Paper short abstract:

In this presentation of a case study using speaker information annotated in the Share-bon and Ninjo-bon corpora (sub-corpora of the CHJ Edo period series), we will show which words and expressions are related to the gender of the characters.

Paper long abstract:

Various characters appear in the Share-bon and Ninjo-bon books, which constitute spoken language materials in Early Modern Japanese. In the analysis of Early Modern Japanese, it is necessary to consider the various attributes of the characters, so detailed speaker information (gender, status, generation, region, etc.) is annotated in the Share-bon and Ninjo-bon corpora (sub-corpora of the CHJ Edo period series).

As is well known, in Japanese, the vocabulary and expressions used may differ depending on the gender of the speaker. However, it is not yet clear what kinds of words and expressions in Early Modern Japanese show such gender differences. In addition, while the Share-bon books describe the human relationship of guests and courtesans in the special environment of the Yuri, the Ninjo-bon books describe various human relationships in general society, and thus, the social relationships between the characters are different. Therefore, there is a possibility that linguistic gender differences seen in the Share-bon books will not appear in the Ninjo-bon books.

Therefore, in this presentation, we will use speaker information annotated in these two corpora to show specifically which words and expressions are related to the gender of the characters. When giving specific examples, the following distinctions are made.

1. What are the words and expressions that show gender differences in the Share-bon books, but not in the Ninjo-bon books?

2. What are the words and expressions that do not differ by gender in the Ninjo-bon books, but do differ in the Share-bon books?

3. What are the words and expressions that show gender differences in both the Share-bon books and the Ninjo-bon books?

This determines the words and expressions that show gender differences in Early Modern Japanese, helping to clarify whether the differences are found in a specific text genre or generally in Early Modern Japanese.

Furthermore, the characteristics and tendencies of the words and expressions corresponding to 1 to 3 above are also analyzed from various viewpoints.