LEARN HOW TO READ NUMBERS IN JAPANESE

Just like books, paintings, or any artistic works, you will most likely find a copyright, the name of the author and the date. For example: Copyright Woodblock Prints World February 2015

Well, most of your Japanese woodblock prints will also have a copyright by the publisher, the name of the artist and a date.

The date is characterized by a censor seal for most of edo prints, or often in writing in the margin for the Shin Hanga.

You might sometime see the Zodiac year name, or even the era year name by itself, or associated with a number. For example, Meiji 3 will be 1871 ( 1868 + 3 ), or Ansei 2 will be 1856.

So it is very useful to learn how to read numbers in Japanese, and to understand the dating system. You will be surprise how easy it is, and how often the date is written on your prints.

Press the "Click to Read" button below, and navigate through the pages to familiarize yourself with the number system. You can zoom in or out by double clicking, or by using the bar on top of the screen.