Hiragana "Ju" Coloring Pages

"Ju" as in "Jutan" (Carpet)

The letters on this coloring page are the Hiragana "Ju".
The word is "juutan". It means a soft, thick rug that you put on the floor.
In the picture on the left, you can see one long, rectangle rug drawn from above.
It has tassels on both ends. In the middle, there are flower patterns and designs made of shapes like triangles and squares.
There are lots of patterns, so you will have so much fun coloring it!

Two letters make one sound

You write Hiragana "Ju" by combining two characters: 「じ」 and a small 「ゅ」.
Even though you write two characters, you do not read them separately as "Ji" and "Yu." Instead, you say them together as one single sound.
Sounds like this are called Youon.
If you use a big "Yu" and write "Jiyu," it becomes two sounds, and it might change into a completely different word.
The sound changes depending on whether the small character is there or not!

How Hiragana "Ju" came to be

"Ju" is the letter "Shi" with tenten (voiced sound marks) added.
Hiragana characters were born a long time ago when people wrote Kanji in a simplified, flowing way.
"Shi" came from the simplified shape of the Kanji "之".
The small "ゅ" is just a normal-sized "ゆ" written smaller, and "ゆ" came from the simplified shape of the Kanji "由".
Kanji from a very long time ago changed over many years to become the easy shapes we use today!

Tips for writing Hiragana "Ju"

"Shi" is written with 1 stroke.
Go straight down from the top, curve gently at the bottom, and finish with a light flick up to the right.
For the dots, write 2 short dots in the top right after you finish writing the character.
The top right of "shi" is open, so try to fit the dots right in that space.
When writing horizontally, write the small "yu" small in the bottom left of the box. When writing vertically, write it small in the top right.
Be careful not to mix up where the dots and the "yu" go!

Words that start with "じゅ" (Hiragana "Ju")

Words starting with "ju" include "junban" (turn), "jugyou" (class), and "juutan" (carpet).
The number "juu" (10) starts with "ju", too.
Count from 1 to 10, and try saying only the last "juu" in a loud voice.
If you can say "Let's count to juu in junban (order)," you are a Hiragana "Ju" master!

For the big Hiragana "Ju", match the pattern's colors

Try coloring inside the big Hiragana "Ju" at the top right with any color you like!
If you use the same color as the rug, the picture and the letter will look like good friends.
It is also fun to use different colors for "じ", "ゅ", and the little dots.

For the rug, pick your colors first

For the center of the rug, pick one color like dark red or dark blue, and color the whole big area.
For the pattern on the border, use a different color from the center, like gold, ochre, or navy blue, to make it look sharp.
Color the flower patterns with pink, white, or yellow to make them look nice and bright!
If you color patterns of the same shape with the same color, your rug will look neat and pretty.
If you color the tassels white or cream color, they will look real.

Use a pencil to trace the letters

In the boxes at the bottom right, there are 4 light gray sets of Hiragana "Ju".
Hold your pencil the right way, and trace slowly over the gray lines so you do not go outside them.
Use the vertical and horizontal center lines inside the boxes as a guide to help you see the size and place of the letter.
Be careful where you put them: the little dots go at the top right, and the small "ゅ" goes at the bottom left of the box.
Every time you trace 1 set, say "じゅ" out loud.
When you trace all 4 sets, try writing it by yourself outside the boxes!

Persian Rugs

Persian rugs made around present-day Iran are very famous for rugs.
Some are made by hand over a long time by tying dyed threads one by one.
Big rugs can take many months or even years to finish!

Flying Carpets

In "One Thousand and One Nights," a collection of old stories from Arabia, there is a tale with a flying carpet.
If you could fly in the sky on a rug, where would you like to go?

Secret of the Fringes

Rugs tied by hand are made by tying colored threads to the warp threads.
The fringes on both ends are actually the ends of those warp threads.
When you look at the fringes, you can tell that the rug is made of many threads!

On the Rug

When you put down a rug, it makes the cold floor feel softer and keeps your feet warm.
It also softens the sound of walking or dropping things.
In cold seasons, it is nice to relax and do your coloring page on a fluffy rug!