Translation of the word ‘nation’ in Japan

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Other Title
  • 翻訳語「國民」「民族」の普及の様相
  • 翻訳語「國民」「民族」の普及の様相 : 明治期の非翻訳テクスト(辞書・雑誌記事)の分析
  • ホンヤクゴ 「 コクミン 」 「 ミンゾク 」 ノ フキュウ ノ ヨウソウ : メイジキ ノ ヒホンヤク テクスト(ジショ ・ ザッシ キジ)ノ ブンセキ
  • Analyzing the spread of kokumin and minzoku in non-translation texts
  • 明治期の非翻訳テクスト(辞書・雑誌記事)の分析

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Description

In the middle and late Meiji period (1868–1912), the Japanese created many new words through translation from English and other Western languages. Among these translations, we focus on two words—kokumin and minzoku—which are the translations of the word “nation.” This study explores the manner in which these translations spread across Japan through print media. Along with translated works, the print media—including newspapers, magazines, books, and dictionaries, which were originally written in Japanese—helped the spread of these new words. Analyzing fifteen dictionaries and a Japanese critic Chogyu Takayama’s five magazine articles published in the middle and late Meiji period with the sociocultural context at that time indicates that kokumin and minzoku did not have concrete meanings when they were created. This study elucidates the manner in which unsteadily and gradually the new translation words spread among the Japanese people more than 100 years ago.

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