Abe Shinzo's kakakana
Not beautiful but utterly traditional
By William Wetherall
First posted 30 September 2006
Last updated 31 September 2006
This article consists of my commentary on an article by Oniki Hirofumi, which appeared on the Mainichi Shinbun / MNS News site in both Japanese (signed) and English (unsigned). The article, in both languges, is reproduced below for non-commercial purposes, and my commentary follows.
Mainichi / MNS articles
Japanese version
Oniki Hirofumi
"Abe shuso: Katakana kotoba wa 109 kai, Koizumi shuso no 4 bai"
Mainichi Shinbun
29 September 2006
安倍首相：カタカナ言葉は１０９回 小泉首相の４倍
安倍晋三首相の所信表明演説は政策面でカタカナ言葉が目立つ。「オープンな経済社会」に「イノベーション（技術革新）の創造」と明記するように、具体的な数値目標の代わりにカタカナ言葉を多用することで、斬新なイメージをアピールする狙いもありそうだ。しかし「美しい国、日本」を掲げ、伝統や歴史を重視する保守色の濃い内容に比べると、ちぐはぐな印象も否めない。
所信表明は全体で８３０１字。自民党総裁選で訴えた政権構想の内容を網羅的に盛り込んだ結果、就任後初の演説としては森喜朗元首相の４９８２字、小泉純一郎前首相の６４５２字より長い。
この中でカタカナ言葉は、ミサイルやテロなど日本語に置き換えにくいものや、国の名前などの固有名詞を含めると、延べ１０９回も登場。カタカナや役所言葉を嫌った小泉前首相の就任時演説に比べ約４倍の分量だ。
例を挙げると「自宅での仕事を可能にするテレワーク」や「日本がアジアと世界の架け橋となる『アジア・ゲートウェイ構想』の推進」「未来に向けた新しい日本の『カントリー・アイデンティティー』」といった具合。
聞いただけではピンとこないものも多く、多用の効果には疑問符も付きそうだ。【鬼木浩文】
English version
"Abe's katakana-laden policy speech rings hollow with listeners"
Mainichi Daily News
29 September 2006
Abe's katakana-laden policy speech rings hollow with listeners
New Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's use of words written in katakana, a form of writing used mainly for scientific terms and words derived from other languages, stood out in his policy speech on Friday, as he apparently aimed to create a new image of himself as a leader.
Abe, at 52 the youngest Japanese prime minister in the post-war period, used a total of 109 katakana words in his speech, four times the number used by former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who disliked katakana words and bureaucratese.
The prime minister is apparently trying to send out a new image with his use of fuzzy katakana words instead of concrete target figures. However, at the same time he is promoting the slogan "Beautiful country, Japan," conservatively emphasizing Japan's tradition and culture, and the two stances appear out of step.
Abe's policy speech, which provided comprehensive details on the administration he promoted during the election for presidency of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, was 8,301 characters long. For an inaugural speech, it was longer than the 4,982-character speech given by former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori and the 6,452-character speech by Koizumi.
The katakana terms Abe used included words such as "missairu" (missile), and "tero" (terrorism), which are hard to convert into Japanese, as well as with names of foreign countries and other proper nouns.
Other examples in phrases from Abe's speech included "terewaaku (telework) enabling work to be done from home," "the promotion of an Ajia geetouei (Asian gateway) concept with which Japan can become a bridge between Asia and the world," and a "kantorii aidentitii (country identity) for a new Japan looking to the future."
Many of the words failed to strike a chord among listeners and doubts appear to remain over whether using so many katakana words is actually effective. (Mainichi)
Commentary
The article itself rings hollow. There is no foundation in the Japanese article for the headline in the English -- a good example of how English versions of Japanese news reports tend to distort the original reports.
Degress of naturalization
Mainichi writer Oniki Hirofumi begins the Japanese version by observing that Abe used katakana words in expressions like "oopun-na keizai shakai" [open economic society] and "inobeeshon (gijutsu kakushin) no sozo" [creation of innovation (technological reformation)] -- instead of speaking of concrete goals.
Seemingly with no sense of irony, Oniki then remarks that, in sprinkling his policy speech with katakana, Abe apparently had the aim of "apiiru suru" [appealing] to an original "imeeji" [image].
The only difference between Abe's and Oniki's katakana words is that Oniki's are now considered completely natural, while Abe's are still in the process of naturalization.
Abe, in fact, was speaking perfectly good Japanese. It may not have been beautiful, or always clear much less concrete. But his usage was entirely normal. And it was also very traditional.
History of borrowing
Abe's manner of speaking can be heard everyday when surfing the news and other programming on television, and it can be read in all manner of publications, from daily tabloids to government reports. Speakers and writers of Japanese commonly lace their speech and text with expressions adopted and adapted from other languages.
Linguistic borrowing, with no intent to return, has been going on in Japanese for as long as there have been written records. Even the means of writing Japanese developed from the wholesale importation of Chinese literature and characters.
The introduction of katakana expressions, representing words from many other languages, especially those of Euroamerican countries like Britain, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal, and the United States, is merely a more recent inobeeshon.
Capacity to incorporate
It would not be difficult to express "missile" or "terrorism" in Japanese -- if there were enough interest in using established Japanese words, or in creating new words using Japanese elements, to convey the same meanings. Apparently, though, it is easier, faster, more fun, if not more impressive to Japanize the English words.
All human languages absorb elements from other human languages. Incorporation of alien words, and even grammar, may at times seem conspicuous in Japanese, but the capacity of Japanese to incorporate words from other tongues, with varying degrees of localization, is perfectly natural.
Naruhodo
It is also the nature of criticism -- again not exceptionally in Japan -- to focus attention on the language of a speaker one does not like to begin with.
If a super popular tarento were to make the same speech Abe Shinzo did, the world would hear an incredible chorus of naruhodos -- or should that be naruhodoes? -- from those inscrutable frogs off the coast of the Northeast Asian continent.
As for "kantorii aidentitii" -- a native speaker of English who said "country identity" would also be suffering from a bad case of linguistic constipation.