BARRS, Keith    Department   Hiroshima shudo University  The Faculty of Humanities and Human Sciences    Position   Professor
Language	English
Publication Date	2011/09
Type	Articles
Peer Review	With peer review
Title	Unlocking the Encoded English Vocabulary in the Japanese Language
Contribution Type	Single-Authored Publication
Journal	English Today
Volume, Issue, Pages	27(3),pp.15-20
Details	The Japanese linguistic landscape is a dynamically vibrant area with words and phrases appearing in a vast array of locations written in a wide range of scripts, fonts, sizes and colours, and all serving a complex and interconnected array of functions. Immediately striking an observer of these contexts is the fact that, although the Japanese language has a highly complex writing system incorporating an admixture of logographic, syllabic and alphabetic characters, a great many of the words and phrases in Japanese social contexts are transcribed in Latin alphabet characters. Because the vast majority of these lexical items are either direct imports of words from the English language (often termed ‘loanwords' or ‘borrowings') or domestic creations based on English vocabulary, those who are familiar with the English language can be assisted in their orientation around Japan by this pervasive use of English-based vocabulary.