The is a

Japanese dictionary have a history that began over 1300 years ago when Japanese Buddhist priests, who wanted to understand Chinese sutras, adapted Chinese character dictionaries. Present-day Japanese lexicographers are exploring computerized editing and electronic d ...

from the late

Heian Period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

. The title, sometimes abbreviated as ''Myōgishō'', combines the ''ruiju'' ("classified dictionary") from the ''

Wamyō Ruijushō The is a 938 CE Japanese dictionary of Chinese characters. Heian period scholar Minamoto no Shitagō (源順, 911–983 CE) began compilation in 934, at the request of Emperor Daigo's daughter. The title is abbreviated as , and is also spelle ...

'' and the ''myōgi'' ("pronunciation and meaning/definition") from the '' Tenrei Banshō Myōgi''. Additional Buddhist titles, like ''Sanbō ruiju myōgishō'' (三宝類聚名義抄), use the word ''sanbō'' (三宝 "

Three Jewels In Buddhism, refuge or taking refuge refers to a religious practice which often includes a prayer or recitation performed at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. Its object is typically the Three Jewels (also known as the Triple ...

") because the text was divided into ''butsu'' (仏 "Buddha"), ''hō'' (法 "Dharma"), and'' sō'' (僧 "Sangha") sections. The origins of the ''Ruiju myōgishō'' are uncertain. Don Clifford Bailey concludes it was "compiled early in the twelfth century, presumably by a priest". Kaneko believes the received edition dates from the late 12th century, but the original version was compiled around 1081–1100 CE. There are various received texts of the ''Ruiju myōgishō'' and several indexes. Like other early Japanese dictionaries, the ''Ruiju myōgishō'' borrowed heavily from

Chinese dictionaries There are two types of dictionaries regularly used in the Chinese language: list individual Chinese characters, and list words and phrases. Because tens of thousands of characters have been used in written Chinese, Chinese lexicographers have d ...

, in particular the () ''

Yupian The ''Yupian'' (; "Jade Chapters") is a c. 543 Chinese dictionary edited by Gu Yewang ( 顧野王; Ku Yeh-wang; 519–581) during the Liang dynasty. It arranges 12,158 character entries under 542 radicals, which differ somewhat from the origi ...

'' and the (601 CE) ''

Qieyun The ''Qieyun'' () is a Chinese rhyme dictionary that was published in 601 during the Sui dynasty. The book was a guide to proper reading of classical texts, using the '' fanqie'' method to indicate the pronunciation of Chinese characters. The ' ...

''. For

collation Collation is the assembly of written information into a standard order. Many systems of collation are based on numerical order or alphabetical order, or extensions and combinations thereof. Collation is a fundamental element of most office fi ...

of character entries, the Chinese ''Yupian'' has a system of 542 logographic

radicals Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century *Radical politics ...

. The ''Ruiju myōgishō'' cuts them down into 120 radicals (''bu'' 部), even simpler than the (ca. 900 CE) Japanese ''

Shinsen Jikyō The is the first Japanese dictionary containing native ''kun'yomi'' "Japanese readings" of Chinese characters. The title is also written 新選字鏡 with the graphic variant ''sen'' ( 選 "choose; select; elect") for ''sen'' ( 撰 "compile; com ...

'' system of 160. The ''Ruiju myōgishō'' lists over 32,000 characters and compounds. The entries give both ''

on'yomi , or the Sino-Japanese vocabulary, Sino-Japanese reading, is the reading of a kanji based on the historical Chinese pronunciation of the character. A single kanji might have multiple ''on'yomi'' pronunciations, reflecting the Chinese pronuncia ...

'' Sino-Japanese borrowings and ''

kun'yomi is the way of reading kanji characters using the native Japanese word that matches the meaning of the Chinese character when it was introduced. This pronunciation is contrasted with ''on'yomi'', which is the reading based on the original Chi ...

'' native Japanese readings for ''

kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

'', using Chinese ''

fanqie ''Fanqie'' ( zh, t= 反切, p=fǎnqiè, l=reverse cut) is a method in traditional Chinese lexicography to indicate the pronunciation of a monosyllabic character by using two other characters, one with the same initial consonant as the desired ...

'' spellings (from the ''Qieyun''), ''

Man'yōgana is an ancient writing system that uses Chinese characters to represent the Japanese language. It was the first known kana system to be developed as a means to represent the Japanese language phonetically. The date of the earliest usage of t ...

'', and ''

katakana is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji and in some cases the Latin script (known as rōmaji). The word ''katakana'' means "fragmentary kana", as the katakana characters are derived fr ...

''. Meanings are often illustrated by quotations from over 130

Chinese classic texts The Chinese classics or canonical texts are the works of Chinese literature authored prior to the establishment of the imperial Qin dynasty in 221 BC. Prominent examples include the Four Books and Five Classics in the Neo-Confucian tradi ...

and classical

Japanese literature Japanese literature throughout most of its history has been influenced by cultural contact with neighboring Asian literatures, most notably China and its literature. Early texts were often written in pure Classical Chinese or , a Chinese-Japa ...

. These quotes have two types of ''

Kanbun ''Kanbun'' ( 'Han Chinese, Han writing') is a system for writing Literary Chinese used in Japan from the Nara period until the 20th century. Much of Japanese literature was written in this style and it was the general writing style for offici ...

'' ("Chinese writing") annotations, ''shōten'' (声点 "tone marks") for Chinese tones and Japanese accents, and occasional ''kunten'' (訓点 "reading marks") for Japanese pronunciations. "Many passages contain no Japanese readings at all", says Bailey, "but there are a total of approximately 10,000 Japanese readings given in the whole work". While special care is needed for its commentary nature, the ''Ruiju myōgishō'' remains a standard Japanese source of information regarding Heian era pronunciation.

Editions

There are various extant editions that still exist today. The main editions include: *The edition. It is part of the collection in the

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family, and the keeping of the Privy Seal of Japan, Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century ...

. Compiled between 1081 and 1100. It retains signs of the original; however, it is incomplete and only contains the first half of the section. It provides detailed literary citations for entries. *The edition. It is part of the

Tenri Central Library Tenri Central Library (天理大学附属天理図書館 ''Tenri Daigaku Fuzoku Tenri Toshokan'') is the library of Tenri University. It has notably extensive collections of antiquarian material, including original manuscripts from 13th-century J ...

and is a

national treasure of Japan Some of the National Treasures of Japan A is " Tangible Cultural Properties designated by law in modern Japan as having extremely high value." Specifically, it refers to buildings, arts, and crafts designated as especially valuable from ...

. It is a mid-

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

facsimile A facsimile (from Latin ''fac simile'', "to make alike") is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from other forms of r ...

. While it is an expanded and revised edition of the original, it is the only complete edition surviving today. *The

Kōzan-ji , officially , is a Buddhist temple of the Omuro sect of Shingon Buddhism in Umegahata Toganōchō, Ukyō-ku, Kyoto, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan. Kōzan-ji is also known as Kōsan-ji and Toganō-dera. The temple was founded by the Shingon scholar ...

edition. Part of the Tenri Central Library collection. It is entitled , and is a revised edition. It only contains the section and part of the 巻上 section found in the Kanji-in edition. *The edition. It is part of the

Tō-ji , also known as is a Shingon Buddhist temple in the Minami-ku, Kyoto, Minami-ku ward of Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 796, Tō-ji Temple was one of the only three Buddhist temples allowed in the city at the time it became the capital of Japan. As s ...

Hōbodai-in collection. Revised and incomplete. In addition to the above, the and revised editions exist, but both are incomplete.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruiju Myogisho 12th-century Japanese books Japanese dictionaries Late Old Japanese texts Heian-period books