7 YOUTUBE CHANNELS TO HELP YOU LEARN JAPANESE
Ohayogozaimasu Japanese learners!
Are you using YouTube to learn Japanese? If not, why not?
There are so many amazing Japanese YouTube channels out there. And with more and more videos uploaded each day, you’re guaranteed to find your perfect teacher.
Whether you’re a beginner or advanced student, studying just for fun or for JLPT level 1, there’s a YouTuber who can help you learn Japanese.And best of all, it’s completely free!
Here are our top 7 best YouTube channels to learn Japanese:
1. JapanesePod 101
You might have heard of JapanesePod101, an awesome way to learn Japanese online with podcasts. Did you know they also have a YouTube channel? Yep, loads of fantastic content is available for free, and you don’t have to be a JapanesePod101 member to enjoy it.
Although JapanesePod101’s podcast series are suitable for any level, their YouTube channel is mostly aimed at beginners. They have loads of videos on basic Japanese phrases, and can even teach you how to read and write hiragana and katakana. We also love their fun videos on Japanese slang and anime words. There are new videos almost every day, so this channel is a great one to follow to get your regular Japanese listening practise in.
2. Basic Japanese Lessons
The Learn Japanese Beginners channel was last updated years ago and has only three playlists. The course I recommend though — “Basic Japanese Lessons” — is still available and probably one of the best online tutorials of Japanese grammar. It features a total of 24, condensed 10- to 15-minute lessons. Hosted by a language instructor from the New York Japan Society (an American nonprofit organization), these lessons give you a feeling of a real school environment. The teacher is professional, the topics covered are essential and the lessons are fun. An absolute must watch for beginners and intermediate learners alike.
3. Learn Japanese from Zero
“Learn Japanese From Zero” is another well-structured and charismatically hosted course featuring almost 200 instructive videos (with production still ongoing and new videos uploaded every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday) based on the book by George Trombley (the host) and Yukari Takenaka (his wife, co-author and co-host).
Most of the shows are hosted by fluent Japanese speaker George Trombley, whose passion for the language is infectious and whose presentation style is bubbly, friendly and engaging.
All things considered, the videos cover a lot of ground and include such concepts as turning verbs into nouns, taboos to avoid in Japan and how to pronounce various words.
4. Easy Language
The channel “Easy Japanese ” lets you to learn Japanese… from the streets. The creators interview random people “man in the street”-style, asking them to explain their most commonly used slang words and expressions.
5. Japanese Ammo with Missa
Japanese Ammo is one of our favourite online Japanese resources. It’s created by Misa sensei, a multilingual Japanese translator and teacher. Misa teaches through her YouTube channel and blog posts. All of her content is completely free.There are loads of lessons suitable for beginners. If you’re a beginner, you’ll want to check out this series on basic Japanese grammar. If you’re more advanced, you’ll love her Japanese-only videos.
6.Talk In Japanese
7.Learn Japanese from the Streets
That Japanese Man Yuta is a bit different from the other channels on this list. He doesn’t actually make Japanese lessons. What he does is street interviews in Japan about all kind of topics. He bascially asks all the questions you want to know about what Japanese people are thinking. From what Japanese girls think about dating foreigners, to what it’s like growing up mixed race in Japan, there are some seriously interesting insights on this channel. All the interviews are in Japanese with English subtitles.We highly recommend this channel if you want to practise your Japanese listening with real, everyday conversation, while also finding out what makes Japanese people tick!