The Kanagawa dialect (Japanese: 神奈川方言 kanagawa-ken hōgen) is the term used to describe the Japanese dialects spoken in Kanagawa Prefecture. As there is no single unified dialect throughout the prefecture, it is a collective term, with some of the regional dialects spoken including: the Sōshū dialect (used for areas that were formerly part of Sagami Province), the Yokohama dialect, the Hadano dialect and Shōnan dialect, among others.
Kanagawa dialects | |
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神奈川県方言 | |
Native to | Japan |
Region | Kanagawa |
Language family | |
Dialects |
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Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | – |
Glottolog | kana1290 |
The Kanagawa dialect, along with other dialects such as the Gunma, Saitama and Tama dialects, make up the wider West Kantō dialect. It is sometimes considered difficult to identify a dialect that is strictly unique to Kanagawa. This is due, in part, to its close similarity to other West Kanto dialects, particularly in areas that border other prefectures. For example, the southern Ashigara area shares features with east Shizuoka dialects, whilst the western part of the former Tsukui District, located in the far northwest of Kanagawa, possesses similarities with the Gunnai dialect of eastern Yamanashi Prefecture. Parts of the north of the prefecture that are proximate to the Tama Region of Tokyo or the more metropolitan special wards of Tokyo, share numerous traits with the dialects of these respective areas. Like many other parts of Japan, traditional dialects in Kanagawa are declining under the influence of standard Japanese. Owed to its proximity to Tokyo, this trend is even more notable in Kanagawa, especially in northern urban areas, such as Kawasaki, Sagamihara and Yokohama.
There is some general similarity in dialects spoken across the prefecture, with noticeable homogeny in phonology and pitch accent. There are greater recognised differences in grammar and vocabulary, however. Regionally, the largest differences are found in geographically separated areas, such as north and south of the Tanzawa Mountains or east and west of the Sagami River. In the case of the Sagami River, a notable exception is at its estuary (around Hiratsuka and Chigasaki) where areas on opposite banks have been connected historically via the Tōkaidō, leading to relatively fewer dialectal differences between them. Aside from north/south and east/west differences, there is notable variation in the Sagami Bay coastal area (also known as Shōnan), Miura Peninsula and the Ashigara region.
Below are the dialect sub-divisions proposed in 1961 by Sukezumi Hino. (Kawasaki and most of Yokohama were treated separately as a ‘Tokyo/Yokohama dialect’).
Phonology is typical for a West Kanto dialect, but less common traits exist in some areas.
Generally, the prefecture has the Tokyo-standard pitch accent, although some deviation is found west of the Sagami River, where ‘three-beat’ nouns such as a-sa-hi (あさひ morning sun) that are usually front-mora stressed in standard Japanese may become middle-mora stressed (a-sa-hi → a-sa-hi ).[1] There are also some examples of words that have an accent in standard Japanese becoming non-accented. This ‘non-accenting’ has also recently been observed in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area. Below are some examples of words that do not have a pitch accent in some Kanagawa dialects (stress is indicated by bold).
Standard Japanese | Kanagawa | |
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o-kyaku sama �(おきゃくさま customer) | → | o-kyaku sama �(おきゃくさま) |
seito (せいと students) | → | seito (せいと) |
jugyō (じゅぎょう lesson) | → | jugyō (じゅぎょう) |
tamago (たまご) | → | tamago (たまご) |
The particle be (べ) and its related expressions da be (だべ) and danbe (だんべ) are commonly used in Kanagawa. However, unlike other Kanto dialects the ending e (ぇ) sound is not lengthened, and in some areas (such as Hadano) these particles may lose their b- sound to become e (え) and da e (だえ). Kanagawa-native Masahiro Nakai (a member of the Japanese idol group SMAP) as well as the talent Thane Camus, both of whom hail from Fujisawa City, are known for often using these phrases. Particularly in the Shōnan area, yo (よ) is often attached to be to form be yo (べよ). For example:
Other sentence-ending particles common in Kanto dialects such as ne (ね) and sa (さ) are also widely used. In comparison with the Tokyo area, however, these particles are often lengthened (nē (ねぇ), sā (さぁ), yō (よ ぉ) and have an atypical intonation. Due to sometimes being perceived as rude or improper, some schools have encouraged students to avoid using these particles. Like many other Kantō dialects, polite speech is seldom used in Kanagawa dialects. The word kudasai (ください please) has multiple regional variants in Kanagawa. North of the Tanzawa Mountains it can become kunro (くんろ), whilst south of the mountains is may be said as kēro (けぇろ), kenro (けんろ) or kunna (くんな). In Shōnan, it is sometimes said as sē (せぇ), sassē (さっせぇ) and rassē (らっせぇ) (expressions shared with the coastal areas of the Izu Peninsula). West of the Sagami River, the question-indicating sentence-ending particle ke (け) is sometimes used, and the adverb bakari (ばかり full of, only) may become simply bē (べぇ). For example:
The adversative conjunction kedo (けど but) can be said as kendo (けんど), and in parts of Ashigara and Tsukui, the conjecture-indicating particle zura (ずら) may be used. For example:
Other notable grammatical and conversational features include:
The expression jan(ka) is a common expression in Yokohama and other parts of Kanagawa. It became frequently used from the Shōwa Era onwards, with presumed etymological origins in sō ja, an ka (dialectal variation of sonna koto ga aru ka (そんなことがあるのか Is there such a thing?) as shown below.[2]
It is thought to have been introduced to Kanagawa via the Tōkaidō, Kōshū Kaidō or Silk Road originally out of Aichi Prefecture, where it is believed to have roots in the Mikawa dialect.[3] In parts of the Miura Peninsula, jē (じぇえ) and jen (じぇん) are sometimes used instead.[4]
The table below shows some examples of different vocabulary between Kanagawa dialects (specifically the Hadano dialect) and standard Japanese.
English | Standard Japanese | Hadano (Kanagawa) |
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Throw away | suteru (捨てる) | uccharu (うっちゃる) |
Push | osu (押す) | oppesu (おっぺす) |
Talk / chat | shaberu (しゃべる) | kucchaberu (くっちゃべる) |
Cold (to the touch) | tsumetai (冷たい) | shakkoi (しゃっこい) |
Destroy (completely) | bukkowasu (ぶっ壊す) | bokkosu (ぼっこす) |
Last night | yuube (昨夜) | yunbe (ゆんべ) |
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