Dialects: Eastern Japanese, Western Japanese, Zu-zu-ben. Possibly related to Korean ,. Kagoshima dialect is 84% cognate with Tokyo dialect. Zu-zu-ben dialects unintelligible to other Japanese, and dying out as standard Tokyo Japanese takes over.
Status Notes: De facto national language.
Genealogy:
Demographics: 121,000,000 in Japan (1985). Population figure may include other ethnic groups. Population total all countries: 122,056,940. L2 users: 1,000,000 in Japan.
Language Development: Taught in primary and secondary schools. Fully developed. Bible: 1883–1987.
Typology: SOV; postpositions; demonstrative, numeral, adjective, possessive, relative clause, proper noun precedes noun head; adverb precedes verb; sentence final question particle; CV.
Spoken In: Japan
Writing System: Braille, Han, Hiragana, Katakana
Nation of Origin: Japan
Other Comments: Buddhist, Shintoist.