The results of this process had decisive significance in shaping the subsequent development Japanese culture and civilization.
Of the patterns and tendencies which emerged in the ninth century in such fields as politics, economics, society, language and aesthetics, some were preserved to the end of the Heian period, others survived to beginning or end of the Tokugawa period and some, particularly in the nature of politics and written and spoken Japanese language, are still making their presence felt today.
It is true that we can trace back the
origins of the basis of the world view adopted by Japanese culture in
succeeding centuries to the Nara period, but within that frame work most of the
concrete manifestations of what is generally termed cultural tradition can be
traced back to the ninth century only and no further.
In other words, the history of Japanese culture can be broadly divided into two-the first being the period up to the end of the Nara period, and the second from the ninth century to the present day.
In other words, the history of Japanese culture can be broadly divided into two-the first being the period up to the end of the Nara period, and the second from the ninth century to the present day.
The ninth century itself marks a turning point.
Looked at from a purely anthropological
viewpoint, the ninth century was of no particular significance in the
development of the Japanese race.
If one considers it in terms of the
development from the settled agricultural society of the Yayoi period (c. 200
B.C-A.D.200) to today’s industrial society, the ninth century was not a
watershed which has enormous significance.
Perhaps one of the most typical examples of the importance of the ninth century as a turning point can be seen in terms of the Japanese language.
As scholars of ancient kana-zukai (the use of the kana syllabary) such as, HashimotoShinkichi(1882-1945) have shown, the sound system of the Japanese language of
the Nara period (in the Yamato region) had eight distinct vowel sounds and
consonants which in some respects differ from those of today. Perhaps one of the most typical examples of the importance of the ninth century as a turning point can be seen in terms of the Japanese language.
It was during the ninth century that the vowels were cut to the present day five and the consonants changed to approximate more closely those of today.
In other words the ninth century marks a period of substantial change and a turning point.
The ninth century also represents the period in which there was a transformation of the Japanese writing system, for it was during this time that the kana system was devised and became increasingly used in preference to the phonetically based mana system of the Nara period.
This invention of course led to the use of kana-majiri (mixed kana and Chinese characters) in the writing of literature, and although an obvious point, it is worth nothing that the writing system used in today’s newspaper fundamentally differed from that of that of the Manyoshu while the difference from that of the kokinshu, compiled in 905, is much less marked.
［A History of Japanese Literature］
Shuichi-kato
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