P
パピプペポ — The P Row
01
Why the P row uses a circle
The P row is the H row with a handakuten (゜): ハ→パ, ヒ→ピ, フ→プ, ヘ→ペ, ホ→ポ. The mark is a small circle, not the two ticks of the dakuten — circle makes “p,” ticks make “b.” This is the only handakuten row in katakana, and with it you've now learned every single katakana character. Only the combined kana remain.
H row + ゜ = P row: write the base katakana, then add one small circle at the upper right. Circle ゜ = “p”; two ticks ゛ = “b.” The P row is the only place the circle appears, so once you know パ ピ プ ペ ポ, you've got it.
02
Pronunciation at a glance
03
Loanwords built on the P row
The P row opens a wide field of everyday loanwords. Here are two for each character.
パンpanbread
パーティーpātīparty
ピアノpianopiano
ピンクpinkupink
プールpūrupool (swimming)
プログラムpuroguramuprogram
ペンpenpen
ペットpettopet
ポストposutomailbox, post
ポイントpointopoint
04
What's next
That's every single katakana — basic, dakuten, and handakuten! All that remains are the combined kana, where a full-size kana pairs with a small ャ ュ ョ. First up: the キャ row (キャ キュ キョ).