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kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...
readings based on the classical pronunciations of
Chinese characters Chinese characters are logographs used Written Chinese, to write the Chinese languages and others from regions historically influenced by Chinese culture. Of the four independently invented writing systems accepted by scholars, they represe ...
of the historically prestigious eastern
Jiankang Jiankang (), or Jianye (), as it was originally called, was the capital city of the Eastern Wu (229–265 and 266–280 CE), the Jin dynasty (265–420), Eastern Jin dynasty (317–420 CE) and the Southern Dynasties (420–552), including the Ch ...
(now
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
) dialect. ''Go-on'' are the earliest form of , preceding the readings. Both ''go-on'' and ''kan-on'' exhibit characteristics of
Middle Chinese Middle Chinese (formerly known as Ancient Chinese) or the Qieyun system (QYS) is the historical variety of Chinese language, Chinese recorded in the ''Qieyun'', a rime dictionary first published in 601 and followed by several revised and expande ...
.


History and uses

, when China was divided into separate
Northern and Southern dynasties The Northern and Southern dynasties () was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered a ...
. They may have been imported either directly from the Southern dynasty or from the
Korean Peninsula Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically divided at or near the 38th parallel between North Korea (Dem ...
. There was an influx of thinkers from China and
Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...
to Japan at that time, including practitioners of both
Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
and
Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of li ...
. However, there is no historical documentation to demonstrate that ''go-on'' readings are actually based on Southern Chinese. Shibatani has noted that ''go-on'' readings make up the first of three waves of Chinese loans to the Japanese language, the others being ''kan-on'' and ''tou-sou-on'' (meaning Tang Song sound), with ''go-on'' being mainly associated with
Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
. ''Go-on'' readings are particularly common for Buddhist and legal terminology, especially those of the
Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an independent agency of the United States government within the executive branch, charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It is also task ...
and
Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...
s. These readings were also used for the Chinese characters of the ancient Japanese syllabary used in the '' Kojiki''. When ''kan-on'' readings were introduced to Japan, their ''go-on'' equivalents did not disappear entirely. Even today, ''go-on'' and ''kan-on'' readings still both exist. Many characters have both readings. For instance, the name '' Shōtoku'' (which is ''go-on'') is pronounced as such in some derived placenames, but as '' Seitoku'' (which is ''kan-on'') in others. However, some ''go-on'' sounds are now lost. Even though monolingual
Japanese dictionaries have a history that began over 1300 years ago when Japanese Buddhist priests, who wanted to understand Chinese sutras, adapted Chinese character dictionaries. Present-day Japanese lexicographers are exploring computerized editing and electronic ...
list a complete inventory of ''go-on'' for all characters, some were actually reconstructed using the '' fanqie'' method or were inferred to be the same as their modern
homophone A homophone () is a word that is pronounced the same as another word but differs in meaning or in spelling. The two words may be spelled the same, for example ''rose'' (flower) and ''rose'' (past tense of "rise"), or spelled differently, a ...
s.


Names

''Go-on'' readings were formerly referred to as . The term 'go-on' was first introduced in the mid-Heian, likely by people who wished to promote ''kan-on'' readings. During the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
, people in Chang'an referred to their own way of reading characters as and all other readings, particularly those originating south of the
Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
, as or one of many other similar names. It is thought that Japanese students studying in China adopted this practice, and, taking the position that the Chang'an-based manner of elocution were the correct ones, they also began to refer to the previously imported, unfashionable kanji readings as "''go-on''". ''Go-on'' readings were also occasionally referred to as and because of a story that claims a Baekjean nun named had taught Buddhism in Tsushima by reading the '' Vimalakīrti Sutra'' entirely in ''go-on''.


Characteristics

''Go-on'' readings are generally less orderly than ''kan-on'' readings, but can be characterized as follows. *
voiced consonant Voice or voicing is a term used in phonetics and phonology to characterize speech sounds (usually consonants). Speech sounds can be described as either voiceless (otherwise known as ''unvoiced'') or voiced. The term, however, is used to refe ...
s in
Middle Chinese Middle Chinese (formerly known as Ancient Chinese) or the Qieyun system (QYS) is the historical variety of Chinese language, Chinese recorded in the ''Qieyun'', a rime dictionary first published in 601 and followed by several revised and expande ...
were distinguished from unvoiced consonants when they occurred in syllable-initial positions. * Syllable-initial
nasal consonant In phonetics, a nasal, also called a nasal occlusive or nasal stop in contrast with an oral stop or nasalized consonant, is an occlusive consonant produced with a lowered velum, allowing air to escape freely through the nose. The vast majo ...
s are pronounced as nasals (''m-'', ''n-'') in Middle Chinese, but in ''kan-on'', they are interpreted as voiced plosives (''b-'', ''d-''). * In some characters, ''-o'' and ''-u'' are both acceptable and widespread, e.g., 素 (''so'', ''su''), 奴 (''do'', ''nu'') and 都 (''to'', ''tsu'').


See also

* '' On'yomi'': Sino-Japanese readings ** '' Kan-on'': a later type of reading ** '' Tō-on'': an even later type of reading *
Checked tone A checked tone, commonly known by the Chinese calque entering tone, is one of the four syllable types in the phonology of Middle Chinese. Although usually translated as "tone", a checked tone is not a tone in the western phonetic sense but rathe ...


References

{{Japanese language Kanji Nanjing