Learn Hardcore Japanese: watasi ha tikaku no kouen de asa ni hasirimasu.

The subject in the strict grammatical sense is often unmarked or marked with が, but in everyday explanations, learners are often told "は=topic, が=subject."

In this sentence, you’re presenting “me” as the topic, and then making a statement about that topic:

私は → as for me
走ります → (I) run

So:

は ≠ “subject marker” strictly; it marks what the sentence is about.
You could say 私が走ります, but that emphasizes “it is I who run (not someone else)” and sounds more contrastive or emphatic.

Why is は written with the character は (ha) but pronounced “wa”?

This is a historical spelling convention.

The particle は is always pronounced “wa” when it’s the topic marker.
When は is part of a regular word, it’s pronounced “ha” (e.g. 花はな, はし, はやい).

So in your sentence:

私は → written は, pronounced わ
(because it’s the topic particle)

You just have to memorize that:

は = pronounced wa when it’s the topic particle
へ = pronounced e when it’s the directional particle
を = pronounced o as the object marker

These are standard irregularities in Japanese orthography.

Why is it 近くの公園 and not 近い公園?

Both are possible, but they’re slightly different grammatically and in nuance.

近くの公園
- 近く is a noun/adverb meaning “vicinity, nearby area.”
- の connects it to 公園: “the park of the nearby area” → “the nearby park.”
- Very common/natural in everyday speech.
近い公園
- 近い is an i-adjective meaning “near, close.”
- Directly modifies 公園: “a near park / a park that is near.”

In this sentence, 近くの公園 sounds very natural and neutral: “the park near (here/my place).”
近い公園 is not wrong, but 近くの公園 is more idiomatic for “the nearby park” as a known location around you.

What does the particle で after 公園 mean? Why not に?

で marks the place where an action happens.

公園で走ります = “run in/at the park”

Compare:

で → “at/in” as the location of an action
- 学校で勉強します。 = I study at school.
- 公園で遊びます。 = I play in the park.
に can also mark place, but usually:
- destination / goal of movement:
  公園に行きます。 = I go to the park.
- or location of existence:
  公園に人がいます。 = There are people in the park.

So for “I run in the park,” 公園で走ります is the natural choice.
公園に走ります would mean something like “I run to the park.”

Why is there a に after 朝? Is 朝に required? Can I just say 朝?

朝に is grammatically okay, but に is often omitted with general time words in Japanese.

Common time expressions:

朝 (morning)
夜 (night)
毎日 (every day)
来週 (next week)
昨日 (yesterday)

With these, に is usually optional, and often left out in natural speech:

朝（に）走ります。
毎日（に）勉強します。

Many native speakers find 朝に slightly more formal or less common in casual talk.
More natural versions often are:

朝、近くの公園で走ります。
朝は近くの公園で走ります。

So no, に is not required after 朝; you can safely say 朝 without に in most cases.

Could I say 朝は instead of 朝に? What changes?

Yes. 朝は uses は to make “morning” the topic or a contrastive topic.

朝に走ります。
→ Simple: “I run in the morning.”
朝は走ります。
→ “As for mornings, I run.”
Often implies contrast: “In the mornings I run (though maybe in the evenings I don’t),” or “At least in the mornings, I run.”

If you keep the location phrase:

朝は近くの公園で走ります。
→ “As for mornings, (I) run at the nearby park.”

This sounds very natural and is a typical way to talk about daily habits.
So 朝は is not just “in the morning,” it also slightly emphasizes or contrasts mornings.

Why is the verb 走ります at the end? Can I move it earlier like in English?

Japanese word order is generally Subject – Object – Verb (SOV), and the verb almost always goes at the end of the sentence.

In your sentence:

私は → topic
近くの公園で → location
朝に → time
走ります → verb (predicate) at the end

You can rearrange the phrases before the verb for emphasis, but the verb stays final:

朝に近くの公園で走ります。
近くの公園で朝に走ります。

Both are understandable. The most natural order is usually:

Topic (if any): 私は
Time: 朝
Place: 近くの公園で
Verb: 走ります

So something like:

私は朝、近くの公園で走ります。

But in any case, 走ります should remain at the end in standard Japanese.

What politeness level is 走ります? When would I use 走る instead?

走ります is the polite present/future form (ます-form) of the verb 走る.

走る = plain/dictionary form
走ります = polite form

Use 走ります:

in most everyday conversations with people you’re not very close to
in formal speech, talking to customers, teachers, etc.
in writing that aims to be polite (textbooks, news for learners, etc.)

Use 走る:

in casual speech with friends/family (but only when grammar allows the plain form)
in dictionary entries, grammar examples, inner monologue, etc.

Examples:

Polite: 朝、近くの公園で走ります。
Casual: 朝、近くの公園で走る。

What is the dictionary form of 走ります, and how does it conjugate?

The dictionary (plain) form is 走る.

Even though it ends in る, it is a 五段動詞 (godan verb), not an ichidan (る-verb that drops る directly).

Key forms:

Dictionary: 走る
Polite: 走ります
Negative (plain): 走らない
Negative polite: 走りません
Past (plain): 走った
Past polite: 走りました
て-form: 走って

Example:

昨日も走りました。 = I also ran yesterday.
毎日走っています。 = I run every day / I am in the habit of running.

Why is there no word for “the” or “a” in 近くの公園? How do I know if it’s “the nearby park” or “a nearby park”?

Japanese does not have articles like “a/an” or “the”.
Whether it feels like “the” or “a” is determined by context, not by a separate word.

近くの公園 can mean:
- “the nearby park” (if both speaker and listener know which park)
- “a nearby park” (if it’s not a specific, shared one)

If you want to make it clearly specific, you may add more context:

いつもの近くの公園 = the usual nearby park
家の近くの公園 = the park near my/our house

But normally, 近くの公園 is enough, and listeners infer “a/the” from the situation.

Is 私は近くの公園で朝に走ります。 natural-sounding Japanese? How might a native phrase this?

It’s grammatically correct and understandable, but a native speaker would usually make a few small adjustments:

Often omit 私 if context is clear.
Often drop に after 朝.
Often put 朝 before the place, and/or use 朝は.

More natural versions:

朝、近くの公園で走ります。
朝は近くの公園で走ります。
私は朝、近くの公園で走ります。 (if you really want to specify “I”)

Your original sentence is fine for a learner and will be understood; the versions above just sound more typical of native speech.