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Japanese language

Japanese language

2 3.9
The language people speak in Japan
  • noun
  • /dʒəˈpænɪz ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ/
translation icon : idioma japonés
  • The whole class was impressed; they'd never seen the Japanese language before.
  • learn the Japanese language
  • Japanese language and culture

I love Japanese culture in the Japanese language.

Examples

  • The Japanese language and cultural course offerings at SIUC have also been expanded.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The book is in her native Japanese language.

    Academic text (2004)
  • The children were very interested in the Japanese language.

    Academic text (1994)
  • I'm possibly considering a major in Japanese language and culture courses.

    Blog text (22)
  • According to another survey, there were 192,015 students of the Japanese language in 1998, an increase of 19 percent over 1995.

    Academic text (2004)
  • Also, I've been told that learning the Japanese language would benefit me much more (for obvious reasons).

    Blog text (22)
  • Native elites felt a loss of self-identity when the Japanese language was abruptly banned in social life.

    Academic text (2014)
  • The New York-born singer's Japanese language material is released via EMI under her full name, Utada Hikaru.

    Blog text (15)
  • The six-year common school courses consisted of ethics, Japanese language, classical Chinese (composition, reading, and calligraphy), arithmetic, music, and gymnastics.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Many students enroll in classes to learn the Japanese language while visiting Japan.

Synonyms

Japanese
vsJapanese language
22 2.3

The language spoken in Japan

emphasizes it is mainly used within Japan rather than abroad

Surface Forms

Morphology

Japanese + language

The meaning 'the language spoken by the Japanese people' is directly and compositionally derived from combining the adjective 'Japanese' with the noun 'language' — a standard modifier + head pattern. This is a common, cross-linguistic construction (e.g. 'French language'), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will immediately understand the phrase.

Etymology

Japanese language gets its name from the country Japan. The country's name in Japanese, Nippon or Nihon, means 'origin of the sun', so Japanese language simply means the way people in Japan speak.