🎌 Japanese Numbers, Time & Calendar

Your Magic Keys to Understanding Japan’s Language of Time

Imagine you’re a time traveler with a special backpack. Inside are six magic keys that unlock doors in Japan. Each key helps you talk about numbers, time, days, months, seasons, and weather. Ready to collect them all?

🔑 Key 1: The Japanese Number System

Numbers Are Building Blocks!

Think of Japanese numbers like LEGO blocks. You learn small pieces, then snap them together to make bigger numbers!

The Basic Blocks (1-10)

🎯 Fun Fact: Numbers 4 and 7 have TWO ways to say them! Japanese people often use “よん” (yon) for 4 and “なな” (nana) for 7 because they sound friendlier.

Building Bigger Numbers

Here’s the magic trick:

• 11 = 10 + 1 = じゅういち (juu-ichi)
• 25 = 2×10 + 5 = にじゅうご (ni-juu-go)
• 100 = 百 (ひゃく/hyaku)
• 1000 = 千 (せん/sen)

Example:

• 365 = さんびゃくろくじゅうご (300 + 60 + 5)

🔑 Key 2: The Counter System

Why Counters Exist

Imagine if English said “three FLAT-THING pizzas” or “five LONG-THING pencils.” That’s exactly what Japanese does! Different shapes need different counters.

Essential Counters

graph TD
    A[🎯 COUNTERS] --> B[つ General]
    A --> C[人 People]
    A --> D[本 Long things]
    A --> E[枚 Flat things]
    A --> F[匹 Small animals]
    A --> G[個 Round things]

Counter Examples

The General Counter (つ)

When in doubt, use つ! It works for almost anything:

💡 Pro Tip: After 10, just use the regular number + counter!

🔑 Key 3: Time Expressions

Telling Time is Like Reading a Clock Sandwich!

Hour (じ/ji) + Minutes (ふん/fun) = Time!

Hours (じ)

⚠️ Watch Out: 4:00 is “よじ” (not いちじ) and 9:00 is “くじ” (not きゅうじ)!

Minutes (ふん/ぷん)

Minutes change their sound depending on the number:

Time Phrases

• AM: ごぜん (gozen) 午前
• PM: ごご (gogo) 午後
• Half past: はん (han)

Example:

• 3:30 PM = ごご さんじ はん

🔑 Key 4: Days of the Week

A Story of Seven Friends

Each day is named after something special in nature or space!

graph TD
    A[🌞 Sunday<br>にちようび<br>日曜日] --> B[🌙 Monday<br>げつようび<br>月曜日]
    B --> C[🔥 Tuesday<br>かようび<br>火曜日]
    C --> D[💧 Wednesday<br>すいようび<br>水曜日]
    D --> E[🌲 Thursday<br>もくようび<br>木曜日]
    E --> F[⚡ Friday<br>きんようび<br>金曜日]
    F --> G[🪨 Saturday<br>どようび<br>土曜日]

Useful Day Phrases

• Today: きょう (kyou) 今日
• Tomorrow: あした (ashita) 明日
• Yesterday: きのう (kinou) 昨日
• This week: こんしゅう (konshuu) 今週

🔑 Key 5: Months & Seasons

Months Are Simply Numbers!

Japanese months are super easy - just add 月 (がつ/gatsu) after the number!

⚠️ Remember: April, July, and September use the shorter forms: し, しち, く!

Days of the Month

Days use 日 (にち/nichi), but the first 10 days are special:

Example: March 3rd = さんがつ みっか

The Four Seasons

🔑 Key 6: Weather Expressions

Talking About the Sky!

Weather in Japanese is like describing what the sky is wearing today!

Basic Weather Words

Weather Sentences

To describe weather, use です (desu) or add い-adjectives:

Temperature Words

Example Conversation:

きょうの てんきは どうですか？ (Kyou no tenki wa dou desu ka?) “How’s the weather today?”

はれです。あたたかいです。 (Hare desu. Atatakai desu.) “It’s sunny. It’s warm.”

🎯 Putting It All Together

Now you have all six magic keys! Let’s use them in a real sentence:

さんがつ みっか すいようび ごぜん くじ はん、はれです。

March 3rd, Wednesday, 9:30 AM, it’s sunny.

Quick Reference Flow

graph TD
    A[📅 Date] --> B[Month + Day]
    B --> C[Day of Week]
    C --> D[⏰ Time]
    D --> E[AM/PM + Hour + Minutes]
    E --> F[🌤️ Weather]

🌟 You Did It!

You now hold the six magic keys to Japanese time expressions:

1. ✅ Numbers - Building blocks from 1 to infinity
2. ✅ Counters - Special words for counting different things
3. ✅ Time - Hours and minutes, AM and PM
4. ✅ Days - A week of elemental friends
5. ✅ Months & Seasons - Numbers plus nature
6. ✅ Weather - Describing the sky’s mood

Keep practicing, and soon these will feel as natural as counting in your own language! 🎌✨