Japanese versions of popular websites like YouTube and Google are also written this way. If you’ve ever tried to learn Japanese, you’ll notice that the textbooks and other resources you’ll use are written this way. If it’s written horizontally, that format is known as “ yokogaki” and is read left-to-right like English. Tategaki is the traditional way of Japanese writing, but it’s still pretty common today. After you finish one column, move to the next one on the left. Text written vertically is known as “ tategaki” and should be read top-to-bottom starting from the right-most column.

If you want to figure out which direction you should read a Japanese text, you’ll have to see if it’s written vertically or horizontally.

In truth, Japanese can be written both left-to-right and right-to-left. When moving on to the next page, always start at the top right.Ī common misconception among non-Japanese people is that all of Japanese is written from right to left. You start from the top right of the right page and make your way to the bottom left. Here’s an example of which order to read panels and speech bubbles in a manga. You read manga in “ reverse.” The front cover is where the book spine is on the right side as opposed to being on the left side with English books. So, how do you read manga, and why is it written like that? If not, you might just open the book up at the end and get totally spoiled. You might be wondering why you’re seeing a warning saying you’re reading it wrong. Or maybe you’ve been an anime-only watcher and have finally decided to grab a manga. Fans of western comics like Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse Comics will get a huge culture shock whenever they read their first manga.

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