THE LINGUISTIC COMPLEXITY OF HOMONYMY IN THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE

Authors

  • Akhmedova Saodat Assistant Lecturer of High School of Japanese Studies Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies

Keywords:

Japanese Linguistics, Homonymy, Kanji, Pitch Accent, Sino-Japanese (Kango), Semantic Disambiguation, Phonology, Natural Language Processing (NLP), Kana-to-Kanji Conversion.

Abstract

This study analyzes the extensive nature of the homonymy (dōon-igi-go) phenomenon in the Japanese language, exploring its phonological origins, the role of kanji (characters) and pitch accent in semantic disambiguation, and the cognitive mechanisms employed by speakers. Unlike Indo-European languages, it is a common and systematic occurrence in Japanese for a single phonetic sequence to correspond to dozens of distinct semantic units. The research reveals the conflict between phonetic economy and semantic clarity. The results indicate that the Japanese writing system, pitch accent, and computational linguistics algorithms in digital systems serve as the primary mechanisms for resolving ambiguities in speech.

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References

Coulmas, F. (1989). The Writing Systems of the World. Blackwell Publishing.

Gottlieb, N. (2005). Language and Society in Japan. Cambridge University Press.

Kageyama, T. (2016). Handbook of Japanese Lexicon and Word Formation. De Gruyter Mouton.

Shibatani, M. (1990). The Languages of Japan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Takahashi, M., Shinchu, T., Yoshimura, K., & Shudo, K. (1996). Processing Homonyms in the Kana-to-Kanji Conversion. Fukuoka University, Japan.

Tsujimura, N. (2013). An Introduction to Japanese Linguistics. Wiley-Blackwell.

Vance, T. J. (2008). The Sounds of Japanese. Cambridge University Press.

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Published

2026-06-05

How to Cite

Akhmedova Saodat. (2026). THE LINGUISTIC COMPLEXITY OF HOMONYMY IN THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE. Journal of Applied Science and Social Science, 16(6), 66–68. Retrieved from https://www.internationaljournal.co.in/index.php/jasass/article/view/4548

Issue

Vol. 16 No. 6 (2026): Journal of Applied Science and Social Science

Section

Articles

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