JLPT N5 kanji. Readings, meaning, and how the character is built.
南 means south. It is a JLPT N5 kanji written in 9 strokes, read みなみ or なん. It appears in 南極 (south pole / Antarctic) and 南米 (South America).
南 is written in 9 strokes, in the order numbered below. Order matters: it is what makes handwriting legible, and it is how the character is looked up in a paper dictionary.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 南 | みなみ | South |
| 南極 | なんきょく | south pole / Antarctic |
| 南米 | なんべい | South America |
南 tends to carry the sound なん. They carry it; they do not all mean the same thing.
| Reading | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| 南 | なん | south |
| 楠 | なん | camphor tree |
Sumi teaches the character before it tests you: stroke order animated, the breakdown above shown as a pull-apart X-ray, then spaced review. Free, in your browser, no signup.
Start with kanji, free