japanese writing system
DESCRIPTION
This is a slide mainly talks about the development of Japanese writing system.TRANSCRIPT
Japanese Writing System
Mengyao Li
The History of Language
Writing System
The Old Japanese Vowel System
CONTENT
The History of Language
Major Historical Period
The History of Language
• Major achievement is the acquisition of a writing system
• Using Chinese characters semantically and phonetically
• Katakana & Hiragana
1. Nara & Early Heian Period
The History of Language
Three Waves
• Pre-Nara period
• Nara period
• During 14th century
2. Systematically Borrow Chinese words
The History of Language
• Year 1543: Portuguese
• Beginning of the Meiji period: English; German; French
• After WW : AmericaⅡ
3. Systematic Contact with Western World
The History of Language
• Enrichment: syllables and words ending in consonants
and sequences of vowels
• Simplification:
Kojiki (A.D. 713): 88 syllables
Nihon shoki (A.D. 720): 87 syllables
Modern Japanese: 62 syllables
4. Affections on Phonological System
The Old Japanese Vowel System
The History of Language
Writing System
CONTENT
The Old Japanese Vowel System
The Widely Accepted Eight Vowels of Old Japanese
The Old Japanese Vowel System
The Widely Accepted Eight Vowels of Old Japanese
Writing System
The History of Language
The Old Japanese Vowel System
CONTENT
Writing System
• The earliest extant systematic
written records of Japanese (8th
century)
• It’s not clear how these
characters were read.
1. Kojiki (A.D. 712)
Writing System
• Collection of ten thousand leaves
• Use Chinese characters as a phonetic means of
writing Japanese
(Man’yoo-gana)
• e.g. 南 => Chinese reading なん (nan)
=> Japanese reading みなみ (minami)
2. Man’yōshū (A.D. 759)
Writing System
3. Kana
• Simplification of Man’yoo-gana
• Kana were used as mnemonic symbols for reading characters and were written alongside them
• Katakana: “partial kana” Hiragana: “plain kana”
Writing System
The Tale of Genji
• Japan’s greatest literary
achievement
• It was written in Hiragana by
Lady Murasaki
Writing System
4. Rōmaji
• Phonetic writing system using the Roman alphabet
• Dates back to 16th – 17th century
• Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch missionaries
• American missionary James Curtis Hepburn: “Japanese-English Glossary”, 1867
e.g. “ つ -tsu”; “ し -shi”; “ ち -chi”; “ ふ -fu”; “ じ -ji”
• Japanese government: a revised version of the “Kunreisiki” system
e.g. “ つ -tu”; “ ふ -hu”; “ じ -ji”
Writing System
Quiz Time 😍😍😍
花子 は あの ビル で 働いている OL で
す。 hanako wa ano biru de hataraiteiru ooeru desu
Hanako is that building at working OL
THANKS