amthomas Wrote:My dictionary (Canon Wordtank G55) also, oddly enough, mentions that other languages have gobi, and uses French as an example , stating that the "er" of "aimer" is gobi, but that pretty much negates my assumption about kanji and what-have-yous...

In french we say the 'racine' (root) of aimer is aim-, and -er is the 'terminaison' (ending). The -er part changes according to the verb tense and person [aimais, aimerai, aimons], but the root never does. So I think it's true that the same applies for english or japanese, except that with this language you have the added kanji which shows the root. Indeed, if you take 早い, the part that never changes is 早, while the い will not stay the same if you put it in the past or negative forms.

As for nouns having gobi, I think the たち part in 人たち (or 人達) could be considered gobi, but I'm not sure. The thing is that AFAIK japanese doesn't have any inflection for nouns, unlike eg. german. Anyway, I don't think it really matters, since knowing that won't really make our japanese any better, will it?

But if you find some other questionable points on Tae Kim's guide, it'd be nice to know for us beginners who can't tell. Thanks for clearing up the gobi story.

I've worked my way thorugh the whole of Tae Kim's guide and it had helped a lot in the development of any beginner of Japanese. The sections are divided with succinct information compared to that of a conventional textbook. The conjugation rules are concise and easy to understand, though some need more time than others.
After going through this guide, I'm still left hankering for more grammar now... The problem I have with the grammar is the fragmentation since it's not like English at all... I read the newspapers on the yomiuri and asahi sites and still can't

I wonder if there is anyone on this site who might be considering writing a book on systematizing Japanese grammar and entitling it "Remembering the Japanese Grammar". With the approach that Tae Kim took, someone can systematize it even further and exploit the possibilities of Tae Kim's guide. Like Heisig systematizing the Kanji, someone could try to formulate a way to writing long, complicated sentences like those on a Japanese newspaper or Japanese novel. With each grammar, you can give it a distinct label like Heisig giving a keyword to become familiar with.

I would like some tips on how people remember the Japanese grammar, such as combinations of different forms, for some inspiration and enlightenment.

I dunno if it's possible to systematise grammar in any natural language. But...

I can highly recommend "A Dictionary Of Basic Japanese Grammar". It isn't written in prose form like Tae Kim's site, more like a reference guide (like a dictionary perhaps? heh), but it is seriously full of good information. Although it can get really technical if you dig into the notes, the English explanations in the main section are usually all you need.

The bulk of it are entries that describe word / sentence / expression formations: their meaning, synomyns and antonyms, rules on where it works and doesn't, and plenty of example sentences.

It also has indexes with verb and adj conjugation tables, kosoado, numbers and counters... stuff that is important and organised for quick reference.

aircawn Wrote:I dunno if it's possible to systematise grammar in any natural language. But...

I can highly recommend "A Dictionary Of Basic Japanese Grammar". It isn't written in prose form like Tae Kim's site, more like a reference guide (like a dictionary perhaps? heh), but it is seriously full of good information. Although it can get really technical if you dig into the notes, the English explanations in the main section are usually all you need.

I second that recommendation. When I first got it I read it through cover to cover inbetween customers at the part time job I had at the time. It is really more advanced than the title leads you to believe. It's more like basic & intermediate, while the partner to the book (A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar) is intermediate & advanced. I'd recommend buying both books. In the basic book, there is very little "useless" grammar like you'll find on JLPT and in many textbooks.

Each grammar point is VERY heavily documented. On average each point is 1-2 pages, while some may have 5 or more (for example, "kuse ni" is 4 pages long, "ni" is 15 pages). There are many many usage examples (at least one for each form the grammar point can take). Something these books also have which almost every other book lacks are explanations instead of just definitions, as well as explanations of how the grammar point differs from other similar points. These are THE grammar books to own and you probably won't ever need anything else.

Is dictionary "a dictionary of basic japanese grammar" authored by Seiichi Makino? It has a yellow cover and the dictionary for intermediate grammar the blue cover written by Seiichi Makino as well right"

It is the dictionary that you guys are recommending if I'm not mistaken.

Bingo.

They are really great for clarifying grammar points I 'think' I get but am not a hundred percent on.