This function extracts the phonetic (Furigana) characters from a Japanese text string.
Syntax
PHONETIC(reference)
Arguments
- reference(required): A text string or reference to a cell/cell range containing Furigana characters.
- If referencing a range, returns Furigana from the upper-left cell.
- Returns #N/Afor non-contiguous ranges.
Background
The Japanese writing system uses:
- Kanji: Chinese-derived ideographs
- Kana: Syllabic scripts including:
- Hiragana: For native Japanese words
- Katakana: For foreign words, loanwords, and emphasis
Furigana are small Hiragana characters that annotate Kanji pronunciation.
Notes:
- Requires Asian language support installed.
- Primarily useful for Japanese text processing.
- Most Excel users may not need this function.