The 46 sounds on the so-called hiragana chart are mainly written and pronounced in Japanese. In addition, there are other characters with small dots or circles above the letters, as well with smaller “ぁぃぅぇぉ”, “ゃゅょ”, and “っ”, so in reality, many more sounds can be expressed.
This series will explain the 46 characters on the hiragana chart, 25 hiragana and katakana characters with dots and circles above them, and their pronunciations.
The 「は」 Column: は, ひ, ふ, へ, ほ
Pronunciation of each letter
「はひふへほ」 (“h” sound/”f” for ふ)
[は・へ・ほ]
Mouth position: Narrow the vocal cords and pass the air through the gap. (You feel the air on the soft palate.) Mouth position depends on which vowel follows.
Air release: Pass the air through the gap of narrowed vocal cords.
Vocal cord vibration: No (Unvoiced)
[ひ]
Mouth position: The front part of the tongue goes up close to the mouth roof.
Air release: Force air to flow through the small space.
Vocal cord vibration: No (Unvoiced)
[ふ]
Mouth position: Purse the lips slightly.
Air release: Force air to flow through the gap of the lips.
Vocal cord vibration: No (Unvoiced)
は
“h” sound + [あ]
ひ
“h” sound + [い]
ふ
“f” sound + [う]
へ
“h” sound + [え]
ほ
“h” sound + [お]
Samples of handwriting
The previous sound: The Japanese な(“na”) column
The next sound: The Japanese ば(“ba”) column
