Japanese Dictionaries- The Kojien vs. the Super Daijirin
Mar 26th, 2005 by Q
Kojien vs. Super Daijirin
Many users of Japanese electronic dictionaries may not use the Japanese/Japanese dictionary included. It certainly may look intimidating to intermediate or even advanced students. Many intermediate students could stand to benefit from experimenting with the Japanese dictionary, as they may be surprised with how much they do understand. The Super Daijirin dictionary that replaces the Kojien in many new electronic dictionaries makes it easier for Japanese learners to make use of the Japanese dictionary. This article is a brief comparison between the Kojien and the Super Daijirin dictionaries.
It may seem like a subtle difference that a lot of the newer electronic dictionaries have the Super Daijirin (3rd Edition) Japanese dictionary instead of the Kojien (5th Edition). The only apparent difference upon first glance is that the Kojien has 230,000 entries while the Daijirin has 250,000. This is admittedly minor, as those 20,000 extra words will probably not be noticed by the average student of Japanese. There are, however, several major differences between the two. We can compare these two dictionaries in the context of their function in the Canon Wordtank G50, which contains the Kojien, with the new Canon Wordtank G55, which has been upgraded to the Daijirin.
When using the phrase search, the Daijirin dictionary includes hiragana readings for many kanji in parenthesis after the kanji. In the Kojien you will also find this on occasion, but it is rather rare. Let’s look at an example saying from the phrase dictionary:
Kojien:
背に腹はかえられぬ
さしせまったことのためには他を顧みるゆとりがない。狂、武悪「背に腹はかへられず討手に向かうた」
The Daijirin entry:
背（せ）に腹はかえられぬ
さし迫った苦痛を逃げれるためには、他を犠牲にすることもやむを得ない。
In this case the hiragana reading provided isn’t all that helpful, but there are many cases where it is. When you compare the definitions, the difference is more striking. The Kojien explanation is significantly more difficult to read, and the examples provided afterward make an obscure reference to a character in Japanese theatre. The definition in the Kojien literally reads “There’s no time to reflect on other things in the face of urgency.” After this it quotes a line from a Kyogen play (a type of traditional Japanese theatre related to Noh). The Daijirin definition is a great deal easier to read, and translates literally as “In order to escape from impending suffering, you can’t help but sacrifice something (else).”
In general the definitions in the Daijirin are fairly easy to read, while in many cases a non-native of Japanese would have more trouble reading Kojien definitions, which often contain words more difficult than the one they are defining. There are also many cases where the Daijirin is simply more complete, and contains usage or definitions not given in the Kojien. For example:
暴れん坊(あばれんぼう)
Kojien:
思うままに振舞う人。あばれもの。「世界の―」
Daijirin:
１．けんかやいたずらをする活発な子供。「うちの子は―で困る」
2．周囲を気にせず強引な行動をする人。「世界の―」「―ぶりを発揮する」
The Kojien’s definitions are “a person who behaves however they want” and a “violent person.” The Daijirin’s definitions translate as: “1. An energetic child that gets into fights and causes mischief. 2. A person who behaves forcefully without regard for people around him.” The most popular use of this word is with regard to overactive children, so the Daijirin wins in this case.
The Kojien, however, is the Japanese dictionary. When people show the definition of words on Japanese TV, they always quote the Kojien. It is the old standby and is similar to an English dictionary meant for native English speakers in that the definitions are formal and not always easy to read. In some cases the information in the Kojien is longer and more informative than that in the Daijirin, but it seems that non-native speakers would most appreciate simple language and conciseness, as the longer a Japanese definition is, the higher the likelihood of encountering more unknown words, rendering the definition opaque. One example of a huge difference in the quantity of content is the word wakizashi (short sword):
Kojien:
わき・ざし[脇差・脇指]
1． 腰挿（こしざし）に同じ。宇津保物語(藤原君)「中媒に―らおうさして請はしめむ」
2． （ワキサシとも）傍に付き添っている人。侍者。徒然草
3． (abbreviated)
4． …
Daijirin
わきざし[脇差・脇指]
１． 大刀の脇に差す刀の意。大刀とともに腰に差す小刀。
２． 腰刀。まもりがたな。
３． 腰挿に同じ。
４． 道中差しに同じ。
The Kojien entry contained four very long-winded definitions, with the first one referencing the Utsubomonogatari, a Heian era story. The fourth definition (which was too long to write here) included history of the wakizashi in the Muromachi era. This sort of thoroughness might be just what you’re looking for, or it might be confusing as hell. The Daijirin is short and concise. Defining exactly what a wakizashi is, a short sword worn at the hip with a katana, and includes some synonyms. For someone just trying to figure out what the word means, this might be preferable to the history lesson contained in the Kojien.
If you already own a Japanese electronic dictionary and haven’t explored the Japanese dictionary yet, it’s certainly worth doing. In many cases when struggling through a novel or essay, you’ll inevitably come across words not in the Japanese to English dictionary, and will have to rely on the Japanese dictionary. Just looking at definitions and jumping around the dictionary looking up words in the definitions that you don’t know can be a fun way to study and learn new words. If you don’t own a Japanese electronic dictionary, and are looking into buying one, be sure to compare the Kojien and Daijirin for yourself and see which one you prefer, as eventually you’ll need to switch over to it when you outgrow the Japanese to English dictionary.
Nice comparison, will definitely influence my next electronic dictionary purchase, thanks!
Is there a way to look up the Japanese name for English words in purely kana instead of Kanji? ex: I want to find the Japanese word for ‘turtle’ in kana so I can use it immediately in a conversation. I know the reverse is possible but I don’t see a way to do this yet with my G55. Maybe there’s a way to jump?
I dunno – the other big thing is: how to find Kanji. ex: If I’m walking down the street in Japan and see a sign I want to translate, that kind of thing. Seems like you have to already know Japanese to use it in many ways.
1.This is easily solved by using the jump function. When you look for the word ‘turtle’ in the English-Japanese Dictionary (and in this case the katakana are given ‘カメ’), use the jump function in the explanation screen and select any kanji you can’t read. For example, select ‘亀’ under note 3, and the dictionary will jump to another screen, where you can choose in which other dictionary wou want to look up the word. In most cases, the readings of the kanji are included.
2.For looking up kanji you can’t read, got to the menu screen and select the æ¼¢å—æº(Kanji dictionary). In the menu, you can look up the kanji through reading（èªã¿ï¼‰, through the reading of a part of the kanji　（音訓èªã¿ï¼‰, through reading of the radical　（部å“èªã¿ï¼‰, through … （å付ã‘）(haven’t figured this one out yet), through number of strokes of the radical（部首画数） or through number of strokes of the whole kanji（ç·ç”»æ•°).
The ones you’ll need are the last two. First, you can count the number of strokes of the radical and fill in that number. another screen will appear where you will have to choose between all radicals that have the number of strokes you filled in. Select the one you need. Then you will see many kanji that have the radical you selected. In most cases, this list is terribly long, so the best thing you can do is count the strokes of the whole kanji. Then use the down arrow button (the one named 次見出㗠) and fill in the number of strokes of the whole kanji. You will then see a list of kanji having the radical you selected and having the number of strokes you counted. The kanji you are looking for should be in the list. Select that kanji and you will find the different readings under ((音))and　((æ„)), the meaning explaned in Japanese will be under æ„味. If you want to know the meaning in English, use the jump function or fill in the reading in the Japanese-English dictionary.
I know it must look terribly complicated, but after some practice you should get the hang of it. I hope this is of any help to you.
The print version of the Daijirin also notes the appropriate accent for every word. This is a huge advantage over the Kojien, especially for foreigners who easily get accents wrong. Do the electronic versions include accents?
I was curious if you found the loss of the Kenkyuusha’s collocations dictionary a hindrance compared to the G55. I haven’t used the G55 all that much, but the rich English collocations entries have always been good study, and the Oxford has only half of what the Kenkyuusha’s has. Any thoughts on this?