1 to 10 in Japanese

Learning 1 to 10 in Japanese is a great place to start learning Japanese! When studying any language numbers are one of the first things you are introduced to. Open up any beginner textbook, phrase book for travelers and you get a table of numbers somewhere.

Learning Japanese, once you know how to count it opens up a world of possibility! If you travel to Japan and only know numbers you will obviously not be discuss a whole lot. But you can do stuff like shopping by point at things, and saying how much you want, or whatever else you may do in Japan.

Numbers go on to infinity, but we don’t need to know all of that. Just 1 to 10 in Japanese should be enough. For now at least. Should be pretty straightforward right? Well, actually counting in Japanese and Japanese numerals are actually much more complex than in English. Why? Well that involves the history of the Japanese language and influence from Kanji readings, various Japanese counters for counting specific things and so on.

INDEX

Counting from 1 to 10 in Japanese involves learning the correct Japanese numerals obviously. But, unlike in English there are different ways to say each number.

Here’s a brief overview of the numbers 1 to 10 in Japanese to show what I mean:

一 (いち) – Ichi
二 (に) – Ni
三 (さん) – San
四 (し or よん) – Shi or Yon
五 (ご) – Go
六 (ろく) – Roku
七 (しち or なな) – Shichi or Nana
八 (はち) – Hachi
九 (きゅう or く) – Kyū or Ku
十 (じゅう) – Jū

See? looking at the number 4 in Japanese, you can say either し(shi) or よん (yon) for the Kanji character 四

On the other hand, For the number five, it is simply 五 (go) in Japanese. Moving on to the number seven, it also has two readings, 七 (shichi) or なな (nana).

Counting from 1 to 10 in Japanese

Learning to count in Japanese involves grasping how to say these numbers and which to use when.

So the standard way to count from 1 to 10 in Japanese is as follows:

いち (ichi)
に (ni)
さん (san)
し (shi)
ご (go)
ろく (roku)
しち (shichi)
はち (hachi)
きゅう (kyū)
じゅう (jū)

Great! If you just want to know how to count from 1 to 10 in Japanese then you have your answer! Using this knowledge you should have no trouble counting anytime in Japanese! Heck, you should even have no trouble counting backwards even! Right?

Not exactly.

Japanese Numerals, Counting Backwards

Counting backward from 10 to 1 in Japanese follows a similar pattern as counting forwards. But there are a few numbers that are used instead when counting backwards.

You don’t need to learn any new numbers at the moment, but pick the right choice for a few numbers.

Let’s go through the numbers in reverse order:

じゅう (jū)
きゅう (kyū)
はち (hachi)
なな (nana)
ろく (roku)
ご (go)
よん (yon)
さん (san)
に (ni)
いち (ichi)

So to make it easy, numbers 4 and 7 have alternative readings, and you say yon for 4, and nana for 7 when counting backwards.

Now we are all set! you should be able to count forwards and backwards and count anything you want!

Not quite, there is still more complexity to Japanese counting than first meets the eye.

Counting in Japanese vs Counting Things

There is a difference that you may not have thought about too much when you count in English. When counting you can either be counting to track time such as counting seconds, or you can be counting actual things.

That’s right, Japanese distinguishes these two types of counting. What I just provided was how you would count to track time, or number of times you do something, such as counting someones push ups, running laps and so on.

We have already learned how to count in Japanese, but not yet how to actually count things using Japanese numerals. Let’s do that now.

一つ ( hitotsu)
二つ ( futatsu)
三つ ( mittsu)
四つ ( yottsu)
五つ ( itsutsu)
六つ ( muttsu)
七つ ( nanatsu)
八つ ( yattsu)
九つ ( kokonotsu)
十 ( to’o)

Wait, so all these Japanese numbers are completely different! Yes, that is correct, these are based off the old way of saying Japanese numerals before Kanji or the Chinese Characters were introduced. You can see the to troublesome numbers, 7 and 4 which have alternate readings are based off these older numbers.

To clarify though, the larger numbers like 10, 9 and so on are less commonly used in modern Japanese for counting things. They are still used time to time but there are alternatives ways to count things in Japanese.

More? Yes! Japanese numbers and counting is a whole art and science in itself.

As for these numbers ending in つ (except for 10) they can be used to count things, or talk about numbers of things or quantities of certain abstract things like ages even. That is beyond the scope of this article though. It is sufficient to just remember that these numbers are for counting things.

Ok but what about all those other ways of counting in Japanese?

Japanese counters

Japanese numbers also have unique counters for various objects, and the counting system can be intricate. For instance, there are specific counters for people, days, items, and more. Exploring these nuances enriches one’s understanding of the Japanese language and its counting conventions.

Japanese counters are essential elements of the language’s counting system, allowing for precision when specifying quantities of various objects, items, people, or occurrences. Unlike English, where the same word “one” or “two” can be used universally, Japanese employs specific counters based on the nature of what is being counted. Let’s explore how Japanese counters work in various contexts:

1. Counting People:
The counter for people is 人 (にん or じん – nin or jin). For instance, three people is さんにん (san nin).

2. Counting Days:
When counting days, the counter (にち or か – nichi or ka) is employed. To express five days, you say ごにち (go-nichi).

3. Counting Money:
Japanese has specific counters for units of currency. For example, 10 yen is 十円 (じゅうえん – jū en).

4. Counting Minutes:
The counter for minutes is 分 (ぶん – bun). To say ten minutes, you would use じゅっぷん (juppun).

5. Counting Months:
For counting months, the counter ヶ月 (かげつ – kagetsu) is used. Three months would be expressed as さんかげつ (san kagetsu).

6. Counting Floors:
Japanese uses the counter 階 (かい – kai) for counting floors. To say fourth floor, you would use よんかい (yonkai).

These are just a few examples. Japanese has many, many, many more.

Also, depending on the counter you are using the number will be pronounced different or alternate between the traditional Onyomi reading or the Kunyomi Reading.

Onyomi and Kunyomi? That would be the names for numbers based off the Kanji readings, or the native Japanese words themselves. So for example 4 in Japanese is shi in Onyomi and yon in Kunyomi. I will explain more below.

Japanese Numerals: Onyomi and Kunyomi

Counting in Japanese involves understanding two types of readings for characters known as Onyomi and Kunyomi. Onyomi refers to the Chinese-derived readings of characters, while Kunyomi refers to the native Japanese readings. This distinction is crucial when dealing with Japanese numerals and their diverse readings.

When considering the numbers from 1 to 10 in Japanese, it’s evident that each numeral has both Onyomi and Kunyomi readings. For example, the number 4 can be read as し (shi) or よん (yon), showcasing the Onyomi and Kunyomi readings respectively. Similarly, the number 7 can be expressed as しち (shichi) or なな (nana), again highlighting the dual readings associated with these numerals.

Understanding Onyomi and Kunyomi is fundamental for mastering Japanese counting. As one counts from 1 through 10, navigating between these readings becomes a dynamic linguistic exercise. This distinction extends beyond numbers, permeating various aspects of the Japanese language, including counters for people, days, items, and objects.

Navigating the counting system involves not only learning the numerical values but also recognizing the contextual appropriateness of Onyomi and Kunyomi readings. Embracing this linguistic complexity enhances one’s proficiency in Japanese, contributing to a deeper appreciation of the language’s rich cultural and historical influences.

Resources

助数詞

1 to 10 in Japanese – Why is Counting so hard in Japanese?