Publisher's Synopsis
***(Second Edition published in July 2013)***: This edition improves its readability by including English glosses in the footnotes. Introduction: This introductory textbook on the structure of Japanese is tailored to the needs of advanced learners of the language. It is written in Japanese for the most part, but also includes English glosses in the footnotes. By including the glosses in the footnotes, the reader is able to learn each word without turning the page, thus providing a focused approach to learning the language. On the other hand, some linguistic terminology is written in English, with the Japanese equivalent following after. Some of the linguistic notions are explained in English only when it is relatively difficult to understand even for the advanced learners. In addition, "furigana" (phonetic guide or ruby text) is written alongside all of the "Kanji" to indicate the pronunciation. Furthermore, unlike ordinary Japanese academic books that are written in "da/dearu-style" (the plain form), this book is written in "desu/masu-style" (the polite form) because it is considered that the polite style is much more beneficial than the plain style for the learners who concern themselves with the use of it in their conversation. The book provides an introduction to Japanese linguistics comparing the structures of Japanese and English phonetics, phonology, morphology, and syntax. The author introduces linguistic notions and terminology discussing the theoretical analyses of linguistic phenomena in the languages. Therefore, it is a good invitation to Japanese linguistics not only for advanced learners of Japanese but also for those who are interested in studying linguistics and potentially pursuing a career in teaching the Japanese or English language.
