は (ha), hiragana basic
は
ha
は row · a column
hiraganabasic3 strokes
Stroke order
Pronunciation
Usually pronounced ha. When は marks the topic of a sentence, it is pronounced wa.
katakana counterpart
Variants
Similar characters
Words with は
はじめましてnice to meet you
母ははmy mother
はいyes
How to remember it
はA long stroke stands beside a crossbar and loop. Imagine someone holding a hoop and laughing ha. As the topic particle, は is pronounced wa.
Where it comes from
波は
は developed from the cursive writing of 波. It represents a sound rather than the kanji's meaning wave.