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Related Experiment Video

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Training Synesthetic Letter-color Associations by Reading in Color

Training Synesthetic Letter-color Associations by Reading in Color

Published on: February 20, 2014

The modern Japanese color lexicon.

Ichiro Kuriki¹, Ryan Lange², Yumiko Muto³

¹Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japanikuriki@riec.tohoku.ac.jpwww.vision.riec.tohoku.ac.jp/ikuriki.

Journal of Vision

|March 2, 2017

Summary

This study identified 16 Japanese color categories, including 8 basic terms and 8 additional terms. "Mizu" (water) is a potential 12th basic color term, showing shifts in the Japanese color lexicon over time.

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Area of Science:

Linguistics
Psychology
Color Science

Background:

The Japanese color lexicon has been a subject of ongoing research, with persistent questions regarding the exact number of basic color terms and their distribution.
Previous studies have not fully elucidated the nuances of Japanese color categorization and its comparison to other languages.

Purpose of the Study:

To identify and quantify Japanese basic color terms and their deployment across the color spectrum.
To compare the Japanese color-naming system with American English.
To investigate potential changes in the Japanese color lexicon over the past three decades.

Main Methods:

57 native Japanese speakers were surveyed, providing monolexemic color terms for 320 chromatic and 10 achromatic Munsell color samples.
K-means cluster analysis was employed to identify statistically distinct color categories.
The identified Japanese color categories were compared with American English color terms and previous study data.

Main Results:

16 statistically distinct Japanese chromatic categories were identified, comprising 8 basic color terms and 8 additional terms.
"Mizu" (water) was recognized by 98% of participants, indicating its potential as a 12th basic color term.
Two distinct Japanese color-naming systems (motifs) were found, primarily differing in the application of "mizu."
Comparisons revealed similarities and differences between Japanese and American English color systems, with certain terms unique to each language.

Conclusions:

The study provides a detailed map of the Japanese color lexicon, identifying 16 distinct chromatic categories.
"Mizu" shows strong potential as a 12th basic color term in Japanese.
Evidence suggests the Japanese color lexicon has evolved over the last 30 years, highlighting the dynamic nature of language.