<P> Chinese characters number in the tens of thousands , though most of them are minor graphic variants encountered only in historical texts . Studies in China have shown that functional literacy in written Chinese requires a knowledge of between three and four thousand characters . In Japan , 2,136 are taught through secondary school ( the Jōyō kanji ) ; hundreds more are in everyday use . Due to post-WWII simplifications of Kanji in Japan as well as the post-WWII simplifications of characters in China , the Chinese characters used in Japan today are distinct from those used in China in several respects . There are various national standard lists of characters , forms , and pronunciations . Simplified forms of certain characters are used in mainland China , Singapore , and Malaysia ; the corresponding traditional characters are used in Taiwan , Hong Kong , Macau , and to a limited extent in South Korea . </P>
<P> Chinese characters number in the tens of thousands , though most of them are minor graphic variants encountered only in historical texts . Studies in China have shown that functional literacy in written Chinese requires a knowledge of between three and four thousand characters . In Japan , 2,136 are taught through secondary school ( the Jōyō kanji ) ; hundreds more are in everyday use . Due to post-WWII simplifications of Kanji in Japan as well as the post-WWII simplifications of characters in China , the Chinese characters used in Japan today are distinct from those used in China in several respects . There are various national standard lists of characters , forms , and pronunciations . Simplified forms of certain characters are used in mainland China , Singapore , and Malaysia ; the corresponding traditional characters are used in Taiwan , Hong Kong , Macau , and to a limited extent in South Korea . </P>
how many chinese letters are in the alphabet
how many chinese letters are in the alphabet
tens of thousands
tens of thousands