zkanji is a free, open-source Japanese language learning tool and also a kanji and word dictionary software providing many useful features for those who are interested in the Japanese language. I've started making zkanji in the hope that it can help me study kanji and I hope that it will help others too. While I can't guarantee that it will do your studying for you, maybe you can use it to your benefit.

If you have doubts that this program is for you, please take a look at the screenshots or read the information page about its capabilities. You can also download and use it as much as you'd like! Read the licence information page to see how free it really is, and for acknowledgement of used materials.

To the end, Nim's largely prompted and cursory sign use seems never to have expressed anything particularly meaningful. Project Nim was a total bust: quixotic, constantly improvised, and badly managed. I'm not sure it should be called a project at all.

Yes, it would be wonderful to see propositional communication across a interspecies barrier. But that hasn't happened yet. This film should convince you of that.

And it should also convince you that the title of Herb Terrace's 1987 book Nim, A Chimpanzee Who Learned Sign Language is blatantly dishonest. I guess the publisher would not have gone with an honest one like "Nim, A Chimpanzee Who, Like Every Other Chimpanzee, Never Learned Sign Language".

What it says on the label: facts and details about Japan, in lots of different categories like Japanese customs, history, religion, and even an article on those cool snow monkeys.

"Japanese Lessons" - Learning Japanese Online in English - 10 min. radio broadcast by NHK WORLD every week.

iKnow! tracks your progress on every item (such as a word or phrase) and calculates the optimum moment for you to study. The system adapts to your goals and performance to create a learning schedule personalized just for you.

Online self-study programs produced by a native Japanese language teacher.If you are a first-timer, read Learning Tips page before you start. Enjoy!

Before a green-rumped parrotlet is even able to chirp and squawk, mom and dad teach it a distinct series of sounds used by parrots to recognize a specific individual. In short, they give their nestling a name.

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Among other animals known to imitate the sounds of others and give each other unique names are dolphins and humans (and, possibly, whales.) Like humans and dolphins, parrots are highly social. Using names makes it easier to keep track of relationships and individuals.

Things we have the others’ don’t:

* All words ranked by usefulness. Over 100 bogus JOYO kanji cut!* Every kanji broken down into its components, math stylezzz.* Over 800 hints to tell look-a-like kanji apart* Over 18 ‘tags’ for things like odd spellings, usu. hiragana, formal, rude, etc.* Over 1,700 mnemonics which include the meaning, radicals, AND onyomi.* Particles taught WITH the words.* Nuances of synonyms explained (i.e. 硬い、堅い、and 固い).* Radicals link to all kanji which include them.

I have been living in Japan for close to 20 years. I hold an M.A. in Japanese Language and Society from Sheffield University and I have attained Level II of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. Still, because my face doesn't fit, waiters and waitresses in shops and restaurants look to my Japanese wife for confirmation of what I have asked for, in spite of the fact they have already complimented me on my language ability. In addition, I am told in all seriousness by people who have known me for years that I use chopsticks well and am asked whether or not I can eat Japanese food.

Jouyou kanji (常用漢字) is the set of 1945 kanji that the Japanese Ministry of Education has decided that school children must learn. We have compiled a list of the about thousand kanji that Japanese children learn from first to sixth grade. These first 1006 kanji are also called the Kyouiku kanji.

The following practise sheets are made to have the left part folded to cover the actual kanji, so you will have to remember the kanji, and not just copy it mechanically. If you are unsure of the stroke order, please use the kanji dictionary found on the right hand side of this site. Most kanji have stroke order diagrams attached.