Daijirin
Encyclopedia
The is a comprehensive single-volume Japanese dictionary edited by , and first published by in 1988. This title is based upon two early Sanseido
dictionaries edited by Shōzaburō Kanazawa (金沢庄三郎, 1872–1967), the Jirin (辞林 "Forest of words", 1907) and the revised Kōjirin (広辞林 "Wide forest of words", 1925).
dictionary, which was a longtime bestseller through three editions (1955, 1969, and 1983). Two other contemporary dictionaries directed at the Kōjien market share were Kōdansha's color-illustrated Nihongo Daijiten
(日本語大辞典 "Great dictionary of Japanese", 1989) and Shōgakukan's Daijisen
(大辞泉 "Great fountainhead of words", 1995, also edited by Akira Matsumura).
The Daijirin has gone through three editions.
The 1st edition Daijirin (1988) had 220,000 headword
entries and included encyclopedic content in numerous charts, tables, and illustrations. While the Kōjien was printed in black and white, Sanseido included 19 two-color illustrations for topics like the seasons (with kigo
), linguistics (synonymy), and Japanese language (Man'yōgana). According to Matsumura's preface, the 1st edition editing process took over 28 years.
The 2nd edition (1995) increased the number of entries to 233,000 and augmented the number of illustrations (including 31 pages of full-color maps and charts). Sanseido published the 2nd in printed, CD-ROM
, e-book
, and Web editions. They additionally bundled the so-called "Super" version Sūpā Daijirin (スーパー大辞林) CD-ROM with other Sanseido Japanese and English dictionaries, plus pronunciation sound files. In 1997, Sanseido published a reverse dictionary of the 2nd edition, the Kanji-biki, Gyaku-biki Daijirin (漢字引き・逆引き大辞林, ISBN 4-385-13901-6), with two indexes. The first lists kanji
by on-yomi and stroke
count, the second indexes headwords both by first and last kanji (for example, it lists jisho 辞書 "wordbook; dictionary" under both ji 辞 "word" and sho 書 "book"). According to Sanseido, total sales of the first two editions totaled over one million copies in 2003.
The 3rd edition (2006) added new headwords, such as the English loanword
intarakutibu (インタラクティブ "interactive"), for a total of 238,000 entries. Japanese dictionary publishers have an ongoing dilemma, the increasing popularity of Internet and electronic dictionaries is decreasing the sales of printed ones. Kono (2007) notes, "According to Jiten Kyokai, an association of dictionary publishers, total annual sales of printed dictionaries, including popular Japanese and English, and specialized ones, such as technical dictionaries, halved to 6.5 million copies in the past decade." To promote the 3rd edition, Sanseido launched a novel "Dual" service, the Dyuaru Daijirin (デュアル大辞林), allowing purchasers of the printed version to register for free online dictionary access. The online version is being regularly updated (currently including over 248,000 entries) and allows keyword searching for synonyms and related expressions. In 2006, collective Daijirin sales exceeded 1.5 million copies.
The Daijirin is also available on the Internet. Sanseido's Web Dictionary offers Web and mobile phone
subscription access to numerous dictionaries, including the E-jirin (e辞林). Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
's "Goo Lab" provides a goo 辞書 server that allows free online searching of the 2nd edition Sūpā Daijirin. Yahoo also provides access to the 2nd edition of the dictionary (http://dic.yahoo.co.jp/).
) or popularly with the most common meanings first (e.g., Daijirin and American Heritage Dictionary).
Daijirin entries encompass diverse vocabulary, including modern and classical Japanese words, scientific terminology, proper names, alphabetical abbreviations (like NG "no good; outtake, blooper"), and yojijukugo
idioms. Some definitions include semantic notes distinguishing homonyms and synonyms. Daijirin usage examples range from classical texts like Man'yōshū to modern publications.
Tom Gally (1999) lists three advantages of the Daijirin,
The other two Daijirin advantages are semantically "more detailed" definitions and the "unusual, though not unprecedented" kanji and reverse-dictionary index.
Baroni and Bialock (2005) describe the Daijirin,
Faris (2005) writes,
He compares the definitions for abarenbō (暴れん坊), literally meaning "rambunctious kid, wild child; bundle of energy" and figuratively meaning abaremono (暴れ者) "rowdy; hooligan; tough; maverick".
Faris concludes that since, "The most popular use of this word is with regard to overactive children, so the Daijirin wins in this case."
Sanseido
is a Japanese publishing company known for publishing dictionaries and textbooks....
dictionaries edited by Shōzaburō Kanazawa (金沢庄三郎, 1872–1967), the Jirin (辞林 "Forest of words", 1907) and the revised Kōjirin (広辞林 "Wide forest of words", 1925).
History
Sanseido specifically created the Daijirin to compete with Iwanami's profitable KōjienKojien
The is a single-volume Japanese dictionary first published by Iwanami Shoten in 1955. Many native speakers of Japanese regard the Kōjien as the most authoritative dictionary, and newspaper editorials frequently cite its definitions...
dictionary, which was a longtime bestseller through three editions (1955, 1969, and 1983). Two other contemporary dictionaries directed at the Kōjien market share were Kōdansha's color-illustrated Nihongo Daijiten
Nihongo Daijiten
The is a color-illustrated Japanese dictionary edited by Umesao Tadao and published by Kodansha in 1989 and 1995 .-History:...
(日本語大辞典 "Great dictionary of Japanese", 1989) and Shōgakukan's Daijisen
Daijisen
The is a general-purpose Japanese dictionary published by Shogakukan in 1995 and 1998. It was designed as an "all-in-one" dictionary for native speakers of Japanese, especially high school and university students.-History:...
(大辞泉 "Great fountainhead of words", 1995, also edited by Akira Matsumura).
The Daijirin has gone through three editions.
- 1988, 1st edition, ISBN 4-385-14001-4
- 1995, 2nd edition, ISBN 4-385-13900-8
- 2006, 3rd edition, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
The 1st edition Daijirin (1988) had 220,000 headword
Headword
A headword, head word, lemma, or sometimes catchword is the word under which a set of related dictionary or encyclopaedia entries appear. The headword is used to locate the entry, and dictates its alphabetical position...
entries and included encyclopedic content in numerous charts, tables, and illustrations. While the Kōjien was printed in black and white, Sanseido included 19 two-color illustrations for topics like the seasons (with kigo
Kigo
is a word or phrase associated with a particular season, used in Japanese poetry. Kigo are used in the collaborative linked-verse forms renga and renku, as well as in haiku, to indicate the season referred to in the stanza...
), linguistics (synonymy), and Japanese language (Man'yōgana). According to Matsumura's preface, the 1st edition editing process took over 28 years.
The 2nd edition (1995) increased the number of entries to 233,000 and augmented the number of illustrations (including 31 pages of full-color maps and charts). Sanseido published the 2nd in printed, CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
, e-book
E-book
An electronic book is a book-length publication in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, and produced on, published through, and readable on computers or other electronic devices. Sometimes the equivalent of a conventional printed book, e-books can also be born digital...
, and Web editions. They additionally bundled the so-called "Super" version Sūpā Daijirin (スーパー大辞林) CD-ROM with other Sanseido Japanese and English dictionaries, plus pronunciation sound files. In 1997, Sanseido published a reverse dictionary of the 2nd edition, the Kanji-biki, Gyaku-biki Daijirin (漢字引き・逆引き大辞林, ISBN 4-385-13901-6), with two indexes. The first lists kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
by on-yomi and stroke
Stroke order
Stroke order refers to the order in which the strokes of a Chinese character are written. A stroke is a movement of a writing instrument on a writing surface. Chinese characters are used in various forms in Chinese, Japanese, and in Korean...
count, the second indexes headwords both by first and last kanji (for example, it lists jisho 辞書 "wordbook; dictionary" under both ji 辞 "word" and sho 書 "book"). According to Sanseido, total sales of the first two editions totaled over one million copies in 2003.
The 3rd edition (2006) added new headwords, such as the English loanword
Loanword
A loanword is a word borrowed from a donor language and incorporated into a recipient language. By contrast, a calque or loan translation is a related concept where the meaning or idiom is borrowed rather than the lexical item itself. The word loanword is itself a calque of the German Lehnwort,...
intarakutibu (インタラクティブ "interactive"), for a total of 238,000 entries. Japanese dictionary publishers have an ongoing dilemma, the increasing popularity of Internet and electronic dictionaries is decreasing the sales of printed ones. Kono (2007) notes, "According to Jiten Kyokai, an association of dictionary publishers, total annual sales of printed dictionaries, including popular Japanese and English, and specialized ones, such as technical dictionaries, halved to 6.5 million copies in the past decade." To promote the 3rd edition, Sanseido launched a novel "Dual" service, the Dyuaru Daijirin (デュアル大辞林), allowing purchasers of the printed version to register for free online dictionary access. The online version is being regularly updated (currently including over 248,000 entries) and allows keyword searching for synonyms and related expressions. In 2006, collective Daijirin sales exceeded 1.5 million copies.
The Daijirin is also available on the Internet. Sanseido's Web Dictionary offers Web and mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
subscription access to numerous dictionaries, including the E-jirin (e辞林). Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
, commonly known as NTT, is a Japanese telecommunications company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Ranked the 31st in Fortune Global 500, NTT is the largest telecommunications company in Asia, and the second-largest in the world in terms of revenue....
's "Goo Lab" provides a goo 辞書 server that allows free online searching of the 2nd edition Sūpā Daijirin. Yahoo also provides access to the 2nd edition of the dictionary (http://dic.yahoo.co.jp/).
Lexicographic characteristics
One of the biggest differences between Daijirin and Kōjien definitions is how they arrange meanings. A dictionary can arrange entries either historically with the oldest recorded meanings first (e.g., Kōjien and Oxford English DictionaryOxford English Dictionary
The Oxford English Dictionary , published by the Oxford University Press, is the self-styled premier dictionary of the English language. Two fully bound print editions of the OED have been published under its current name, in 1928 and 1989. The first edition was published in twelve volumes , and...
) or popularly with the most common meanings first (e.g., Daijirin and American Heritage Dictionary).
Daijirin entries encompass diverse vocabulary, including modern and classical Japanese words, scientific terminology, proper names, alphabetical abbreviations (like NG "no good; outtake, blooper"), and yojijukugo
Yojijukugo
is a Japanese lexeme consisting of four kanji, or "Chinese characters". English translations of yojijukugo include "four-character compound", "four-character idiom", "four-character idiomatic phrase", and "four-character idiomatic compound"....
idioms. Some definitions include semantic notes distinguishing homonyms and synonyms. Daijirin usage examples range from classical texts like Man'yōshū to modern publications.
Tom Gally (1999) lists three advantages of the Daijirin,
Though Koujien is regarded by many in Japan as the authoritative dictionary and is the one most often cited by newspaper editorialists trying to make etymological points of questionable validity, I regard the best single-volume kokugo [Japanese language] dictionary to be Daijirin. Designed to compete directly with Koujien, Daijirin is different in one key way from its illustrious predecessor: whereas Koujien arranges the senses of its definitions in historical order, Daijirin puts the most common contemporary meanings first. The result, for a person reading modern Japanese, is that Daijirin is the most likely to list the intended meaning where it can be found easily.
The other two Daijirin advantages are semantically "more detailed" definitions and the "unusual, though not unprecedented" kanji and reverse-dictionary index.
Baroni and Bialock (2005) describe the Daijirin,
This is the most up-to-date and attractive of the large single-volume kokugo jiten. In this sense, it may overlap or even supersede Kōjien in neologism and gairaigoGairaigoGairaigo is Japanese for "loan word" or "borrowed word", and indicates a transliteration into Japanese. In particular, the word usually refers to a Japanese word of foreign origin that was not borrowed from Chinese, primarily from English. Japanese also has a large number of loan words from...
. It also features illustrations and historical references, charts, and explanations of historic or complicated terms. It is visually easier to use, with gojuonGojuonThe is a Japanese ordering of kana.It is named for the 5×10 grid in which the characters are displayed, but the grid is not completely filled, and, further, there is an extra character added outside the grid at the end: with 5 gaps and 1 extra character, the current number of distinct kana in a...
headings clearly boxed off, and uses larger headings for more significant entries.
Faris (2005) writes,
In general the definitions in the Daijirin are fairly easy to read, while in many cases a non-native of Japanese would have more trouble reading Kōjien definitions, which often contain words more difficult than the one they are defining. There are also many cases where the Daijirin is simply more complete, and contains usage or definitions not given in the Kōjien.
He compares the definitions for abarenbō (暴れん坊), literally meaning "rambunctious kid, wild child; bundle of energy" and figuratively meaning abaremono (暴れ者) "rowdy; hooligan; tough; maverick".
- Kōjien: 思うままに振舞う人。あばれもの。"A person who behaves however they want. A violent person."
- Daijirin: 1. けんかやいたずらをする活発な子供。2. 周囲を気にせず強引な行動をする人。"1. An energetic child that gets into fights and causes mischief. 2. A person who behaves forcefully without regard for people around him."
Faris concludes that since, "The most popular use of this word is with regard to overactive children, so the Daijirin wins in this case."