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Matagi Dialect
The is a functionally extinct Japanese sociolect spoken by the Matagi people of Akita Prefecture and other areas of the Tohoku region in northern Honshu, Japan. The Matagi dialect is sometimes called . Matagi contains various unique words relating to hunting, tools, and rituals, many of which are of Ainu origin. A dictionary of Matagi was published by Yoshizo Itabashi (板橋義三) in 2008. Vocabulary Below are some examples unique Matagi words. Words such as ''wakka'' 'water', ''seta'' 'dog', and ''sanpe'' 'heart' are of Ainu origin. Yoshizo Itabashi (板橋義三) (2019) notes that many Ainu words in Matagi have undergone semantic shifts: See also * Akita dialect *Tsugaru dialect *Matagi *Emishi *Kyōsuke Kindaichi was a Japanese linguist, chiefly known for his dictations of yukar, or sagas of the Ainu people, as well as his study of the Matagi dialect. He is the author of the dictionary '' Meikai Kokugo Jiten''. Biography Kindaichi was born in Morioka, ... R ...
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Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea in the south. The Japanese archipelago consists of four major islands—Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu—and List of islands of Japan, thousands of smaller islands, covering . Japan has a population of over 123 million as of 2025, making it the List of countries and dependencies by population, eleventh-most populous country. The capital of Japan and List of cities in Japan, its largest city is Tokyo; the Greater Tokyo Area is the List of largest cities, largest metropolitan area in the world, with more than 37 million inhabitants as of 2024. Japan is divided into 47 Prefectures of Japan, administrative prefectures and List of regions of Japan, eight traditional regions. About three-quarters of Geography of Japan, the countr ...
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Japanese Macaque
The Japanese macaque (''Macaca fuscata''), also known as the snow monkey, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species that is native to Japan. Colloquially, they are referred to as "snow monkeys" because some live in areas where snow covers the ground for months each year – no other non-human primate lives farther north, nor in a colder climate. Individuals have brownish grey fur, pinkish-red faces, and short tails. Two subspecies are known. In Japan, the species is known as ''Nihonzaru'' (ニホンザル, a combination of ''Nihon'' 日本 "Japan" + ''saru'' 猿 "monkey") to distinguish it from other primates, but the Japanese macaque is very familiar in Japan—as it is the only species of monkey in Japan—so when Japanese people simply say ''saru'', they usually have the Japanese macaque in mind. Physical characteristics The Japanese macaque is sexual dimorphism, sexually dimorphic. Males weigh on average , while females average .Fooden J, Aimi M. (2005) "Systematic revie ...
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Culture In Akita Prefecture
Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, attitudes, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tylor, Edward. (1871). ''Primitive Culture''. Vol 1. New York: J. P. Putnam's Son Culture often originates from or is attributed to a specific region or location. Humans acquire culture through the learning processes of enculturation and socialization, which is shown by the diversity of cultures across societies. A cultural norm codifies acceptable conduct in society; it serves as a guideline for behavior, dress, language, and demeanor in a situation, which serves as a template for expectations in a social group. Accepting only a monoculture in a social group can bear risks, just as a single species can wither in the face of environmental change, for lack of functional responses to the change. Thus in military culture, valor is counted ...
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Mixed Languages
A mixed language, also referred to as a hybrid language or fusion language, is a type of contact language that arises among a bilingual group combining aspects of two or more languages but not clearly deriving primarily from any single language. It differs from a creole or pidgin language in that, whereas creoles/pidgins arise where speakers of many languages acquire a common language, a mixed language typically arises in a population that is fluent in both of the source languages. Because all languages show some degree of mixing by virtue of containing loanwords, it is a matter of controversy whether the concept of a mixed language can meaningfully be distinguished from the type of contact and borrowing seen in all languages.Arends et al. 1994 Scholars debate to what extent language mixture can be distinguished from other mechanisms such as code-switching, substrata, or lexical borrowing. Definitions Other terms used in linguistics for the concept of a mixed language inclu ...
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Sociolects
In sociolinguistics, a sociolect is a form of language ( non-standard dialect, restricted register) or a set of lexical items used by a socioeconomic class, profession, age group, or other social group. Sociolects involve both passive acquisition of particular communicative practices through association with a local community, as well as active learning and choice among speech or writing forms to demonstrate identification with particular groups. The term ''sociolect'' might refer to socially restricted dialects, but it is sometimes also treated as equivalent with the concept of register, or used as a synonym for ''jargon'' and ''slang''. Sociolinguists—people who study sociolects and language variation—define a sociolect by examining the social distribution of specific linguistic terms. For example, a sociolinguist would examine the use of the second person pronoun ''you'' within a given population. If one distinct social group used ''yous'' as the plural form of the pro ...
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Kyōsuke Kindaichi
was a Japanese linguist, chiefly known for his dictations of yukar, or sagas of the Ainu people, as well as his study of the Matagi dialect. He is the author of the dictionary '' Meikai Kokugo Jiten''. Biography Kindaichi was born in Morioka, Iwate Prefecture. His son Haruhiko Kindaichi was also a prominent linguist. He was active as a poet and had good contacts with Ishikawa Takuboku. In popular culture A fictionalised Kindaichi appears in the anime ''Woodpecker Detective's Office.'' Honours *Order of Culture (1954) * Order of the Sacred Treasure, 1st class, Grand Cordon (1971, Posthumous award) *Junior Third Rank The court ranks of Japan, also known in Japanese language, Japanese as ''ikai'' (位階), are indications of an individual's court rank in Japan based on the system of the Nation, state. ''Ikai'' as a system was the indication of the rank of burea ... (1971, Posthumous award) References 1882 births 1971 deaths Linguists of Ainu Japanese lexicograph ...
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Emishi
The were a group of people who lived in parts of northern Honshū in present-day Japan, especially in the Tōhoku region. The first mention of the Emishi in literature that can be corroborated with outside sources dates to the 5th century AD, in which they are referred to as (毛人—"hairy people") in Chinese records. Some Emishi tribes resisted the rule of various Japanese emperors during the Asuka, Nara, and early Heian periods (7th–10th centuries AD). The origin of the Emishi is disputed and continues to be a topic of discussion; however, some theories propose a connection to either the Epi-Jōmon tribes of Japan which became the ancestors of the Ainu people of Hokkaido, or pre-Yamato Japanese migrants. It has been posited that the Emishi may have either spoken a unique Japonic language similar to the Izumo dialect, or a distinct language related to Ainu, or both. Moreover, even though there is a significant geographical gap between Northeast Japan and the South� ...
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Tsugaru Dialect
The is a Japanese dialect spoken in western Aomori Prefecture. The Tsugaru dialect is reputed to be so divergent from standard Japanese for those who are not native speakers, that even people living in the same prefecture may have trouble understanding it.ThResearchGate mirrorarchive
contains metadata about the presentation. In 1988, fans of the Tsugaru dialect proclaimed October 23 to be . October 23 is the anniversary of the death of Takagi Kyozo, a famous poet who wrote in the Tsugaru dialect. In Tsuruta, there is an annual summer ...
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Akita Dialect
The is a Japanese dialect spoken in Akita Prefecture. Classification The dialect is a member of the Kita-Ōu dialect group within the Tōhoku dialect of Eastern Japanese. Other dialects in the group include dialects spoken in Aomori, north-central Iwate, coastal Yamagata and the Agakita region in Niigata Prefecture. Sub-divisions * Hokubu (northern): Spoken across Kazuno is a cities of Japan, city located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 28,329 in 12,570 households, and a population density of 40 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Kazuno is located in ..., Kita-Akita and Yamamoto. * Chūōbu (central): Spoken in Minami-Akita and Kawabe. * Nambu (southern): Spoken across Senboku, Hiraka, Ogachi and Yuri. Examples See also * Matagi dialect References {{Japanese language Japanese dialects Culture in Akita Prefecture ...
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Semantic Shift
Semantic change (also semantic shift, semantic progression, semantic development, or semantic drift) is a form of language change regarding the evolution of word usage—usually to the point that the modern meaning is radically different from the original usage. In diachronic (or historical) linguistics, semantic change is a change in one of the meanings of a word. Every word has a variety of senses and connotations, which can be added, removed, or altered over time, often to the extent that cognates across space and time have very different meanings. The study of semantic change can be seen as part of etymology, onomasiology, semasiology, and semantics. Examples in English * Awful – Literally "full of awe", originally meant "inspiring wonder (or fear)", hence "impressive". In contemporary usage, the word means "extremely bad". * Awesome – Literally "awe-inducing", originally meant "inspiring wonder (or fear)", hence "impressive". In contemporary usage, the word means "e ...
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Japanese Serow
The (''Capricornis crispus'') ( 羚羊) is a Japanese goat-antelope, an even-toed ungulate. It is found in dense woodland in Japan, primarily in northern and central Honshu. The serow is seen as a national symbol of Japan, and is subject to protection in conservation areas. Adult Japanese serow stand about tall and weigh . They are black to whitish, and colouring lightens in summer. The fur is very bushy, especially the tail. Both sexes have short, backwards-curving horns, and are difficult to distinguish by sight. Japanese serow are found in dense mountain forests where they eat leaves, shoots, and acorns. They are diurnal and feed in early mornings and late afternoons. Serows are solitary, or gather in couples or small family groups. The animal marks its territory with sweet-and-sour-smelling preorbital gland secretions, and males and females have separate territories that may overlap. In the mid-20th century, the Japanese serow was hunted to near-extinction. In 1955, th ...
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Ainu Languages
The Ainu languages ( ), sometimes known as Ainuic, are a small language family, often regarded as a language isolate, historically spoken by the Ainu people of northern Japan and neighboring islands, and formerly in parts of the Asian mainland, including the southern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula. The primary varieties of Ainu are alternately considered a group of closely related languages or divergent dialects of a single language isolate. The only surviving variety is Hokkaido Ainu, which UNESCO lists as critically endangered. Sakhalin Ainu and Kuril Ainu are now extinct. Toponymic evidence suggests Ainu was once spoken in northern Honshu and that much of the historically attested extent of the family was due to a relatively recent expansion northward. No genealogical relationship between Ainu and any other language family has been demonstrated, despite numerous attempts. Varieties Recognition of the different varieties of Ainu spoken throughout northern Japan and its s ...
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