go but I figure if I practice a lot and get a study buddy then I should be fluent by the time I am 20~21 or so. I love learning it and I study a lot. ^-^ I know, I'm weird and a bit hyper at the moment.
It was probably the word you used not so much that you have an accent from Kyoto.

[Amenat]

It was probably the word you used not so much that you have an accent from Kyoto.
Well I suppose. But I use words from all Japanese dialects so it sounds a bit strange. Haha.

[Mike Cash]

Being told one has the accent of a different region is not all that uncommon and usually stems from getting the pitch patterns wrong. Sort of like not being able to carry a tune and some kind soul just assumes you're singing in a different key.

[moscos]

i learened it from a scrach too... its funny that learned it when i was 21 of age... about 3 months with a real japanese teacher that came from japan just to teach here on our country with almost 3 hours for 3 times a week. its kinda fun learning it... also writing japanese characters beautifully, japanese teachers love to see those beautiful strokes. i still remember that sentence Sensei said always, "po-reez rait-- biyuutipuri" (please write beautifully). (^_^) that sweet.

but because of school conflicts, i didnt finished it at all... but i always review japanese language from that start... knowing that i could still enroll to the japanese course anytime for free, as in "no tuition fee".

[Petaris]

I am learning from scratch, but I definitely would find it easier to learn if I lived in Japan where I could be exposed to the language all the time. I have been _really_ studying since about April this year. Before that I was just playing at it.

[nice gaijin]

Doesn't everyone start from scratch at some point? Or are you referring to making the conscious decision to learn Japanese as opposed to simply getting exposed to it during childhood?

[Amenat]

Doesn't everyone start from scratch at some point? Or are you referring to making the conscious decision to learn Japanese as opposed to simply getting exposed to it during childhood?

Hey that's true; I don't know anyone who starts studying a new language without knowing at least a word or two in it from somewhere else. It's rare that anyone will suddenly say, 'I wanna learn Japanese/chinese/german' ect without even knowing what it sounds like. Most people will start studying a new language because they like the way it sounds.

[TheImmigrantSong]

Doesn't everyone start from scratch at some point? Or are you referring to making the conscious decision to learn Japanese as opposed to simply getting exposed to it during childhood?

Ah yes, everybody that begins a new language does. My question was who here learned it from scratch and has achieved the level of fluency. But it is great to here other peoples tales of learning also!

I also must agree with FrustratedDave, it is extremly hard to learn a langauge unless you live there. I studied Russian for 7 years in the states as a child, and when we visited Moscow I was still so far behind. But living Japan means that I can practice my awkward sometimes downright hilarious Japanese with many here, and it surrounds me.

In fact just yesterday I had a very simple but pretty lengthy discussion with a bus driver at Narita Internationl Airport! Now I hope that finishing my 2 years of highschool in a Japanese school will give me a headstart too. Thanks for sharing guys!

[kurtis dawber]

i know that french has nothing in common with japanese but stick with me for a moment, my stepfather's mother is french but speaks fluent english, she once taught at a language school in france (teaching english people french) and that school always stood by the fact that if you learned french in france you learn it up to 4 times faster, that's probably true for japanese as well methinks

[Apheleon]

I guess its easy to get a basic idea by just watching animes rite? I started learning by scratch... buy booklets...watch anime...listen...pause...replay...X infinity. But hey, months and months passed and I still can't really understand grammar parts so I settled for a jap class earlier this year.

French is interesting too...tried to learn some myself. Its TOUGH!! So I practically sux in it too.
Je ne comprend parle l'francais.