When you start learning Japanese — or at least reading Japanese words — you’ll come across romaji first before hiragana or katakana. The term comes from “Rome,” the capital of Italy, and “ji” (字), which means “letter” or “character” in Japanese. Literally, it translates to “Roman letters.” In short, romaji refers to Japanese words written using the Latin (Roman) alphabet.
Romaji can be challenging or even confusing. This is especially true when spelling Japanese words correctly. It can also affect proper Japanese pronunciation. In this guide, we will answer these questions. We will also explain how romaji works.
Romaji: What is it and what is it used for?
Romaji is just Japanese characters written with the Roman or Latin alphabet. Its foremost intent is just to write Japanese words in a Roman alphabet, so that non-Japanese speakers can understand what is being read. For instance, most English speakers probably know the words Tokyo, tsunami, samurai, and so much more, because they have been transcribed into Roman letters.
But romaji also has practical uses for native Japanese speakers. It is often used for inputting Japanese on a keyboard that uses the Roman/Latin letters. Most Japanese school children will learn romaji from a young age since the use of the Roman alphabet is standard for most keyboards.
Keep in mind that certain special characters will be written differently from how they’re usually written or pronounced.
For example, small characters such as ‘ぁ’ need to be input as ‘la’ rather than ‘a’ which would just type the normal ‘あ’ character. For most small characters, you usually need to input an ‘l’ before the actual romaji of the character.
Romaji is also often used for Japanese learners to read and understand how Japanese characters are read and pronounced.
While there are many pros to learning romaji in the beginning, it does come with inherent disadvantages as well. So, let’s get into the merits and demerits of romaji as a way of writing Japanese in the Western alphabet.
Download romaji chart below!
How does romaji work?
So, with all that out of the way, let’s get into how Romaji actually works and how each character is written with different Roman characters.
The first table shows monographs, which are the core syllables of Japanese. They include the five vowels (a, i, u, e, o) and consonant plus vowel combinations like ka, sa, ta. Every other sound in Japanese builds on these basics.
| a (あ) | i (い) | u (う) | e (え) | o (お) | |
| K | ka (か) | ki (き) | ku (く) | ke (け) | ko (こ) |
| S | sa (さ) | shi (し) | su (す) | se (せ) | so (そ) |
| T | ta (た) | chi (ち) | tsu (つ) | te (て) | to (と) |
| N | na (な) | ni (に) | nu (ぬ) | ne (ね) | no (の) |
| H | ha (は) | hi (ひ) | fu (ふ) | he (へ) | ho (ほ) |
| M | ma (ま) | mi (み) | mu (む) | me (め) | mo (も) |
| Y | ya (や) | — | yu (ゆ) | — | yo (よ) |
| R | ra (ら) | ri (り) | ru (る) | re (れ) | ro (ろ) |
| W | wa (わ) | — | — | — | wo/o (を) |
| N | n (ん) |
This table shows how adding small marks called dakuten (゛) or handakuten (゜) changes the pronunciation of certain syllables. Dakuten makes consonants voiced as follows:
- k → g
- s → z
- t → d
- h → b
Handakuten will make the following:
- h → p
For example, when adding dakuten to ka (か), it becomes ga (が). This table shows all the characters that have the dakuten or handakuten marks:
| a (あ) | i (い) | u (う) | e (え) | o (お) | |
| G (が) | ga (が) | gi (ぎ) | gu (ぐ) | ge (げ) | go (ご) |
| Z (ざ) | za (ざ) | ji (じ) | zu (ず) | ze (ぜ) | zo (ぞ) |
| D (だ) | da (だ) | ji/di (ぢ) | zu (づ) | de (で) | do (ど) |
| B (ば) | ba (ば) | bi (び) | bu (ぶ) | be (べ) | bo (ぼ) |
| P (ぱ) | pa (ぱ) | pi (ぴ) | pu (ぷ) | pe (ぺ) | po (ぽ) |
Digraphs (拗音, or youon) are formed by combining a consonant with a small ya (ゃ), yu (ゅ), or yo (ょ). For example, ki plus ya becomes kya (きゃ). These sounds are very common in Japanese words and names.
| ya (ゃ) | yu (ゅ) | yo (ょ) | |
| K | kya (きゃ) | kyu (きゅ) | kyo (きょ) |
| S | sha (しゃ) | shu (しゅ) | sho (しょ) |
| T/Ch | cha (ちゃ) | chu (ちゅ) | cho (ちょ) |
| N | nya (にゃ) | nyu (にゅ) | nyo (にょ) |
| H | hya (ひゃ) | hyu (ひゅ) | hyo (ひょ) |
| M | mya (みゃ) | myu (みゅ) | myo (みょ) |
| R | rya (りゃ) | ryu (りゅ) | ryo (りょ) |
| G | gya (ぎゃ) | gyu (ぎゅ) | gyo (ぎょ) |
| J | ja (じゃ) | ju (じゅ) | jo (じょ) |
| B | bya (びゃ) | byu (びゅ) | byo (びょ) |
| P | pya (ぴゃ) | pyu (ぴゅ) | pyo (ぴょ) |
While we are mostly showing how romaji writes out hiragana, the same rules largely apply for katakana as well!
Long Vowels and Double Consonants
What are long vowels and double consonants? These are sounds captured in the Japanese writing system, but when writing in romaji, it might be easy to assume a double vowel, such as “oo”, makes the /u:/ sound like in “food”. But in Japanese romaji, this just implies a longer enunciation of the vowel. For example, the word for big, ookii (おおきい), the long vowel oo is pronounced like saying the letter o but more elongated as in “ocean” or “go”. Refer to the table below for a quick guide on long vowels:
| Romaji | Hiragana | Pronunciation | Japanese Example |
| aa | ああ | “aah” like in “father” | okaasan (mother) |
| ii | いい | “ee” like in “see” | shiiki (city area) |
| uu | うう | “oo” like in “food” | kuuki (air) |
| ee | ええ | “e” like in “bet” | ee (yes or um) |
| ei | えい | “ay” like in “late” | sensei (teacher) |
| oo | おお | “oh” like “old” | ookii (big) |
| ou | おう | “oh” like in “old” | Toukyou (Tokyo) |
Keep in mind, when it comes to ou there are nuances to be aware of. Some words will have a subtle u sound at the end, especially in words such as koushi (baby cow), which is a combination of the word ko (子) meaning small or young, and ushi (牛) meaning cow.
Double consonants are similar in that the sound of the consonant is more enunciated compared to just one consonant. For example, in the words kata (肩), or shoulder, and katta (勝った), or won, the difference is that the double tt sound is more pronounced or harder in katta, where the t sound in kata is much softer.
| Romaji | Hiragana | Pronunciation | Japanese Example |
| ssa | っさ | “ss” as in “grass” | messa (very) |
| tta | った | “tt” like in “battle” | itta (went) |
| cchi | っち | “ch” as in “itch” | occha (tea) |
| kka | っか | “kk” like in “kick” | mikka (3 days) |
| nna | んな | “nn” like in “penny” | onna (woman) |
If you want to go more in-depth on the pronunciation with different characters and sounds, read our guide on long vowels and double consonants in Japanese!
Should you use romaji when learning Japanese?
When studying Japanese, you cannot avoid romaji, and for good reason. It is both useful for studying and is (to some extent) ingrained into the modern Japanese language. So, here are some pros and cons to knowing romaji.
Pros of using romaji
1. Romaji can simplify Japanese for beginners
By providing a useful pronunciation breakdown in Roman lettering, beginners can start to understand how Japanese is read and pronounced using letters that are familiar to them. Romaji can be especially useful when you haven’t fully learnt hiragana, katakana, or kanji.
2. Romaji can help with typing on a Japanese keyboard
As mentioned, since most keyboards generally use Roman alphabet lettering for the keys, knowing romaji will allow you to type in Japanese on your computer.
3. Romaji is widely used in daily life in Japan
Romaji is also widely used in daily life for accessibility. You can find it on street signs, train stations, menus, and passports. So knowing Japanese words in romaji could make travel and navigation in Japan much easier for non-Japanese speakers.
Cons of Using Romaji
As with any language coming from a very different language family, Japanese characters operate on different rules that roman letters might not always capture. This results in different romaji writing standards attempting to capture Japanese pronunciation, such as incorporating letters with the long vowel markers, such as with ‘ō’.
But if you are not taught how to pronounce Japanese, romaji could lead to bad habits. Some could include:
1. Incorrect word recognition
Since romaji doesn’t show kanji differences, reading a Japanese sentence completely in romaji may be confusing. Some Japanese words have double meanings, after all.
For example, kami can mean 神 (god), 髪 (hair), or 紙 (paper). Without kanji, the meaning can be unclear unless you have context. When speaking, context usually makes it clear. For instance, if someone asks “髪を切った？ (Kami o kitta)”, You would understand they mean hair.
2. Pronunciation issues from English interference
English speakers may end up applying English sound rules to Romaji, which could lead to bad pronunciation habits. These habits tend to be more difficult to fix in the future, so learning Japanese pronunciation early on is always ideal.
Example: fu (ふ) might be pronounced like “foo” instead of the softer Japanese sound between fu and hu.
Example: r sounds (ら, り, る, れ, ろ) are not like English “r” but somewhere between “r” and “l.”
3. Misleading spelling conventions
Long vowels and double consonants can be confusing when relying on romaji.
Example: Tokyo is written in romaji without a long vowel, but in Japanese it’s とうきょう (Toukyou). Learners who only see romaji may pronounce it incorrectly.
4. Inconsistent romaji writing systems
Because Roman letters must represent sounds from a completely different phonetic system, different romaji systems — such as Hepburn and Kunrei-shiki — evolved to spell Japanese words in different ways.
Example: shi vs. si, tsu vs. tu, ō vs. ou. This can confuse learners who don’t realize they represent the same Japanese sounds.
For this guide (and for most of our blogs), we use a modified Hepburn where long vowels are written as ‘ou’ instead of ‘ō’, for instance. So, keep that pronunciation in mind when we write romaji characters!
Best way to use romaji
Take the pronunciation that romaji implies with a grain of salt. Using listening material as well as a professional teacher will help to fully understand how to pronounce Japanese, so it’s best not to use romaji alone to learn. You should try to memorize hiragana or even kanji alongside learning new vocabulary in romaji so you can understand Japanese as it is originally intended to be written, and of course, spoken and pronounced. For practice, refer to our hiragana chart and quiz!
Romaji is a great starting point for understanding how Japanese words might sound using the closest English sounds possible, but don’t get too reliant on it. Japanese has a lot of nuance in its pronunciation that isn’t always captured by romaji.
But it is still very much worth learning since you will most likely be typing out Japanese words on a computer using English letters.
Also, sometimes words from other languages, especially acronyms, are written in romaji or just in English. Loan words are mostly written in katakana.
Wrapping Up: Make Japanese progress beyond romaji
Romaji is a powerful tool that opens the door to Japanese for beginners. But while romaji can guide your first steps, it’s not meant to be the final destination. Relying too heavily on it can create blind spots, whether in reading, pronunciation, or truly understanding the Japanese language
If you want to go beyond romaji and truly start learning Japanese, nothing beats guidance from a professional teacher who can help you sound like a native! Why not join Japanese classes at Coto Academy?
Coto Academy is a leading Japanese language school based in Tokyo and Yokohama. We also have an online class so you can learn Japanese anywhere, anytime. Our small classes focus on practical Japanese, giving you a strong foundation in both hiragana and katakana. With our approach, you can start speaking confidently in just 4 weeks!
Consider our in-person or online classes at Coto Academy and sign up today by filling out the form below.
FAQ
What is romaji?
Romaji (ローマ字) is the system of writing Japanese using the Latin alphabet. For example, “ありがとう” is written as arigatou in Romaji.
Why is romaji used?
Romaji is used to make Japanese accessible to non-Japanese speakers. You’ll see it on signs, train stations, passports, and in beginner textbooks. It’s also the main way to type Japanese on a computer or phone.
Should I learn romaji before hiragana and katakana?
Romaji can help at the very beginning, but you should learn hiragana and katakana as soon as possible. Relying too much on romaji can cause bad habits in pronunciation and reading.
Do Japanese people use romaji?
Not in daily writing. Japanese people primarily use hiragana, katakana, and kanji. Romaji is mainly for foreigners, brand names, and typing.
Which romaji system is best?
The most common is Hepburn Romaji (e.g., shi, tsu, shou). Other systems like Kunrei-shiki and Nihon-shiki exist, but Hepburn is the most widely used internationally and easiest for learners.
Is it okay to use romaji to learn Japanese?
Romaji can sometimes be misleading since you may end up applying english pronunciation rules to Japanese words that are pronounced very differently. It is best to learn romaji in conjunction with hiragana or katakana and a teacher who can help guide your pronunciation.
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