It is said that Chinese is the toughest language in the world to master. It makes it this tough mainly because this language works with characters, not just the alphabets. However, it is not entirely the case in fact. Below are some tips on how to learn Chinese characters.

When it comes to Chinese characters, there are two different systems of Mandarin writing – traditional and simplified. You must decide which one to learn before you start. Simplified characters were created by decreasing the number of strokes needed to write the character, changing its form, are the official system of writing in mainland China, and Singapore. While traditional Chinese characters are mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

 

Whether you are going to learn traditional or simplified Chinese characters? It depends on where you want to live and why you are learning Mandarin. Do you want to live in mainland China? Teach in Taiwan? Do business in Shanghai? Learn Chinese culture and history in Beijing? It is possible to learn both, but as a beginner, you should stick to one system to avoid confusion.

Chinese language is built up entirely with characters called hànzi. To learn Mandarin Chinese characters fast, you can learn Chinese characters online by taking classes or lessons that teach Chinese calligraphy. Doing so will help you get a hang of the script. Chinese characters are made out of simple single strokes, all of them variations of only eight basic ones. All strokes have their own name and are written according to a few rules.

Last but not least, to memorize to characters easily, here is a tip: stop seeing the characters as a series of almost-random strokes. If you are familiar with the basic elements and their inate meaning, you can then construct a mnemonic to link the elements to their meaning, a little story will help you remember a character. For instance, the character 明 meaning "bright" consists of sun and moon–not difficult to remember, right? 休 meaning "to rest" consists of a person and a tree–mentally fix the idea of an exhausted hiker resting against a tree and you'll never forget this character again.

Anyway, learning Chinese is not that tough, but it is important for you to remember that the best way to learn any language is by writing and reading Chinese characters at every opportunity that you get.