Japanese Early Modern Palaeography

Resources for the study of kuzushiji and hentaigana

There are a number of online materials that have gathered information about what resources are available to start working on early modern Japanese materials written in cursive.

Kuzushiji Reading Resources | What can I do with a B.A. in Japanese Studies? (shinpaideshou.com) (Paula Curtis)

Digital Resources for Japanese Palaeography – The Digital Orientalist (Dr James Morris)

CJR-Kuzushiji-resources.pdf (ubc.ca) (Bianca Chui)

Kuzushiji – Japanese Digital Resources – Guides at Penn Libraries (upenn.edu) (University of Pennsylvania)

Home – Japanese Kuzushiji & Hentaigana Resources – Research Guides at University of British Columbia (ubc.ca) (University of British Columbia).

Recommended reference materials for kana

Recommended reference materials for kanji

• Kodama Kōta 児玉幸多(ed.), Kuzushiji yōrei jiten くずし字用例辞典 (Tōkyōdō shuppan, 2002)  > This dictionary allows you to search characters through their radical, the total number of strokes, their on yomi or kunyomi. (There is a CDRom version which runs on Japanese OS)
  

• Kodama Kōta 児玉幸多(ed.), Kuzushiji kaidoku jiten くずし字解読辞典 (Tōkyōdō shuppan, 1993)  > This dictionary allows you to search characters on the basis of the order used to write the calligraphic version.
  

• Tōkyō tegami no kai (ed.), Kuzushiji jiten くずし字辞典 (Shibunkaku shuppan, 2000)> This dictionary is extremely helpful for handwritten letters and for nyohitsu 女筆.
• 五体字類: digitized HERE.
  

Help from digital materials

If you want to try and scribble the sign you are trying to decode, use: AI Tegaki kuzushiji kensaku 手書きくずし字検索

If you have a picture of the sign you are trying to decode, use: 解析:木簡・くずし字解読システム (nabunken.go.jp)

Try out with radicals: 部首のくずし字 | 古文書便覧 (rokumeibunko.com)

For checking itaiji try out: GlyphWiki.

Many more materials are described in detail on Digital Resources for Japanese Palaeography – The Digital Orientalist.

Basic rules for honkoku 翻刻 (diplomatic transcription)

Please read the rules carefully.

An introduction to sōrōbun

Please refer to the manual Reading sōrōbun. A introductory manual (Only accessible to those enrolled on the summer school and password protected).