Ideologies of Communication in Japan

Speakers, Interaction and the Creation of Difference

Edited by Patrick Heinrich, Florian Grosser, Saana Santalahti

Publication date:

15 July 2025

Publisher

Multilingual Matters

Dimensions:

234x156mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9781800419247

This book presents case studies of ideologies of communication in Japan which respond to recent epistemological and methodological developments in the field and reflect the subject-wide shift from ideologies of language to ideologies of communication. Chapters explore a wide range of language contexts, from formal language learning settings to video games, smartphones and language use in couples and by immigrants. The authors use an array of innovative methodological approaches and theoretical perspectives, including language portraits, soundscapes and social space. The book also contains chapters that present positive perspectives on ideologies, examining how they can be created and mobilized to inspire specific groups to pursue their interests. Together the chapters give a complex and inclusive picture of language in Japan and the current breadth of the field of ideologies of communication.

Tables and Figures
Contributors
Acknowledgements
Conventions

Chapter 1. Florian Grosser, Patrick Heinrich, Saana Santalahti: Ideologies of Communication in Japan: An Introduction and Overview

Part 1. International Encounters

Chapter 2. Riikka Länsisalmi: Constructing the 'seikatsusha' through Japanese as a Second Language: Ideologies of Communication in Language Education Policy and Locally Produced Learning Materials

Chapter 3. Kayoko Hashimoto: Monolingual Approach and Multilingual Learners: A New Phase of Japanese Language Education Policy

Chapter 4. Jae DiBello Takeuchi: L2 Japanese Speakers and Language Ideologies: The Impact of Monolingual Bias on Beliefs about Unwanted Code-Switching

Chapter 5. Florian Grosser: Emotion, Competence and Context in a Multilingual Relationship: A Metapragmatic Perspective

Chapter 6. Patrick Heinrich: Ameyoko Shopping Street in Tokyo: Urban Space as an Ideological Palimpsest

Part 2. Mediated Communication in the Digital Age

Chapter 7. Wesley C. Robertson: Orthography, Identity and Ideology: Script Variation as a Social Practice in Japan(ese)

Chapter 8. Eugenia Diegoli: Normative Practices of Linguistic Correction on Hatsugen Komachi: A Corpus-Assisted Approach to (Meta)discourses around Linguistic 'Mistakes'

Chapter 9. Lorenzo Moretti: Enregisterment, Indexicality and Iconisation in Contemporary Japanese Fictionalised Orality: Creativity of Independent Game Developers in Written Video Game Dialogue

Chapter 10. Francesco Vitucci: Language Ideologies and Gender Stereotypes: Representation of Adult Masculine Speech in the Japanese Dub of the American Series Never Have I Ever

Part 3. Minoritized Communities

Chapter 11. Takeshi Nakashima: Ableism toward Language by People with Disabilities: The Relationship between the Body and Ideology

Chapter 12. Saana Santalahti: Sowing Seeds of Knowledge for Future Generations: Possibilities to Empower Ainu Language and People through Tourism

Chapter 13. Yumiko Ohara: Questioning, Challenging and Reformulating Dominant Language Ideologies in Japan: The Cases of Ainu and Uchinaaguchi

Saana Santalahti, Florian Grosser, Patrick Heinrich: Conclusion: The Creation and Contestation of Difference

Index

Japan is undergoing profound changes, mainly driven by demographic dynamics: ageing, population decline, immigration. This is also reflected in changing communication practices and ideologies inspected in this volume. By expounding the complex interaction of gender relations, non-native speakerhood, social roles and cultural dynamics it helps us understand the growing diversity and increasing disparities that characterise Japan today.