Advice on getting started (unique background)

[tenisubaka]

Hello,

 

I would like to start learning Chinese, though I know nothing about it.

After a quick Google search, it seems the first thing recommended is to learn Pinyin.

 

In my case, I am already fluent in Japanese. I actually work as a translator, so reading is my best ability.

 

Having said that, should I still learn Pinyin?  It seems like I should dive into actual Chinese since I can already kind of read it.

 

Also, with my existing knowledge of Japanese, should I learn (use) Traditional Chinese characters instead of simplified?

I think I would recognize more of the characters if in Traditional format, but that is pointless if simplified is what everybody uses.

 

Any other pointers on starting references or whatever would be great.

 

 

[Michael H]

You need to learn pinyin in order to use dictionaries and type on a computer. It's not that complicated.

 

Which character set to study depends on what you want to do with the language. If you want to read materials written in mainland China then you will need to learn simplified characters. Taiwan, Hong Kong, and most overseas Chinese communities use traditional characters. If you want to learn both character sets, then it will probably be easier for you to start with traditional (since it is closer to Japanese) and then learn simplified later.

[tenisubaka]

Yeah, I wouldn't think it is complicated. My hesitation has more to do with my experience with Japanese in that using the romaji system instead of learning hiragana and katakana is a poor method of study.

 

Thanks for the breakdown on character sets.

[Mouseneb]

Pinyin will teach you how to pronounce the Chinese characters correctly, which looks like exactly what you need. As for simp/trad, it really depends on if you want to work in or with mainland China or prefer Taiwan, Hong Kong, etc.

[Chris Two Times]

No disrespect meant, but I looked at the title and I am wondering, where's the unique background?

 

Lots of people start out with a high level of Japanese when heading into Chinese. Despite this, I would say start at square one and indeed focus hard on the basics of Mandarin first: pinyin and tones and then take it from there. When approaching Mandarin, definitely treat it as a new language and start from the beginning.

 

Warm regards,

Chris Two Times

[Shelley]

I have to agree with Chris Two Times. I thought the same thing when I read your post, lots of people come from Japanese and learn Chinese.

 

I also agree that you should treat it as if it is a completely different  language, because basically it is.

 

You could have a look at the edX course here http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/50261-edx-basic-mandarin-chinese-course-level-2-starting/

 

You can still do level one as explained on their website.

 

This might give you a good idea of how different it is and what the best way to approach it for you.

 

I hope you enjoy learning Chinese, I do and its one of the best reasons to learn.

[renzhe]

My hesitation has more to do with my experience with Japanese in that using the romaji system instead of learning hiragana and katakana is a poor method of study.

 

​

Pinyin IS the hiragana/katakana of Mandarin. The only difference is that modern Chinese (unlike modern Japanese) is written using hanzi only, so there is no mixing.

It is the de facto standard for phonetic representation, used in pretty much all dictionaries, transcriptions, and input methods.

I would echo the other posters. Characters will be easy for you, and that's great, because this is the part most people struggle with. So concentrate on everything that is specific to Mandarin -- pronunciation, tones, grammar.

If I'm not mistaken, Japanese commonly uses about 2000 characters, though native speakers know far far more. In modern Chinese, about 3500 are needed for comfortable reading (though again, well-educated native speakers will know in excess of 5000). So there is probably still some work to be done, depending on your level.

[Pokarface]

Hey! I've been learning Chinese for almost 2 years, but I only recently started writing it. Everything I learned beforehand was in pinyin and I was never bothered, so I can guarantee you that you can reach HSK 3 level vocab without ever learning how to write. The same way that children of Chinese immigrants learn to speak Chinese but might never learn how to write/read it 

 

The characters you learn, depend on your goal. For example, opening a business in Taiwan, where they use traditional characters; is way easier than in China, where they use simplified. Everyone in China is taught simplified characters, so that's a lot of people!  What do you want to do with Chinese?

 

I recommend DeFrancis Beginning Chinese reader for traditional characters. That's the one I use. It teaches 10 characters per lesson and has a lot of dialogue. Someone in this forum said that DeFrancis is basically SRS done right before SRS was invented, and I can only agree =-D

and also another book I own, Colloquial Chinese by T'ung and Pollard (both the pinyin and you can choose the traditional or simplified book based on your decision)

 

Let me save you some money legally. You'll be able to download the audio from Colloquial Chinese T'ung and Pollard.

http://www.routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/colloquial/chinese.php

 

By the way, you might feel that T'ung and Pollard is very "hardcore" since it DOES go at a fast phase, so if you'd like to supplement your studies with more simplified material please buy Assimil Chinese with Ease 1 and 2. You'll have to import this book if you live in the U.S. since it's printed in France and you won't find it in your local Barnes & Noble, but you can still order it from Amazon like me =-)

 

A more common option for those that live in the U.S. is Living Language Mandarin Chinese (Note, I don't use it but I've seen it's content with a friend that uses this method. It's pretty neat with lot's of audio and drills).

 

A common choice I've also seen at my local Barnes and Noble that I own but do not recommend is, Complete Mandarin Chinese from the Teach Yourself series. I do not recommend it because the voice actors sound boring and they might put you to sleep. I own the 2nd edition book and CDs, so I don't know if the audio files have been replaced with more "outgoing" voices.

By the way, I also opened this thread thinking you had a unique background as in some tv drama background story    

[tenisubaka]

Thanks for the info everybody.

 

I am not sure why everyone is getting so hung up on the title though. 

The point was to not sound like a tool when I asked if it was worth it or not to learn pinyin.

I don't know anyone personally that studied Japanese and then moved on to Chinese, except for those people that constantly jump around between projects once the current one starts getting difficult.

 

Of course, the question was stupid as I now realize what pinyin actually is. Again, at first I thought it was like romaji with Japanese.

 

Again, thanks for the useful info, especially from pokarface!

[tenisubaka]

I replied to this thread.

Don't know what happened.

 

Anyways, thanks for the info, especially from Pokarface.

 

I now realize that my initial question was rather stupid. Just a bad initial reaction due to experience with romaji.

 

Now I am having a very hard time with whatever the differences are between all the ch and sh type sounds.